Unique Harris, a 24 year old mother of two, was reported missing from her home in Southeast D.C. on October 9, 2010. Unique’s home was located at the 2400 block of Hartford St, SE. Police say Unique was abducted from her home, while her sons and niece were asleep in the next room.
Authorities believe that whoever is responsible for Unique’s disappearance, was likely someone she knew. The only items missing from Unique’s home were her keys and her cell phone. She allegedly had not been wearing her glasses the evening of her disappearance.
Description of Unique Harris
Gender: Female
Race: African American
Physical: Tattoos on lower back and left arm
Height: 5’7”
Weight: 120-130
Hair Color: Brown
Eye Color: Brown
Last Seen: Wearing white t-shirt and gray pants
If you have any information on the whereabouts of Unique Harris, please contact the D.C. Metropolitan Police Department at (202) 727-9099.
Alexis Mills is a Volunteer for the MissingPersonsNetwork.org and a recent graduate of Purdue University
A 28 year-old mother of four children, Kelly Armstrong from Kokomo, Indiana joined a seemingly ever growing list of missing mothers throughout the United States last September 2011. Though there are no official statistics that reveal the true number of missing young women with dependents, as of January 31, 2012, the Federal Bureau of Investigation, National Crime Information Center (NCIC) reports there are 3,699 active missing person cases of women between the ages of 22-29. NCIC reports a total of 83,743 active missing person cases to include men and women of all ages as of January 31, 2012.
Last September, Kelly’s family became concerned for her well-being when they had not heard from her in several weeks. Their concern elevated when they visited her residence and began talking to neighbors who said they had not seen her in weeks. Her family immediately reported her disappearance to Kokomo Police Department. By the time the report was made Kelly’s family knew something was wrong as she would have never left her 18-month old son alone now in CPS custody.
Following the family’s report, Major Brian Sheldon of the Kokomo Police Department stated, “We are behind the eight ball a little bit, so we are doing a lot of follow up talking to individuals who might have known her or her acquaintances to get some information about where she could possibly be.” Kelly is believed to have vanished in early August so it is estimated they may have been approximately six weeks behind the eight ball.
Elapsed time between a person’s disappearance and when police are notified is not uncommon when family and friends do not live in close proximity of each other and usually occurs after friends and family become concerned when they have not heard from the individual. As time passes, the more complex the investigation can be for authorities on the onset. Unlike a homicide crime scene investigation where there is a definitive starting point for investigators, missing person investigations can be especially challenging because all too often a person vanishes without a trace, no witnesses and no scene of a crime.
When the disappearance of an individual has been determined suspicious or involuntary, statistically if not located within the first 24-48 hours the chances of finding the person safe significantly diminishes with each passing hour. It is always a race against time when searching for a missing person and every piece of information and physical evidence paramount to the outcome of the case. Along with each passing day, traces of evidence at the crime scene lose physical integrity and reliability, deterioration occurs, and contamination.
If foul-play is suspected in the disappearance securing the crime scene and preservation of physical evidence is vital to potentially locating the victim and building a solid case against the perpetrator of the crime. Evidence becomes the voice of the victim; the story-teller. Whatever the perpetrator touches, wherever he steps, fibers, blood spatter give investigators the ability to reconstruct the crime scene. When properly collected, physical evidence rarely fails to accurately represent what occurred at a crime scene and human failure to find it.
ADMISSION TO MURDER
On February 21, Kelly’s live-in boyfriend Travis Funke, 34, was charged for her death. The prosecutor confirmed Funke had admitted to beating Kelly to death with a hammer and throwing her body in the trash.In an affidavit it states during the initial phase of the investigation in September, Funke cut off his ankle bracelet and apparently tried to commit suicide shortly after being questioned by police. This resulted in a preliminary arrest for charges related to cutting off the ankle monitor and escape. While incarcerated, a cellmate told police Funke admitted to killing Kelly with a hammer and concerned there may still be evidence remaining at his residence.
