In June of 1994, 13-year-old Nicholas Barclay was reported missing by his mother. He was supposed to return home from a nearby park before dinner, but Nicholas disappeared without a trace. There were no signs of the teenager until his mother received a phone call over three years later from authorities in Spain. They said that they had found her missing son, that he’d been held captive and abused for the last several years. Nicholas’ family couldn’t believe that he was alive and coming back to them. However, when Nicholas returned to Texas with his family, people noticed that things were off, that something didn’t fit. People began to question if this was really Nicholas Barclay, or if the real missing teenager was still missing.
Who was Nicholas Barclay?
Nicholas Patrick Barclay was born on December 31st, 1980 to Beverly Dollarhide in San Antonio, Texas. His mother had a son, Jason, and a daughter, Carey, from a previous relationship. Nicholas’ father’s identity is unknown. The age difference between Jason and Carey and Nicholas was significant. For most of Nicholas’ life, Carey and Jason didn’t live with him and Beverly, as they had finished school and were out living adult lives. As a result, Nicholas often felt very alone and he didn’t have many male role models in his life. Nicholas had a troubled childhood and had grown into a very rebellious teenager. Beverly worked the graveyard shift at a nearby convenience store and Nicholas was often left unsupervised. Beverly also reportedly was battling a heroin addiction early in her son’s life. Despite Beverly’s struggles, her daughter Carey said that she was a very good mother, that they always had what they needed when they were growing up.
At just 13-years-old, Nicholas already had a heavy juvenile record and was very familiar with the police in San Antonio. Most of his charges stemmed from breaking and entering, theft, and truancy. He once broke into a convenience store and had also threaded a teacher. Beverly was growing increasingly frustrated and felt so helpless. She felt that there was no good way to discipline her son anymore. He was very street smart and didn’t abide by many rules. Beverly said that Nicholas acted much older than he was. In fact, at 13, Nicholas already had three tattoos! He had the letter J on his left shoulder, T on his left hand between his thumb and forefinger, and L and N on his outer ankle. (I imagine these were probably the stick and poke tattoos that either he did himself or his friends did)
Whenever Beverly would try to discipline her son, he’d lash out and either become verbally abusive or run away. Sometimes Nicholas would even become physical during arguments with his mother. Feeling like she was at her breaking point, Beverly reached out to her son, Jason, and asked him if he’d move back into the home to help with Nicholas and give him a male influence in his life. Jason also struggled with drug addiction and anger issues himself, however he wanted to help his mother, so he agreed to move in. San Antonio police were familiar with Jason and had reportedly responded to the home several times for domestic disturbances.
In addition to responding to disturbances at the family’s home, they were familiar with Nicholas frequently running away from home. He typically came home in a day or two and was never gone for an extended period of time. On June 14th, 1994, Nicholas was scheduled to have a court appointment with his mother. The appointment was intended to discuss Nicholas possibly being placed into a group home. Beverly and the court hoped that having the constant supervision of a group home would give Nicholas the structure and help that he needed to get himself on the right track. It goes without saying that Nicholas was extremely resistant to this. He didn’t want to lose all the freedom that he had while living with Beverly.
The Day of the Disappearance
**There are two varying reports regarding when Nicholas was last seen. Some reports say that he was last seen on the 13th and police were also notified of him being missing on the 13th. Other reports say that Nicholas was actually last seen on the 10th, but his mother didn’t report him missing until the 13th. I believe the second scenario seems more likely since Nicholas often ran away, then returned a day or two later. It would make sense for Beverly not to report him missing after just a few hours being gone, so I’ll use that as my reference.**
On June 10th, 1994, a few days before his scheduled court appearance, Nicholas left the house to walk to a nearby park to play basketball with friends. Beverly gave her son $5 and told him to be back before dinner. This was a very typical day for Nicholas, especially when school was out. He often made the 1-2 mile walk to and from the park. When he left for the park, he was wearing a white t-shirt, purple pants, black sneakers, and was carrying a pink backpack.
