Disappearances

Introducing: Stolen Season 3

Fri, 26 Apr 2024 07:00:00 -0000

Violence. Retaliation. Disappearances. The Navajo Nation is 27,000 square miles of remote terrain with just over 200 tribal police officers. This season on Stolen, Connie Walker’s investigation into the cases of two missing women leads her on a search for justice in a place where people say you can get away with murder.

To listen to the entire season, search for “Stolen” on Spotify or wherever you get your podcasts.

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Shaping Advocacy: Charley Ross, Amber Hagerman, and Adam Walsh

Thu, 19 Oct 2023 07:01:00 -0000

Sarah takes a look at three cases that changed the landscape of missing person investigations. Charley Ross disappeared from Germantown, Pennsylvania in June 1874. Amber Hagerman was abducted from a parking lot in Arlington, Texas in 1996. Adam Walsh went missing from a Sears department store in July 1981.

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Frederick Valentich

Thu, 12 Oct 2023 07:00:00 -0000

20-year-old pilot Fred Valentich disappears during a flight over Australia’s Bass Strait in 1978 — in the midst of a radio transmission. Effectively narrating the moment of his disappearance, Fred says he sees something flying over him at great speeds…something he believes is no ordinary aircraft.

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Susan Walsh

Thu, 05 Oct 2023 07:00:00 -0000

In 1996, a doting mother and budding journalist named Susan Walsh left her home and never returned. Her career ambitions had taken her into some underground worlds filled with rich characters. Was any of it connected to her disappearance? Or did investigators draw connections that were never there?

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Kristen Modafferi

Thu, 28 Sep 2023 07:00:00 -0000

When Kristen Modafferi disappeared in California just weeks after turning 18, her case exposed a gap in the system that her family’s been working to close ever since.

If you have any information regarding Kristen’s case, please contact your local FBI field office or the Oakland Police Department at (510) 238-3775.

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Frank Matthews

Thu, 21 Sep 2023 07:00:00 -0000

Today, I want to introduce you to a man sometimes known as “Black Caesar” and who may very well be America’s first Black kingpin. His name is Frank Matthews, and after building one of the largest drug empires the world has ever seen, he fled the law in 1973 — and has been a wanted fugitive ever since.

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The Sodder Children

Thu, 14 Sep 2023 07:00:00 -0000

Hi listeners! This week we’re sharing an episode from Sarah’s podcast Voices for Justice. We’ll be back next week with a new episode of Disappearances.

At around 1:00 am on December 25, 1945, Jennie Sodder woke up to smoke pouring into her bedroom. She woke up her husband, George, and they started evacuating the house of their nine children.

By the time the fire took over the Sodder residence, only Jennie, George, and four of their children made it outside safely.

George and two of his sons frantically tried to get into the house to save the remaining children, but they couldn’t. When George went to fill up a bucket with water to start extinguishing the flames, the water was frozen, when he went to grab their ladder to get his children from the top story, the ladder was missing; when he went to drive his trucks to the second story window, neither would start despite having worked just the day before. And when they tried to call the fire department for help, no one responded for hours.

The only thing the family could do was watch as their burned to the ground.

Hours later, after the smoldering ashes were put out, a group of people began searching for the children’s remains, but nothing was found. Not a single bone was found in the ashes.

The fire was quickly ruled an accident, and investigators told the family the children’s bodies had burned up completely in the fire, leaving nothing of them behind, not even their bones.

But between the mishaps, while trying to put out the fire, threats made against the family before the fire, and the strange behavior of authorities throughout the investigation, Jennie and George Sodder refused to believe five of their children were killed in the home. They were convinced their children didn’t die in the fire, and they spent the rest of their lives trying to prove it.

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Morgan Nick

Thu, 07 Sep 2023 07:00:00 -0000

Hi listeners! This week we’re sharing an episode from Sarah’s podcast Voices for Justice. We’ll be back in two weeks with a new episode of Disappearances.

On June 9, 1995, Colleen Nick was invited to attend a little league baseball game with a few friends in Alma, Arkansas. She took her 6-year-old daughter Morgan Nick with her. Near the end of the game, Morgan went to play with other children. She was only out of her mother’s sight for a few minutes… Morgan has been missing ever since.

Possibly the largest lead in her case was the sighting of a man in a red truck near Morgan shortly before she disappeared. But that lead sat for 26 years until investigators found some damning evidence in what they believe may be the red truck seen next to Morgan the night she went missing.

Morgan is white, with naturally blonde hair and blue eyes. When she went missing, she was approximately 4 feet tall and weighed 55lbs. As of recording this episode, she would now be 34 years old.

Anyone with information about the disappearance of Morgan Nick is asked to call the National Center for Missing and Exploited Children at 1-800-THE-LOST, or 1-800-843-5678.

For more information about the podcast and the cases discussed, visit VoicesforJusticePodcast.com

Don't forget to follow me on social media under Voices for Justice Podcast & SarahETurney

The introduction music used in Voices for Justice is Thread of Clouds by Blue Dot Sessions. Outro music is Melancholic Ending by Soft and Furious. The track used for ad transitions is Pinky by Blue Dot Sessions.

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The Kidnapping of Patty Hearst

Thu, 31 Aug 2023 07:00:00 -0000

In 1974, Patty Hearst is a college sophomore and heir to a media fortune. But by February, she's a kidnapping victim—abducted by a militant political group called the Symbionese Liberation Army. She'll remain with them for over a year. By the end of it all, America will wonder whether she was an unwilling hostage...or a loyal recruit.

