The area was swampy and dangerous, with alligators and snakes. Police searched extensively, even checking alligators for any sign of Daniel, but found nothing. Bloodhounds were also used, but to no avail. His soda bottle was never found.

Daniel’s family doesn’t believe he wandered off on his own. He didn’t like water, and the thick, prickly bushes around the campsite would have made it painful for him to walk through barefoot.

Police considered abduction, but there was no ransom demand and the family wasn’t wealthy. However, there were some strange events leading up to his disappearance:

* **A month before:** A man in a car parked mysteriously outside their home and hid his face when Daniel’s mom approached.
* **Shortly after:** A neighbor saw a man looking into the boys’ bedroom window while they were asleep. Footprints were found.
* **The morning before the disappearance:** A stranger drove up next to their car at the store while Daniel and his brother were inside. The man just stared at them before leaving.

These incidents led the family to believe Daniel might have been kidnapped by someone who had been watching them.

The case was reopened in the 2000s, but many original files are missing. Daniel’s father passed away in 1965, his mother in 1995, and a brother in 1997. His surviving siblings still hope for answers.