The fire had consumed a large portion of the home, and once the fire was extinguished, the firemen were horrified to discover the burned remains of an infant boy inside a bathtub. Further examination revealed that the fire had been set intentionally with some kind of accelerant. An autopsy could not confirm the infant’s cause of death, but it determined he had been killed before the fire was set.

Investigators quickly got to work. They determined that the home was being rented by 33-year-old Joey Lynn Offutt. However, she was nowhere to be seen.

Just six weeks earlier, Joey had given birth to a baby boy, Alexis Alfred Brolin, III. She had always wanted a family of her own, especially after being traumatised by her own parents’ divorce when she was just 3-years-old. Growing up, Joey was shy and socially insecure. Her mother, Sherry Hallett, said that she had an almost childlike innocence.²

Joey had studied journalism for a year at Shepherd University in West Virginia, but after receiving poor grades, she opted to drop out. She bounced from job to job, and gave birth to two children who were now two and nine-years-old. Unfortunately for Joey, the relationship she had with the father of her oldest child was volatile, and it wasn’t to last.

Joey eventually moved to Sykesville, where she gave birth to Alexis. The man who she had Alexis with was something of an on and off again boyfriend. His name was Alexis Brolin, and he was also the father of Joey’s middle child. Joey’s mother recalled: “She was happy there and loved her children.”

At the time of the fire, Joey’s other two children were stating with relatives.

Investigators asked the public to keep an eye out for Joey. They were unsure whether she was the one to set the fire, or whether both she and her son were victim to somebody else, somebody who had potentially abducted her or killed  her and then disposed of her body elsewhere. Joey’s car was absent from the home and investigators described it as a red 1994 Saturn coupe with Virginia license plates and visible damage to the hood.

On the 16^th of July, investigators finally fond Joey’s car, but Joey was nowhere to be seen. Her car was found parked outside an apartment in State College, around 70 miles east of the home she rented in Sykesville. Bizarrely, the car was parked outside an apartment where Joey used to live with Alexis, the father of her son. The couple had lived here for a couple of years before Joey moved to Sykesville.³

In a statement, investigators announced they were looking for Lynn “out of concern for her welfare.”⁴ Joey’s family immediately said that Joey must not have been driving the car. It was parked immaculately and as her family said, Joey was not a good driver, nor was she a good parker. Alexis said he had no clue how the car ended up parked outside the apartment.

When the gruesome discovery was made, the initial theory was that Joey had killed her son and then set her house on fire and fled. However, other theories quickly began to emerge as the investigation continued. Another theory that investigators were working on was whether Joey had been abducted or killed. State Police Trooper Bruce A. Morris announced: “It’s almost like she’s fallen off the face of the planet. I’m confident this case is going to be resolved. She’s the key to this whole thing.”⁵

Joey was described in missing person flyers as a white woman standing around 5 feet 3 inches tall. She was of slim build and had brown hair and brown eyes. She may have been wearing glasses when she disappeared.

The days gradually turned into months and Joey could not be found. In an attempt to generate some much needed tips, her family set up a website. On the website, they shared their belief that they had reason to believe that Joey may have been missing since the day before the fire.⁶

The reason they believed Joey had vanished earlier was because a bag of rotting hamburger meat was found inside her fridge. Moreover, the last time that Joey was last seen was on the 5^th of July. She was spotted walking on the sidewalk near SR 119 in Sykesville.  

A couple of days after Christmas, skeletal remains were discovered in Somerset, Pennsylvania. The remains belonged to a petite, brown-haired woman aged between 30 and 40-years-old. She had died at some point during the summer, and evidence found at the scene suggested she spent time in Raleigh, North Carolina, and Interstate 80. The description of the body bore similarities to Joey, and investigators working on her disappearance immediately contacted Somerset authorities.⁷ Just a couple of weeks later, however, the body was ruled out as being Joey.

In July of 2008, it was the one year anniversary to Alexis’ death and Joey’s disappearance. Her family put forward a reward of $15,000 for information that could lead them to Joey.⁸ The family also implemented a toll-free tip line, but they received absolutely no tips. It was if Joey had just vanished off the face of the earth.

Her nephew, Jason Hungerford, commented in the media: “Each of us is bracing for the news that she is dead.” The family always suspected that something sinister had happened to Joey. She wasn’t the type to just up and leave without telling anybody where she was going, and she would never have harmed her own children or abandoned them. Jason pleaded for information, stating: “If anyone knows anything, or saw anything — even if they didn’t think at the time that it meant anything — please call the Pennsylvania State Police or the tip line: 1-877-440-5639.”⁹

In November, the family reached out to America’s Most Wanted. They were desperate for leads and the show had a massive platform.

While the family were still clinging onto hope that Joey was alive somewhere, they were realists and knew deep down that it was highly unlikely. Her mother, Sherry, announced she believed somebody somewhere knew what had happened to her daughter, and believes that somebody must have seen her somewhere before she vanished. She stated: “I believe that someone in that little town knows what happened. It’s taken me more than a year to run it through my mind, but I believe it’s somebody that she knew.”

When the case aired on America’s Most Wanted, a tip came in from Decatur in Alabama. A man had called and was adamant that he had been speaking to Joey in a store in Decatur on the 15^th of November.¹⁰ Investigators embarked on the Alabama town but they could find no sign of Joey.

As the two year anniversary rolled around, the reward fund for information was increased to $20,000. By now, they had accepted it was unlikely that Joey was ever coming home, and that they were most likely looking for a body. Jason commented: “I think that we’re at this point working on the assumption that she was the victim of a crime and most likely that she’s dead. So we’re looking for a body. That’s very difficult for us to say, but we can’t fathom any other possibility. She certainly would not have run off on her own, leaving her other children behind.”¹¹

To this day, the whereabouts of Joey Lynn Offutt remains a mystery. Investigators have announced that nobody has been ruled out as a suspect. As for Alexis Breslin, Joey’s family have said that he has helped and cooperated in every way possible with he investigation.

That afternoon, 8-year-old Derrick Engebertson set off on the search with his father, Robert, and his grandfather, Bob. He was dressed warmly in a blue snowmobile suit, hat, and felt-lined boots. He was also carrying with him a hatchet which he carried in anticipation of helping chop  down the perfect trees.¹²

Derrick was a brown-haired third-grader and his family had nicknamed him “Bear Boy” due to his love for the wilderness. The family lived on forested land, and Derrick had distinguished himself as a mushroom picker. He enjoyed tagging along on the family hunts as well, seeking out black-tailed deer, bobcat, and black bear. “Ever since he was a baby, he’s been out in the woods hunting and stuff,” said Lori.

In addition to his love for the outdoors, Derrick also loved sports, especially baseball, basketball, soccer and football. He had even taken a few swings with a golf club. The only time Derrick was ever really indoors was at nightfall, when he liked to curl up in front of the television and watch shows about animals.