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Joan Risch

Thu, 24 Aug 2023 07:00:00 -0000

When a housewife disappeared from her suburban home in 1961, she left behind a mystery that's unresolved to this day. The bloody scene in her kitchen suggested murder — until investigators started digging into her history. Could Joan Risch have faked her own death?

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Nada Fronk

Thu, 10 Aug 2023 07:00:00 -0000

Nada Fronk was a 24-year-old Indigenous woman who first ran away from home when she was 12. In a cruel twist of fate, it was only when she stopped running that her life was cut short.

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Roanoke: How the ‘Lost Colony’ Became a Legend

Thu, 03 Aug 2023 07:05:00 -0000

Something interesting happens when you start digging into Roanoke. Yes, you find fantastical conspiracy theories on the ultimate fate of the colonists who vanished 400 years ago. But you also learn that — at the time — virtually no one was bothered. It took centuries for Roanoke to hold the mysterious, semi-supernatural sway it has today. So what changed?

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We’re Back!

Thu, 03 Aug 2023 07:00:00 -0000

Break’s over, and we’re back with new episodes. Enjoy!

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Cherita Thomas

Thu, 27 Jul 2023 07:00:00 -0000

In 1980, 21-year-old Cherita Thomas disappears after the car she’s driving breaks down. Police suspect she becomes the victim of a racially motivated hate crime, but with no physical evidence, her case runs cold. Twenty years later, a cadaver dog finds bone fragments on a suspect’s property. Only, they don’t belong to Cherita. What happens next affects not only Cherita’s case, but dozens of cases across the country. This episode originally aired in August 2022.

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Aubrey Dameron and Anthonette Cayedito

Thu, 20 Jul 2023 07:00:00 -0000

Indigenous women are murdered at a rate ten times higher than any other demographic, but the crimes against them are often ignored. Here are two heartbreaking cold cases that shed some insight into a crisis that’s lasted generations, and help explain why justice has been so (maddeningly) elusive. This episode originally aired December 2021.

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Mary Day

Thu, 13 Jul 2023 07:00:00 -0000

It was a case that defied expectation at every turn: In 1981, a 13-year-old girl vanished from her home in Seaside, California, after her step-father physically assaulted her. Her mother claimed for decades afterward that Mary ran away that night. Her siblings believed she was murdered. Uncovering the truth would mean putting the whole family — including Mary herself — under the microscope. This episode originally aired in November 2022.

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Michael Rockefeller

Thu, 06 Jul 2023 07:05:00 -0000

Officially, 23-year-old Michael Rockefeller drowned off the coast of New Guinea in 1961 after his catamaran capsized. But when a Dutch missionary living with a local tribe starts hearing disturbing rumors, Michael’s disappearance gets a lot more unsettling. This episode originally aired in September 2021.

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Summer Break

Thu, 06 Jul 2023 07:00:00 -0000

Hi listeners, this month we’re taking a break and revisiting episodes from our archive. We’ll be back in August with new episodes. Thanks for listening!

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The Missing Heiress: Dorothy Arnold

Thu, 29 Jun 2023 07:00:00 -0000

Dorothy Arnold was a young socialite and aspiring writer when she vanished off the streets of Manhattan in 1910. Hoping to avoid a scandal, her family handled her disappearance with discretion—but that didn’t stop their name from making headlines.

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Terry Floyd

Thu, 22 Jun 2023 07:01:00 -0000

An Australian cold case has stretched on since 1975, when a 12-year-old boy went missing along a stretch of highway.

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Sarah Stern (ft. Sarah Turney)

Thu, 15 Jun 2023 07:01:00 -0000

In December 2016, a man called 911 after spotting an abandoned car on a bridge. 19-year-old Sarah Stern usually drove the vehicle—but now, she was missing. Did she leave voluntarily? Or was she the victim of a terrible crime?

If you’d like to learn more about the cases covered in this episode, head to www.spotify.com/disappearances.

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Girly Chew Hossencofft (ft. Sarah Turney)

Thu, 08 Jun 2023 07:01:00 -0000

In September 1999, 36-year-old Girly Chew Hossencofft was supposed to report to work at a local Bank of America branch in Albuquerque, New Mexico. Due to recent threats made by her husband, Girly’s co-workers were worried. When a colleague went to her house to check on her, she was gone. And she was never seen again.

If you’d like to learn more about the cases covered in this episode, head to www.spotify.com/disappearances.

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Kristin Smart (ft. Sarah Turney)

Thu, 01 Jun 2023 07:01:00 -0000

It was May of 1996 when college freshman Kristin Smart went to a party and never returned to her dorm. More than 20 years later, a stranger started a podcast that ignited interest in the case and brought a killer to justice.

If you’d like to learn more about the cases covered in this episode, head to www.spotify.com/disappearances.

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The Boy In The Box

Thu, 25 May 2023 07:01:00 -0000

It was 1957 when the body of an unidentified, malnourished boy was found in a bassinet box In Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. For decades, police and community members worked to find his identity and killer. In 2021, they finally got an answer to one of these questions.

If you’d like to learn more about the cases covered in this episode, or learn more about Missing and Unidentified Persons Awareness Month, head to www.spotify.com/disappearances.

