Where are they? When it comes to the vanished there is always unrest. The stories about those that are missing is always unnerving. They have to be out there... that's what we hope, but at what cost? And it seems nearly impossible to believe. Nobody actually just vanishes into thin air. The mysteries that may never be solved are the ones we want most.
Redditor u/nonnaan wanted to hear about some of the strange details about the missing by asking.... What are some of the creepiest/most terrifying missing persons cases?
Ben.
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Ben Padilla. In 2003 him and a mechanic climbed into a Boeing 727 that was collecting dust at an Angolan airport, taxied silently to the runway, and took off. No trace of the plane or the men has ever been found. kind-of-there
Lars.
The disappearance of Lars Mittank.
https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Disappearance_of_Lars_Mittank
Lars Mittank started acting strangely after getting into a fight while on vacation in Bulgaria. During the fight he damaged his ear drum and was taking antibiotics, although there are no known side effects of the antibiotics he was on that would explain his behavioral change.
Due to his damaged ear drum he stayed behind after his friends left so he would have a few days to heal and a doctor could re-examine his ear before getting onto the plane. Once he was alone in Bulgaria his odd behavior was exacerbated. He began texting his family saying he wasn't safe and they needed to cancel his credit card.
When he arrived at the airport to fly home he went to first see a doctor to get approved to fly with his injury. (apparently there was a doctor's office in the airport).
While waiting to be seen he bolted out of the airport at full sprint, never to be seen again. epicredditdude
Kristin.
Kristin Smart went to a college party and was walked back to her dorm building by three students. One of the students had a black eye the next day, scratches on his hands and knees, and after Kristin was reported missing, cadaver dogs alerted on the mattress in his dorm room. He took the fifth amendment to every question in a deposition.
Concrete work was done in his mother's backyard the week Kristin disappeared, and a family renting the house later that year found a bloody earring in the backyard. They turned it over to police, and the police lost it before the blood could be tested.
Her body was never found, the guy was never charged, and he's still living free in Southern California. There's a podcast coming out soon about it: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8EB37aB6lbc dashheartdash
Sad.
This just happened in Romania. A 15 year old girl went missing, a few days later she managed to contact the police, told them she was kidnapped, beaten and held in a house. It took the police 19 hours to respond and when they got there it was too late as she was brutally murdered and her body was set on fire in a barrel. Pretty insane if you ask me. There's more info here Juliexxm
William.
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William Tyrrell. A 3-year-old boy who went missing from his foster grandmother's yard (who lives in a tiny town in NSW, Aus) in 2014.
It's a very high profile case in Australia, and has had a lot of attention this year due to a Coronial inquest taking place.. AND the lead detective being taken off the investigation due to some alleged misconduct.
It is such a frustrating case. The family situation is so complicated, and the poor kid already had a rough life to begin with. No_icecream_cake
Insane.
Colleen Stan - she was kidnapped by a husband and wife and locked in a box for 23 hours a day for seven years They literally kept the box under their bed and forced her to sign a contract which made her a slave for life. They convinced her that a nameless corporate syndicate was watching her and that if she tried to escape they would murder her. It's horrific. she survived and is living her life. The wife, who was completely complicit, turned her husband in (sentenced for 104 years) and the wife went free. Both are living in California. Husband has a parole hearing in 2022. Insane.
https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Kidnapping_of_Colleen_Stan Gankrhymes
People Describe The Worst Adult Tantrum They've Ever Witnessed | George Takei’s Oh Myyy
The 90's.
That one I saw on tumblr about a girl who was kidnapped in the late 90's and was thought to be dead when the parents got a phone call asking for help. Ill look for the post. Edit https://fletchermarple.com/post/163661365014/anthonette-cayedito-was-only-9-years-old-when-she yourmotherfigure
Never get a hitchhiker.
My dad's roommate from freshman year in college was driving home (I believe he lived in Alaska and their college was in Maryland so it was a very long car ride) for winter break. According to witnesses, he picked up a hitchhiker after the dude begged him to give him a lift somewhere.
Police found the car completely torched in the woods, no bodies were inside nor any signs of a struggle. My dad's roommate has been missing ever since and the police have no leads besides the hitchhiker, who is also missing. Crimsonrox
Bung.
There's one local to me in Australia.
A 13 yr old girl called Bung was walking on a main road to school.
She was literally never seen again. Happened around 10 yrs ago. How can someone literally vanish without a trace in this day and age? millypilly83
Luke's Eyes.
