Brandon Lawson made a 911 call nine years ago, then went missing. His remains may have been found.

SAN ANGELO — Nearly a decade after a San Angelo father of four disappeared, his remains may have been found, according to a page dedicated to finding him.

Brandon Lawson, 26, disappeared one night in August 2013. Since his mysterious disappearance along a lonely stretch of highway in Coke County, his family has refused to give up their search for answers.

About 2 p.m. Friday, Feb. 4, 2022, the Help Find Brandon Lawson Facebook page, run by his family, posted that the presumed remains of Lawson had been found.

"Recently, one of those advocates led a small search party in the vicinity of Brandon’s last known location," the post stated, mentioning the party had possibly found his clothing.

"In our hearts, we know it's Brandon," Lawson family says.

"The Texas Rangers conducted a search that ultimately led them to discover human remains in this same area. Although DNA tests are needed to confirm identification, in our hearts ...we know that it is Brandon," the message stated.

The post as of 4:41 p.m. Friday had been shared more than 900 times, with nearly 600 comments and 3,200 reactions.

"For years, we have gone to great lengths to search the area of Brandon’s last known whereabouts," a message stated. "Our main focus throughout this entire ordeal has been to bring Brandon home so that he can finally rest in peace and our family can have the answers we have prayed for."

The family hopes DNA evidence will prove the remains belong to Lawson, bringing the case to an end.

In a message to the Standard-Times, Tom Green County Sheriff Nick Hanna confirmed that human remains had been found and were being tested. Should they prove to belong to Lawson, it would provide closure to Hanna too.

In 2013 , Hanna—then a Texas Ranger—was a lead investigator in the the case.

According to one of Lawson’s loved ones, Hanna thought Brandon's body was somewhere off U.S. 277, large portions of which are desolate and drought-prone terrain, spotted green with thorny mesquite, huisache and cactus. It's an environment largely inhabited by rattlesnakes and feral hogs.

Hanna provided information on the efforts to locate Brandon in Bronte, searches that included "two DPS helicopters, ATVs, TEXSAR, six cadaver dogs and four different agencies at one time of another,” Hanna wrote in an email from 2018.

As of 6 p.m. Friday, Feb. 4, authorities had released no details to the public yet confirming what the results of the DNA testing had shown.

Related: The mystery around the disappearance of Brandon Lawson

What we know about the mysterious disappearance of Brandon Lawson

On Aug. 8, 2013, Lawson briefly returned to his San Angelo home after not coming home the previous night. Ladessa Lofton, his girlfriend of 10 years, mother of their three children and step-mom to Lawson’s eldest daughter, was infuriated by his absence because of his recent drug relapse. The two fought and he left.

Their fight that night, Lofton said in a 2018 interview, was the result of several factors. He had been working over 60 hours a week, their youngest son was only a few months old, and they were stressed.

“For a long time, I blamed myself,” she said. She also regrets the words spoken during their fight. “I will never get those words back.”

Brandon Lawson 911 call depicted last moments before he went missing

Around 11:30 p.m. Aug. 8, Lawson called his father and mentioned he was heading to his parents' house in Crowley, about 3 hours away from San Angelo. Around 12:30 a.m., Lawson called his brother, Kyle, asking for help because he ran out of gas.

His last known location was along U.S. Highway 277, north of San Angelo and right before the West Texas town of Bronte.

“'Three (expletives) are chasing me out of town,'” Brandon told his brother. When Brandon said it was “the Mexicans in the neighborhood,” Kyle asked if he was tripping, if it was drugs causing him to hallucinate — but Brandon denied it was all in his head.

Kyle went over to Brandon and Lofton’s house — less than a mile away — to get a gas can, then headed out of town with his wife-at-the-time and 4-year-old son. The brothers kept making calls to one another, but Kyle said Brandon wouldn’t have a full conversation with him, more or less saying a sentence or two before hanging up.

A look at phone records:

12:51: Kyle called Brandon and left a voicemail.

12:51: Brandon called Lofton, but she didn’t answer. After their fight, and lacking a wall charger, Lofton had taken her phone to her car to charge.

12:52: Kyle’s wife called Brandon, then called again.

12:54: Kyle called Brandon.

12:57: Brandon called his neighbor.

12:58: Brandon called Kyle, and called again.

12:58: The neighbor called three times.

12:59: Kyle called Brandon.

1:04: The dispatcher at the nursing facility called Brandon back, trying to get more information about his location and what was wrong. She left a voicemail and called once more.

1:09: Brandon called Kyle three times.

1:12: Kyle called Brandon three times.

1:15: Brandon called Kyle twice, the last calls he made from his phone.

1:19: All calls made to his phone begin going straight to voicemail.

In one call, Brandon told Kyle he was running through a field and bleeding. Kyle thought he tripped or had a minor accident, according to a 2018 interview.

At 12:50 a.m. Brandon called 911, which at the time rang at the local nursing home in Robert Lee. Among a series of unclear statements, he told the dispatcher he ran out of gas, was in the middle of a field, that he needed help and asked, “please hurry.”

How the investigation into Brandon Lawson's disappearance began

A Coke County deputy found Brandon's pickup just after 1 a.m., after dispatch received a 911 call from a trucker along U.S. 277 that reported Brandon’s F-150 obstructing traffic by being over the white line.

Kyle arrived as the deputy pulled up. Kyle, in a 2018 interview, said Brandon told him, "I can see you, I’m right here,” although Kyle couldn’t see his brother anywhere.

With an active warrant out of Johnson County for possession with intent to deliver, Kyle assumed Brandon was hiding to avoid getting in trouble with the police. Neither Kyle or the deputy knew about the 911 call at the time.

“At the time, I didn’t feel like he was in any danger,” Kyle said.

After Kyle and the deputy finished talking, Kyle decided to drive away and park up the road a bit to see if his brother would come out once the deputy left. He waited for 30-45 minutes, then left for San Angelo.

Kyle returned Aug. 9 at 5 a.m. and called for Brandon, who did not appear.

On Aug. 11, the deputy reported a small private search team gathered at 8 a.m. and ended their search about noon.

“The only sign of anyone being in that area was a spot under a tree where it appeared someone sat down close to the roadway within eyesight of where Lawson’s pickup broke down,” the report states.

The Texas Rangers joined the investigation on Aug. 12, and came to the conclusion that Brandon was no longer in Coke County. Lofton reported Brandon as missing on Aug. 13.

Law enforcement used aerial searches, thermal imaging and search parties in the area around Bronte, but found no signs of Brandon.

As the years went by, three theories rose - Brandon disappeared willingly, he was harmed, or succumbed to the elements.

Some factors in these theories included that he cashed out his 401k, he had a new job to start the following Monday, and a harsh drought hit the area that year. In 2018, his father, brother and Lofton agreed they wanted to find him, no matter what.

“All along I’ve stated the fact that I would like to find Brandon and bring him home where he belongs,” Brad Lawson, his father said in 2018. “The chances of us finding Brandon alive are almost none, and I understand that and I realize that. But he’s not here. ... (He deserves) to be brought home to his family.”

Alana Edgin is a journalist covering Crime and Courts in West Texas. Send her a news tip at aedgin@gannett.com.

Krista Johnson contributed to this report.

This article originally appeared on San Angelo Standard-Times: Remains of Brandon Lawson, missing since 2013, possibly found