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A Conversation with Black and Missing

Thu, 18 May 2023 07:01:00 -0000

Around 40% of missing persons in the US are people of color, the vast majority of them Black. In this special episode, Sarah welcomes sisters-in-law Natalie Wilson and Derrica Wilson of the Black and Missing Foundation to discuss why this percentage is likely even higher. They talk about several current cases, unpacking the many policies and procedures that their organization advocates to change. Plus, the numerous ways that people can help.

If you’d like to learn more about the cases covered in this episode, or learn more about Missing and Unidentified Persons Awareness Month, head to www.spotify.com/disappearances.

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The Bethesda Home for Unwed Girls

Thu, 11 May 2023 07:01:00 -0000

Maternity homes were advertised as safe havens for unwed expectant mothers. But the truth was very different. Many young women were sent to these homes involuntarily and were forced into giving up their babies for adoption.

If you’d like to learn more about the cases covered in this episode, or learn more about Missing and Unidentified Persons Awareness Month, head to www.spotify.com/disappearances.

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The Highway of Tears

Thu, 04 May 2023 07:01:00 -0000

Over the past 50 years, 18 women and girls — primarily Indigenous — have gone missing along the Highway of Tears. Some believe the actual number is more than double that. Today we focus on Delphine Nikal, Cecilia Nikal, and Ramona Wilson — three Indigenous women who disappeared near the same stretch of highway just a few years apart.

If you’d like to learn more about the cases covered in this episode, or learn more about Missing and Unidentified Persons Awareness Month, head to www.spotify.com/disappearances.

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Jenna Van Gelderen

Thu, 27 Apr 2023 07:01:00 -0000

In August 2017, she was asked to house-sit for her parents in Atlanta and to take care of their ailing cat. She did for a few days. But then suddenly, Jenna Van Gelderen was gone. After searching her apartment, her parents believed she was the victim of something sinister.

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Dennis Martin

Thu, 20 Apr 2023 07:01:00 -0000

In June of 1969, six-year-old Dennis Martin got lost in the Great Smoky Mountains while playing with his brother and cousins. At the time, there was no official protocol in place for how to search for lost hikers, especially kids. Even though it turned into a massive search and rescue mission, one park ranger is racked with regret over a hunch they didn’t follow.

If you’d like to take action on the climate or learn more about the topics covered in “Dark Green: Earth Crimes and Conspiracies,” visit www.spotify.com/darkgreenresources.

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Lauren Spierer

Thu, 13 Apr 2023 07:01:00 -0000

On a June evening in 2011, Indiana University student Lauren Spierer went out for a night of drinking with friends. When the bar closed, Lauren needed help walking home. But even though she was surrounded by people she knew, nobody escorted her home safely. She was never seen again.

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Suzy Lamplugh

Thu, 06 Apr 2023 07:01:00 -0000

She worked for a real estate agency and often met with wealthy clients at upscale properties. But one afternoon in July of 1986, Suzy Lamplugh went to an appointment and never returned. Decades later, police strongly suspect who was responsible for her disappearance. There's just not enough evidence to bring charges.

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Ben McDaniel

Thu, 30 Mar 2023 07:01:00 -0000

In August 2010, Ben McDaniel disappeared after diving into an underwater cave system in Florida called Vortex Spring. Rescue divers spent days looking below the surface and concluded that he was no longer in the water. While it's likely that Ben died somewhere within the caves, some think he may still be alive.

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Allen Ross

Thu, 23 Mar 2023 07:01:00 -0000

After the breakup of a long-term relationship and moving out of his home, Allen Ross sought direction in his life. He found it in a spiritual leader in Oklahoma named Linda Greene. As Allen spent more time visiting her, he became more withdrawn from his friends and family. Until all of a sudden, he was gone.

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Jack Ma

Thu, 16 Mar 2023 07:01:00 -0000

He's an entrepreneur, a philanthropist, and the business magnate behind China’s Alibaba Group. Jack Ma is also outspoken. In October 2020, he gave a speech to executives from around the world that was not well-received by the Chinese government. Within a few weeks, he was nowhere to be found. Months later, he resurfaced virtually, but nobody knows where he went or why he left.

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Dyatlov Pass

Thu, 09 Mar 2023 08:01:00 -0000

In February 1959, nine people disappeared while hiking through the Ural Mountains. When a search team reached the campsite, the tents still had clothes inside, and footprints showed the hikers moved away from the camp in a single file line. Their bodies were found over the next few months, but with no evidence as to what happened. This week, Sarah joins Carter for a special crossover episode with Cold Cases.

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Tionda and Diamond Bradley

Thu, 02 Mar 2023 08:01:00 -0000

It was early July, 2001 when 10-year-old Tionda Bradley and her 3-year-old sister Diamond disappeared from their apartment. The only clue left behind was a note allegedly written by Tionda. Their mother, Tracey, and other family members strongly believe that somebody in the community must have heard or seen something.

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Elijah "Bear" Diaz

Thu, 23 Feb 2023 08:01:00 -0000

LeLanie Thompson left her son's house in El Cajon late on the evening of August 29th, 2015. The following morning, Elijah "Bear" Diaz didn't respond to her texts. When she went to his house in the afternoon to check on him, he was gone. He hasn't been seen since.