After his basketball game was finished, Nicholas called his house and asked Jason to ask his mom if she could pick him up from the park. Jason said that his mom was sleeping in the living room and he didn’t want to wake her up. He told Nicholas to walk home. After a few hours, it grew dark outside and Nicholas had not returned. It didn’t seem abnormal for Nicholas to run away, especially since his court date was coming up.
Regardless of whether Nicholas was last seen on the 10th or 13th, Beverly went to report her son missing on the 13th. It seemed that from the beginning, police did not take things very seriously. They were familiar with Nicholas and his family and knew that it wasn’t out of the ordinary for him to get angry with his mom and run off. Unfortunately, it doesn’t seem like there were any organized searches for Nicholas after his disappearance. From reports, it seems that many believed Nicholas had run away from home for the last time, refusing to be sent to a group home. His family said they continued to search for him. Beverly felt that her son had been abducted. From what Jason had said, it definitely sounded like Nicholas was planning on coming home that night, since he called to ask for a ride, so why would he have run away? Beverly said that her son was fearless and she believes that he would’ve gotten into a car with someone he didn’t know.
On September 25th, 1994, about three months after Nicholas disappeared, his older brother Jason called the San Antonio Police Department. Jason was still living in the same home as Beverly. He reported that he saw his younger brother trying to break into their garage and that he ran when he saw Jason. Police responded and searched the area, not finding any signs of Nicholas. They did not consider it to be a valid sighting. Both Beverly and police don’t believe that Jason ever saw Nicholas that night. Months turned into years and Nicholas was still missing. However, in October of 1997, almost three and a half years after Nicholas disappeared, Beverly and Carey both received phone calls that would change their lives.
Nicholas is…back?
On October 7th, 1997, police in Linares, Spain received a phone call from a concerned tourist. The man on the phone said that he and his wife were visiting the city and had found a young boy, possibly 14 or 15 years old. The caller said that the boy had no ID or documents on him and he seemed very scared. They had offered him food, but he didn’t take it. He asked if police could come to their location and check on the boy. A patrol officer was sent out to the scene and found a male dressed in a large coat, with his hat pulled down low over his eyes. Police asked him questions, but the boy wouldn’t speak. Finally, they were able to get him in the back of their police cruiser and take him back to the station.
Police continued to try and get information from the boy, to figure out who he was or how they could help him, but he still wouldn’t speak. Unable to get the boy to speak with them or find his identity, police had no choice but to send him to a local children’s home (which is basically an orphanage). Like the police, the staff at the children’s home were growing frustrated that he wouldn’t tell them who he was. They continuously told him that they needed to know who he was and where he came from. Finally, the staff told him that if he didn’t tell them who he was, they were going to fingerprint him and take his picture to distribute.
This got the young boy talking. He told the staff that he was an American that ran away. He was willing to contact his family, but he wanted to do it himself, on his own. He didn’t want his family to receive a call from officials in Spain. He asked to be left in the office alone that evening, as there was a time difference between Spain and America, and he needed to call at night.
Beverly couldn’t believe the phone call she’d just received. She immediately called her daughter, Carey, who was at work. Beverly told her, “Someone from Spain has Nicholas. He wants to come home.” Carey said that she was excited, but also completely bewildered. How did her brother get to Spain???
Carey called the shelter in Spain to speak with someone who worked there. The man said that Nicholas was right there beside him, but too scared to talk. The man said that Nicholas had been held by a sex trafficking ring, abused for years, then escaped. Carey was adamant about hearing her brother’s voice. Finally she heard a soft voice say something to the effect of “love you”. After hanging up with the shelter, Carey got in contact with the FBI headquarters in San Antonio, Texas. Special Agent Nancy Fisher took her call and told Carey they’d help her get to Spain and get her brother back, but he’d need to be interviewed immediately so the FBI could begin looking for his abductors. Nancy was shocked that Nicholas had been located. To find a missing child in another country was incredibly rare.
The Vice Consulate in Spain heard that a missing American boy had been found and visited the children’s home. When he arrived, he found that Nicholas was gone. Staff from the children’s home began searching around the nearby area for him, finally finding him on the side of the road, trying to hitchhike. Staff brought him back to the home, where the Vice Consulate confirmed that he believed him to be American since he spoke English.
