An episode of NBC’s “Dateline” called “Secrets by the Bay” looks at the murder and disappearance of 32-year-old mother of two Elizabeth Sullivan in 2014. On a bad night in October, she left her home in the Point Loma neighbourhood of San Diego and never came back. Two years later, her body was found in the bay, almost to the day. Then, when her husband, a former Navy officer named Matthew Sullivan, was named as her attacker, Elizabeth’s family and friends finally got the answers they had been looking for. Nathan Caracter was one of them, but, as he said in the episode, that wasn’t enough.
Who is Nathan Caracter?
Nathan Caracter says that he and Elizabeth Sullivan became close friends after she bought a pair of glasses from him in San Diego, California, where he worked as an optician. Elizabeth felt safe enough with him to tell him everything about her life. So, he knew all about the problems in her marriage to Matthew and her plans to leave him for good. In fact, she spent the night at Nathan’s place the weekend before she went missing, where she planned her divorce.
Nathan once said, “She was smart, very smart, quick, and funny. She was also a good mother who cared a lot about the well-being of her children.” Then he said that she was also one of the strongest women he had ever met. He said that Elizabeth was taking charge of her life instead of letting it control her. They were always in touch, even though they had tried meth together more than once. So, when he couldn’t get in touch with her on October 14, 2014, Nathan told the police right away. “There was just something wrong. It didn’t make sense.”
Where is Nathan Caracter Now?
Nathan Caracter testified against Matthew Sullivan when he was caught and put on trial for killing Elizabeth Sullivan because she was cheating on him and was planning to leave him. He talked about how he knew the couple and how they were allegedly abusive to each other. He also answered questions about the two “pretty big” refrigerators in the Sullivans’ Liberty Station townhouse, which is where Matthew Sullivan hid his wife’s body for about two years. Nathan then gave an impact statement after the husband was found guilty and given 16 years to life in prison.
Nathan said in March 2021, “A longer sentence won’t make the pain go away, and telling this man about the pain I’ve been through for the past six and a half years won’t make him feel any different than he does now.” And now, he told “Dateline,” even though he finally knows what happened, he has no hope left. But he is trying to get on with his life as best he can. The former Triad Productions worker seems to be focusing on his legal career now that he has an associate’s degree as a legal assistant/paralegal (2018-2020) and a law degree from the University of Arizona (2020-2022). He is still living in San Diego, California.