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Bass Reeves: No Master But Duty

Wed, 22 Feb 2023 08:01:00 -0000

Listeners, this week we’re sharing the trailer for a new miniseries from Solved Murders. It takes us back to the Wild West, and follows the exploits of a legendary U.S. Deputy Marshal. Listen to Bass Reeves: No Master But Duty, guest hosted by Darnell Ishmel, free and only on Spotify.

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Debanhi Escobar

Thu, 16 Feb 2023 08:01:00 -0000

On April 8th, 2022, 18-year-old Debanhi Escobar left for a night out with some girlfriends. She went to a few parties in different locations before leaving alone with a rideshare driver. For an unknown reason, she got out of the car and refused to get back inside. The driver left Debanhi on the side of the road. She would never make it back home.

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Professor Thomas Riha

Thu, 09 Feb 2023 08:01:00 -0000

After emigrating from Czechoslovakia, Thomas Riha obtained American citizenship and even fought for the US during the Korean War. He eventually went on to teach Russian History at the University of Colorado Boulder. But in the early hours of March 15th, 1969, he left a friend's birthday party and was never seen again.

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Eddie Aikau

Thu, 02 Feb 2023 08:01:00 -0000

Not only was Eddie Aikau a local surfer and an international icon, he was also the first lifeguard at one of Hawaii's most dangerous beaches. It's estimated he saved over 500 people. So when the Hokule' he was in capsized, it was no surprise that he would risk everything to save his crew.

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Holocaust Remembrance Day

Thu, 26 Jan 2023 08:01:00 -0000

Between 1941 and 1945, two-thirds of all Jewish people living in Europe were murdered by Nazi Germany and its collaborators. Families were often torn apart, with survivors assuming their loved ones were killed. Today, we focus on just a few of the thousands of stories of people looking for answers about relatives who disappeared during the Holocaust.

For more information on the Holocaust, we recommend checking out ushmm.org, yadvashem.org, and drk-suchdienst.de.

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Hannah Upp

Thu, 19 Jan 2023 08:01:00 -0000

A week after a category 5 hurricane makes landfall in the U.S. Virgin Islands, a 32-year-old teacher named Hannah Upp goes missing. The search for her is complicated by two things: a second hurricane that hits the islands shortly after the first, and the strong possibility that Hannah may be in a fugue state — a form of amnesia that can last for years.

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Diane Suzuki

Thu, 12 Jan 2023 08:01:00 -0000

When a teenage dance teacher goes missing in O’ahu, over a thousand volunteers show up to canvas the island. But her family will wait years to even come close to understanding what happened to her.

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Theodosia Burr Alston

Thu, 05 Jan 2023 08:01:00 -0000

The daughter of the infamous Aaron Burr boards a schooner in 1812 heading to New York from South Carolina. A week passes and the ship never arrives. Two centuries later, the mystery of her fate still lingers.

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Best of 2022: Maura Murray

Thu, 29 Dec 2022 08:01:00 -0000

Eighteen years ago, 21-year-old Maura Murray crashed her car into a snowbank off a two-lane highway in New Hampshire. It takes just minutes from when she was last seen for her to disappear completely. But why was she on Route 112 at all that night?

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Best of 2022: Amelia Earhart

Thu, 22 Dec 2022 08:01:00 -0000

Listeners, enjoy a year-end replay of our episode on the disappearance of Amelia Earhart: On May 21 1937, Amelia Earhart was a world-famous pilot about to embark on a record-setting flight. But just a little over a month later, en route to an island in the middle of the Pacific Ocean, she vanished.

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The Missing Fort Worth Trio

Thu, 15 Dec 2022 08:01:00 -0000

Just days before Christmas 1974, three young girls — ages 9, 14 and 17 — go to the mall to do some last-minute gift shopping. Only, they never return. Police believe they’ve run away and are slow to investigate, forcing the girls’ families to mount their own search. A cryptic letter and a phone call are the only real clues they have to the girls’ fates.

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Logan Schiendelman

Thu, 08 Dec 2022 08:01:00 -0000

One morning in May 2016, 19-year-old Logan Schiendelman tells his grandma he’s had an epiphany. But she never finds out what it is. Because shortly after, Logan’s car is found abandoned on the side of the I-5 in Tumwater, Washington. No one has a clue where he might’ve gone. And as police retrace his movements, his disappearance only gets more confounding.

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Oscar Zeta Acosta

Thu, 01 Dec 2022 08:01:00 -0000

The real Dr. Gonzo — the man who inspired the legendary character in Hunter S. Thompson’s “Fear and Loathing in Las Vegas” — was a writer and attorney who advocated for Chicano civil rights in the ‘60s. Zeta, as he was known, mysteriously disappeared off the coast of Mazatlan, Mexico in 1974.

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Thanksgiving Special: Just Add Arsenic

Tue, 22 Nov 2022 08:01:00 -0000

Over the ages, arsenic has had many lives — beauty fad, household product, medical prescription… and weapon of choice wielded by killers everywhere from Alabama to ancient Rome. Brine your turkey, knead your dough, and listen to our Thanksgiving Special on the regime-changing, assassination-aiding King of Poisons.

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Monique Clubb

Thu, 17 Nov 2022 08:01:00 -0000

In Australia, a 24-year-old woman left on a road trip with three friends — and never came home. It took years for an official inquest to state what her family already knew: when it came to Monique Clubb’s disappearance, police gave up too soon.