The next morning, the children’s home director told Nicholas that his sister was on her way to Spain to take him back home. Carey was nervous and excited, and hadn’t slept for two days. She tried to sleep on the plane ride to Spain, but couldn’t fall asleep. When she arrived in Spain, she was taken to the children’s home where she finally, after more than three years, saw her little brother again.
Carey embraced Nicholas immediately and put her hands on his face. She touched his nose and told him that she remembered that nose, that he kind of looked like their uncle Pat. Nicholas was quiet and didn’t speak much until everyone left the room but Carey. She pulled out family pictures and began going through them with Nicholas, pointing out who everyone was in case he’d forgotten. Nicholas commented on some of the photos, saying that his brother had gotten taller and asked if his grandpa was still an asshole. Nicholas was quiet, but when he did speak, he had what Carey described as a “funny accent.”
The Spanish police and judge, however, were not completely convinced that Nicholas was who he said he was. They insisted on interviewing him separately from Carey. The judge told him that they had 5 photos of his family, and they wanted Nicholas to identify the people in the photos. He correctly identified everyone in the first 4 photos, however he made a mistake on the 5th, but everyone was convinced. They took a photo of him for his brand new passport and made arrangements for him and Carey to return to San Antonio. Nicholas Barclay was finally going back home.
San Antonio
They stayed in a hotel room that night in Spain and made their way to the airport the following day. Carey said that Nicholas was very fidgety and seemed to always be watching her. She assumed he was just scared. He’d been through so much trauma. As Carey and Nicholas made their way off the plane and into the airport in San Antonio, Beverly approached her son and grabbed his hand, hugging him and telling him how much she’d missed him. She saw that he was very covered up, with a scarf over his face, a big coat, sunglasses, and two hats. (One was forwards and one was over that one backwards. It makes me mad.)
The ride home was quiet, so they put on music, hoping to make Nicholas more comfortable. Everyone was so excited, but trying not to overwhelm him. Because Beverly was still working nights, she didn’t feel she could provide the stable, family environment that her son needed, so Nicholas went to live with Carey, her husband, and her children. Carey thought the best thing for her brother was to get him into a normal, teenager routine. They enrolled him in the nearby high school, where he quickly made friends and started hanging out with them after school. He even had a crush on a neighborhood girl. They’d talk on the phone and hang out, just doing normal teenager things. Nicholas’ family felt like he was starting to adjust and they were so happy to have him back.
There was one person who Nicholas had yet to see following his return: his older brother Jason. Finally, he made his way to Carey’s house to see his younger brother. It was later said that Jason didn’t look at him like Nicholas or even pretend to look at him like he was Nicholas. Jason said two words to him: “good luck,” then left.
FBI Special Agent Fisher wanted to interview Nicholas as soon as possible to start their investigation into the people who had abducted and held him captive. On November, 4th, 1997, Nancy met with Nicholas at the San Antonio Missing Persons Center to finally interview him. The first thing she noticed when he came in was that he didn’t look 16 years old, he looked much older. He had a shadow of a dark beard, which Nancy found odd, as Nicholas had very blonde hair.
Nicholas was very nervous. He seemed extremely uncomfortable throughout the entire encounter, but he told Nancy the horrific story of what happened to him over the past three years. He said that he was talking to two other kids at the basketball courts on the day he went missing. He then said that someone from behind him put a cloth over his face, dragged him into a van, then he passed out. They flew him overseas where he was kept in a room with many other kids. Nicholas said that he and the other children were physically and sexually abused by high-ranking military officials. The men who abused them were reportedly European, Mexican, and American. He said that the abusers broke both of his hands, one with a baseball bat, burned him with cigarettes, forced him to eat insects, broke his foot with a crowbar, and raped him. Nicholas said that the captors forced experiments on him and the other children, poking needles into their eyes, putting headphones on them at full volume with screaming, and changing their hair and eye colors. He said that they changed his eye color by injecting a solution into his eye. This explained why his once blue eyes were now dark brown. He also said that they were beaten if they spoke English. Nicholas said that one night, a door was left open and ran out and continued to run for hours, until he discovered that he was in Spain.
