The highway that separates Tijuana, Mexico, from the United States is called the Avenida Internacional. Dozens of people die here every year, most of them while trying to enter the U.S. illegally. On the night of May 5th, 1996, the scene facing local rescue crews was all too familiar. A pedestrian had allegedly been struck in a hit-and-run accident and was barely alive. He carried no identification and was classified as “Desconocido”, or unknown. The man died six days after the accident without regaining consciousness. Another 15 days passed before he was identified as 22-year-old Patrick Sean Kelly, a film student at the University of Southern California. Patrick always had a passion for writing and storytelling. By the time he went to college, he knew that he wanted to make movies. After months of intense effort, Patrick had just turned in his junior year end project, a full-length motion picture script. Patrick celebrated by watching a movie on video with his close friend Michael Park. Michael said that Patrick was very upbeat and was anxious to get on with his senior year and go out to Hollywood. Michael and Patrick watched the video for 45 minutes. Michael says he remembered having to go to bed because he had to get up early the next morning and last saw Patrick at 3:45 pm that afternoon. Patrick’s mother, Terri Kelly, was the first to notice something was wrong. She said that Patrick and herself agreed to call each other on Sunday evening while he was away at school. In three years, he never missed a call. Patrick did not call his mother that evening and Terri tried to get ahold of him but he would not answer. Terri asked Michael Park to go to Patrick’s room. It looked as if Patrick had just stepped out. His wallet was on the desk and his bags and clothes were in the closet, yet his passport was nowhere to be found. On Patrick’s answering machine, Michael found was a message from Patrick’s bank asking for a return call. Terri Kelly immediately phoned the bank and it was learned that several ATM transactions had been made that weekend in Mexico on Patricks credit card and his account was overdrawn. At 10:24 am on Saturday morning, Patrick had made a $60 withdrawal at a 7-11 in San Clemente, 63 miles south of Los Angeles. At 6:08 pm, another $135 was withdrawn at an ATM in the Tijuana tourist area. The next day, three more withdrawals at an ATM in downtown Tijuana bled Patrick’s account dry. Terri Kelly hired private detective Doug Roth to find Patrick. Doug began at the 7-11 in San Clemente. The surveillance tape from Saturday morning showed Patrick entering the store. He acted normally and there was no indication of trouble. Doug continued south to Mexico. At the border, he decided to check the parking lots where tourists leave their cars before entering Tijuana. Roth hit pay dirt right away. Patrick’s mud-caked car was parked along the back fence. There was damage to the front right bumper and the rear license plate was loose. According to Doug, it looked like someone other than Patrick had last driven the car. The driver’s seat was much closer to the steering wheel than would be consistent with someone who is 6’1” tall like Patrick was. The radio was turned to a Spanish American radio station, which was inconsistent with Patrick’s listening habits. Doug also had found a partially smoked cigarette in the ashtray of the car. Patrick was not a smoker and did not allow smoking in his car. The leads uncovered at the parking lot led Doug to the Tijuana morgue and the body of the unidentified pedestrian. Terri Kelly rushed to Mexico, fearing the worst. Terri was not allowed in the same room with the unidentified body and could only view it through a small glass window, but she knew it was her sons body. Terri and investigators began to wonder how exactly did Patrick die. What they do know is that at approximately 1:00 am on May 5th, a motorcyclist was heading east along the Avenida Internacional. Two pedestrians suddenly darted out in front of him. The motorcyclist lost control and hit Patrick. Patrick never had a chance to tell anyone what had happened, as he was unconscious when paramedics arrived. Mexican authorities later attributed all of Patrick’s injuries to the accident. Doug Roth didn’t see it that way and says his initial reaction to viewing Patricks body is that he was beaten severely, based on observation of wounds on Patricks face and upper body. An independent autopsy, commissioned by Terri Kelly, seemed to agree. The report concluded that findings do not support an interpretation that death was due to a motor vehicle accident. The hours after the accident were also marked by irregularities. While Patrick lay dying in the hospital, someone used his ATM card in downtown Tijuana. They made not one, but three cash withdrawals. Doug Roth found this evidence compelling and says that the evidence clearly shows that someone else used Patricks credit card as he lay comatose in the hospital. Doug also says that the card had a PIN number that only Patrick knew, and that he would not have reasonably given up the number and did not have it written down anywhere. The evidence of foul play was mounting. First the autopsy, then the ATM withdrawals and finally Patrick’s car. According to the parking lot records, somebody paid the $60 fee and drove the car off the lot four days after Patrick died. The next day, the car was returned to the same parking space. Doug Roth believes that Patrick went to Mexico with another individual and by 5 pm that afternoon, they had met with some unsavory characters and had probably been taken against their will and were beaten in order to gain the PIN number. It was also likely that they were held nearby where the accident occurred, and they tried to make a break for it and that Patrick was struck while the other individual got away. Investigators still wonder if Patrick was with a friend when he was struck down in Tijuana. They also question as to why the individual has not come forward. Patrick Kellys death remains unsolved over 18 years later.
Posted on: Sat, 06 Dec 2014 14:41:58 +0000