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Vladimir Alexandrov

Thu, 10 Nov 2022 08:01:00 -0000

A leading climate scientist, once renowned internationally for his work on nuclear winter theory, vanished in Madrid in the mid-1980s. Vladimir Alexandrov made friends everywhere he went; his name was, at the very least, known by some of the most powerful figures in the American and Soviet governments. Yet his disappearance wasn’t officially looked into for months. When a clue to his fate does publically surface, it forces the world to ask: Was Vladimir actually kidnapped by the CIA?

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Mary Day

Thu, 03 Nov 2022 07:01:00 -0000

It was a case that defied expectation at every turn, and with each new development, the stakes never felt higher. In 1981, a 13-year-old girl vanished from her home in Seaside, California, after her step-father physically assaulted her. Her mother claimed for decades afterward that Mary ran away that night. Her siblings believed she was murdered. Uncovering the truth would mean putting the whole family — including Mary herself — under the microscope.

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Voices for Justice: Abby Williams and Libby German Part 1

Thu, 27 Oct 2022 07:01:00 -0000

Around 3pm on a February afternoon in 2017, Derrick German drove to a trailhead in Delphi, Indiana. He was there to pick up his 14-year-old daughter Libby and her best friend, Abby Williams, after their hike. But the girls never showed. This is a two-part episode from your host Sarah Turney’s other podcast, Voices for Justice. Listen to part 1 here, then find part 2 on Voices for Justice. We’ll be back with a new episode of Disappearances next week.

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Voices For Justice: The Springfield Three

Thu, 20 Oct 2022 07:01:00 -0000

It’s the summer of 1992, Suzie Streeter and Stacy McCall have just graduated high school. They spend the night celebrating and make plans to go to a water park with a third friend the next day. But when tomorrow comes, Suzie and Stacy are nowhere to be found. And Suzie’s mother, Sherrill Levitt, is gone too. Foul play is suspected immediately. But despite no shortage of suspects — and thousands of tips — their disappearance remains unsolved. This is an episode from Sarah Turney’s other podcast, Voices for Justice. We’ll be back with new episodes of Disappearances in two weeks.

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Tyarra Williams

Thu, 13 Oct 2022 07:01:00 -0000

For 19-year-old Tyarra Williams, the Stoneybrook Apartments in Greensboro, North Carolina were truly home. It’s where her mother and brother lived, where her boyfriend lived, and where she finally felt a sense of independence living with her grandmother. But on the evening of January 7th, 2016, it was also the last place any of them would see Tyarra alive.

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Ben Needham

Thu, 06 Oct 2022 07:01:00 -0000

In 1991, Ben Needham is a toddler living with his mom on an island in Greece. They’re surrounded by family and crystal blue waters — a true paradise. But that summer, Ben disappears. In the decades since, and as recently as 2021, reports have come in from people claiming they’ve spotted him, or know where he is. As of yet, none of them have panned out.

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Théo Hayez

Thu, 29 Sep 2022 07:01:00 -0000

Every year, the beach at Byron Bay in Australia is decorated for a vigil. People gather to honor an 18-year-old boy who was technically never their own. Théo Hayez was a backpacker from Belgium who disappeared in 2019. His last known movements were detailed through GPS data and cell phone records — almost down to the minute. And yet this agonizing mystery remains, for now, unsolved.

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Amelia Earhart

Thu, 22 Sep 2022 07:01:00 -0000

On May 21 1937, Amelia Earhart was a world-famous pilot about to embark on a record-setting flight. But just a little over a month later, en route to an island in the middle of the Pacific Ocean, she vanished. The mystery of her fate, and that of her co-pilot Fred Noonan, endured for decades — until a constellation of credible information formed a picture of their tragic final days.

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Timmothy Pitzen

Thu, 15 Sep 2022 07:01:00 -0000

In May 2011, Jim Pitzen and Amy Fry-Pitzen dropped off their 6-year-old son Timmothy at school. When Jim returned later to pick him up, he was told by staff that Amy had already done so, hours earlier. But Jim couldn’t reach Amy. Days later, her body was discovered — and there was no sign of Timmothy.

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The Iguala Mass Kidnapping

Thu, 08 Sep 2022 07:01:00 -0000

On September 26th 2014, students from the Ayotzinapa Rural Teachers' College traveled to an annual march in Mexico City. They were on their way to protest against discrimination — and were stopped by open fire in Iguala. Six people were killed. Forty-three vanished. Who were the attackers? What happened to the missing? All eyes were on the Mexican government for answers.

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The Cowden Family

Thu, 01 Sep 2022 07:01:00 -0000

On Labor Day weekend in 1974, a family of four goes camping in their favorite spot in Oregon. When they don’t show up for a scheduled dinner, authorities are called in to investigate. Only, they don’t find any evidence of foul play. Not until months later, when they uncover a horrific scene miles away from the family’s campsite.

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The Frog Boys

Thu, 25 Aug 2022 07:01:00 -0000

On March 26th 1991, a father in South Korea gets a phone call informing him that his son never showed up for taekwondo class. He figures his son lost track of time playing with his friends in the mountains nearby. The reality is that all five boys are gone, and won’t ever be seen alive again.