Mmm…what the fuck’s going on?
Charlie Parker, a San Antonio private investigator, received a call in November from a TV producer who’d heard about Nicholas’ miraculous return and wanted to get an interview with him. They wanted Parker to locate Nicholas so they could arrange an interview. Parker was able to track down Beverly, then an interview with Nicholas was arranged. Nancy had asked the family not to contact the media since they were investigating Nicholas’ abduction and the possibility of government or military officials being involved. Nicholas continued with the interview anyways. As Nicholas told the interviewer his story, exactly what he’d told Nancy during his FBI interview, Parker sat behind the scene, watching. He quickly noticed a few things that struck him as odd.
First of all, Nicholas had an accent. He sounded French AF. There was a photo nearby of Nicholas before he disappeared and it caught Parker’s eye. Nicholas had blue eyes. This guy had brown eyes. Parker said as soon as that thought flashed through his head, the hair on the back of his neck stood up and he felt like something was wrong. YOU CAN’T CHANGE THE COLOR OF YOUR EYES LIKE THAT. He immediately asked for another picture of Nicholas prior to his disappearance so he could compare it to a still shot of Nicholas now from the interview. (In the documentary, he very proudly says, “I PUT THEM IN ADOBE PHOTOSHOP”) Parker zoomed in on the ears in both pictures. He’d heard about Scotland Yard using this method to determine someone’s real identity. The ears don’t change and the two ears he was looking at were very different.
Parker immediately contacted Nancy at the FBI to report his findings. He believed that this man was an imposter, possibly a spy. Nancy listened, but told Parker to be careful not to intrude on a federal investigation. She said she didn’t feel she had a right to question the family, who seemed so sure that the man was their son. She couldn’t understand why a family would take in someone they knew was a stranger. Charlie was not as concerned about the family’s feelings. He fully expected this man to blow something up at a nearby military base. Nancy was still looking into all of the information that Nicholas had given her, but it was difficult as there were no details. Everything he said was very vague.
She arranged for her and Nicholas to fly to the Texas Children’s Hospital in Houston. She said that because he had experienced trauma, she wanted to take him to see a forensic expert to deal with the trauma. The doctor who evaluated Nicholas said that he thought the boy was being brought here for the doctor to assist with finding out who abducted him, but as soon as Nicholas spoke, the doctor’s concerns became much more serious. He asked him to repeat the stories he told of his captivity. The doctor observed him during these stories and did not see any physiological changes that he would normally see with someone who’s discussing a traumatic experience; no change in body posture, pupil size, or increased heart rate. Also, Nicholas could speak English, but he couldn’t do so without a heavy French accent. The doctor said that he felt confident that a child couldn’t be raised for the first 13 years of their life in an English-speaking home, then, after being gone for 3 years, be unable to speak without a French accent. He guaranteed Nancy that this child was not raised in an English-speaking home.
This was enough for Nancy. She immediately called Carey and relayed the doctor’s findings to her. Carey was stunned. Nancy told her that she didn’t have to be at the airport in San Antonio to meet them, that she didn’t have to take this person back to her house. Carey agreed. As Nancy and Nicholas deboarded their plane and walked through the San Antonio airport, they saw Carey standing and waiting. She was so excited to see Nicholas and she acted like the conversation between her and Nancy NEVER HAPPENED. Nancy immediately contacted the US Attorney to ask them what to do. They told her to let him return to Carey’s home temporarily. Carey later said that she didn’t remember Nancy putting it in those words; Nancy said she told her that the young man was NOT her brother.
Fucking Charlie is ON IT
PI Charlie Parker didn’t care about rules and was determined to figure out what was going on. He began interviewing neighbors about Nicholas and his family and why they thought he might’ve left, possibly of his own volition. One neighbor said that the police would come to their house 2 to 3 times a month because of loud arguments between Beverly and her kids or her boyfriend. Nicholas was known to cause trouble and often came home late at night. This convinced Parker even more that something else may have happened to Nicholas.
