Tag: mysterious disappearances

New Epstein docs mention Madeleine McCann – here’s what a witness saw

Buried deep in the newly released Epstein files is a 2009 witness report that describes the sighting of a young girl who “looked like Madeline McCann,” allegedly walking with a woman “looked just like Ghislaine Maxwell.”

Madeleine McCann was just 3 years old when she vanished on May 3, 2007, while on holiday with her family at the Ocean Club resort in Praia da Luz, Portugal.

Her parents, Kate and Gerry McCann – 40 and 39 respectively at the time – had gone to dinner with friends at a restaurant roughly 100 yards from the apartment where Madeleine and her two-year-old twin siblings were sleeping. When Kate returned to check on the children, Madeleine was gone.

Police were called immediately, and staff and guests began searching through the night as border authorities and airport personnel were placed on alert.

Portuguese investigators initially said they believed Madeleine had been kidnapped and issued a description of a man reportedly seen carrying a child that evening.

The case quickly became “the most heavily reported missing-person case in modern history,” drawing global media attention, extensive police resources, and years of follow-up inquiries. Despite international cooperation and multiple leads, the child has never been found.

Maddie’s name in Epstein Files

Nearly 19 years later, Madeleine’s name emerged unexpectedly in documents related to Jeffrey Epstein’s prosecution and the 2021 conviction of Ghislaine Maxwell on child sex trafficking charges.

The reference appears in a single witness statement contained within millions of pages of filings unsealed by the U.S. Department of Justice.

The statement, dated July 7, 2020, was written by an unidentified witness in the UK who claimed to have seen the young girl in the fall of 2009, and reported it at the time to local police.

“In September 2009 I was living in [redacted] road. It was a Sunday and very quiet. I turned off from my street on the main road and found myself walking behind a woman and a little girl,” the person explained.

‘Held her hand over her right eye’

“There was also a middle-aged man with them, but he was walking much further ahead.

“When I got up close to the girl I noticed she looked like Madeline McCann. The woman was trying to hurry her along and seemed agitated that I was there. The little girl held her hand over her right eye the whole time we were walking along. She kept on turning round to look at me…”

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Video reignites interest in 20-year-old Columbus missing persons case

For nearly 20 years, one question has haunted many people in Columbus: How does someone walk into a building and never walk out? 

The disappearance of 27-year-old Ohio State medical student Brian Shaffer is back in the spotlight as surveillance video from the night he vanished circulates across social media. 

“It’s really important to continue to remind the public that this case exists, and we need the public’s assistance,” retired FBI Agent Harry Trombitas said.

Shaffer was caught on camera walking into the Ugly Tuna Saloon in the early morning of April 1, 2006, but was never recorded leaving. Columbus police said the video circulating is not new, and there’s no new evidence in the case file, but according to experts, this renewed attention could be the key in solving the case. 

“I appreciate whoever on the internet put that video back out on Brian because it gets people talking about it, gets it out in front of people and just the right person may see it and contact law enforcement,” Trombitas said. 

Over the past few days, videos have resurfaced claiming to show the final full hour of surveillance from the bar the night Shaffer went missing. His case, which has captured national attention, has once again exploded across social media. 

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Fears British woman, 71, who vanished while hiking in South Africa was killed for her body parts to be used in witchcraft

A British woman who vanished while hiking in South Africa may have been killed for her body parts to be used in witchcraft rituals, it is feared. 

Lorna McSorley, 71, went missing in September after she and her partner of 30 years, 81-year-old Leon, left their hotel to go for a short walk from the Ghost Mountain Inn in the KwaZulu-Natal province to search for local wildlife.

On the walk, Leon found the heat and distance too difficult and left his partner carry on on her own. 

He raised the alarm when she failed to return three hours later, with search parties scouring the nearby lake and banks for any sign of her.  

To this day, Lorna has still not been heard from. Locals in the region believe she may have been kidnapped and killed for use in ‘muti’ rituals. 

‘Muti’ is a type of traditional medicine or magic. Though most ‘muti’ rituals require parts from plants or animals, there are those who believe the most powerful charms and medicines require human body parts. 

These spells are often used by those with the wealth and contacts to procure human body part, be they businessmen closing a deal, a gangster wishing to protect themselves or a politician seeking high office.  

And KwaZulu-Natal, particularly the region’s north where Lorna went missing, is known for being a hotspot for strong ‘muti’ beliefs that locals told the Times put them above the law. 

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Savannah Guthrie’s mom’s disappearance now being investigated as crime: ‘She did not leave on her own’

The mysterious disappearance of “Today” show host Savannah Guthrie’s mom is now being investigated as a crime, authorities said Monday — citing “suspicious” circumstances at the 84-year-old woman’s home.