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The Disappearance of Nuseiba Hasan (Interview w/ Conviction’s Habiba Nosheen)

Thu, 18 Aug 2022 07:01:00 -0000

Sixteen years ago, a Jordanian-Canadian woman vanished from her family’s farm. To say her case ran cold would be misleading: There was no case, because no one reported her missing for nine years. Today, we’re sharing an interview with Habiba Nosheen — journalist and host of Gimlet’s Conviction (season 3) podcast — about the disappearance of Nuseiba Hasan, and how a cryptic email revealed an unbelievable story of tragedy and mystery.

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Cherita Thomas

Thu, 11 Aug 2022 07:01:00 -0000

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Keith Reinhard

Thu, 04 Aug 2022 07:01:00 -0000

In 1988, Keith Reinhard uproots his life to investigate a friend’s disappearance. Eventually, he starts believing his friend didn’t just disappear — he was murdered. Keith tells his theory to nearly everybody he knows. Then Keith disappears, too.

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Marita Verón

Thu, 28 Jul 2022 07:01:00 -0000

Marita Verón was a 23-year-old mother who disappeared in Argentina in 2002 while on her way to a hospital appointment. When police wouldn’t help, her parents investigated on their own. What they discovered was horrifying: Marita had been kidnapped by sex traffickers.

Marita’s mother set up a foundation in Marita’s honor to offer legal, developmental, and rehabilitation services to trafficking survivors. You can find more information on it here: fundacionmariadelosangeles.org

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Bruno Manser

Thu, 21 Jul 2022 07:01:00 -0000

In the 1980s, Bruno Manser was a Swiss activist who moved to Borneo to live amongst the indigenous Penan. He assimilated into the tribe, helping them fight against logging companies encroaching on their land. He returned to Switzerland and, for many years, tried to bring attention to the Penan cause. In 2000, he returned to the jungle and was never seen again.

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Damien Nettles

Thu, 14 Jul 2022 07:01:00 -0000

The Isle of Wight has a dual identity. It’s a tourist destination with a pristine reputation. And it’s a small island where everybody knows everyone. So when a 16-year-old local vanishes one night in 1996, his parents are sure that whatever happened to him, it didn’t go unnoticed. Only, information proves to be scarce. And it seems the island’s criminal underbelly has kept it that way.

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Crystal Rogers

Thu, 07 Jul 2022 07:01:00 -0000

After telling her sister she was scared of her boyfriend, Crystal Rogers disappeared. For months, her parents Tommy and Sherry worked with the Bardstown police to build a case against her boyfriend. Then, 16 months after she was last seen, her father Tommy was murdered. Both crimes are still unsolved.

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Terrance Williams and Felipe Santos

Thu, 30 Jun 2022 07:01:00 -0000

When Felipe Santos gets into the back of a patrol car, his brothers assume he’s being arrested for driving without a license. But they never hear from him again. Three months later, Terrance Williams goes missing under similar circumstances. And the sheriff’s deputy involved in both of their cases can’t get his story straight.

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James Brady & Absolom Halkett

Thu, 23 Jun 2022 07:01:00 -0000

In 1967, two indigenous men are prospecting for uranium in Saskatchewan when they vanish from their lakeside camp. Canadian authorities determine they got lost and died in an accident — case closed. But their closest friends are convinced otherwise: James Brady and Abbie Halkett were murdered.

Parcasters, we have exciting news! Our first book hits bookshelves July 12th. Don’t miss this chilling summer read that takes you deep into the darkest sides of human nature. Learn more at www.parcast.com/cults!

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George Smith

Thu, 16 Jun 2022 07:01:00 -0000

George and Jennifer Smith were young newlyweds when they set off on a Mediterranean cruise in 2005. Just days into their honeymoon, George went missing. Despite evidence pointing to foul play, no one has ever been convicted in his disappearance.

Countdown to the CULTS book release! Parcast’s first book hits shelves July 12th. It’s an unflinching exploration of shame, secrecy, power, exploitation, and destruction. Learn more at www.parcast.com/cults!

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Emanuela Orlandi

Thu, 09 Jun 2022 07:01:00 -0000

When a teenage girl goes missing in Italy, her disappearance is linked to a Turkish assassin, a mobster, a bank scandal, and the Vatican itself.

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William and Margaret Patterson

Thu, 02 Jun 2022 07:01:00 -0000

In the late 1950s, a wealthy, well-connected couple take flight from their home in El Paso, Texas. The question of whether they are still alive, and if they simply wanted to disappear — and did — drags on for years, until 1984. That’s when a witness comes forward with a statement that changes everything.

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Natalee Holloway

Thu, 26 May 2022 07:01:00 -0000

A senior class celebration turned into every parent’s worst nightmare after 18-year-old Natalee Holloway left her hotel in Aruba and never returned. She was last seen by her classmates leaving a bar with three men she’d only just met on the island.

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Arthur Kingsley Porter

Thu, 19 May 2022 07:01:00 -0000

In the 1920s a married Harvard professor takes the unconventional advice of his physician and begins an affair with a younger man. The arrangement seems to work happily for everyone involved. But in the summer of 1933, on a tiny island off the coast of Ireland, Arthur Kingsley Porter vanishes. Most of the evidence points to one clear conclusion, yet Kingsley’s story has only grown more complicated with time.

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Kierra Coles

Thu, 12 May 2022 07:01:00 -0000

When a pregnant postal worker goes missing in Chicago, the people around her do everything right. Her parents drop everything to find her. Her community bands together. Even her employer launches an investigation. But nearly four years later, her family is still fighting for answers.

