Haley Fox

Rathbun says searches for missing hikers typically last 7 to 14 days, depending on the viability of the person.

Ajay was not your typical hiker, and given his personal and professional connection to the sheriff's department, it seems like the LASD would go the extra mile to find him.

The sheriff's department tells the public that Ajay disappeared without a trace and that they're ending the search because they're just spinning their wheels.

But behind the scenes, they're telling a very different story.

Pissed-off old cop Mike Bauer is evangelical in his belief that the suicide theory is bullshit.

Because, he says, the sheriff's department didn't arrive at this conclusion.

They led with it.

And that poisoned the investigation from the start.

Bauer says that as early as day three, an LASD official was pushing the suicide narrative during search team briefings.

To Bauer, this was equivalent to telling searchers to let up.

The sheriff's department was even sharing this theory with the press.

Bauer thinks it's irresponsible to promote the suicide theory without a high degree of certainty.

So he prods the department to keep investigating.

But he says the department ignored the case to such an extent that he began to question their motives.

Tell me about it, Bauer.

We tried with those public records requests and got the proverbial middle finger.

Without access to the information, it's hard for us to know how the Sheriff's Department handled the Ajay case.

And we'd remain in the dark if it weren't for Mike Bauer and other deputies coming forward.

Bauer retired in 2002 and has spent the better part of his retirement investigating Ajay's disappearance.

And he's uncovered what looks like some pretty damning information about the Sheriff's Department.