There were really only two things that scared little Derrick: the dark and cougars.

The search for the Christmas tree got off to a good start. They had purchased permits for three trees – one for each family and then another for a friend. The family had driven to Rocky Point at around 2PM, and they hiked into the woods together. They had hiked around 150 yards, and were heading in the direction of a nearby ridge.

Derrick was armed with his hatchet, as the family moved through the woodland together. After a while, however, Derrick and his grandfather had found themselves trailing behind Robert. As Bob later explained, Derrick had a penchant for wandering off. “Footloose and fancy free,” Bob recollected.

Bob was trying to keep an eye on Derrick, but also keep an eye out for the perfect tree. Derrick also kept commenting to his grandfather that he wanted to run ahead, to catch up with his father. He asked his grandfather again and again if he could run ahead and Bob reluctantly agreed.

As Bob continued in his search, he could see that based on the snowy footprints, Derrick was following Robert’s footprints perfectly. He had no reason to worry, so he turned around and continued in his search, as Robert continued in his. He surmised that his grandson had caught up with his father, and assisting him in his search.

A short time later, Robert and Bob met up on the road. They were both noticeably alone. “Where’s Derrick?” asked Robert. Bob replied: “I thought he was with you.” Robert responded: “No, I told him to stay with you.”¹³

Somehow, Derrick had vanished. The family called out his name but received no reply. They attempted to search for Derrick, but a snowstorm had rolled in, wiping out any footprints that could indicate which direction he headed in. Robert and Bob did come across a snow angel near a forest road, which they speculated was made by Derrick, but where did he go from here?

Darkness quickly fell over the area, and concern for Derrick quickly transformed into fear. Within hours, police were called in to assist in the search.

Hundreds of volunteers took part in the search, fanning out in a line, poking through the foliage and snow as they searched for any sign of Derrick. The family were all pro-active in the search for Derrick, scouring through the dense wilderness. “Derrick will go till he finds his daddy,” said Derrick’s sister, Susan.

Robert said: “I’ve just got to find him. I can’t leave him up here.” He said he was holding onto the belief that his son was alive and well. Having grown up in the mountains, he was an avid hunter and very familiar with the outdoors. However, the snowstorm had ramped up in severity, and the temperatures were subfreezing.

The community really came together to try and bring Derrick home safely. The Klamath Motorsports Shop in downtown Klamath Falls donated a number of snowmobiles for the search, while employees at Jackson County Financial in Medford put forward a $1,000 reward for anybody who found Derrick alive.¹⁴

In addition to the volunteers searching on foot, a police helicopter hovered overhead, hoping to catch a glimpse of Derrick. Police also called in sniffer dogs to search on foot, but the search was hampered by the heavy snowfall. “This is hard, these ups and downs. It’s just frustrating,” said Capt. Roger Pitts.

As the search continued, one volunteer spotted what looked like child-sized footprints in the snow on top of a rock. Robert rushed over and followed the dainty footprints. They led downhill into the forest, and then toward the banks of Upper Klamath Lake, but then the footsteps vanished.

With each day that passed, the likelihood of Derrick being found alive dwindled. On day seven of the search, the helicopters were pulled out of the search and it was declared that the goal was now to recover a body as opposed to find Derrick alive.¹⁵

By the following week, the official search ceased. Search coordinator, Bud Wilson, said: “It’s a tough decision.” It was a decision that crushed Derrick’s family, who continued in their own personal search alongside a couple of hundred volunteers who refused to give up.¹⁶

The following month, somebody in the forest came across a school bookmark and a candy wrapper. The bookmark had come from Bonanza School, where Derrick was a student. There was also an ominous finding: a couple of spots of blood. The discovery was made a couple of miles away from where Derrick was last seen by his grandfather.¹⁷

It was hoped that the discoveries could lead to Derrick, but it wasn’t to be. A couple of weeks later, Derrick’s family shared their belief that he had been kidnapped. They put forward a $20,000 reward that could lead to Derrick.

It wouldn’t be until May that the search for Derrick was ramped up. By now, the snow had finally begun to melt. The initial search was practically impossible due to the heavy snowfall. Not only was it difficult to see anything, but it was hard to trample through such thick snow that had landed on the ground.

Searchers came from Douglas, Josephine, Jackson, Lane and Klamath counties. There were also 14 sniffer dogs, including ones from both Portland and California. The searchers set off where Derrick was last seen, and they searched an area that was three miles long and a half a mile wide. Essentially, they were searching for Derrick’s remains.¹⁸

Unfortunately, the renewed search did not offer any insight into what happened to Derrick, but a couple of months later, some ominous graffiti appeared at a rest stop in the Oregon desert. The rest stop was around 150 miles east of where Derrick vanished, and the graffiti read something crude about Derrick. It did not personally name Derrick, but as one investigator said, it was “Derrick-specific.”

It was never disclosed what the graffiti had read, but Derrick’s mother, Lori, said it suggested that her son had been abducted.

“At first you think, ‘Oh my God, he might be alive and somebody is actually going to give him back.’ All I can say is I hope if Derrick did die, I hope he died on that mountain and not at the hands of some sick person. If he died on the mountain, he just closed his eyes and went to sleep. There would have been no pain or anything.”

Lori, Derrick’s mother

It could never be determined whether the graffiti was linked to the disappearance of Derrick or whether it was nothing more than a cruel joke.

A couple of years later, it was announced that investigators working on the case were looking at a new angle: whether Derrick had been abducted. Investigators appealed to the public for information about a late-model black two-door Honda which had been in the area on the day that Derrick disappeared.

They announced that the car was driven by a man who may have stopped and asked for directions near the community of Rocky Point, and he may have been seen struggling with a boy.¹⁹

The new lead had come in from a tipster, who had contacted police. He said that she had seen a man and boy struggling near the road, but he didn’t stop because he assumed that they were father and son.

“We don’t know if the tipster really knows something or if they’re trying to get attention.”²⁰

Lt. Dale Rutledge

Unfortunately, the tip never panned out, but two years later, another tip would surface.

Frank J. Milligan was serving a thirty year sentence for abducting, raping, and slashing the throat of a ten-year-old boy in Dallas in 2000. Investigators working on Derrick’s disappearance now speculated that Milligan could have abducted and killed him.

Back in July of 2001, Milligan had pleaded guilty to charges of attempted murder, kidnapping, sodomy, and sexual abuse. Thankfully, the boy in this case survived. At the time of the attack, Milligan was out on bail for the sexual assault of another young boy.

Milligan had surfaced as person of interest in Derrick’s case when a fellow inmate contacted police and told them he had bragged about abducting and killing Derrick. Investigators made contact with Milligan, and he confessed to killing Derrick and agreed to lead them to where he had buried his body. Investigators embarked on the scene, but despite an extensive search, Derrick’s body was never found, and Milligan later recanted his confession.²¹

As of 2022, the whereabouts of Derrick Engebretson remains a mystery. The theories as to what happened to him still remain very polarized. Some believe that Derrick simply perished from exposure and then his remains were scattered by animals. Others, however, think that Derrick fell victim to a much more terrifying predator: a paedophile.