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The Beaumont Children

Thu, 05 May 2022 07:01:00 -0000

Some people say it's the day the country lost its innocence. The three Beaumont children went to the beach in Adelaide, South Australia, in 1966 and never came home. They disappeared in front of hundreds of people. Over 50 years later, there may finally be a timeline on what happened that day.

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Madeleine McCann

Thu, 28 Apr 2022 07:01:00 -0000

A three-year-old girl was snatched during her family’s vacation to Portugal in 2007. Her disappearance launched a media frenzy that’s fueled years of questionable leads, false allegations, and devastating conspiracy theories. Will we ever know what happened to Madeleine McCann?

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Richey Edwards

Thu, 21 Apr 2022 07:01:00 -0000

In 1995, the 27-year-old guitarist and songwriter for the Manic Street Preachers vanishes just before a scheduled press tour. Six months later, a lead investigator believes he likely died by suicide. Those closest to him aren’t so sure.

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Jim Thompson

Thu, 14 Apr 2022 07:01:00 -0000

He was a spy, then a mogul, and now — a mystery. Jim Thompson vanished in 1967 after hiking into the Malaysian jungle, leaving everyone to wonder: Had his past come back to haunt him?

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Eloise von Wagner Bosquet

Thu, 07 Apr 2022 07:01:00 -0000

In the early 1930s, a woman claiming to be a French baroness arrives on a tiny island in the Galapagos. But by 1935, Eloise von Wagner Bosquet and three of the island’s other residents are dead or gone under mysterious circumstances. Only one woman is left to account for the disappearances. Can her story be trusted?

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Art & Margaret Williams

Thu, 31 Mar 2022 07:01:00 -0000

In 1970s Canada, Art Williams grows a drug empire by always staying one step ahead of the authorities. Then he disappears. Did he stage a plane crash to fake his death, and take his ex-wife Margaret with him? Or was she left behind, and caught in the crosshairs of his dangerous associates?

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Kathleen Durst

Thu, 24 Mar 2022 07:01:00 -0000

When Kathie Durst vanishes in January 1982, her friends immediately suspect her millionaire husband, Robert Durst. But Robert evades police scrutiny, and Kathie’s case goes cold. It takes a false police tip, an HBO documentary, and nearly four decades to piece together what happened to the 29 year old.

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Helen Brach

Thu, 17 Mar 2022 07:01:00 -0000

A wealthy widow known as Chicago’s “Candy Lady” goes missing in the late 1970s — potentially in a scheme devised by the cruelest players of the city’s horse mafia.

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Charles Lindbergh, Jr.

Thu, 10 Mar 2022 08:01:00 -0000

The infant son of a world-famous aviator was kidnapped and held for ransom in 1932. The case makes headlines almost immediately, but months pass before the Lindberghs discover what happened to their boy. When they do, a law is introduced that impacts kidnapping cases for decades afterward — and not always for the better.

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An Interview with Julie Murray

Thu, 03 Mar 2022 08:01:00 -0000

Following up from last week’s episode, Sarah welcomes Julie Murray onto the podcast for a conversation about her sister Maura – who she was before she disappeared, what their family has been through over the last two decades, and how plausible the most popular theories really are.

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Maura Murray

Thu, 24 Feb 2022 08:01:00 -0000

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Ray Gricar

Thu, 17 Feb 2022 08:01:00 -0000

A respected DA on the brink of retirement goes missing in early April 2005. Police find his car, then his laptop, then his laptop’s hard drive, all months apart. But never a body. Was there foul play? Or did Ray Gricar want to disappear?

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Sean Flynn & Dana Stone

Thu, 10 Feb 2022 08:01:00 -0000

In the spring of 1970, two American photojournalists go missing in the middle of a warzone. Despite multiple efforts to uncover their fate, including a failed rescue mission and a psychic reading, their whereabouts remain a mystery.

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Henry Baltimore Jr.

Thu, 03 Feb 2022 08:01:00 -0000

It was almost 50 years ago when Michigan State junior Henry Baltimore was robbed at gunpoint at his apartment by an acquaintance. Weeks later, just before Henry was going to testify at the trial, he disappeared. So why, despite having an obvious suspect, do the East Lansing Police Department never seem to mount a real investigation?

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Bas Jan Ader

Thu, 27 Jan 2022 08:01:00 -0000

On a summer day in 1975, conceptual artist Bas Jan Ader steps onto a sailboat and embarks on a trans-Atlantic voyage. He never reaches his intended destination. But did he suffer a maritime tragedy — or stage another art installation?

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Stacy Ann Peterson

Thu, 20 Jan 2022 08:01:00 -0000

In Chicago 2007, the 23-year-old wife of a police officer goes missing. Her family immediately suspects foul play by her husband, Drew Peterson. But Drew is never convicted of a crime — at least, not in Stacy’s case.

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Peter Winston

Thu, 13 Jan 2022 08:01:00 -0000

In the late 1970s, a famous American chess prodigy disappeared during a record-breaking blizzard in New York City. Today we go into the mind and the mystery of Peter Winston.

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Jean Spangler

Thu, 06 Jan 2022 08:01:00 -0000

When a single mother vanishes after a night out in L.A., the media runs wild with speculation, overshadowing the tragedy of her story with rumors and hearsay.