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Andrew Gosdens disappearance is haunting
I live in the UK and there are still posters up for him 12 years later on my walk to work, it's very sad
Also Luke Durbin had a "Luke's eyes are..." poster of just his eyes in most train stations for a very long time which again was haunting and very sad
Both have been missing for a similar amount of time and both have the eerie last moment caught on CCTV footage
I guess I find them scary as they are local to me, i.e. the same country, and they could have been anyone. Literally anyone could just disappear from sight, anyone could have that last moment on CCTV. It's terrifying. Chops2917
Horrible.
My cousin went missing for about 2-3 months when she was 12 years old. She was walking home from school and stopped by a store to buy something to drink, a man stood beside her and started talking her, she never made any contact with him and never answered his questions. When she got out of the store and walked fast when the guy went behind her and covered her mouth, he then went to a corner and gut punched her. He took her into a hidden house in the south of our city and killed her.
At that time no one knew where she was and no one found a body where she was last seen after a month, the police eventually pronounced her dead. After a couple of months, someone told the police about the hidden house they saw when they heard screaming and sobbing inside. She was found and the suspect was jailed.
This isn't probably creepy but it was really terrifying for my cousin, she is 20 now and still in therapy. ILOVEGOT7DUHD
Adelaide.
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The disappearance of the three Beaumont siblings in 1966 in Adelaide, South Australia. hefoxisalive
Susan.
Susan Powell. The whole story is so sad. They know who, vaguely how, but will probably never locate her. The whole family simply comes apart and it's like watching a train wreck in slow motion. What happened to her boys is absolutely unconscionable.
'Little Boy Pot Pie"
The Zachary Ramsey disappearance/the case of Nathaniel Bar-Jonah.
The police were never able to find his body but there was strong evidence that Bar-Jonah kidnapped him. There is also pretty substantial evidence that he may have actually eaten the boy after the police found recipes like 'Little Boy Pot Pie" in a journal. I know the twin sisters who were the last ones to see Zachary because they walked partway with him, and they believe that he was taken on his way to school.
https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Nathaniel_Bar-Jonah Craven_Hellsing
The McCann Mystery.
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Madelaine McCann. I have waited 12 years for answers. KingStaal
Both the Netflix series and the Madelaine Podcast were interesting to watch/listen to. What baffles me the most is the cadaver + blood dogs indicating on Madelaine's doll (which would indicate she still had it on her when she was dead), and in the rental car that wasn't rented until a few weeks after her disappearance.
On top of that, in the podcast it's mentioned that a DNA company that supposedly has really good DNA reading software that can better separate multiple DNA strands has offered to look at the DNA, for free. The DNA that was ruled inconclusive back in the investigation. They don't even need the DNA, just a picture. Yet, the British Police Force responsible for the case are refusing to hand over the DNA.
Oh, and the parents spent a lot of their donated money on lawyers to sue anyone talking bad about them. Sure, there's no evidence against them, but it just seems so odd.
There's also that new case from this month regarding a missing girl in Malaysia (Nora Quoirin). Similar sounding. she disappeared from her bed - although in this case it seems the parents were also in their beds. I worry we'll still be wondering what's going on with this one in 12 years. ShadowReaperT
Shelly.
Shelly Miscavige, (the wife of David Miscavige, who is the president of the church of Scientology), hasn't been seen in public since 2007.
Source:
https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Shelly_Miscavige guiltyas-sin
Natalie.
Natalee Holloway. I kid you not when I say I think about the unsolved case at least, hmm, twenty-seven times a year? There's so many conspiracies too: she's either in a sharks stomach, alive in South America hiding, somewhere trapped as a sex slave, or buried in Aruba. The day that Joran van Der asshole admits what really happened is the day that part of my brain can finally REST. Cannot imagine how her parents feel :/. january-7
Missing 411.
Not one in particular, but reading a lot of the Missing 411 cases from the National Parks has freaked me out. I recommend checking them out! ProfessorAesthetics
The ones that freak me out the most are the ones that are out in the middle of nowhere. Either in the wilderness, deep in the country with no close neighbors, or driving on a long, deserted highway at night. hermionetargaryen
Asha.
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The disappearance of Asha Degree. To this day we will still never know why she ran away from home or what caused her to do that. (she had a good home life and her parents weren't abusing her). mista_steal_yo_meme
It's very strange the way law enforcement has recently been saying they have reason to believe she may be alive. take_number_two
- People Who Personally Knew Someone That Went Missing Break Down What Happened - George Takei ›
- People Who Personally Knew Someone That Went Missing Break Down What Happened - George Takei ›
- People share the most bizarre disappearances of all time. - George Takei ›
- People Break Down The Creepiest Thing That's Ever Happened To Them - George Takei ›
The old wives' tales.
They are the stories of legend.
I think we all need a big DEEP Google dive though.