Derrick’s family never really gave up in their search for him. For years, they returned to the woods where Derrick vanished and searched for anything which could indicate what had happened to their precious son. For his birthdays, they took balloons to the woods and tied them to a tree. “I haven’t given up on him being alive. I pray every single night for him to be alive in somebody’s safe hands.”²²

It’s estimated that around 35,000 Australians go missing each year. That’s a startling one every 15 minutes. More than half of those that go missing are under 18-years-old. While the majority turn up after hours, days, weeks or even months, there’s a handful that never turn up again, that vanish without a trace. In summer of 2011, a teenage girl vanished in Boronia, Australia, on the way to school. The subsequent search for the teenage girl would become one of the state’s most baffling cases and led to many in the nation questioning whether a dormant child predator had come back for another victim after a twenty-year respite.

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Audio Sources:

“A new clue in search for missing schoolgirl ‘Bung’ Siriboon”

“Fresh Twist”

“Mr. Cruel Investigation Re-Opened”

Sources:

The Herald Sun, 5 June, 2011 – “Parents Plead to Find Girl”

MX, 9 June, 2011 – “Pleas for Missing Teen”

Herald Sun, 10 June, 2011 – “We’ve Kept the Faith”

Leader – Knox News, 14 June, 2011 – “Missing Teen Mystery”

Knox Weekly, 15 June, 2011 – “Teenager Still Missing”

Herald Sun, 16 June, 2011 – “Teen’s Secret Life”

The Advertiser, 17 June, 2011 – “Missing Teen”

Bendigo Advertiser, 17 June, 2011 – “Police Have Scoured the Streets”

Herald Sun, 17 June, 2011 – “Volunteers Join Hunt for Missing Teen”

Leader – Knox News, 21 June, 2011 – “Teen’s Facebook Twist”

MX, 24 June, 2011 – “Abduction Fears for Missing Girl”

Herald Sun, 25 June, 2011 – “Missing Teen Feared Dead”

Herald Sun, 26 June, 2011 – “Our Bung Still Alive”

Leader – Knox News, 28 June, 2011 – “Police Fear ‘Bung’ Abducted”

The Age, 30 June, 2011 – “Masked Man Sought”

Herald Sun, 30 June, 2011 – “Police Fear Link to ‘Bung’ Girl”

The Courier, 1 July, 2011 – “They were both Schoolgirls, of Asian Appearance”

Herald Sun, 1 July, 2011 – “Police Probe Disturbing Links in Web of Attempted Schoolgirl Abductions”

MX, 1 July, 2011 – “Teen Escapes Attacker”

The Age, 2 July, 2011 – “Possible Link Between Sex Attack and Bung”

Herald Sun, 2 July, 2011 – “Family Prays for Bung”

Leader – Maroondah Mail, 5 July, 2011 – “Kidnap Bids not Linked”

Knox Weekly, 6 June, 2011 – “New Link to ‘Bung’ Mystery”

Herald Sun, 7 July, 2011 – “Search for Missing Teenager Takes Huge Toll on her Family”

Bendigo Advertiser, 8 July, 2011 – “A Melbourne Girl Has Admitted she Lied”

Herald Sun, 8 July, 2011 – “Child Admits she Lied to Cops”

Herald Sun, 10 July, 2011 – “Attacks Check in Hunt for Girl”

Leader – Knox News, 19 July, 2011 – “Police School Patrols”

Leader – Knox News, 19 July, 2011 – “Safety Houses Seek Recruits After Disappearance”

Herald Sun, 5 August, 2011 – “Search for Missing Schoolgirl Has Run Out of Clues”

The Age, 6 August, 2011 – “Parents’ Hopes Remain High”

MX, 1 September, 2011 – “Hoax May Provide Real Leads”

Herald Sun, 1 October, 2011 – “Search for Bung Widens”

Herald Sun, 25 October, 2011 – “Taskforce Blitz on Bung Case”

The Coffs Coast Advocate, 26 October, 2011 – “Give us our Daughter Back”

Herald Sun, 2 December, 2011 – “Empty Bed, Empty Hearts”

Knox Weekly, 7 December, 2011 – “Six Months on, Still a Mystery”

MX, 9 March, 2012 – “Perhaps a Hint of Hope”

Geelong Advertiser, 10 March, 2012 – “Tip Leads to Bung Breakthrough”

Herald Sun, 10 April, 2012 – “Bung Case Baffling”

MX, 1 June, 2012 – “Send Her Home”

The Age, 28 June, 2012 – “Local Link to Missing Girl”

Herald Sun, 28 June, 2012 – “Suspect Lived Near School”

Herald Sun, 25 April, 2013 – “Bung Hunt Twist”

Herald Sun, 4 May, 2013 – “Knight a Mr. Cruel Suspect”

Leader – Knox News, 28 May, 2013 – “Police Set up Caravan”

Herald Sun, 2 June, 2013 – “Bung Checks”

The Age, 13 August, 2013 – “Search for Missing Girl”

The Gold Coast Bulletin, 13 August, 2013 – “Area Searched for Teen Clues”

Herald Sun, 14 August, 2013 – “Hunt Goes on for Bung”

The Advertiser, 20 August, 2013 – “Search Fails to Find Girl”

MX, 25 October, 2013 – “We Won’t Give Up on Bung”

The Age, 11 December, 2013 – “Missing Girl ‘Run Down’”

Herald Sun, 11 December, 2013 – “Suspect Held Twice”

Leader – Knox, 17 December, 2013 – “Bung Suspect Released”

The Age, 4 February, 2014 – “$1m Reward for Help Over Bung”

The Age, 3 June, 2014 – “New Clue on Missing Schoolgirl Bung”

The Courier Mail, 3 June, 2014 – “Driver May Have Spotted Girl on the Day She Vanished”

The Courier, 3 June, 2014 – “Melbourne Schoolgirl Bung Set”

Leader – Knox, 31 May, 2014 – “Family’s Shrine to Bung”

The Age, 3 June, 2016 – “Car Clue Over Missing Bung”

Herald Sun, 3 June, 2016 – “Car, Tattoo, Bung Clues”

Leader – Knox News, 6 June, 2017 – “Billboard for Missing Girl”

Herald Sun, 7 August, 2017 – “Art to Aid Search for Missing Teen”

Leader – Knox News, 15 May, 2018 – “Searching for Bung”

Sunday Herald Sun, 29 May, 2021 – “Bung Siriboon’s Stepfather Reveals Heartache”

Jaliek Rainwalker was born to a cocaine-addicted, alcoholic mother. He had been moved from pillar to post throughout his childhood, having been in seven foster and adoptive homes. Jaliek seemingly landed on his feet when he was adopted by a couple who had fostered him for two years. However, when Jaliek was 12-years-old, he inexplicably vanished under suspicious circumstances.

