Reddit is going nuts over a 7-year-old YouTube video police now say could be linked to the disappearance of a 15-year-old Wisconsin girl
A YouTube video posted to the subreddit "Unsolved Mysteries" is drawing widespread attention as footage of Kayla Berg, a then 15-year-old girl from Antigo, Wisconsin who went missing in 2009. The Antigo Police Department is now investigating the video as a potential lead in the seven-year-old case.
Reddit user "hammerforce9" started the thread with a post titled, "Is this a video of Kayla Berg?" The user then described some key details of the case of the missing teen before linking to an Imgur thread that originally re-posted the YouTube video with some screengrabs and analysis.
At this point, it's unclear whether the Imgur thread catalyzed the investigation. The Antigo Police Department announced on Facebook that it was investigating the video on Monday, about one hour before the Reddit post. The Reddit post linked to the Imgur thread, timestamped one day ago.
YouTube user "Hi Walter! It's me Patrick!" first posted the video, titled "Hi Walter! I got a new gf today!" to YouTube in October 2009 - two months after Berg was last seen. It features a man, presumably named Patrick, speaking to his friend, Walter, about a girl he claims to have met that day at the mall.
"Hi, Walter. I was at the mall today, and guess what happened?" the man begins in an excited voice. He describes meeting the "most wonderful girl," going shopping with her, and buying her jewelry.
"She picked out the most amazing necklace I've ever seen, and I know she wanted me to buy it for her because she kept on looking at me and kept on giving me that look. You know the look," the man continues.
He then describes leaving the mall and bringing the girl back to his place.
"I know she hates cameras, Walter, but I'm going to show you her anyway. You ready?" he asks before the video cuts to a shot of the man in what looks like a basement.
He walks over to a room in the basement and opens the door, revealing a girl who is bound and on her knees, crying, and making muffled yells. At one point, it sounds like the girl says, "Why are you doing this?" When the man enters the room and closes the door, the video abruptly ends.
The video has since been removed from YouTube for violating its "policy on harassment and bullying."
The video generated intense interest on the subreddit it was posted on, as users speculated about the video's authenticity and its potential link to Berg's disappearance.
Comment from discussion Is this a video Kayla Berg?.
Comment from discussion Is this a video Kayla Berg?.
Comment from discussion Is this a video Kayla Berg?.
A number of users also raised the possibility that the girl in the video is an actress named Sarah Bull. Bull, in a YouTube video of her own, claims visitors to her YouTube channel harassed her and "bombarded" her with questions about whether she's the girl in the video.
"I am not the girl in this video," she said.
Berg was last seen in Wausau, Wisconsin, on August 11, 2009 and was reported missing six days later, on August 17.
The police department told Business Insider it's investigating the video because of the date it was posted - exactly two months after the day Berg was last seen - and the girl's potential resemblance to Berg.
It asks that any parties with information pertaining to the investigation call the Antigo Police Department at (715)-627-6411.