Where did they originate?
WHO ARE THE OLD WIVES!
You don't hear about them as much anymore.
It's like science and logic are suddenly a thing.
But they sure are a good way to keep your kids and their behavior in line.
Redditor the_spring_goddess wanted to discuss the tall tales we've all been fed through life, so they asked:
"What is an old wives tale that people still believe?"
"Wait an hour to swim after eating."
What a crock!
So many summer hours wasted.
I want revenge for that one.
Say Nothing
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"An undercover cop has to tell you he's a cop if you ask him."
LonelyMail5115
"Pretty much most advice when it comes to cops are old wives tales. I’m not even a cop but most of the advice you hear is pretty off."
I_AM_AN_A**HOLE_AMA
Say Something
"That you have to wait 24 hours to report someone missing."
Severe_Airport1426
"I really think this one is important and should be the top regardless. As it’s a piece of advice that needs to be relearned and the only way to do that is through awareness."
crappycurtains
"This used to be true. I think they changed it after some guy named Brandon went missing back in the '80s or '70s. You used to have to wait 24 hours if the missing person was an adult because they had 'a right to be missing' and then everyone realized that was stupid and stopped doing it."
AlbinoShavedGorilla
Body Temps
"That drinking ice cold water after eating oily foods will solidify the oil and permanently remain in your body. I informed my coworker that if your body temperature ever reached that point, you’d have bigger problems than weight gain."
chriseo22
"Oh, I have a cousin who 100% believed this. One of those guys who believed every early 2000s internet rumor and old wives tale. One night I chugged a big glass of ice water after dinner and he started freaking out and saying my guts were gonna harden."
"I sarcastically told him to drive me to the hospital if that happened. Obviously, nothing happened and the next morning I said something like 'Thanks for being on standby in case my guts filled with hardened oil.' He just walked off muttering under his breath."
apocalypticradish
Arms Down
"When I was pregnant, I was told by young and old alike that I should NOT raise my arms above my head or exert myself in such a manner because it could cause cord strangulation to my unborn sons and daughters."
Fatmouse84
10 Years Actually
Unimpressed Uh Huh GIF by Brooklyn Nine-Nine
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"Chewing gum stays in your stomach for 7 years."
"I remember accidentally swallowing a piece of gum when I was a kid in like 1995 and just accepting my fate like welp, gonna have this in my stomach til high school I guess."
Gecko-911
I was so afraid to sallow my gum when I was young.
This tale is haunting.
High/Low
Hungry Debra Messing GIF by Will & Grace
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"You can tell the sex of the baby by how you carry."
LeastFormal9366
"Pregnancy certainly wins awards for the most old wives tales. So much absolute BS was repeated to us by everyone we talked to."
IllIIIlIllIlIIlIllI
The Cursed
"If you’re a woman and you wear opal jewelry but opal is not your birthstone (October), you’ll never be able to have children, or will be widowed, or just generally have bad luck or something. You can counteract this by having a diamond in the same piece of jewelry as the opal, though."
"I have a nice opal ring that my parents gave me years ago, and I’ve had other women give me this 'advice' unprompted more than once when I’ve worn it. I have absolutely no idea where it started, but I’m pretty sure this little chunk of silicate rock has no concept of what month I was born in, let alone of how my reproductive organs work."
SmoreOfBabylon
Stay In
"Going outside with wet hair will make you get pneumonia. Or an earache. Or maybe arthritis. Depends on which old wife you listen to."
"Jokes on them - I haven't blow-dried my hair in decades and usually leave the house with wet hair in the morning. On winter mornings, the tips of my hair get frozen. No ear infections or pneumonia or arthritis yet."
worldbound0514
Dreams and Facts
"You never make anyone up in your dreams you've seen everyone in your dreams somewhere else before and never make anyone up entirely."
"How would you possibly prove that to be true? My partner adamantly believes this and tells me this 'fact' whenever I have a dream about someone I've never met before."
mattshonestreddit
"My late wife used to tell me that before she met me she would have dreams of standing at an alter on her wedding day but could never see the guy's face, no matter how hard she tried. After meeting me the face was filled in with mine. Don't know if it's true but one of those things I like thinking of every now and then when I miss her."
Darthdemented
Cracked
Getting Ready Episode 2 GIF by The Office
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"Some people still believe cracking knuckles causes arthritis."
Choice-Grapefruit-44
"There's a doctor (Donald Unger) that cracked his knuckles a couple of times a day for 60 years, but only on one hand, just to prove it. Both hands remained exactly the same."
MacyTmcterry
I love my knuckles.
Do you have any tall tales to add to the list? Let us know in the comments below.