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Audio Sources:

“Jaliek Rainwalker case reclassified as homicide, no longer missing persons case”

“Cold Case: Jaliek Rainwalker”

“Jaliek Rainwalker still missing after five years”

“Search for Jaliek Rainwalker”

Sources:

The Post-Star, 5 November, 2007 – “Missing Boy, 12, Subject of Search”

The Post-Star, 5 November, 2007 – “Search Party Efforts Will Continue Today”

The Post-Star, 6 November, 2007 – “Police Step up Missing Child Investigation”

The Post-Star, 7 November, 2007 – “Divers Called in to Survey Batten Kill”

The Times Union, 7 November, 2007 – “Search Continues for Missing Youth”

The Post-Star, 10 November, 2007 – “Vigil Tries to Keep Hope Alive”

Bennington Banner, 10 November, 2007 – “Police Chief Fears Boy Ran into Harm’s Way”

The Post-Star, 13 November, 2007 – “Searchers Hope to Bring in More Dogs”

The Post-Star, 13 November, 2007 – “Search Focuses on Golf Courses”

The Times Union, 14 November, 2007 – “Cops Scour Woods”

The Post-Star, 15 November, 2007 – “Police Plan to Go Back to Square One”

The Times Union, 16 November, 2007 – “Family Ties Slipping Before Boy Disappeared”

The Post-Star, 17 November, 2007 – “Family Holding on to Hope”

The Post-Star, 19 November, 2007 – “Police Subpoena Media Interviews”

The Times Union, 19 November, 2007 – “Police May Turn to Media for Clues”

Bennington Banner, 20 November, 2007 – “Ground Searches for Missing N.Y. Boy Will Conclude Today”

The Post-Star, 20 November, 2007 – “Police Expand Search for Missing Boy in Vermont”

The Times Union, 20 November, 2007 – “Couple Look Back on Jaliek’s Outbursts”

The Post-Star, 26 November, 2007 – “Search for Boy Still Fruitless”

The Record, 28 November, 2007 – “$25,000 Reward Offered”

The Post-Star, 29 November, 2007 – “Jaliek’s Parents Offer Reward”

The Post-Star, 6 December, 2007 – “Police Analysing Cell Phone of Jaliek’s Father”

The Times Union, 6 December, 2007 – “Hope Remains as Search Wanes”

The Times Union, 7 December, 2007 – “Search for Missing Boy Takes New Tack”

The Saratogian, 20 December, 2007 – “Vigil for Missing Teen”

The Times Union, 20 December, 2007 – “Adoptive Father’s Actions Raise Eyebrows”

The Saratogian, 21 December, 2007 – “Extended Family Members of a Missing Boy Are Upset”

The Times Union, 21 December, 2007 – “FBI to Retrace Last Trip of Father”

The Post-Star, 23 December, 2007 – “Lights Honor Boy Missing Since Nov 2”

Bennington Banner, 24 December, 2007 – “Vigil Held for Missing Boy”

The Times Union, 24 December, 2007 – “Keeping the Flame for Missing Boy”

The Post-Star, 28 December, 2007 – “Former Foster Parents Create Task Force”

The Post-Star, 1 January, 2008 – “Group Boosts Reward for Missing Child”

Bennington Banner, 2 January, 2008 – “Families Join in Search for Jaliek”

The Post-Star, 8 January, 2008 – “Father of Missing Child Offered Second Chance at Lie Detector” 

The Post-Star, 14 January, 2008 – “Father of Missing Boy Forbids Search of Van”

The Post-Star, 31 January, 2008 – “Anonymous Letter Claims Rainwalker Still Alive”

The Daily Gazette, 1 February, 2008 – “Letter Claims Jaliek Rainwalker is Alive”

The Post-Star, 4 February, 2008 – “Group Asks Letter Writer to Prove it”

The Post-Star, 8 February, 2008 – “Former Home of Kerr Searched”

The Post-Star, 18 February, 2008 – “Police Were Right to Enter”

The Post-Star, 25 March, 2008 – “Phone Records Dispute Jaliek Story”

The Record, 29 March, 2008 – “Grandmother Pushes for Custody of Missing Boy”

The Times Union, 5 April, 2008 – “Search for Rainwalker Set”

The Post-Star, 9 April, 2008 – “New Jaliek Search Scheduled”

The Record, 23 April, 2008 – “Szostaks Body Believed Found”

The Post-Star, 21 May, 2008 – “Jaliek Search Scaled Back”

The Post-Star, 16 July, 2008 – “Charges Filed in Jaliek Burglary”

The Record, 16 July, 2008 – “Jaliek’s Grandmother Charged”

The Times Union, 31 October, 2008 – “A Missing Boy, a Family Torn”

The Post-Star, 6 March, 2017 – “Police Looking into Whether Skull is that of Jaliek Rainwalker”

The Times Union, 2 November, 2017 – “What We Have is Our Memories of a Bright, Caring Boy” 

It was a hot summer’s day on the 3rd of August, 1963. Bobby and two of his brothers – Jim, 6, and Bill, 10 – went on a hike with their mother, Edna, alongside a logging road situated near their campsite at the now-defunct Deep Lake Resort in northern Stevens County. Ted had decided to stay at the campsite that afternoon and go fishing with his father instead.

As they hiked along the trail, Bill asked his mother if he could briefly check out the nearby waterfall which he could hear from the trail. She agreed and told Jim to stand waiting with Bobby while they momentarily went to look at the waterfall. However, Jim decided that instead of staying with Bobby, he would follow Bill and his mother, leaving Bobby standing alone on the trail.

After a few minutes, they returned to where Bobby had been left. However, Bobby was nowhere to be seen. He had been barefoot yet no footprints were found; it was as if the ground had opened up and swallowed him whole.²³

Over 500 people a day participated in the nine-day search for Bobby, drawing thousands of volunteers deep into the remote Deep Lake area that surrounded the campsite. The search area was around 20 miles south of the Canadian border and was extremely undeveloped and treacherous. It was hilly and rugged and the search was a difficult one.

Bloodhounds were called in to assist in the search. “When we turned the bloodhound loose at midnight Saturday after giving him a sniff of the boy’s shoe, I had no doubts that the party would be back in an hour or so with the child,” said Sheriff Albert Holter.²⁴ The bloodhound picked up a scent that ran for two miles before abruptly stopping at a fork in the road. The bloodhound would follow this scent twice and according to the sheriff, this led them to believe that Bobby walked to this spot, turned around and then walked back, confusing the bloodhound.²⁵

When Bobby vanished, he was wearing only blue swimming trunks. The area where he vanished was treacherous and there were many areas that would have been impossible to walk barefoot and without clothing to protect him from the underbrush. “It’s difficult to describe just how bad this terrain is. If he were to have fallen into a hole under some logs and to have been hurt, it’s possible that 20 searchers could have crossed right over him,” said Sheriff Holter. ²⁶  Divers of the Stevens County Scuba Patrol of Colville searched Deep Lake while searchers scoured alongside Current Creek.

