Douglas Schantz, 54 Houston energy Exec disappeared 3/5/10 in New Orleans, LA (body found)

[MuffyBee]

http://www.foxnews.com/story/0,2933,588562,00.html

New Orleans Search Team Finds Body in Mississippi River

 DEVELOPING: Fox News affiliates in Houston and New Orleans are reporting that a body has been found in the Mississippi River. Police are not confirming whether it is the body of missing oil executive Douglas Schantz.

The body is described as a white man dressed in a suit, Fox8live.com in New Orleans reports.

A search team from the Houston area began searching Tuesday for the top executive of a Houston energy company who was last seen early Friday morning leaving a bar on Bourbon Street in New Orleans. Police no longer suspect foul play, but instead believe Schantz may have fallen into the river, Fox8live.com reports.

Texas EquuSearch arrived in New Orleans on Monday night to assist in the search for Douglas Schantz, 54, president of Sequent Energy Management, L.P. About 30 detectives also were looking for Schantz.

Searching through videos from businesses in the French Quarter, police were able to trace Schantz from a Bourbon Street bar to the dock for the Riverboat Natchez.

Police Superintendent Warren Riley said Tuesday that Schantz, who left the Razzoo Bar and Patio about 2 a.m. Friday, was seen walking on a 2-foot walkway by the river.

Riley says the man, who had been drinking, seemed disoriented. In another article this is contradicted, imo:

http://www.chron.com/disp/story.mpl/ap/tx/6903612.html
Schantz, president of Houston-based Sequent Energy Management, was in New Orleans to give Tulane University a $25,000 gift during a reception Thursday. After the dinner, he and colleagues went to Bourbon Street at about midnight, said Mark Homestead, a senior vice president who was with Schantz.

Schantz had not had too much to drink and he left the bar before the rest of the group, Homestead said.

"We didn't think anything of it," he said.  My comments in blue-MuffyBee    No one realized Schantz was missing until he didn't turn up for a meeting the next day.



He said the Coast Guard, police and private boats were searching the river.

Schantz's son, Michael Schantz, and John W. Somerhalder II, chairman, president and chief executive officer of AGL Resources Inc., spoke about Schantz in downtown Houston on Monday. AGL Resources Inc. is the parent company of Sequent Energy Management, L.P.

"He's such a good dad. My mom dearly misses him," said Michael Schantz.

Douglas Schantz's credit cards and cell phone have not been used. He was visiting New Orleans with several employees to make a donation to his daughter’s university, Tulane, but never arrived at the airport for the flight home. The reward for information about Schantz's disappearance has been increased to $25,000.

[MuffyBee]

http://online.wsj.com/article/SB10001424052748704784904575111681918642068.html?mod=WSJ_hpp_MIDDLENexttoWhatsNewsTop
AGL Resources Executive Likely Fell in Mississippi River, Police Say
March 9, 2010

y SUSAN DAKER

HOUSTON—An AGL Resources Inc. executive who has been missing since Friday likely fell into the Mississippi River by accident after leaving a bar in the French Quarter, the New Orleans Police Department said Tuesday.

Foul play is no longer suspected in the disappearance of Douglas Schantz, president of Sequent Energy Management, a subsidiary of AGL, police said.

"We surmise at this point that it is an accident," said Assistant Superintendent Marlon Defillo of the New Orleans Police Department. "Our focus now is on the water."

Police surveillance cameras reviewed late Monday show Mr. Schantz walking in a restricted area near the Steamboat Natchez, a dinner-cruise boat that is docked in the French Quarter.

The video doesn't show Mr. Schantz falling into the water, Mr. Defillo said. But it shows him walking around the vessel at about 2:40 a.m. Friday and then leaving the camera's view, Mr. Defillo said. Mr. Schantz never reappears in sight and would have been captured by one of three cameras in the area if he had walked away, Mr. Defillo said.

The U.S. Coast Guard has been searching the water since Monday but hasn't located Mr. Schantz.

The 54-year-old executive was alone at the time and there is no evidence that he had been hassled by anyone since leaving Razzoo Bar & Patio, a few blocks from the river. When asked about Mr. Schantz's physical state in the video, Mr. Defillo said "He had been drinking and I'll leave it at that."

At the time of his disappearance, Mr. Schantz had a cold and was being treated with antibiotics, his son Michael Schantz said Monday. Mr. Schantz also suffers from high cholesterol and high-blood pressure, Michael Schantz said.
More...

