Shawn Dickerson was only 23 years old when he vanished. He was recently hired at a men's clothing store called Rolo and had plans of saving money to move to New York with his roommate and close friend who he dated for two years in high school, Anjuli Droll. Shawn played keyboard and was a member of the band Feie which performed locally.

On December 1, 2011, Dickerson went to work, had a work review with his boss, and was given his paycheck. Shawn didn't have a bank account at the time so his check was given in cash. Shawn takes his lunch break at 1:00 PM and never finishes his shift. His boss is concerned, tries contacting him but Shawn doesn't reply until 11:30 PM that same night. Shawn apologizes for not returning to work and his boss warns him he could be fired if he can't be a reliable employee. That night, Shawn stays up chatting with his roommates before he goes to sleep around 4 AM on December 2nd.

By 11 AM on December 2nd, Shawn wakes up, rushes to get ready, and tells his roommates he's late to work. A witness recalls seeing him leave his apartment around 11:30 am. This would be the last time Shawn is seen wearing a black or gray hooded sweatshirt, a black dress shirt, black pants, and brown dress shoes. He has blue eyes, blond hair and may dye his hair brown. Shawn did not take any of his belongings with him to suggest he was leaving when he left the apartment.

Shawn never arrives to work, and instead would post 16 pictures to his Facebook profile, which is incredibly out of character. Shawn's family and friends would report him missing on December 6th. Many believe Shawn's disappearance could be connected to the California Five - a group of five men who all vanished from the San Francisco area within three years' time. The California Five: Jackson Miller went missing on May 15, 2010, Cameron Remmer vanished on October 6, 2011, Crishtian Huges went missing on February 7, 2013, Shawn Dickerson vanished on December 2nd, 2011, and Sean Sidi went missing on May 21, 2013.