Eventually, the official search for Bobby was called off when not a single clue was uncovered. His parents, Edna and Howard would return to their home in Spokane but a number of locals living in the area would continue their personal search for Bobby

Sheriff Holter considered that Bobby – who weighed just 30 pounds – was snatched by an eagle or even taken by a bear or wild cat.²⁷ However, he also said that this was unlikely due to the fact that Bobby would have called out and there would probably have been evidence of some kind of commotion.

He was also open to the theory that Bobby had been abducted but once again, said that this was unlikely, stating: “It would require an unusual sequence of events to put a possible kidnapper at that exact remote spot at that particular moment to make kidnapping a possibility.”²⁸

In March of 1964, a letter from FBI Director J. Edgar Hoover said that “no evidence has been developed indicating a kidnapping has occurred.” Despite this, Sheriff Holter urged doctors, including doctors in Canada, to keep an eye out for Bobby on the chance that he had been abducted and was living with a new family. He informed a number of doctors that Bobby had a chocolate allergy, was susceptible to ear infections and that he had difficulty pronouncing “R” and “C” sounds. His parents said that he was extremely interested in cowboys and parades and would respond to the name of the family dog, Frisky.

To this day, Bobby’s brothers still dwell on their actions that afternoon. Although they were all young children at the time, they still question what would have happened if they didn’t go to the waterfall or if they didn’t leave Bobby standing alone, if even just for a brief moment.

On the 31st of October, 1955, Marilyn and the two children went to a bakery in East Meadow, New York, to pick up some fresh bread. While Marilyn popped into the bakery at 2:45PM, she left Steven and Pamela, who was in her stroller, outside the store. There were several other strollers parked outside and Marilyn told Steven to be good and that she would be back in just a few minutes. “It was something which I had done a thousand times, and other women still do,” Marilyn recalled. It was a decision she came to regret forever.²⁹

When Marilyn exited the store, she found the stroller and Steven missing. Eventually the stroller was found a few blocks away. Pamela was safe and sound inside the stroller but Steven was nowhere the be seen. Marilyn had to be rushed to the hospital to be treated for shock while a search party consisting of around 2,000 volunteers as well as personnel from Mitchel Field, Boy Scouts, police officers and firemen was set up. They searched the area surrounding the bakery and fanned out searching parks, golf courses and waterways.

A missing person poster described Steven as 38 inches, 32 pounds, blonde hair and blue eyes, with a scar under his chin and a birthmark resembling a mole on the back of his lower calf. He was last seen wearing blue overalls, a blue polo shirt, a red sweater with white and blue ships on the front and brown shoes. Posters were distributed across the city while locals were asked if they had seen Steven or witnessed anything suspicious. Police officers drove Marilyn throughout the city in a sound truck. As they drove, she called “Stevie, where are you?” into the speaker.

Marilyn said she didn’t believe that Steven would have been able to move the stroller himself, stating: “He never wanders. He’s kind of a momma’s boy.” She and Jerry pleaded on national television for their son to be returned to them. They said that Steven suffered from anemia and that he needed to take medication including vitamins, aspirin and a tonic. ³⁰

Over the forthcoming years, FBI followed tips all across the country. In November of 1955, three letters were sent to Steven’s family demanding ransom for his safe return. Each letter requested a larger amount of money: the first one requested $3,000, the second requested $10,000 then the third requested $14,000. Steven’s family attempted to comply to the demands but would soon discover the letters were from a fraudster who knew nothing about Steven’s disappearance and were simply trying to con them out of money.³¹

One popular theory was that Steven was “The Boy in the Box” – a young boy who was found murdered in a box in Philadelphia two years after Steven disappeared. Using Steve’s sister’s DNA, this theory was ruled out in 2003. There were also several reports of a female hitchhiker with a small boy resembling Steven in Minneapolis. There was another claim of a woman and a boy who looked like Steven in a tavern in Kansas. However, none of the leads ever panned out: “It was a never-ending fruitless search,” recollected Detective Matthew Bonora.³²

A promising lead came to the surface in 2009, when a man in Michigan went to police and relayed the belief he was Steven. The man, John Barnes, looked strikingly similar to Jerry and gave Steven’s family hope. Jerry stated: “It’s a possibility… It’s not 100 percent yet. It would be nice to find out he’s still alive after all those years. It’s been a very hard time.” He said that he had given up hope that he would find out what happened to his son but this new lead had given him a glimmer of hope. “After all those years, you partially give up. You kind of figure that it won’t be solved after all is said and done.”³³

Jerry spoke with John who said that he was too young to remember anything from around that time frame and said that the family that raised him had never suggested that he was anything other than their biological son. However, he said that he had never felt as though he was part of the family he was brought up in and started looking into missing person cases, eventually zoning in on the disappearance of Steven.³⁴

John’s claims were taken very seriously and he provided a DNA sample which was taken to the FBI lab in Quantico, Virginia, to see if it were a match with DNA from Steven’s family. Unfortunately, however, DNA tests proved that he was mistaken. John’s father, Richard, would come forward to say that John certainly was his son and that he believed his son was disgruntled over the fact that his father divorced his mother in 1972. His sister, Cheryl, said that John had long believed that he was adopted or that he had been switched at birth.³⁵ John spoke with the media following the DNA test and apologised for any heartache that he had caused, stating: “I honestly thought I was that kid that was kidnapped…”

The whereabouts of Steven and what happened to him on that fateful afternoon still remains a mystery.

Suzy Lamplugh worked as an estate agent, and on Monday 28^th July 1986 she left the office of Sturgis and Sons in Fulham to attend an appointment to show a house in Shorrolds Road. She took her house and car keys as well as her purse containing £15 and her credit cards, but left her handbag behind in the office. Ten minutes later she was seen waiting outside the empty property at 37 Shorrolds Road, which had been on the market for just one week. A few minutes later she was seen walking away from the house with a man. That was the last time Suzy was seen alive.  When she failed to return from the appointment, her manager phoned Diana to see if Suzy had decided to drop in on her parents for lunch.

She had written her appointment in her diary at work and it read as follows: 12.45 Mr Kipper – 37 Shorrolds O/S. The O/S annotation means ‘outside the property’.  No one in the office knew who Mr Kipper was, and his identity has never been discovered to this day, almost 34 years later.