[MuffyBee]

http://www.ajc.com/business/body-found-near-spot-357220.html?cxtype=rss_news_128746
Body found near spot where exec disappeared
Tuesday, March 9, 2010

NEW ORLEANS -- A Texas-based nonprofit group that has been searching for a missing oil executive in New Orleans has found a body.
Tim Miller, president and founder of Texas Equusearch, said the unidentified body was found Tuesday in the Mississippi River, "very, very near" the spot where 54-year-old Douglas Schantz, president of Houston-based Sequent Energy Management, was last spotted on a security video Friday morning. Sequent Energy is a division of Atlanta-based AGL Management.

It was not known if the body was that of Schantz. Miller said Schantz's brother was to help with the identification.

Police said they believe Schantz may have fallen into the Mississippi River about a half-hour after leaving a Bourbon Street bar.

A camera captured an image of Schantz on a 2- to 3-foot wide gangplank near a riverboat at 2:40 a.m., said Police Chief Warren Riley. Then Schantz disappeared from view.

"We know he had been drinking and appeared disoriented," Riley said, according to the New Orleans Times Picayune.

Schantz, 54, had traveled New Orleans to make a donation to Tulane University on Thursday night.

His company on Monday increased the reward for information leading to Schantz to $25,000, according to the Times-Picayune.

Schantz didn’t make his scheduled flight back to Houston, and hasn’t called or e-mailed colleagues or his family, company spokeswoman Tami Gerke said Monday.

Houston police say he also never made it back to his hotel, which is within walking distance of where he was last seen on Bourbon Street. Video cameras show him leaving Razzoo Bar and Patio at 2 a.m.

Police say his credit cards and ATM card have not been used.

Sequent manages pipeline capacity for AGL and for Georgia gas marketers.

AJC staff writer Margaret Newkirk and the Associated Press contributed to this article.

[MuffyBee]

http://abcnews.go.com/Business/missing-houston-executive-douglas-schantz-spotted-orleans/story?id=10052583
(Video Avail)
Houston Executive Douglas Schantz Has Been Missing Since Friday
Authorities are Combing the Mississippi River for Clues Into Schantz Disappearance

Tuesday, March 9, 2010

The family of energy executive Douglas Schantz, who disappeared in New Orleans on Friday, are fearing the worst after a body was found today in the Mississippi River.
Schantz, 54, was last seen on a surveillance video stumbling up a narrow gangplank onto the docked riverboat Natchez at 2:30 a.m. Friday when he suddenly disappeared. There is no video of Schantz leaving the boat, officials said, and they believe he may have fallen into the river.

Schantz's 25-year-old son Michael Schantz has seen one of several videos that caught his father walking towards the Natchez.

"Of course I am hoping for the best, and if a miracle happened it would happen to him because of everything he's done for the community," said 25-year-old Michael Schantz. "But I've accepted the fact that I might have to take over for the family."
Michael Schantz said that one video showed his father "stumbling" and "grasping for a wall" as he made his way to the dock.

"[In the video] he walks down near the water and there is a gate that he opens," the son said. "I'm sure he just wanted to go reflect or look at the boat."
"There is only one way for him to come back and the tape never shows him coming back," he said.

Schantz had left a bar on New Orleans' famous Bourbon Street where he had been drinking with colleagues from Sequent Energy Management. Schantz was president of Sequent Energy Management.

Schantz, who is from Houston, was in New Orleans to donate a $25,000 scholarship to Tulane University, where his daughter is a senior. Schantz headed to the French Quarter after a reception held by the school. He was scheduled to fly home the next day.

He was first reported missing by his wife, Lori, on March 5 when he failed to show up to pick up his daughter from the Houston airport and missed a scheduled presentation at work.
Missing Houston Exec Believed to Have Fallen Into Mississippi

But police said today that surveillence tape from Bourbon Street cameras showed Schantz wandering down to the river, spurring a search of the Mississippi River.

Michael Schantz said that his father had been traveling to Brazil before his trip to Louisiana, and was fighting off a cold as well as being extremely "sleep-deprived." He worried that a combination of over-the-counter cold medicine and alcohol may have lead his father to do something dangerous.

"He thinks he's invincible and that nothing is going to hurt him," Michael Schantz said of his father. "He is just fearless."

Michael Schantz says he feared that his father's attraction to the river may have cost him his life.

"My dad loved the water and he was just such a busy guy with work that every time he had a moment to reflect by himself he wanted to be by the water," he said. "He loves any chance he gets to be in or by the water."'

