Showing results by author "Wondery" in All Categories

Laynee Westbrook disappeared from Anacortes, Washington, on September 10, 2020. She was seen on surveillance video exiting her home shortly after 7 PM that evening. She had her beloved dog, Precious, with her. Laynee got into a white truck with a man, and the two drove off together. Not long after, Laynee was again spotted on video surveillance, this time at a gas station just under 8 miles away. After that, Laynee and her dog, Precious vanished into the night, and more than 16 months later, the search for answers continues.

Last week we brought you the first part of 18-year-old Kelsey Collins’ story. A teenager who had been through more than most in an entire lifetime disappeared in May 2009, just nine days after her 18th birthday. Kelsey was involved with bad people, really bad people, but what wasn’t known at the time was just how profoundly and long-term Kelsey had been victimized by much older predators. She was set to testify against her abusers but was left unprotected by authorities. Shortly after testifying before a federal grand jury, an indictment was issued, and Kelsey vanished.

Last week, we brought you the first two installments of Bill Jamison’s story. In Part 1, we discussed what occurred the night that Bill disappeared and the initial investigation into his disappearance. In Part 2, we went over all the strange things with Bill’s job and the people connected to his job who may have had a motive to harm Bill. Today, we will take a look at some other aspects of this case and discuss all the different theories that have emerged over the years.

On Saturday, June 30, 1984, 21-year-old Harry Milligan finished his job painting a house and met some friends at a bar called Waterworks in Albia, Iowa. The bar was just over a ten-minute drive from his home in nearby Avery, Iowa. We don’t know for sure what transpired inside the bar that night. There have been stories that Harry won a large sum of money in a card game, but this can’t be substantiated. Harry’s friends reported that later they grabbed a six-pack to go and rode around cruising. The group returned to where they had parked their cars and went their separate ways.

In August of 1972, 14-year-old Marialice Clark disappeared from Omaha, Nebraska. She had left to visit a friend who lived in the neighborhood but never returned. There isn't much known about the disappearance of Marialice Clark, but if you search for information online, you will find her name tied to the controversial conviction of two men who were affiliated with the Black Panther Party and an anti-fascist political group.

Last fall, we brought you Carolyn Riggins' story. Carolyn had disappeared after a night out at a bingo hall. Yesterday, we shared the first part of our update on Carolyn's case. Today we're taking you through the events that have transpired since Carolyn's car and body were recovered, and her family's ongoing quest for answers almost a year later. If you have any information about the disappearance and death of Carolyn Riggins, please call the Cooke County Sheriff's Office at 940-665-3471. Dr. Taft earned a bachelors, masters and doctorate in psychology from Baylor University.

On August 18, 1971, a classified ad was published for a single day in the Fort Worth, Texas newspaper, the "Fort Worth Star-Telegram." The ad read, "Babysitter wanted from 8 to 3:30 days, Spanish Gate apartments, call after 3 pm" with a phone number listed. On August 23, 1971, a woman who said her name was Ruth Johnson came to the door of Alta Highsmith, who had placed the ad, and said she was there to pick up Alta's 21-month-old daughter, Melissa Highsmith. Alta's roommate gave the baby to the woman named Ruth, who promised to return her that afternoon.

On September 14, 1990, 10-year-old Kacey Perry was visiting with her father at his home in Portland, Oregon. That evening, the two had a disagreement during a conversation about Kacey coming to live with him full-time. Her father told Kacey to go to bed for the night, which he believed she had done. Her father went outside and chatted with a neighbor for a bit. When he returned, he found that Kacey was missing. He drove around the neighborhood but could not find Kacey anywhere. That is when he alerted the police that his daughter was missing, and the search began.

15-year-old Angelica Longoria, or Angel as she was known to family and friends, disappeared from El Monte, California on November 23, 1985. At the time, Angel was living at home with her father, stepmother, her brothers, and step-siblings. The household was very strict and when Angel was caught with a boy, she was punished physically. According to her father and stepmother, Angel ran away that night, never to be seen again. Over the years, some family members have begun to wonder if there is more to the story of what happened to Angel Longoria back in November of 1985.

We first aired Johnathan Hamilton's story in a two-part series in October of 2017. At the time, we left off with Johnathan's case considered suspended. The Bastrop Police Department believed that they had run down all of the leads, and there was nothing else left to investigate. They believed that Johnathan wasn't in Bastrop. Investigators told Angie that Johnathan wanted to leave his life behind, he was capable, and likely getting insulin from charity programs. Johnathan's mother, Angie, persisted and never gave up fighting for her son. Something didn't seem right about this.