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Aubrey Dameron and Anthonette Cayedito

Thu, 30 Dec 2021 08:01:00 -0000

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The Martin Family

Thu, 23 Dec 2021 08:01:00 -0000

It was a Sunday afternoon in 1958 when Ken and Barbara Martin took a drive with their three daughters and never returned home. The facts point to a tragic accident. But they also point to the possibility of homicide.

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Megumi Yokota

Thu, 16 Dec 2021 08:01:00 -0000

Megumi was a 13-year-old Japanese school kid when she disappeared — apparently, without a trace. But decades later, the leads finally started to roll in. They set the Yokota family on a path that intersected with the massive intricacies of nuclear politics and international espionage.

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Henry Hudson

Thu, 09 Dec 2021 08:01:00 -0000

Henry Hudson was a skilled explorer when he set out on his final voyage — but he never came home. Unfortunately, British authorities at the time didn't deem him worth an urgent search party. He'd have to wait centuries for a dedicated investigation.

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Jodi Huisentruit

Thu, 02 Dec 2021 08:01:00 -0000

In 1995, everyone in Mason City, Iowa knew Jodi Huisentruit: She was their local news anchor. When she went missing, it shocked the entire town, and made national newscasts. How can you disappear when everyone knows your face?

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Richard John Bingham, Earl of Lucan

Thu, 25 Nov 2021 08:01:00 -0000

The Earl of Lucan had a glamorous life in the 1970s, but his family's facade of wealth and power came crashing down when their nanny was found murdered in their basement. Lady Lucan claimed her husband was the killer, and as the investigation took off, Lord Lucan himself disappeared into the English countryside.

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Glen and Bessie Hyde

Thu, 18 Nov 2021 08:01:00 -0000

It’s a story that’s mystified people for almost a hundred years: In 1928, two daring newlyweds set out for adventure on the Colorado River… and never returned. And while the case might seem clear-cut, the legacy of Glen and Bessie Hyde — and the rumors surrounding them — are as unruly and treacherous as the rapids they ran.

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Richard Cox

Thu, 11 Nov 2021 08:01:00 -0000

When a West Point cadet goes missing in 1950, the FBI and Army scour the country for him — but he’s never found. Seven years later, Richard Cox is officially declared dead. But if the theories about him are right, his story has a completely unexpected, possibly even heroic, ending. And it starts with a mysterious visitor.

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The Lyon Sisters

Thu, 04 Nov 2021 07:01:00 -0000

On March 25th, 1975, Sheila and Kate Lyon made the half-mile walk to the Wheaton Plaza Mall and never returned. Their disappearance stumped authorities for decades until 2013, when a tiny clue — hidden in an old witness testimony — blew the case wide open.

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Harold Holt

Thu, 28 Oct 2021 07:01:00 -0000

After a deeply controversial year in office, Australia’s Prime Minister Harold Holt is on vacation in Portsea when he goes for an ocean swim… and never returns. Officially, Holt drowned. But with conspiracy theories swirling, the case never truly feels closed.

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Walter Collins

Thu, 21 Oct 2021 07:01:00 -0000

On March 10th 1928, 9-year-old Walter Collins went out to see a movie and was never seen again. The police turned up compelling evidence that he'd been murdered. But Walter's mother, Christine Collins, never gave up hope — even in the face of gaslighting and an imposter.

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Clarence & John Anglin, Frank Morris

Thu, 14 Oct 2021 07:01:00 -0000

June 11, 1962 marked a new day in the legacy of America’s most inescapable prison when three inmates did the impossible. Frank Morris and the Anglin brothers plotted and chiseled their way to freedom, escaping Alcatraz… never to be seen or heard from again.

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Ettore Majorana

Thu, 07 Oct 2021 07:01:00 -0000

A brilliant physicist vanished from Italy in 1938, leaving only a series of cryptic letters behind. In the years-long search for Ettore Majorana, one thing became clear: If he was alive, he didn’t want to be found.

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Phoenix Coldon

Thu, 30 Sep 2021 07:01:00 -0000

In December 2011, Phoenix Coldon's parents watched their daughter back out of the driveway of their home in Spanish Lake, Missouri. She doesn't say goodbye or mention a destination, but it's the last time they ever see her. Three hours later, her car is found abandoned in another state.

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Everett Ruess

Thu, 23 Sep 2021 07:01:00 -0000

A young artist-explorer goes missing in the American Southwest in the 1930s — leaving no trace behind except two burros and a carved clue. The investigation into his disappearance spans decades, spawning theories from murder to amnesia. Through it all, one question persists above the rest: Who was Everett Ruess, really?

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Michael Rockefeller

Thu, 16 Sep 2021 07:01:00 -0000

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Etan Patz

Thu, 09 Sep 2021 07:01:00 -0000

In May 1979, after weeks of him asking, Julie and Stan Patz finally allowed their 6-year-old son, Etan, to walk to the bus stop alone. The result was every parent’s worst nightmare: In the span of ten minutes, along just two NYC blocks, Etan Patz disappeared and was never seen again.

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Introducing: Disappearances with Sarah Turney

Tue, 31 Aug 2021 21:57:00 -0000

You’ve seen the headlines: People here one day and gone the next. But no one just vanishes into thin air. The answers are out there… waiting to be found. Every Thursday, join Sarah Turney for an exploration into history’s most gripping missing persons cases. From prison breaks and child abductions to second chances and even murder, journey through the many reasons people disappear. Disappearances is a Spotify Original from Parcast.

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