Police Chase New Lead in Missing Person Case After Disturbing YouTube Video Goes Viral

Kayla Berg, then 15, vanished after being dropped off at her boyfriend’s house in 2009

UPDATE: Police in Wisconsin now say a disturbing YouTube video investigated in the 2009 disappearance of a teenage girl is "100% fake." Read the latest here

Seven years after a nightmarish video was first posted to YouTube, officials are investigating whether its disturbing footage contains clues into the disappearance of a missing Wisconsin teen.

The video, titled “Hi Walter! I got a new gf today!” was posted in 2009 and had gone relatively unnoticed until recently. Before being taken down by YouTube Tuesday, it went viral, capturing the attention of the Antigo Police Department.

Police say some believe the footage is connected to a missing person case from that same year, when 15-year-old Kayla Berg vanished after being dropped off at her boyfriend’s house in Wausau, Wisconsin. The footage was posted two months to the day after Berg went missing.

In the bizarre video, a man is seen talking to the camera, addressing someone named Walter. 

“Hi Walter, I was at the mall today and guess what happened? I met the most wonderful girl,” the man starts off saying.

After that, he describes shopping with the girl before saying, “and then we got kind of tired at the mall and I brought her back to my place.” 

“I know she hates cameras, Walter, but I’m going to show you her anyways. You ready?” he says.

The footage then cuts to a scene in what appears to be a basement. The man opens a door to a bathroom where a young woman is seen tied up, crying and screaming. 

Antigo police say they are “actively investigating the origin of this video.”

"It's got some similarities and that's enoughf or us that we need to at least investigate it thoroughly," Chief Eric Roller said.

The video, titled “Hi Walter! It’s me Patrick!” was the only one posted to the YouTube account, hiwalter.

The caption in the profile reads, “My videos to Walter. My friend which can not seem to find me.”

While there are some who say the video is fake or has been debunked, few have offered proof.

Berg’s mother, Hope Sprenger, told a local TV station she believes the girl in the video is her daughter, saying “[it] sounded like her, looked like her, it gave me chills.”

Sprenger said the clothing also looked like what she believes her daughter was wearing when she disappeared, according to WAOW TV.

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“If anyone has particular information as to the origin of the video or the identity of the individuals in the video please contact the Antigo Police Department,” the department wrote on Facebook.

The FBI is offering $20,000 for any information that leads to an arrest and conviction in the case.

Editor's Note: Because of the highly disturbing nature of the footage, NBC Chicago and its sister stations have chosen not to embed the video or link to it.

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