As time passed on that day in 1986 and fears grew for her whereabouts, Suzy’s manager phoned the police and officers were dispatched to start an investigation. Suzy’s white Ford Fiesta car was found that night outside a property for sale in Stevenage Road Fulham, which is about a mile and a half away from Shorrolds Raod. The car was unlocked but the key was missing. Her purse was in the side pocket of the car door and there was no sign of a struggle. Eyewitness accounts spoke of a black left hand drive BMW seen in the vicinity, and it was later speculated that ‘Mr Kipper’ was a mis-spelling of the Dutch name ‘Kuiper’ However police officers found no evidence to back this up at the time.

Diana Lamplugh recalled going out with her husband and their dogs that night to Stevenage Road. They called their daughter’s name and searched in vain until the police asked them to go home and await news. Two days later it was Diana’s 50^th birthday and their house was surrounded by journalists. Both Diana and Paul always welcomed the media attention, they saw it as a way to help find Suzy.

On Thursday 31^st July they appeared on both channels of Breakfast TV and appealed for help in finding their child. Diana said ‘I feel she is shut up somewhere, that she is being held against her will. I feel that because she hasn’t contacted us. She is a very strong, very fit lady … so she should be able to cope with most situations.’

In the following weeks and months the case attracted extensive media coverage and a reconstruction took place to try and bring forth some new information. No positive sightings, nor any evidence was the very sad result of all the efforts made. Some years later Diana wrote: ‘There has not been a single trace of her. Nothing. Just as though she has been erased with a rubber’

As the years passed many lines of enquiry were opened and subsequently closed. Police have also tested the DNA of over 800 unidentified bodies and skeletal remains that have matched Suzy’s description, but to no avail. Previous to working as an estate agent, Suzy had been employed as a beautician on the QE2. In 1982 when she was on the ship, a man called Steve Wright was also working on board as a steward. Wright was later convicted in February 2008 of the murder of 5 prostitutes in Ipswich, Suffolk. This was a line of enquiry that went nowhere, and a senior Metropolitan Police Officer described the link as ‘speculative’

Acting on information received, police also excavated a field near the former Norton Army Barracks in Worcestershire in 2000 and 2001. Another search was carried out on land near the village of Drakes Broughton in 2010. This was also abandoned when nothing connected to the case was found. By far the strongest lead that officers acted upon was thought to be the connection to convicted killer John Cannan, who is currently serving 3 life sentences in prison.

He was jailed for crimes including the murder of Shirley Banks in Bristol in 1986, the same year that Suzy went missing. Cannan had been released from a nearby prison hostel not long before Suzy went to meet Mr Kipper on that sunny day in July of 1986. Police took the unprecedented step of naming him as the prime suspect in the case and he was questioned at length in both 1989 and 1990. Cannan was also arrested in December 2000 and questioned once more, but without enough evidence he was not charged. Later on in 2002 another attempt was made to link Cannan to the crime, but this time the Crown Prosecution Service itself stated that there was not sufficient evidence and the case against him was dropped once more. That month Scotland Yard held a press conference, at which they named John Cannan as the only suspect in the case and said that they strongly believed that he had murdered Suzy Lamplugh and disposed of her body.

It is said that Cannan’s nickname in prison is ‘Kipper’ and in April 2000 his ex-girlfriend Gilly Paige told detectives that he had confessed to her that he murdered Suzy and put her body in concrete.  None of this counted for a thing without a body. In the summer of 2019 police once again started to search a field near Pershore in Worcestershire after new information came to light. In November last year a team of 15 officers and staff, acting on a tip off from one of Cannan’s fellow prisoners excavated a garden in Shipton Road, Sutton Coldfield. This was a property where Cannan’s mother Sheila once lived. After 2 weeks the search was called off after no fresh evidence was found.

John Cannan, who was also convicted for the attempted kidnap of Jane Holman in Bristol in 1986, suffered a stroke in Full Sutton prison in 2019. He is now 66 years old , and police feel that time is running out for the chance to find out what happened to Suzy Lamplugh. Cannan’s minimum tariff is 35 years, and he will be eligible for parole in 2023. There has been speculation over the years that Suzy may even have been involved in a relationship with John Cannan. She had spoken to her friends of a meeting with a new man with Bristol connections, who she described to one girlfriend as ‘scary’.

Suzy Lamplugh was officially declared dead in 1994. Her parents Paul and Diana were both awarded the OBE in 1992 and 2005 respectively for their charitable work with the Suzy Lamplugh Trust. They never gave up hope of finding the remains of their beloved daughter. Paul continued raising money and awareness until his death aged 87 in June 2018, 32 years after Suzy disappeared.

Sources:

Daily Telegraph, 6 November, 2002 – “Police Name Man Who Killed Suzy Lamplugh”

BBC News archives

The Guardian, 22 February, 2008 – “Police Investigate Link Between Wright and Suzy Lamplugh”

The Independent, 27 July, 2001 – “Lamplugh Police to re-examine Unknown Bodies”

For parents, their child moving overseas can be most of the most daunting moments of their life. On one hand, they want to give their child the freedom to determine their own fate but on the other hand, it can be a very scary experience, knowing that your child is so far away from home. However, that apprehension is nothing compared to the fear a parent feels when their child disappears while in another country.

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PODCAST PROMO – LADY JUSTICE
Twitter: https://twitter.com/ladyjusticepod
Facebook:https://www.facebook.com/ladyjusticepod/

SOURCES –

IlliniHW, 10 June, 2017 – “Search on for Visiting Scholar”

The Daily Illini, 11 June, 2017 – “UIPD Searching for Missing Student”

IlliniHQ, 12 June, 2017 – “Police Seek Information on Car Tied To Missing UI Scholar”

IlliniHQ, 15 June, 2017 – “FBI Joins Search for Missing UI Scholar”

South China Morning Post, 15 June, 2017 – “Missing Chinese Student in US Likely Kidnapped by White Man”

ABC – 8 WQAD, 16 June, 2017 – “FBI Offering $10,000 Reward for Information About University of Illinois Student, Missing Since June 9^th”

IlliniHQ, 17 June, 2017 – “Chinese UI Students Helping With Search for Missing Countrywoman”

The Daily Illini, 19 June, 2017 – “University to Offer $40,000 Reward in Missing Scholar Case”

Associated Press, 22 June, 2017 – “Father of Missing Chinese Scholar: Give My Daughter Back”

IlliniHQ, 22 June, 2017 – “A Lot of People Care About Yingying a Lot”

News-Gazette, 22 June, 2017 – “FBI Has Made Search for Missing UI Scholar a Top Priority”

ABC – 8 WQAD, 23 June, 2017 – “Missing University of Illinois Student’s Parents Make Plea to Her and Her Kidnapper”

The News-Gazette, 23 June, 2017 – “Chasing Ride Share Leads Missing Scholar”

The Associated Press, 26 June, 2017 – “Mystery of Missing Chinese Scholar Shakes up Illinois School”

The Associated Press, 27 June, 2017 – “FBI Locates Car Related to Missing Chinese Scholar Case”

FOX – 2 KTVI, 28 June, 2017 – “University of Illinois Community Marches for Missing Chinese Graduate Student”