It has been confirmed in a probable cause affidavit police did locate several large blood stains on the walls, furniture and carpet along with a hammer covered with blood. A DNA family reference sample was obtained from Kelly’s parents confirming a 99.9 percent match.
While Funke admits to killing Kelly on July 8th and dumping her body, he claims Kelly initiated the attack with the hammer claiming she may have hit him in the head knocking him unconscious and had vague memories hitting her repeatedly with the hammer that he was able to take away from her but claims he thought the entire incident was a dream awaking to find Kelly lying deceased on the floor. According to Funke he placed her body in a trash receptacle and proceeded to try to clean up the blood stains with bleach.
To the dismay of Kelly’s family, Funke has been charged with voluntary manslaughter, which carries a much lighter sentence than a first-degree murder charge. The current voluntary manslaughter charge only carries 45 years, 10 years suspended and the potential Funke could be out within 17 years. Kelly’s family is outraged. An injustice when one weighs the loss of a young woman’s life and children who now must face life without their mother.
Questions remain as to how the investigation has been handled and if there is a possibility evidence may have been compromised early on. While Funke’s residence should have been sealed off early on with the discovery of blood, information surfaced that a young relative had broken into the house while Funke was incarcerated and proceeded to have a party and help herself to Kelly’s personal belongings. When David Armstrong arrived at the residence to retrieve photographs that his daughter had in her home. He was met by Funke’s mother who had moved into the residence. “I showed up and couldn’t believe Funke’s mother’s suitcases were there and the washer running,” said Armstrong. “I have no confidence in this investigation when my family was told to stay away because police considered it a crime scene, yet Funke’s family has been permitted to come and go as they pleased.”
A FATHER’S PROMISE
The Kokomo Police conducted a six day search of the Wabash Family Landfill but have since discontinued search effort to retrieve her remains. The family was told police have depleted resources and unable to continue and suspended the search. Since Kelly’s disappearance the family has courageously and tirelessly continued the search for her the pain of living the nightmare of ambiguity evident in their faces and the anguish in the voices. Kelly’s family remained determined to bring her home and they still are.David Armstrong says he will not accept a landfill as the final resting place for his daughter. No parent should have to live with the thought of their child lay amidst refuse let alone have to personally pay to have their daughter’s body retrieved. Working nearly 20 years in the field of missing persons and homicide cases, I find this not only a disservice to Kelly Armstrong’s family but a slap in the face to every family in this country who awaits the return of their missing loved one, if even to give them a proper burial. It is heart-wrenching to think that this family does not have the assistance from authorities to their loved one but being expected to visit a landfill to pay respects to your murdered child is unthinkable. When a family is told their loved has been murdered yet their remains are not returned the family is sentenced to a tortuous limbo and unable to begin a natural mourning process. For the family of Kelly Armstrong, their sentence could last well after Funke is released from his voluntary manslaughter sentence. This is the epitome of injustice.
hough David has vowed to recruit help from across the country to include search teams to ensure his daughter’s remains and give his daughter a proper burial. It is my hope the Indiana Attorney General and state congressional representatives will closely evaluate what they would do if their child had been murdered and what it would be like to visit their child’s final resting place and lay flowers at a dump. No family deserves to be abandoned and the state should ensure this does not happen. If I were in state leadership in the state of Indiana I would make it my mission to find the resources.
A father’s vow to his child that he will find her, bring her home and give her an honorable burial. Going back to the ancients a proper burial of another human being was seen as a requirement; to think any father would have to do this alone is unimaginable.
David Armstrong is asking anyone who would like to help to visit Operation Find Kelly.
