On May 1, 2004, the body of Alonzo Brooks was found in La Cygne, Kansas, about a month after he was reported missing after April 3, 2004. The circumstances surrounding Brooks's death are mysterious, and the Federal Bureau of Investigation continues to investigate whether or not he was a victim of a hate crime. On April 5, 2021, the FBI announced that their investigation had proved that Brooks' death was a homicide. Background Alonzo Tyree Brooks was born on May 19, 1980, to Billy Brooks Sr. and Maria Ramirez. A native of Topeka, Kansas, Brooks was of African American and Mexican descent. At the time of his disappearance, he was 23 years old and working as a custodian for Countryside Maintenance in Gardner, Kansas. Disappearance On April 3, 2004, Brooks traveled with three friends to a party in La Cygne, approximately south of Gardner. While at the party, racial slurs were allegedly uttered toward Brooks, possibly igniting tension between Brooks and the other individuals. As the party continued, Brooks's friends left the party at La Cygne at different times, accidentally leaving Brooks behind due to a perceived misunderstanding on how he would be getting a ride home to Gardner. The next day Brooks did not return to Gardner and was deemed to be missing. Investigation Following the night of the party, the Brooks family traveled to La Cygne to search for their son and contact the local authorities. Eventually, the Linn County Police Department turned the case over to the Kansas Bureau of Investigation after failing to locate Brooks. Both the KBI and FBI were unsuccessful in locating Brooks. On May 1, 2004, the Brooks family was allowed to search the property for their son. On the first day of the search effort, Brooks' body was found on the banks of Middle Creek adjacent to the house where he was last seen a month earlier. Postmortem examination indicated that Brooks did not have any broken bones, any signs of blunt force trauma or injury, nor any of the biological signs of drowning in his lungs. Consequently, the pathologist could not determine a cause of death. Numerous theories have been offered as to how Brooks died. Witnesses recalled flirtation between Brooks and a white woman later on at the party, prompting theories of a hate crime motive. On June 11, 2020, the FBI reopened the cold case and issued a $100,000