Nancy was doing her best to obtain DNA samples from Beverly and Nicholas. Beverly was adamant that she would not give blood for a DNA comparison. Nancy even said that Beverly laid down on the floor and yelled, “you can’t pick me up, you can’t make me”. Beverly later denied refusing the requests for DNA. Nancy could not understand why the family would let a stranger into their home unless they had something to hide.
One of Nicholas’ childhood friends told interviewers that Nicholas’ house and home life changed when his older brother Jason moved in. He seemed to think that Nicholas and his mom were pretty close prior to that. Jason struggled with drug addiction and Nicholas’ friend believed that his moving in pushed Beverly to start abusing drugs. He said that Jason was a bum and a drug addict who only cared about himself.
Meanwhile, much to Beverly’s dismay, Nancy had obtained a warrant for blood collection from her and Nicholas. She also collected fingerprints and palm prints that she sent to embassies and Interpol. She noticed that Nicholas was becoming more and more agitated and she was scared that he might run away. BUT DON’T Y’ALL WORRY. PI CHARLIE PARKER IS ON IT. Parker began tailing Nicholas to make sure he didn’t try to flee.
Everything implodes
On March 3rd, 1998, an FBI office in Madrid, Spain called Nancy and confirmed what she suspected: this man was not Nicholas Barclay. They faxed her the records they had and she was shocked at what she found. Meanwhile, Parker met up with Nicholas for breakfast. They both ordered hotcakes. Parker said to Nicholas, “you really made your mother angry.” Much to Parker’s shock and disbelief, the young man responded with, “she’s not my mother and you know it.” He told Parker that he wasn’t Nicholas and that he was, in fact, a 23-year-old Frenchman wanted by Interpol.
The faxed information that Nancy received from Madrid authorities told her that the man who had claimed he was Nicholas Barclay was actually Frederic Pierre Bourdin, a serial imposter from France. He was wanted by authorities for traveling throughout Europe and pretending to be countless different children. He began these impersonations as a child and claimed that he’d assumed over 500 different identities.
What REALLY happened
On the night of October 7th, 1997, Bourdin put his next plan into motion. He used a pay phone to call the police in Spain, telling them that he was a tourist who’d found a young man outside, who seemed very scared and wouldn’t speak. He hung up the phone and made sure that he was covered well, with a large coat and a hat pulled down almost over his eyes. He knew that he had to be convincing, but this wasn’t his first rodeo. When police arrived, they were expecting a child, so he behaved like one. Bourdin said that he wanted to provoke a sense of guilt, of being adults around a scared child. They took him to the police station where he refused to talk, but intentionally gave the impression that he’d been abused without saying so. He knew it would be very difficult to read a child who wouldn’t speak.
Bourdin knew that they couldn’t keep him in the police station, that they’d have to send him to a children’s home, which is what he wanted. He said, “for as long as I can remember, I wanted to be someone else, someone who was acceptable…nobody ever gave a damn about me.” He wanted to be in a place where people cared about him.
Unable to identify Bourdin, police brought him to the nearby children’s home. He easily fit in and felt like he was reborn. When the judge and the police eventually threatened Bourdin with taking his photo and fingerprinting him if he didn’t give them his name, he knew that he was either going to jail or going to have to prove he was someone. So that night, as he sat in the office alone, after he promised the staff he’d call his family, Bourdin used the phone to call police stations throughout the United States. He told them that he was a police officer in Spain and that they’d found a missing child that was from America, but they weren’t sure where. Police told him that they had hundreds of missing people and couldn’t go through each one, so they referred him to the National Center for Missing and Exploited Children. When Bourdin called NCMEC, he told them the same thing, that the kid they had in Spain was about 14-15 years old. Bourdin described himself, intentionally being vague so there’d be many possibilities. The call taker said that he could be a boy from San Antonio, Texas named Nicholas Barclay. Bourdin asked them to fax over a photo and information. The picture was black and white, but since he’d been missing for over three years, there would obviously be a change in his appearance. Bourdin went for it and told the call taker at NCMEC that the child they had was indeed Nicholas Barclay.
That same night, Carey was contacted, who then called the shelter to speak with the staff. The man that she spoke to was actually Bourdin, who pretended to work there and that Nicholas was right next to him. He spoke quietly as Nicholas on the phone, not wanting to give her any reason to think the voice didn’t belong to her missing brother.
