In the early 1960s, Michael Rockefeller vanished somewhere off the coast of Papua New Guinea. His disappearance shocked the nation and prompted a manhunt of historic proportions. Years later, the true fate of the heir to the Standard Oil fortune has been uncovered and it’s more disturbing than anyone at the time imagined.

Michael Rockefeller was born in 1938. He was the youngest son of New York governor Nelson Rockefeller and the newest member of a dynasty of millionaires founded by his famous great-grandfather, John D. Rockefeller — one of the richest men who ever lived.

Though his father expected him to follow in his footsteps and help manage the family’s vast business empire, Michael was a quieter, more artistic spirit. When he graduated from Harvard in 1960, he wanted to do something more exciting than sit around in boardrooms and conduct meetings.

His father, a prolific art collector, had recently opened the Museum of Primitive Art, and its exhibits, including Nigerian, Aztec, and Mayan works, entranced Michael.