Carl Stephen Knight

Knight, circa 2008; Paul Salinsky; Robert Salinsky

  • Missing Since 04/06/2008
  • Missing From Jamestown, California
  • Classification Endangered Missing
  • Sex Male
  • Race White
  • Date of Birth 07/17/1984 (39)
  • Age 23 years old
  • Height and Weight 6'1, 220 pounds
  • Distinguishing Characteristics Caucasian male. Brown hair, brown eyes.

Details of Disappearance

Knight was last seen at a residence in Jamestown, California on April 6, 2008. He was apparently injured in a fight with Robert Earl Slawinsky and his brother, Paul Curtis Slawinsky, that day. Knight vanished after the fight and has never been heard from again.

Shortly after his disappearance, police arrested the Slawinsky brothers and charged them with kidnapping and criminal conspiracy. Within days, the charges were upgraded to first-degree murder.

Photographs of the brothers are posted with this case summary. When investigators searched the house where the fight is believed to have taken place, they found bloodstained towels, brass knuckles, burned shoes and other evidence of foul play.

In July 2008, the Salinsky brothers both pleaded guilty to a reduced charge of aggravated manslaughter. They admitted they killed Knight in a fight over slashed tires and dumped his body in Lake Don Pedro.

Robert and Paul were sentenced to the maximum term of eleven years in prison. Knight's body hasn't been located in spite of an extensive search. A corpse was located in Lake Don Pedro in August 2008, but it turned out to be another missing man.

Knight is a graduate of Cassina High School. He is divorced, has a young daughter, and lived with his mother in Sonora, California at the time of his disappearance. He was employed with Utterback Construction.

Knight had previously been involved with drugs, but he went through a rehabilitation program several years prior to his disappearance and stayed clean afterwards. Foul play is suspected in his case due to the circumstances involved.

Investigating Agency

  • Tuolumne County Sheriff's Department 209-533-5815

Updated 1 time since October 12, 2004. Last updated October 7, 2008; casefile added.