Naman Shrestha
When a series of crimes, including the disappearance of Micah Holsonbake and Baylee Despot and the murder of James Kulstad, took place in Bakersfield, California, in the spring of 2018, the entire community was haunted by the tragic events. However, they were also determined to get to the bottom of all three cases. As the detectives desperately searched for answers, they uncovered some dark truths as remains of Micah began surfacing. Investigation Discovery’s ‘The Bakersfield 3: A Tale of Murder and Motherhood’ delves deep into the interconnected cases, focusing especially on Micah’s disappearance, his subsequent demise, and the investigation that ensued.
Micah Blaine Holsonbake’s Remains Were Found Several Months After He Went Missing
On May 9, 1983, Cheryl and Lance Holsonbake welcomed a little bundle of joy into the world in the form of Micah Blaine Holsonbake. He was raised surrounded by the love and support of his family members. His compassionate and joyful personality allowed him to make many friends. Being the life of the party, he had the ability to light up even the dullest of rooms with his jokes and pranks. After graduating from Stockdale High School with flying colors, the talented and bright man fulfilled his dream of joining the Navy. However, his dream was short-lived as he was diagnosed with a benign tumor in his throat, due to which he started falling sick and was eventually released from his duties.
Soon after he returned home, he underwent successful surgery for the tumor and recovered well. Micah developed a new passion for banking and decided to pursue it professionally. After being a stockbroker for several years, he eventually became an executive at Wells Fargo Bank. As for his personal life, he got married in 2008. The two embraced parenthood when they welcomed a son. Over the years, cracks began appearing in their marriage, and they decided to separate. During some of his toughest periods in life, he resorted to prescription pain medication and reportedly got addicted to it. In order to improve his mental health, Micah also started going to therapy regularly. Just when things started getting better for him, the 34-year-old banker went missing on March 23, 2018.
When Micah’s parents were unable to get in touch with him, they drove down to Bakersfield immediately and checked his apartment and various hospitals across the city in search of their son. Several months later, in early August of the same year, a bag containing a severed arm was found floating in the Kern River. DNA testing confirmed that the remains belonged to Micah Holsonbake. Immediately, the missing persons case turned into a homicide investigation. A few years later, in August 2021, a human skull belonging to him was also found in Lake Ming, nearly 2 miles from where his severed arm was discovered. As part of the investigation, the detectives started tracing his steps around the time he disappeared and eventually found an unexpected connection.
Micah Blaine Holsonbake Was Allegedly Acquainted With the Killer
As the investigation intensified, the authorities uncovered a trail of evidence, thanks to witness accounts. Months before his disappearance and murder, Micah had been helping out a man named Matthew “Matt” Richard Queen in his small gun business. The former tried to get himself involved in the business and sell some guns. Matthew Vandecasteele, one of Matt’s associates, told the detectives that a firearm was stolen from Matt’s residence during the New Year’s Eve party. Vandecasteele claimed that one of the attendees of the party was Micah, whom Matt alleged to be responsible for the theft. Just a few months before he passed away, Micah allegedly found himself in the car with Matt, Baylee, and another unidentified woman.
As he found the situation life-threatening, Micah jumped out of the car and ran away from Matt. As per Vandecasteele’s accounts, he received a phone call from Matt on March 23, 2018, asking for permission to use his garage to have a serious talk with Micah. In order to confirm his claims and find more evidence against Matt, the authorities conducted a thorough search of Vandecasteele’s garage and came across DNA evidence matching Micah. On July 15, 2019, Matthew Richard Queen was arrested for the murder of Micah Holsonbake. Alongside his missing girlfriend, Baylee, he was charged with murder, torture, kidnapping, and conspiracy. Furthermore, Matthew Tyler Vandecasteele was also charged with kidnapping and conspiracy in the same case.
Matthew Richard Queen is Currently Incarcerated at a California Prison Facility
After pleading not guilty to all 35 charges against him, Matthew Richard Queen stood trial on April 4, 2022, for the torture and murder of Micah Holsonbake. The prosecution presented all the crucial pieces of evidence against the defendant in front of the jury and claimed that he was responsible for Micah’s death. Matthew Tyler Vandecasteele and his girlfriend, Sara Wedemeyer, also testified that they had not entered the garage on the fateful night. Several days into the trial, Matt took the stand on April 26 and testified that Micah had pointed a gun at him after he questioned him about his alleged involvement in raping a woman. He claimed that Micah got distracted when Baylee entered the room, which is when he tackled him to the ground and subdued him before zip-tying him. As per Matt’s allegations, Baylee dropped a 40-lb dumbbell on his head and killed him instantly.
He added, “Baylee had a plan to chop him up and drop him in the ocean.” Since he did not have a boat, he said that the plan could not work. Thus, he further alleged that they contacted Matthew Vandecasteele to ask him to use his garage, where they dismembered the body before disposing of the remains in the Kern River. After four weeks of testimony, the jury deliberated and returned with a final verdict. On May 5, 2022, Matthew Queen was found not guilty of first-degree murder but convicted of second-degree murder of Micah. During his sentencing hearing in June 2022, he addressed Micah’s family members directly. He said, “I can never make your family whole again, and I’m sorry. Not a day goes by that I don’t think about that day, and how I should have done things differently.”
Before Matt’s sentencing, Micah’s mother, Cheryl Holsonbake, also took the stand and shared a few words about her son with the court. She said, “He was a good man. He was a good man who struggled and made poor decisions, but his chance for recovery and mended relationships was stolen from him. When Micah was murdered, dismembered and thrown out like trash throughout the county, he was stolen from us. He is ours, he has always been ours, and now only God knows where most of his body lies.” Ultimately, the 45-year-old was sentenced to 30 years to life in prison plus 56 years. As of today, he is serving his sentence at the Substance Abuse Treatment Facility and State Prison in Corcoran, California, with the parole eligibility date scheduled for July 2044.
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