A red car pulled up to the gate. Only the passenger door opened and an old man jumps out. Before anyone could react, the car was gone, leaving the old man behind.
The family was stunned. They could not believe their eyes. It had been too long. Surely this must be some kind of joke—it was like seeing a ghost.
Bacau, a city in Romania is well known for its colorful culture. The outskirts of the city, however, are mainly home to small villages.
Rural life here was not easy. Mainly farmers, the villagers mostly eeked out a living from cattle and agriculture. Usually quiet and uneventful, in 1991, a remote village in Eastern Bacau would experience a tragic event.
Vasile Gorgos was a simple family man. He often commuted to the city where he sought buyers for the cattle he raised.
His trips were ordinarily short and he always returned a few days later. On this occasion, however, as he said goodbye, Vasile’s family was unaware of just how long that goodbye would actually last.
When Vasile boarded a train for his business trip, he had been sprightly for a 63-year-old. His trips to market fairs had never previously been a cause for concern.
This time, however, a sign of trouble first came when he failed to check in with his wife. Not worrying too much initially, it quickly became apparent something was very wrong.
As the days went by with no word from Vasile, his family grew worried. Nothing made sense. He had always been responsible and loyal to his family.
It was not uncommon in Romania for people to abandon their responsibilities. Vasile had never seemed the type though. The evidence was now beginning to point to something more nefarious.
The days passed by agonizingly and the family grew more anxious. Eventually, the authorities were called in and Vasile was reported missing.
Weeks went by and there was still no sign. Even the authorities were baffled as Vasile seemed to have vanished into thin air. Their initial hope now evaporating, the family began fearing the worst.
The weeks turned into months. Still, without even the faintest clue of what had become of Vasile, the family suspected that something terrible must have happened.
The tragedy was not knowing—he may have been kidnapped, lost and hurt, or worse. Unable to prove anything conclusively, they faced a heartbreaking decision.
Unable to continue living with constant speculation, the Gorgos family began holding regular memorial services for him. The entire village joined them in remembering their husband and father.
Eventually, the months slowly turned into years. The family finally had to face a painful truth. Pressured by the authorities and for legal purposes, Vasile was tragically pronounced dead.
Life without Vasile was hard but his family was forced to move forward. Time had marched on relentlessly. The family changed and even grew, but they never forgot Vasile in their hearts.
Seemingly in the blink of an eye, thirty years passed until Vasile became nothing more than a tragic memory—until one day—when everything drastically changed in an instant.
It was a normal day. The family had long since given up hope of ever seeing Vasile again. It started when a strange, red car approached the village entrance.
The passenger door was opened and an old man stepped out. The family and other villagers were stunned beyond belief. The man was much older but—unmistakeably—it was Vasile Gorgos.
With everyone stunned by the old man’s return, nobody had reacted fast enough to write down the car’s registration number or see the driver before it sped off.
Despite being 93 years old now, there was no doubting that this was Vasile. As shocking as it was to see him again, his unexpected reappearance was not the biggest surprise.
In yet another unexpected twist to this tale, Vasile had returned wearing the exact same clothes he had been on the day of his disappearance.
The family had so many questions. However, It was soon apparent there were no answers. The reason—when questioned—Vasile was convinced it was still 1991 and believed he had only been gone a few days.
Truth is sometimes stranger than fiction. Vasile Gorgos certainly proves this. His story became a national sensation, causing much speculation.
There are many theories for why Vasile cannot remember what happened to him or where he was for thirty years. Chief among these theories is that he suffers from dementia. Some experts, however, have a much more extreme theory.
Some experts believe that Vasile had fallen into a kind of “fugue” state. This affliction might have caused him to experience a dissociative state—meaning he may truly believe that he was never gone.
Whatever the truth of where had been all these years, there are other strange sides to this story that makes it even more bizarre.
Wherever Vasile was, it appears he was well kept and was found to be in good physical health. As can be expected, the internet has however had a field day since.
Theorizing everything from aliens, to dimensional glitches, and time travel, the web has been abuzz with all kinds of answers to the mystery of Vasile Gorgos—what’s your theory?