Hundreds of unsolved cases are reported to the police every year, and while some of these cases are solved, others remain unexplained. You can discover the stories of some of the most interesting unsolved disappearance cases below.
1. After a car accident in New Hampshire in February of 2004, Maura Murray went missing. Some drivers offered assistance, but she rejected, stating that she had contacted roadside assistance. She hadn’t been seen since then. The cops assumed she was trying to go missing on intentionally.
Maura Murray, a nursing student at the University of Massachusetts Amherst, was 21 years old. She sent an e-mail to her instructors on February 9, 2004, informing them that she would be absent for a few days due to the death of a family member.
She also sent another e-mail to her lover, telling him that she loved him and that she would call him later in the day. She took out some cash, got some alcohol, and left Amherst. Her car eventually went off the road in Haverhill, New Hampshire, and smashed into a snowbank.
Residents who witnessed the accident called the Sheriff’s Department to report it at the same time. A school bus driver approached Maura and offered assistance, but she declined, claiming that she had asked for assistance, although she had not, according to documents.
When he returned home, though, the bus driver phoned the cops. When the cops came, they found no one inside or outside the car; Maura had vanished. There have been no confirmed sightings of Maura Murray since her abduction, and no one knows what happened to her. [Sources: 1, 2]
2. Kelly Dae Wilson, a 17-year-old American girl from Texas, was reported missing in 1992. She was last spotted on her way to the bank to deposit her paycheck from her place of employment. Her stepfather discovered her car with flat tires at her workplace, along with her things. Since then, no one has seen her.
Kelly went to the bank to make a deposit on the evening of January 5, 1992, after leaving her job. She didn’t come back, though. A woman was seen walking into the bank and making a night deposit on the bank’s surveillance video, but it was unclear whether she was Kelly.
Her stepfather discovered her car in the parking lot of her place of business the next day, but the tires were flat and the keys were missing. Her handbag and a few other possessions, however, were still in the vehicle.
Despite the fact that the police suspected several people who knew Kelly, they were unable to locate any proof linking them to Kelly’s case. Only one man, Michael Biby, was detained after the police discovered he had slashed Kelly’s tires.
But, at the time, he was merely charged with a misdemeanor because he was presumed innocent in Kelly’s disappearance. Kelly’s whereabouts are still unknown as of 2017. [Sources: 1, 2]
3. Susan Powell, a married mother of two who went missing in 2009, was a 28-year-old married lady. Josh, her husband, was suspected by the police, but no proof was found to back up their suspicions. Josh told the cops that he and the kids went camping in Utah, and when they returned, she was gone. The authorities discovered several family secrets, such as child pornography and voyeurism, as the inquiry progressed.
Susan Powell and her husband, Josh, relocated to Utah to escape Josh’s father’s obsession with Susan. Susan was also voicing her concerns to her pals about their marital issues. “I want it documented that there is extreme turmoil in our marriage, and if I die, it may not be an accident even if it looks like one” she said in a hidden will.
Josh’s mother and sister arrived to their home on December 7, 2009, but they were unable to get in. The cops were summoned. Nobody was in the house when the cops arrived. Josh then arrived with the kids and informed the cops that Susan was sleeping when he left the house to go camping with them.
Susan went missing on that particular day. The investigation’s main subject of interest was Josh, who didn’t seem worried about Susan during the interrogation. The police, on the other hand, were unable to locate any evidence linking him to the alleged crime. Police discovered blood samples while examining the house for a clue.
One blood sample matched Susan, but not Josh or his father, who was arrested on suspicion of child pornography and voyeurism after images of the children, neighbors, and Susan were taken without their consent. Josh detonated a bomb inside his home in 2012, killing all three of his children. As a result of this occurrence, the cops decided to call it a day. [Sources:1, 2, 3]
4. Melanie Melanson, a first-year high school student, was last seen on October 27, 1989, at a party. Melanie was last seen by two boys, who told two different versions regarding her disappearance. Each claimed that the other was the last person to see her. The case was reopened in 2009, but no new evidence was discovered.
Melanie Melanson had run away from home several times before her abduction due to her parents’ disagreements. Before she went away, she had been residing with his grandma for a while. She went to a party in the woods outside an industrial park with five male companions on October 27, 1989.
She didn’t return home after the celebration ended the next morning, and no one knew where she was. Her relatives found she had gone missing in the afternoon.
The authorities discovered that she was last seen and talked to by two boys. Both of them, however, offered different stories about her and claimed that the other was the last person to speak to her. Melanie was not found despite the authorities trying all they had at their disposal, including cadaver dogs and a helicopter.
It was supposed that Melanie’s body was discovered in a pond area in 1992 after authorities received a tip from an anonymous caller. They assumed she had gone to Florida because she had previously run away. In 2009, the police renewed the investigation but were unable to uncover any new evidence. Despite the fact that the police now believe she was the victim of foul play, the case remains unsolved. [Sources: 1, 2]
5. The Sodder Children – Jennie and George Sodder, together with their nine children, went to bed on the night before Christmas in 1945. They awoke after a while owing to a fire in their home. They were able to save four of their children, but the other five were never seen again. After the fire, they couldn’t even find their bodies.
George Sodder, his wife, Jennie Sodder, and nine of their 10 children went to bed as usual on December 24, 1945 (the eldest son was in the army). However, they were awakened later that night by a fire in their home. The other five children were unable to flee, while George, Jennie, and four of the children were able to do so.
The bodies of the missing youngsters were never discovered when the fire was extinguished. The family had no idea if they were alive or dead, but they were definitely missing. Instead of rebuilding the house, the space was turned into a memorial garden for the children who had perished.
The incident was caused by defective wiring, according to officials. The Sodders, on the other hand, questioned why the house’s Christmas lights remained on during the fire, when they should have gone out if there had been an electrical problem.
The Sodders were also told by the investigators that the remains had to be completely burnt. Jennie Sodder realized that bones would have remained after speaking with a crematorium staff. What happened to those children remains a mystery to this day. [Sources: 1, 2]