NOPD Superindendent Warren Riley told The Associated Press that police no longer believes that Schantz was the victim of foul play.

It was originally thought that Schantz, who is a high-paid executive for the natural gas company, may have been targeted.

"We're not certain, but it appears Mr. Schantz may have fallen into the river," said Riley. "At no point was he ever approached or accompanied by any individual."

Michael Schantz said that he and his two younger siblings and their mom are bracing for bad news.

"He wasn't only a father to us, he was also a best friend and a role model," he said. "My brother has some special needs and doesn't have that many friends and my dad was always just so patient and loves him to death."

Schantz's wife, Lori, is not doing well, said the son.

"He was the love of her life. They've been married 29 years and first met when they were teenagers," he said.

"But we're hoping for the best, and preparing for the worst."

[klaasend]

It appears they found his body:

http://www.wwltv.com/news/NOPD-believes-missing-Houston-man-fell-into-Miss-River-87114097.html

by WWLTV.com

Posted on March 9, 2010 at 9:56 AM

Body found in river is missing Houston exec

NEW ORLEANS - Police have confirmed the body of a man pulled from the Mississippi River is that of missing Houston executive Doug Schantz, according to Associated Press.

Police pulled the body of a man from the Mississippi River Tuesday morning but had to wait to confirm through family members whether it is was the missing Houston man. The body was found near where authorities suspect he may have fallen into the river.

(snipped)

[SunnyinTX]

so sad.......RIP Douglas Schantz. At least his family knows it was an accident and not a crime.

[MuffyBee]

Rest in peace, Douglas Schantz. 

[MuffyBee]

http://www.statesman.com/news/texas/missing-execs-body-found-in-river-in-new-334835.html
Missing exec's body found in river in New Orleans
By MARY FOSTER

The Associated Press
Tuesday, March 9, 2010
NEW ORLEANS — A body pulled from the Mississippi River near the French Quarter on Tuesday was that of a missing Texas oil company executive, police said.

Police believe Douglas Schantz, 54, president of Houston-based Sequent Energy Management, drowned accidentally, said Bob Young of the New Orleans police department.

"He had all his credit cards, his jewelry was on him," Young said. "At this time we feel it was accidental."

Tim Miller, president and founder of search and recovery company Texas Equusearch, said the body was found shortly after noon Tuesday in the river "very, very near" the spot where Schantz was last seen on a security video Friday morning.

"We went out and got a clear picture of it right away," Miller said. "So then we just brought it up."

Police began focusing on the river after tracing Schantz's route there from a Bourbon Street bar. Police searched videos from businesses in the French Quarter were able to place Schantz at the dock for the Riverboat Natchez at about 2:40 a.m. on Friday.

Police Superintendent Warren Riley said Tuesday that Schantz, who left the Razzoo Bar and Patio about 2 a.m. Friday, was seen walking on a 2-foot-wide walkway by the river.

Riley said Schantz, who had been drinking, seemed disoriented on the videos. He is seen going into a restricted area and is not seen again on the video, despite a review of the following four hours of tape, Riley said.

It does not seem that Schantz was the victim of foul play, which had earlier been suspected, Riley said.

"At no point in that 36 minutes was he ever approached or accompanied by any individual," Riley said.

Schantz was in New Orleans to give Tulane University a $25,000 gift during a reception Thursday. After the dinner, he and colleagues went to Bourbon Street around midnight, said Mark Homestead, a senior vice president who was with Schantz.

Police mounted a massive effort to find Schantz, with 30 detectives scouring the French Quarter for videos showing his path after leaving his co-workers. The FBI, U.S. Marshal Service and Customs were also involved in the search.

On Monday a Coast Guard helicopter searched for 20 miles down-river but found no sign of Schantz.

[MuffyBee]

http://www.myfoxhouston.com/dpp/news/local/100309-body-wearing-suit-found-in-new-orleans-river
Company: Missing Executive's Body Found in New Orleans
Police have not yet confirmed body's identity
(Video Available)
Updated: Tuesday, 09 Mar 2010, 3:31 PM CST
Published : Tuesday, 09 Mar 2010, 12:10 PM CST


HOUSTON - Police say a body found in the Mississippi River is that of a missing a Houston business executive who went missing over the weekend, the Associated Press reports.

Police believe Douglas Schantz, 54, is the victim described to FOX 26 News by search volunteers as a "white male wearing a suit." A company executive also said the body is that of Schantz.