Nancy Guthrie was last seen around 9:45 p.m. Saturday at her million-dollar residence in the rural Catalina Foothills area near Tucson, where officials said they found a “very concerning” scene — and some of the grandma’s key personal items were reportedly left behind, including life-saving medicine.

“We know she didn’t just walk out of there. She did not leave on her own,” Pima County Sheriff Chris Nanos said at a press conference Monday.

He refused to elaborate further on exactly why cops think a crime was committed, saying, “It would be inappropriate at this time.”

But authorities said they recovered Nancy’s cellphone and are combing through it for possible clues — while a source told the Daily Mail that the missing woman left behind other basic crucial personal items, too.

“Her stuff was left behind at the house: keys, ID, purse, phone, everything,” someone close to the star told the outlet.

The elderly woman also apparently left behind medicine she needs to take daily to survive.

“It’s not a situation where she voluntarily went away because she didn’t take any of the things you would normally take if you voluntarily went out,” the source told the outlet.

Nanos told reporters, “We believe now, after we process that crime scene, that we do, in fact, have a crime scene, that we do, in fact, have a crime, and we’re asking the community’s help.”

Authorities have been searching for the elderly matriarch since she was reported missing by her family late Sunday morning.

Nancy was last seen Saturday night by at least one of her children, who dropped her off at the house, authorities said.

Savannah, who has an older brother and sister, is currently in the Tucson area, officials said.

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Dallas Police Solve 52-Year-Old Missing Person Case, the Oldest in the State of Texas

The Dallas Police Department announced that it has closed a missing persons case that remained unresolved for more than five decades.

The case centered on Norman Prater, who was reported missing to Dallas police on Jan. 14, 1973.

His disappearance launched an investigation that remained active but unanswered, according to the department, which updated the public about the case on Jan. 6.

On July 9, 1973, months after Prater went missing, an unidentified white male died in a hit-and-run on Highway 35 in Rockport, Texas.

At the time, police did not connect the incident to Prater or Dallas.

Despite extensive efforts by local law enforcement and media appeals, the victim remained unidentified.

That changed recently due to renewed interest in the case from Dallas Missing Persons Detective Ryan Dalby.

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14-year-old Texas girl disappears, becoming third missing Bexar County teen in just a week

A 14-year-old Texas girl vanished from her home on Monday — just days after missing teen Camila Mendoza Olmos disappeared near her home in the same city.

Sofia Gabriela Peters-Cobos, 14, hasn’t been seen since Monday evening when she left her home on Landon Ridge and Potranco Road in San Antonio around 7 p.m., the Bexar County Sheriff’s Office said.

She is the third Bexar County teen reported missing within a week.

On Christmas Eve, Olmos, 19, disappeared while taking an early morning walk. She was last seen close to her San Antonio home around 7 a.m.

A day later, on Christmas Day, the sheriff’s office also asked the public for help locating 17-year-old Angelique Johnson, who was last seen on Potranco Road.

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Previously Unreleased Audio Recording from D.B. Cooper Skyjacking Case Revealed

An incredible previously unreleased audio recording from the infamous D.B. Cooper skyjacking case has been revealed, allowing listeners to eavesdrop on some critical moments during the legendary caper. Researchers Nicholas Broughton and Ryan Burns received the remarkable relic from a source, who has asked to remain anonymous. The audio is derived from badly degraded cassette tapes, which this individual had in their possession for several decades. The duo were provided with around forty minutes of total audio, but only twelve minutes were able to be restored to a listenable condition with the hope that more of the recording can be recovered in the future.

Northwest Airlines, which owned the plane Cooper skyjacked that fateful 1971 Thanksgiving Eve, created the audio by splicing together recordings of two separate radio frequencies used when the passenger jet stopped at Seattle–Tacoma International Airport (Sea-Tac). It was during this period that the passengers and most of the flight crew were released from the plane, the requested $200,000 ransom and parachutes were delivered to Cooper, and the airliner was refueled in anticipation of continuing the flight to Mexico City. In the newly released audio, Captain William Scott, Co-Pilot Bill Rataczak, and Al Lee, Chief Pilot for Northwest Airlines and chosen courier for the skyjacking spoils, can be heard initially discussing a “contingency plan” wherein the remaining crew would make a run for it “if that opportunity avails itself.”

Later in the recording, the tension of the moment is palpable as problems with the refueling process caused a considerable delay on the ground and consternation from Cooper. “We do want the fuel truck to come up, dammit,” Rataczak sternly relays to the Sea-Tac tower as the mounting issues required multiple vehicles. “He’s getting awfully antsy,” the co-pilot reports of Cooper as they wait for the airliner to be ready for takeoff. During the delay, Scott notes specific gear settings that the skyjacker requested for the flight and muses, “he seems to know a little bit about an airplane.” Shortly thereafter, the Sea-Tac tower suggests the incident could be a copy of a similar skyjacking involving a parachute that occurred on an Air Canada flight earlier in the month.