The Belleville News-Democrat, 30 June, 2017 – “FBI Arrests Suspect in Case of Missing Chinese Scholar, Presumed Dead”

The News-Gazette, 30 June, 2017 – “Grad Student Arrested in UI Scholar’s Disappearance; FBI Presumes Her Dead”

IlliniHQ, 2 July, 2017 – “Man Attended Event for UI Scholar He’s Accused of Kidnapping”

The Associated Press, 3 July, 2017 – “Abduction Suspect Makes First Appearance in Court”

The Breeze, 3 July, 2017 – “Suspect in U. of Illinois Kidnapping Attended Rally for Victim”

The Daily Vidette, 3 July, 2017 – “Nobody Saw This Coming”

IlliniHQ, 3 July, 2017 – “Suspect Different, Work Out Companion Says”

IlliniHQ, 5 July, 2017 – “Bail Denied”

ABC – 8 WQAD, 6 July, 2017 – “University of Illinois Increasing Security on Campus Following Kidnapping”

IlliniHQ, 14 July, 2017 – “Missing UI Scholar’s Family Will Not Leave Without Her”

International Business Times, 21 July, 2017 – “Missing Chinese Scholar”

IlliniHQ, 22 August, 2017 – “Copy of Diary Turned Over to Missing UI Scholar’s Family”

The News-Gazette, 12 September, 2017 – “Candlelight Vigil Sunday for Yingying Zhang”

The News-Gazette, 3 October, 2017 – “Superseding Indictment”

The News-Gazette, 5 October, 2017 – “FBI Claims Have them Grieving”

The Associated Press, 1 November, 2017 – “How Do I Spend the Rest of my Life Without my Daughter?”

The Associated Press, 16 January, 2018 – “Man’s Girlfriend Allegedly Fainted Helping FBI”

The Associated Press, 19 January, 2018 – “Prosecutors to Seek Death Penalty in Chinese Scholar Case”

The News-Gazette, 9 June, 2018 – “Emotions Flow at Memorial Marking Anniversary of UI Scholar’s Disappearance”

The Southern Illinoisan, 11 June, 2019, 2019 – “Man Accused of Kidnapping, Killing in Illinois Faces Death Penalty in a State where it’s Banned”

Agence France-Presse, 12 June, 2019 – “US College Student Killed Chinese Scholar”

The Associated Press, 12 June, 2019 – “Federal Prosecutors Detail Chinese Scholar’s Brutal Death”

The Associated Press, 14 June, 2019 – “Jurors Hear Suspect Say He Killed Scholar”

The News-Gazette, 14 June, 2019 – “FBI Details Efforts to Find Murder Victim”

The News-Gazette, 15 June, 2019 – “Court Hears What Killer Said at Vigil”

The News-Gazette, 20 June, 2019 – “Ex-Girlfriend Takes Witness Stand”

The Daily Illini, 24 June, 2019 – “Deliberations Begin for Verdict in Christensen Trial”

The News-Gazette, 24 June, 2019 – “Slain IU Scholar’s Family: Emotional Distress Has Been Un Bearable”

The Associated Press, 26 June, 2019 – “Defence: Chinese Scholar’s Killer Offered to Locate Body”

The Daily Illini, 8 July, 2019 – “Life or Death”

The Associated Press, 9 July, 2019 – “Parents of Slain Chinese Scholar Tell Jury of their Loss”

Associated Press, 10 July, 2019 – “Man Convicted in Chinese Scholar’s Death Cries in court”

The News-Gazette, 11 July, 2019 – “Defence Focuses on Killer’s Childhood, Family Issues”

The Associated Press, 18 July, 2019 – “Judge Berates China Scholar’s Killer”

The Daily Illini, 18 July, 2019 – “Yingying Zhang’s Family Gives Statements After Killer is Sentenced to Life in Prison”

The Associated Press, 7 August, 2019 – “Slain Chinese Scholar’s Dad Says Her Body May Never be Found”

The Associated Press, 9 August, 2019 – “Family of Slain Chinese Scholar Holds Memorial”

The News-Gazette, 9 August, 2019 – “While We Grieve, We Give Thanks for the Life of Yingying”

AUDIO SOURCES –

“Undercover Girlfriend – ABC News”

“Brendt Christensen FBI Interview”

“Zhang Yingying’s boyfriend refuses to accept the verdict”

“Justice for Yingying Part 3”

It’s a sad fact that there is a clear pattern when it comes to the media. Too often, they more intensively cover the disappearances or abductions of young white women, even more so if they are in the upper middle class or of a higher social status. But crime does not discriminate. Anybody can become a victim, regardless of race, wealth or social status. When 16-year-old Phylicia Barnes disappeared in Baltimore, Maryland, over the Christmas period of 2010, many referred to the case as Baltimore’s Natalee Holloway case but the stark difference in media coverage between the two was overwhelming. The difference was that Natalee was white and Phylicia was African American.

MORE THAN MEDIA –

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PODCAST PROMO – PERHAPS IT’S YOU

Twitter – https://twitter.com/PerhapsItsYou

Facebook – https://www.facebook.com/PerhapsItsU/

SOURCES –

NBC – 36 WCNC, 30 December, 2010 – “Friends Pray for Safe Return of Missing Monroe Teen”

The Enquirer-Journal, 31 December, 2010 – “Union Academy Teen Missing”

The Charlotte Observer, 3 January, 2011 – “Baltimore Probe Intensifies for Missing Girl”

The Enquirer-Journal, 3 January, 2011 – “Police Fear Foul Play”

The Charlotte Observer, 4 January, 2011 – “FBI Unit Enters Search for Missing Monroe Teen”

The Enquirer-Journal, 4 January, 2011 – “Monroe Teen missing for More than a week”

The Sun, 4 January, 2011 – “Missing Teen Girl Concerns Police”

NBC – 36 WCNC, 5 January, 2011 – “Devastated Mom Talks about Missing Daughter”

The  Sun, 6 January, 2011 – “City Police Expand Search for Teen Missing”

The Sun, 7 January, 2011 – “No New Leads in Search for Teen”

Portland Examiner, 8 January, 2011 – “Missing Please Help Find”

News & Politics Examiner, 15 January, 2011 – “Mother Talks About Missing Daughter”

The Charlotte Observer, 17 January, 2011 – “Mother of Missing Teen Criticizes Initial Response”

The Associated Press, 19 January, 2011 – “Missing NC Honor Student Case Baffles MD Police”

The Associated Press, 28 January, 2011 – “Missing NC Teen’s School Offers $25,000 reward”

The Sun, 3 February, 2011 – “Missing and Invisible”

NBC – 36 WCNC, 7 February, 2011 – “Missing Teen’s Siblings Believe Phylicia Barnes is Alive”

The Sun, 8 April, 2011 – “City Police Plan Mass Search for Teenager”