In early 2003, 29-year-old Clinton Washburn called his parents, and he was angry. The whole thing ended up being a misunderstanding that they worked out during that phone call, but after that, they stopped hearing from Clint. Months later, in September of 2003, they received a typed letter allegedly from Clint. It stated that he found a rich woman to marry, he planned to take her name, and they would never locate him. Clint’s parents were crushed by this letter and didn’t know any way to reach their son as the letter had no return address.

It was during the summer of 1968 that a 35-year-old woman named Madeline Babcock disappeared from Venice, California. Madeline’s apartment appeared to have been cleared out. Her family reported her missing, but the police didn’t seem interested. Madeline had a right to move and not tell her family. She had the right to disappear if she wanted to. Around this same time, a little girl in Washington believed she witnessed her father and his friend murder a woman.

19-year-old Judith Brown disappeared from New York City in April of 1977. Judith lived on her own, so her family wasn’t immediately aware that she was missing. Judith’s family learned she was missing when the FBI came knocking at their door. They were shocked to learn that Judith had disappeared along with someone else, a murderer who had escaped from a local mental health facility. More than 45 years later, both of them remain missing. For many years, Judith’s family kept quiet about this. It was too upsetting to reopen those wounds.

On July 11, 1969, 15-year-old Cynthia Constantine took her dog for a walk as she did every afternoon in the family’s hometown of Oakdale, New York. Cynthia loved walking along the railroad tracks alongside a busy highway and often explored the area with her brother. On this day, Cynthia walked with her dog alone, picking up cattails along the way. Cynthia had planned to go check out a muskrat burrow she spotted earlier in the day while with her brother. But Cynthia never returned home, and when the family dog came home without her, the family immediately knew something was wrong.

On May 6, 2016, 17-year-old Kianna Galvin told her sister that she was going to the park and left the family home in South Elgin, Illinois, on foot. Kianna did not go to the park but instead walked to the house of an acquaintance. Neighbors later reported that they saw Kianna going into the house, but she did not come out. Her cell phone died or was shut off several hours later, and she hasn’t been seen since. Kianna’s story is one full of unanswered questions, a quest for justice, and characters whose actions remain unexplained.

On September 11, 2014, 63-year-old Daniel Farrar left the assisted living facility he resided at in Westbrook, Connecticut. He had $20 on him and stated he was going to get himself some lunch. Danny often left for walks or to grab some lunch. He was one of the younger residents in the home and got bored staying inside all day. Danny was seen that day at a local store making a purchase. What was unusual was that Danny never returned home, and the people who ran the facility became concerned enough to contact his family and police immediately.

On June 20, 2019, 51-year-old Angela Green argued with her 18-year-old daughter, Ellie, who had just completed a study abroad program in Italy and was back home to work for the summer. During the argument, Angela told Ellie to leave the family home in Prairie Village, Kansas. Ellie left, not realizing that would be the last time she ever saw her mom. In Part 1 of Angela’s story, you learned that this argument was just the beginning of a bizarre series of events. Angela’s husband, Geoff, told various stories about what happened to her back in the summer of 2019.

Yesterday, we brought you the first installment of Isaac Seidel’s story. You learned a lot about Isaac’s life and the events that occurred in the lead-up to his disappearance. You also learned that Isaac disappeared along with his bike, phone, and backpack. Everything else seemed to be left behind at his home. Isaac hadn’t told anyone that he planned to go anywhere. In fact, it appeared that Isaac had gone about his regular Sunday routine. He had his chicken out thawing, which is something he would do on Sunday to prep his meals for the week.

Last fall, we brought you the story of 69-year-old Carolyn Riggins. In July of 2020, after a successful night at her favorite bingo hall just a few miles from her Fort Worth, Texas home, Carolyn had disappeared. Just weeks before we originally aired her story, Carolyn’s remains were found inside the backseat of her car in a deeply wooded, remote part of far north Texas. This area was a place so rural, that it is almost completely inaccessible without detailed knowledge of the area.

Three years ago, we brought you the story of Lillianna Pagano, who had been abducted by her mother, Jillanne, when Lillianna was an infant. A few days before airing our story on Lillianna, we received word that she had been found alive and was reunited with her father, Tyler, a completely unexpected surprise. While this was the ending we hope for in every story, Tyler and Lillianna still had a rough road ahead of them. Lillianna had been missing for nearly six years and was told her father was dead.