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US National Archives releases Amelia Earhart records promised by Trump  

The US National Archives on Nov 14 released several batches of records related to the 1937 disappearance of famed aviator Amelia Earhart over the Pacific, following US President Donald Trump’s recent order to declassify and release all such material held by the government.

The release of 4,624 pages of documents, including logbooks of US military vessels involved in the air and sea search for Earhart, was announced by National Intelligence director Tulsi Gabbard.

Earhart and her navigator, Fred Noonan, were last seen taking off in her twin-engine Lockheed Electra airplane on July 2, 1937, from Papua New Guinea en route to Howland Island, some 4,000km away, during an attempt to fly around the world.

Radio contact with the plane was lost hours later after Earhart, 39, reported running low on fuel.

Enduring mystery

A massive naval search, the most extensive ever at the time, was unsuccessful. Earhart’s fate remains one of the most enduring mysteries of the past 88 years.

The Trump administration’s sudden interest in Earhart, and the President’s Sept 26 order to declassify and release records about her, came as he faced growing criticism for withholding files related to the late financier and convicted sex offender Jeffrey Epstein.

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Prosecutor Who Exposed Sde Teiman Rape Video Missing After Netanyahu Calls It ‘Israel’s Most Dangerous Attack’

Israeli police have launched a search for outgoing military prosecutor Yifat Tomer Yerushalmi, who admitted leaking a video showing Israeli soldiers raping a Palestinian hostage at the notorious Sde Teiman detention facility in the occupied Negev.

According to Yedioth Ahronoth, Yerushalmi has been missing for several hours. Police found her car abandoned near a Tel Aviv beach early Sunday morning. Israel Hayom reported that she left a farewell letter inside the vehicle, while Kan, Israel’s public broadcaster, said she also left a suicide note at her home.

A senior police source told Haaretz there are serious concerns for her life.

The disappearance comes a few hours after Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu described the video leak as “the most dangerous propaganda attack in Israel’s history.”

Speaking at Sunday’s cabinet meeting, Netanyahu said the footage caused “massive damage to Israel’s image, its army, and its soldiers.” He called for an independent investigation into the leak, which has deeply shaken Israel’s political and military establishment.

The leaked video shows Israeli soldiers torturing and raping a Palestinian hostage at the Sde Teiman base, often referred to by Israeli activists as a “human slaughterhouse.” The recording, from July 2024, spread widely online, sparking outrage abroad but mainly panic within Israel’s leadership over reputational damage and the risk of international prosecution.

Following the leak, right-wing activists, including several Israeli ministers, stormed the base to show support for the soldiers, who committed the assault, denouncing their arrest and framing them as heroes.

A Haaretz investigation published Sunday revealed that Yerushalmi, who was dismissed last week by Defense Minister Israel Katz, had for months avoided launching probes into incidents in Gaza that could constitute war crimes.

Military correspondent Yaniv Kubovich reported that Yerushalmi deliberately froze several sensitive cases due to threats and incitement from Israel’s far-right circles following her involvement in the Sde Teiman affair.

“She felt threatened and stopped making decisions out of fear of personal attacks,” a senior army source told the paper.

Among the cases she ignored was the killing of seven aid workers from the World Central Kitchen in Deir al-Balah in April 2024. An internal field investigation found that the strike violated operational orders, but Yerushalmi chose not to refer it to military police.

A reserve officer told Haaretz that Yerushalmi also refused to open investigations into the killing of 15 medical staff members in Gaza in March 2024, despite documented evidence and calls from inquiry committees.

According to sources quoted by Haaretz, Yerushalmi had received direct threats at her home and workplace.

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Charlie Kirk suspect’s trans lover Lance Twiggs goes missing 6 weeks after political assassination

The transgender lover of Charlie Kirk’s alleged killer has seemingly vanished from his hometown six weeks after the political assassination that shook the country.

Lance Twiggs, 22, has been on the down-low since his boyfriend Tyler Robinson allegedly shot the Turning Point USA co-founder dead and then sent Twiggs a string of text messages confessing to the slaying, according to feds.

Twiggs has steered clear of his $1,800-per-month love nest on the outskirts of the isolated desert oasis of St. George.

Authorities previously said that he is cooperating with authorities, but Twiggs has refused to speak with media while Robinson awaits trial in a Salt Lake City jail cell.

Robinson made a brief court appearance on Monday, where he mounted the legal argument that fellow accused political assassin Luigi Mangione used in his case.

The Utah native asked that he be allowed to wear civilian clothes in future appearances, arguing that a jail jumpsuit could prejudice the jury pool against him. He also asked to appear in court without shackles.

The judge granted him the first request, but denied the second, in a partial win for Robinson. Mangione made a similar argument in his case — though it does not appear his judge was as agreeable, and he was subsequently seen in his federal lockup fatigues.

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