Statement #TeamArjen & Frank van de Goot
Arjen Kamphuis missing persons case
Last seen around Bodø, Norway, August 2018
Private research via crowdfunding on FindArjen.nl
Initiated by #TeamArjen; Sanne, Jos, Helma and Ancilla.
Conducted by researcher and pathologist Frank van de Goot & team — September 2022
Statement #TeamArjen and Frank van de Goot
First of all, a big thank you to everyone who sympathized with Arjen and his loved ones, and especially those who kindly donated to the crowdfunding. Through this statement we want to share the findings of the research that Frank van de Goot has been able to carry out for us in Norway.
Let’s recap briefly why we started this crowdfunded private investigation. Because our own additional research in the past year into Arjen’s disappearance left us with a lot of questions, which the police could not answer either, the following three scenarios (or a combination of them) are still possible: a self-imposed disappearance, a fatal accident, or intervention by a second party.
The purpose of an additional private investigation on site was to rule out or confirm at least one of these scenarios. Since the conclusion of the Norwegian police investigation was that Arjen drowned in a kayaking accident, we chose to focus at least on confirming or disproving this particular scenario in our investigation. Earlier we were able to determine that the video footage from the salmon factory, which may have shown a kayak, was not useful as evidence. The time of the sighting of Arjen by a credible eye witness in Rognan cannot possibly match these images. This means that the earlier conclusion of the police, on which it is partly based, is flawed.
Our investigation took place from 12 to 17 September in the area where Arjen was last seen, and from where the known trail ends. These are the towns of Bodø, Fauske, and Rognan.
Due to conflicting information, and unanswered questions about the current of the fjord, as well as locations of Arjen’s washed-up and found personal items, floats have been installed to determine the current with precision. The area has also been mapped where Arjen would have been seen by a credible eyewitness. The investigating team walked the entire country road, as well as speaking to locals and authorities.
The conclusions of the private investigation
Arjen’s last sighting was on August 20 around 9pm off the coast of Rognan. The wild camping site on the other side of the fjord is clearly visible from this spot. At the time of Arjen’s last sighting this campsite can no longer be reached by public transport. From Rognan, the campsite seems close, and the water calm. In practice, however, there is a great distance — more than 5 kilometers, an hour of kayaking for the experienced paddler.
The current at this location is very deceptive. If you enter the water it is quite possible to get caught in the strong undercurrent. In addition, the mooring place is a very slippery and steep area, and it is therefore impossible to get ashore at all. We don’t know why Arjen would want to stay at the wild camping, and whether he actually wanted to go there on this evening. But it fits in with the image we have of Arjen as friends. The wild camping is also a place where the truckers — who have partly found his stuff — could stop with their truck.
The floats that were set out, washed up on the exact spot where the kayak was found. There the floats ‘hung around’ for some time, after which they set course for the exit of the fjord, towards the open sea. The place where the kayak was found is on private property, and is therefore not easily accessible from another side. This makes it plausible that the items washed up naturally at the site where they were found.
This scenario can be matched with the data from Arjen’s telephone. Since Rognan’s cell tower is between buildings, and the Fauske cell tower is high up, it makes sense that the phone contacted the Fauske cell tower from the water, even though Arjen may have been closer to Rognan in terms of distance. This answers one of the important questions our investigation brought up.
Based on these findings in our investigation, Van de Goot concludes that Arjen most likely entered the water and died as a result of hypothermia and/or drowning. Even with a lifejacket on it is a very difficult task to get back on the kayak or swim to shore, and no guarantee of survival or even recovery of a body.
If this is indeed the scenario, it is likely that his body and some of his belongings floated out to sea, and were lost forever. The bottom of the fjord can be described as very mountainous, making searches with an underwater drone or recovering a body a hopeless task.
We are certainly stilll left with questions — it remains a guess as to why he made certain choices surrounding his journey. However, we will now also have to accept with great sadness that we will probably never get an answer to this. The most likely scenario is also the most painful for all of us, because it means that Arjen will most likely not be found again, dead or alive.
We request privacy to process this sad news together, and would like to refer to Frank van de Goot for additional questions regarding the investigation.
With great appreciation for the efforts of Frank and his team, and each other’s support, we can rest in the knowledge that after 4 years of our own investigation, we really did everything we could to find out the truth.
We are grateful that Arjen’s story, vision and ideas still inspire new people every day, and we take comfort in the fact that although we have lost a dear friend, his ideas live on.
Arjen will forever be dearly missed.
