The Bagpiper and His Son

A Mystery Podcast

The Bagpiper
& His Son

A father dies mysteriously in Maui.

Six days later, a skeleton is found in the family treehouse.

Uncover the Story
Scroll
The remains of Hank Frantz

Imagine climbing the steps into a backyard treehouse.

The kind of place where a child once played.

But inside, it isn't toys you find.

It’s a body.

A body stripped of flesh, hidden in plain sight above the family backyard — possibly for years.

That skeleton belonged to Hank Frantz — a funny band kid who was 28 years old when he vanished. Missing for four years.

Six days earlier, his father Henry had died mysteriously on a scuba dive in Maui. Hank may have been gone for four years already.

The treehouse where Hank Frantz's body was found

The Treehouse — Decatur, Georgia, 2025

Above the family backyard. In plain sight. For years.

The Case

“These two lives had long collided in love and in conflict,
in loyalty and in rage.”

The Father

Henry D. Frantz

74 years old. Attorney. Father of five. Known throughout Decatur as “the Bagpiper.”

On a routine dive with Maui Dreams Dive Co., the guide told him to follow her fins. Ten minutes later, she looked back. He was gone.

Maui, 2025

The Son

Hank Frantz

28 years old. A funny band kid. Missing for four years — until his skeleton was found hidden in the family backyard treehouse.

His body was discovered in the treehouse six days after his father’s death — though Hank may have been gone for years already.

Decatur, Georgia, 2025

In death, their stories became entwined in ways that left behind secrets, contradictions, conspiracies, and questions.

Was there something to hide?

Episodes

All Available Episodes

Episode 01Coming soon

Henry

A Maui scuba-diving guide told the 74-year-old man behind her to follow her fins. Ten minutes later, she looked back. He wasn't there. Henry D. Frantz had vanished beneath the surface — and nothing about what happened next would be simple.

Coming soon on Substack

Don't miss an episode

New episodes drop on Substack. Subscribe to follow the case.

Subscribe on Substack

About This Podcast

Piece by piece, I’ll tell you a story about a father and his boy — and the mysteries that surround them both.

01

I'll trace Henry's final dive in Maui.

02

I'll take you inside the treehouse where Hank's body lay.

03

I'll pore over wills, police reports, and autopsies.

04

I'll ask whether two deaths so close together could really be coincidence.

How do feelings fester inside families — leading to heartbreaking consequences?

Was it coincidence, or was there a connection?

Your Host

Christine Van Dusen

Christine Van Dusen

Christine Van Dusen

An award-winning journalist who spent more than 20 years in the news business, most recently at the Atlanta Journal-Constitution and Atlanta Magazine.

I'm a mother, raising boys just minutes from where Hank was found. Maybe that's part of why I wanted to tell this story. Because what happened to him wasn't hidden away in some distant place — it unfolded here, on a street and in a yard that I passed by all the time.

Once I started looking closer, I couldn't look away.

Notable Work

Foul TerritoryAtlanta Magazine

Led MLB to extend safety netting at stadiums nationwide

Do you believe in second chances?Atlanta Journal-Constitution

Secured a pardon for a reformed felon seeking a second chance

Help Report This Story

Fill in the Blanks

Share what you know. Solve the mysteries.
Private messages are welcome.

Or reach Christine directly:

thebagpiperandhisson@gmail.com