The discovery was made just before noon Tuesday by volunteers from Texas Equusearch, a Houston-based organization led by Tim Miller. Equusearch volunteers found Schantz's body in the river, near the French Quarter.

Schantz, a top executive of a Houston energy company, was last seen leaving a bar on Bourbon Street in New Orleans. Security cameras recorded him a short time later walking through the French Quarter.

New Orleans Police Superintendent Warren Riley said Schantz, who left the Razzoo Bar and Patio about 2 a.m. Friday, was seen on security video walking on a 2-foot walkway by the river. The video evidence led police to no longer suspect foul play, saying it was "likely" Schantz fell into the river and accidentally drowned.

Miller said while the possible outcome is bleak for the missing executive, the discovery is why Equusearch exists.

"They don't understand what this means to us," Miller told FOX 26 News in an exclusive interview. "Some of the other searchers were going away, but we stayed."

About 30 detectives worked with volunteers in the search for Schantz using sonar equipment.

Schantz is the president of Sequent Energy Management, L.P.

For more about Schantz and his disappearance, visit http://www.myfoxhouston.com/dpp/news/local/100308-missing-douglas-schantz

Check back with MyFoxHouston.com for updates to this story as they become available. FOX 26's Melinda Spaulding is the only reporter from Houston on the scene and will deliver a live report on FOX 26 News at 5 and 5:30 p.m.

[MuffyBee]

http://www.chron.com/disp/story.mpl/metropolitan/6906749.html
Coroner: Exec hit forehead in fall, then drowned
Wednesday, March 10, 2010

NEW ORLEANS — The New Orleans coroner says a Houston energy executive drowned in the Mississippi River, and apparently hit his forehead as he fell from a steamboat dock.

Dr. Frank Minyard said Wednesday that the autopsy of 54-year-old Douglas Schantz found a lesion on his forehead as well as evidence of drowning.

Minyard says he expects results of blood tests in two to three weeks, showing how much Schantz drank before leaving a Bourbon Street bar about 2 a.m. Friday. From the bar, Schantz wandered over to the Steamboat Natchez dock, climbed over a guard rail and fell from a slender ledge while walking toward the gangplank.

Schantz was president of Sequent Energy Management. He came to New Orleans to give Tulane University’s Energy Institute $25,000 from the company.

[MuffyBee]

http://www.legacy.com/dignity-memorial/obituary.aspx?n=Douglas-Schantz&lc=2673&mid=4167531
(Video and Guest Book Available)


Born: December 23, 1955
Died: March 5, 2010

Douglas Schantz
Energy executive DOUGLAS "DOUG"N. SCHANTZ, 54, of Katy, TX, died Friday, March 5, 2010. Mr. Schantz was born on December 23, 1955 in New York, NY. He spent much of his youth in Bethesda, MD. Mr. Schantz was president of Sequent Energy Management, a wholly owned subsidiary of AGL Resources Inc., offering asset management services to natural gas wholesale customers throughout the United States. Over the past six years, he oversaw the company's growth to a top 15 North American natural gas marketing company and a leading physical trading organization. Mr. Schantz was a graduate of the University of Virginia and held a master's degree in business administration with a concentration in finance from the University of Chicago. Mr. Schantz is survived by his wife, Lori E. Schantz, and three children, Michael B. Schantz, Brittany E. Schantz, and Matthew P. Schantz; stepmother, Erika B. Schantz; brother, Radford L. Schantz, Jr. and his wife, Karen; sister, Susanne E. Schantz and her husband, Duren Dexter; brother, Thomas B. Schantz and his wife, Eva; mother-in-law, Sylvia Ehrenfreund; sister-in-law, Dotti Bartlett and her husband, Brad; as well as many nephews and nieces. Mr. Schantz was preceded in death by his father, Radford L. Schantz, his fatherinlaw, Bernard "Jerry" Ehrenfreund; and mother, IngaBritta Elgcrona. Mr. Schantz was a generous and compassionate champion for the Juvenile Diabetes Research Foundation. More....

 A memorial service will be held for
those who would like to say their
final farewell on Saturday, March
13, 2010, at 1:30 p.m. CT at St.
Peter's United Methodist Church,
20775 Kingsland Blvd., Katy, TX
77450.
The family has requested that
in lieu of flowers donations be
made to Texas EquuSearch. Donations
may be made online at:
http://texasequusearch.org/. Donations
may also be made to a
trust fund to be designated by the
Schantz family