Fresh evidence, potentially including a confession, has come to light during an investigation by the fifth estate, a CBC program, looking into the mysterious disappearance of a man in northern British Columbia.
The individual in question, Cole Hosack, went missing on New Year’s Eve in 2023 after leaving a bar in Dawson Creek, situated 1,200 kilometers north of Vancouver.
The inquiry is part of a CBC podcast series called The Mile Zero Murders, which is a result of a two-year probe into a string of vanishings and violent incidents in a small community with a population of 13,000.
Over the past five years, a total of fifteen people have gone missing or have been killed, with nine of these incidents occurring in 2023 alone, including Hosack’s case. The Royal Canadian Mounted Police (RCMP) have stated that they believe Hosack is deceased.
The fifth episode of the podcast, available on Mondays, features an interview with an anonymous source who claims to have overheard a conversation where a man confessed to being involved in Hosack’s disappearance on the fateful night.
The source relayed, “He openly confessed in front of a group of people that he played a significant role in Cole Hosack’s disappearance and that it was unintentional.” Due to concerns for the source’s safety, their identity is being safeguarded.
The individual allegedly heard confessing is identified as 29-year-old local resident Matt Lawton, reportedly affiliated with the drug scene in Dawson Creek.
“[Lawton] openly acknowledged that they had picked up [Hosack] and that he owed them for drugs,” the source disclosed.
When confronted by the fifth estate, Lawton refuted any involvement in Hosack’s disappearance, claiming he was unfamiliar with the name Cole Hosack.
“I’m not aware of who that is,” Lawton told podcast host and fifth estate producer Timothy Sawa, who clarified that Hosack went missing while visiting Dawson Creek in 2023.
“I have no idea,” Lawton insisted.
Fifth estate host Mark Kelley asks Matt Lawton about Cole Hosack’s disappearance.
Hosack’s case gained national attention in 2024.
At that time, he was the fourth individual to vanish from the small town within the same year. The RCMP is treating all four disappearances as homicides. Furthermore, there were five additional killings reported in that year.