Catonsville Times, 9 April, 2011 – “Police Search Patapsco Valley State Park”

Columbia Flier, 9 April, 2011 – “Police Search Patapsco Valley State Park For Missing Teen”

News & Politics Examiner, 9 April, 2011 – “Phylicia Barnes News”

Baltimore Examiner, 21 April, 2011 – “Phylicia Barnes Found Dead in Susquehanna River”

Rocky Mount Telegraph, 22 April, 2011 – “Investigation Enters New Phase After Missing Teen’s Body Found”

The Sun, 23 April, 2011 – “Barnes Case Now Poses New Set of Challenges”

NBC – 36 WCNC, 28 April, 2011 – “More than 700 Attend Memorial for Phylicia Barnes”

The Enquirer-Journal, 29 April, 2011 – “Gone to a Better Place”

The Sun, 8 May, 2011 – “Phylicia Barnes Remembered”

News & Politics Examiner, 9 September, 2011 – “Sister’s Ex-Boyfriend Denies Killing North Carolina Teen”

The Associated Press, 26 April, 2012 – “Md. Man Charged with Murder in NC Teen’s Death”

The Sun, 27 April, 2012 – “An Arrest and Questions”

News & Politics Examiner, 28 April, 2012 – “Details Emerge in Murder of Phylicia Barnes”

The Daily Record, 25 January, 2013 – “Prosecutors Say Witness Say Body in Johnson’s Home”

The Sun, 25 Janaury, 2013 – “In Barnes Trial, Detective’s Actions in Spotlight”

The Daily Record, 28 January, 2013 – “Jury in Baltimore City Circuit Court Sees Explicit Video”

The Daily Record, 30 January, 2013 – “Witness in Baltimore City Circuit Court Claims he Saw Johnson with Body”

Lodi News-Sentinel, 31 January, 2013 – “Jury Hears Teen’s Alleged Killer Talk of Fleeing Country”

AUDIO SOURCES –

“Michael Johnson Acquitted in 3rd Trial”

“Phylicia Barnes Update”

“Phylicia Barnes Death Ruled Homicide”

“Police Make Arrest in Phylicia Barnes Case”

“Police Plan to Search Wooded Area for Phylicia”

“Police Want More Attention on Barnes Case”

Trevor was just 22 years old at the time of his disappearance. He was born on 15^th August 1978 and he was the youngest of four siblings. Trevor grew up in Naas, Co Kildare, and moved to Dublin when he took up a computer course. In May 1999 he started work in the IT Department of the Bank of Ireland. 

On the night he vanished, along with his colleagues he went to the Hilton Hotel on Charlemont Place to celebrate the festive season. After the company ‘do,” he and some of his work friends decided to continue the night in Buck Whaleys nightclub on Lower Leeson Street. At around 3.30am on the morning of 8^th December 2000, Trevor left and started walking towards his flat on Serpentine Avenue in Ballsbridge, a suburb of Dublin. He never arrived home.  

It was raining heavily that night and there was a taxi strike, and so Trevor made his way to his office building across from Leeson Street Bridge. CCTV footage released by the police showed Trevor interacting with a man outside the gates of the Bank of Ireland Asset Management Building.  Just seconds before their brief chat Trevor had walked past this man who had been standing in the rain beside a pillar around the corner for half an hour. Was he waiting for Trevor? Was it a pre-arranged meeting? After speaking with this man Trevor went inside the gates of his place of work, locking them behind him.  

He then spent half an hour inside his office, and had a hot drink with a colleague, Karl Pender, who was working a late shift. He also checked his emails and made a list of tasks he needed to perform the next day. Trevor then took an umbrella from the office and left, heading towards Baggot Street Bridge, presumably to continue his walk home. Karl Pender was the last known person to see Trevor all those years ago. At around this time, Trevor was known to have made a phone call to a friend back home in Naas. A voicemail that he left for him told his friend that he missed him, all was good and he would call him back later in the day. Sadly that voicemail was deleted and the police made no effort to retrieve it.  

The last possible sighting of Trevor Deely was captured by CCTV in Haddington Road at about 4.14am, which shows a man walking past the AIB Bank with an umbrella. This footage was enhanced in 2017 and is now known to definitely be Trevor, as the logo on the umbrella matches the one taken from his office. Police have also established that a man in dark clothing passes this camera about 34 seconds after Trevor goes by and appears to be following him. The Police believe that this is the same man who was seen speaking to Trevor outside his workplace. This man has never come forward or been identified, despite numerous TV appeals. Trevor’s case has been featured on news items and TV programmes over the last number of years, but to no avail.  

When Trevor failed to show at work the next day, no one thought anything of it as it had been a very late night. His flatmates were away for the weekend and they had no idea that he had not arrived home after his Christmas night out. It was only when he didn’t appear at work on the Monday morning that it was established that no one had seen or spoken to him since Thursday night. The alarm was then raised, but valuable time and possible information and clues were lost. 

In the intervening years Trevor’s sister Michele has called the situation a ‘relentless nightmare’ and has made personal appeals on many occasions. At the time of his disappearance an extensive search of the area was made, and the River Dodder and Grand Canal were  thoroughly examined. Potential witnesses were hard to track down, but dozens of night workers and party goers were interviewed. Not a single piece of information was worth pursuing. In 2016 a full cold case review was carried out, but yet again nothing new came of it.  

Finally in 2017, Police thought they had maybe benefitted from a breakthrough when an informant came forward. This informant told of how Trevor had become involved in an argument with a notorious drug dealing gang and had been murdered on the night he disappeared. The informant advised a search of a wooded area in Chapelizod, approximately 9 kilometres away from where Trevor was last seen. Despite the discovery of a gun and a significant amount of drugs, no connection was made to the disappearance of Trevor Deely, and the search was called off in the September of 2017. Once again Trevor’s family were left with no closure on how their son/brother had simply vanished. 

At the time of writing this piece ( December 8^th 2019, exactly nineteen years since Trevor was last seen) there may finally be some new information. A month ago a potential witness came forward. This witness has not been identified by the Police, but it has been disclosed that their information supports the theory that Trevor was murdered after an argument with a criminal gang. A senior source describes this witness as ‘highly significant’ and it is hoped that a conclusion may be reached at last and his family may find some peace. His brother Mark has said that he still holds out hopes that one day Trevor will walk through the door. 

On the 19th anniversary of Trevor’s disappearance, police announced an appeal and urged anybody with any information, to please come forward. Crimestoppers is still offering a reward for anyone with information relating to the disappearance of Trevor Deely. They can be contacted anonymously if desired on 1800 25 00 25.

Footnotes:

• Irish Times, 28 February, 2015 – “The Disappearance of Trevor Deely”
• Irish Times, 4 March, 2015 – “The Disappearance of Trevor Deely”
• Irish Times, 23 September, 2015 – “Trevor Deely: The Search Ends and Continues”