New developments in the mysterious disappearance of an 'occult-obsessed' student in Brazil suggest that his vanishing may have actually been an elaborate hoax!
The story of Bruno Borges spawned worldwide headlines after the young man went missing in late March and footage revealed that his bedroom had been covered from floor to ceiling with cryptic text.
Subsequent news stories detailed how Borges had become obsessed with the occult and left behind 14 coded books prior to his disappearance.
Alien iconography found amongst his writings had some observers speculating that Borges had made contact with ETs or, perhaps, was silenced by the 'powers that be' due to his research.
However recent events now indicate that Borges' fate was likely far less sensational than that.
Last week, authorities in Brazil executed a search warrant at the home of his friend Marcelo Ferreira and recovered a pair of contracts which appear to shed damning new light on Borges' disappearance.
The contracts, one of which was taken to a notary by Borges on the day of his disappearance, details a plan for his books to be published and for a percentage of the proceeds to go to Ferreira and two other individuals.
When police searched one of their homes, they found some of Borges' furniture, which they believe had been taken there in order to allow his bedroom to be seen as barren in the footage which emerged after his disappearance.
Police subsequently charged Ferreira for lying to authorities since he claimed to have last seen Borges on March 26th, but actually had gone with him to the notary on the 27th.
They are also planning to soon question the friend who had taken possession of the missing man's furniture in the hopes of learning more about the circumstances by which he obtained the items.
Nonetheless, a Brazilian law enforcement official told the TV station Globo that "it is very conclusive that it was not a disappearance whatsoever, it was in fact a conscious plan of remoteness" and that the three people named in the contract may have had a hand in helping Borges vanish.
For their part, Borges' family expressed skepticism that the young man's disappearance was actually a marketing scheme.
That said, in a statement to the news outlet Veja, his mother also noted that the first book from her son will be published soon, which certainly raises suspicions surrounding their role in the case.
And, of course, despite the discovery of the contracts which call into question the veracity of Borges' vanishing, the young man is still missing and his whereabouts remain a mystery.
But with Brazilian authorities pressuring his friends and the alleged marketing plan apparently unraveling, it would not be too surprising if he suddenly emerges sometime soon or police manage to determine where he is currently located.