The following day, NCMEC sent over a colored photo of Nicholas. Nicholas was very blonde with blue eyes. Bourdin suddenly knew that he couldn’t pull it off. He felt confident that he’d be arrested when the Vice Consulate came to see him. The only thing that matched Nicholas was a small gap that they both had between their two front teeth. Bourdin made the decision to do everything he could to give himself a chance. He bleached his hair blonde and found a girl in the group home who gave tattoos. He had her give him the same ones that Nicholas had. He then put on a large coat, sunglasses, and a hat to keep himself as hidden as possible.
After Bourdin sat with Carey and she showed him photos, he was easily able to pass the photo test that the judge gave him. When they went to the hotel in Spain that night, Bourdin thought several times about running away, but ultimately decided to go home with Carey.
Bourdin continued to be surprised as Nicholas’ family accepted that he was actually their son. He was so thankful to have a family and feel loved and everything seemed to be going well. His only concern was that the real Nicholas Barclay could come back at any time.
After arrest
Bourdin was arrested and charged with perjury and fraudulently obtaining a passport and sentenced to six years in prison. However, he still wasn’t finished with Nicholas’ family. While in prison, he contacted the San Antonio police and told them that he believed that Nicholas’ family killed him. He said, “some of them did it, some of them knew of it, and some of them choose to ignore it.” Shortly into his stay with Carey, he stopped worrying that the real Nicholas would return. When he met Jason, he felt confident that Jason knew he wasn’t Nicholas, likely because he knew that the real Nicholas was dead. He became even more suspicious of the family’s involvement when Beverly fought so hard against DNA comparison. Bourdin said that he felt like Carey was trying to MAKE him remember things, saying “no, not for a second did she believe I was her brother. She DECIDED I was going to be her brother.” Bourdin even said that Beverly once confessed to him that she and Jason had killed Nicholas and hid his body. Beverly denied all of this.
A homicide investigation was opened by the FBI because of Bourdin’s statements. PI Parker agreed with Bourdin. He believed that Nicholas was buried in the yard of his childhood home.
Nicholas’ family couldn’t believe what had happened. Carey said that her first emotion was complete sadness because it wasn’t her brother. Where was the real Nicholas? The second emotion was, “how could I be so fucking stupid?” Carey said that she in no way believed that her mother and brother had anything to do with Nicholas’ disappearance.
Prior to Bourdin’s arrest, Nancy attempted to get ahold of Jason to talk to him about the situation. It was difficult to get in touch with him, but when she finally did, she said he was extremely apathetic and didn’t seem to care that his brother had returned. He told Nancy that he knew it wasn’t Nicholas, but didn’t care enough to tell his mother and sister. He was extremely hostile and refused to help at all. Not long after, Jason, who continued to struggle with alcohol and cocaine abuse, left a drug rehab center and died from a drug overdose. It was unknown if the overdose was intentional or accidental.
Beverly said she cannot imagine Jason ever doing anything to hurt Nicholas. Carey said that since he’s dead, he’s the perfect scapegoat. He can’t be questioned and can’t defend himself. Carey said that their family wasn’t hiding anything, that they were the only ones who had actually looked for Nicholas.
Meanwhile, in prison. Bourdin made hundreds of collect calls from his cell, claiming that he had information to help solve missing children’s cases. He then admitted to an interviewer that he had no information. (He also has one of the largest foreheads I’ve ever seen. If you watch the whole documentary, at the end there is a VERY good video of Bourdin dancing that you need to see.) Bourdin was deported back to France in October of 2003. Three months later, Bourdin tried to steal the identity of a missing 14-year-old boy. And then he did it again. And again. In 2007, Bourdin married a woman in France. They had five children. As far as I could find, he’s still living in France.
Nicholas Barclay is still missing. Unfortunately, though Bourdin’s impersonation brought attention to Nicholas’ disappearance, the most important question is often forgotten. What happened to 13-year-old Nicholas? Many people believe that Jason was behind his brother’s death and that Beverly knows what happened, but unfortunately, nothing has been found and his whereabouts are still unknown.
