Prominent Meridian developer goes missing in Idaho wilderness. Family asking for help

Matt Schultz, a prominent local land developer, is believed to have left his Meridian home to explore land in Owyhee County. His family said he hasn’t been seen or heard from since.

Schultz, 50, was seen leaving his home by his neighbor on Wednesday afternoon. His last cell phone ping came from 60 miles south of the Bennett Mountains in Owyhee County, Idaho, possibly in the Bruneau Canyon area on that same day.

“There’s been no phone activity since then,” his niece Elise Woolstenhulme told the Idaho Statesman in a phone interview. “Nothing, nothing at all as far as communication.”

Schultz usually spends weekdays living alone at his home in Meridian and then returns to Pocatello on weekends to his home where his wife and children live. One of his favorite hobbies is flying drones. He often spends his free time exploring areas where he can fly them.

“He’s not the greatest communicator about what he’s going to do or where he’s going go,” Woolstenhulme said. “And so Wednesday, when he went out to fly his drone, he didn’t tell anybody where he was going. But it’s not unusual that his wife Robin doesn’t hear from him because he’s flying his drone. By Thursday, she was concerned.”

On Friday, she filed a missing persons report with police. Meridian officers conducted a wellness check on his home but he was not there.

Schultz is a father of four, including two 5-month-old twin daughters. He owns Schultz Development, a land development and consultant company.

Family seeking information from public

The family is hoping to hear from anyone who may have seen him or his truck.

Schultz is believed to have left his home on South Calusa Avenue in the late afternoon and headed to Owyhee County.

He was driving a light green 2021 Toyota Tacoma with a storage rack with a spare tire in the bed of the truck.

Police are hoping to learn a more definitive time that he left Meridian, if he was seen driving in a specific direction and whether he made any stops along the way.

Elise said it would be especially helpful to hear from anyone who might have seen him or his truck in the back country areas of Owyhee County. She believes he wouldn’t have hiked too far from his truck.

“There’s a good chance that his phone ping is nowhere near where he actually is,” Woolstenhulme said. “Maybe he headed somewhere else or he broke down somewhere else and someone saw something.”

Last week, Schultz took drone footage of the Bruneau Canyon area and told his son he wanted to return there soon.

“We do feel pretty confident that he’s going to be in this gorge area, but it’s a massive area,” Woolstenhulme said.

Police and volunteer search underway

The Owyhee County Sheriff’s Office is spearheading a search for Schultz. Deputies are searching, along with about 24 volunteers. On Sunday, they began focusing their search near the Bruneau Canyon River around the Cave Draw area.

Woolstenhulme said they would welcome additional volunteers. Anyone interested in helping should call the Owyhee County Sheriff’s Office dispatch at 208-495-1154, option 2. Woolstenhulme said it’s in an area with difficult terrain.

“Volunteers to help search efforts need to come adequately prepared, including driving vehicles that can manage bumpy dirt roads,” Woolstenhulme wrote on Facebook.

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