Author – Kym L. Pasqualini
Founder, National Center for Missing Adults
& Social Network Advocate
Missing Persons Advocacy Network
Phone: 800-889-3463 (FIND)
Holly Bobo, a 20 year old student from Darden, TN was reported missing on the night of April 13, 2011. Police believe that Holly may have been abducted from her home in Decatur County, TN around 7:30 that morning by a man wearing camouflage. Holly’s neighbor, as well as her brother who was inside her house at the time, both called 911 when they heard Holly outside screaming early that morning. Bobo’s brother saw the man drag Holly through a carport beside the house and into the woods not too far off behind the home. Last seen outside her one story home 100 miles northeast of Memphis, police are still searching for what they believe could have been a premeditated abduction. Authorities recovered items such as Holly’s cell phone and her lunch bag, which were still intact at her house during the investigation, but police have no leads as to where she might have been taken.
The suspect is described as a male, approximately 6’0” tall, about 200 pounds and wearing camouflage. Background on Holly Bobo
Holly was a nursing student and also the cousin of country music singer, Whitney Duncan. Investigators believe this abduction was planned because of the geographical area Holly’s house was located in. Since the house was located in a heavily wooded area, police think it must have been someone who knew Holly, knew her routine and knew how to get around her property.
Description of Holly Bobo
Gender: Female
Race: Caucasian
Physical: Pierced ears,
Height: 5’3”
Weight: 110
Hair Color: Blonde
Eye Color: Blue
Last Seen: Wearing pink shirt and light colored jeans
If you have any information on the whereabouts of Holly Bobo, please contact the Tennessee Bureau of Investigation 615-744-4000
Alexis Mills is a Volunteer for the MissingPersonsNetwork.org and a recent graduate of Purdue University
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Police say Samantha Koenig, 18 year old from Anchorage, AK disappeared from her place of business around 8pm Wednesday, February 1, 2012. Samantha worked as a barista at a popular coffee shop at a busy intersection. Police say Samantha was on camera being forced to leave the coffee shop by a man dressed in all black, but are unsure if this was the same man Samantha had filed for a restraining order against earlier this year.
It is believed that the man was armed, and headed toward the Old Seward Highway. Samantha’s boyfriend, Dwayne, had planned on picking her up that night when she got off work at 8pm, but was held up by his own job, states her father. Along with Samantha missing, so was the money that had been in the cash drawers that evening.
Melanie Ornelas, Common Grounds barista, said that when she arrived in the morning, it was apparent that no one had cleaned, but it did not immediately raise any concerns. She noticed that Samantha’s things were still in her cubby in the back and she had left a note asking if she was scheduled to work that Saturday.
Background on Samantha Koenig
Determined to get a job, James Koenig Jr, Samanatha’s father, stated that he did not want her to work there in the first place. He wanted her to explore other options such as nursing or veterinary school, as they had previously talked about. Keonig also says that Samantha had filed for a restraining order against a man that she did not know for very long, but then was scared to show up to the court date for fear of he might do something. Samantha had only worked at the coffee shops for a few months before she went missing. Co-workers describe her personality as bubbly and energetic.
Rewards have been offered. Description of Samantha Koenig
Gender: Female
Race: Caucasian
Complexion: Medium
Height: 5’4”
Weight: 160
Hair Color: Brown
Eye Color: Brown
If you have any information please call the Anchorage Police Dept. at 907-786-8900.
Alexis Mills is a Volunteer for the MissingPersonsNetwork.org and a recent graduate of Purdue University
The Dumping Ground
On December 5, 2011, personal possessions of Shannan Gilbert, a young woman missing since April 2010, were located in thick undergrowth of a swampy area on the shore in Long Island, NY. Suffolk County Police announced they had recovered a purse containing Shannan’s identification, a cell phone, a pair of shoes and clothing believed to have belonged to the missing woman. The discovery of personal belongings prompted intensive searches of the area that included investigators with machetes, dive teams, canine searches, a bulldozer, an amphibious vehicle, even ground penetrating photography equipment provided by the FBI assisting Suffolk County Police was used to search for and eventually retrieve Shannan’s remains.
After Shannan’s disappearance in 2010, authorities began search efforts in the area she vanished but made the grisly discovery of decomposed and dismembered remains of ten bodies dumped along the isolated beach parkway leading to Jone’s Beach. The discoveries created media frenzy and world-wide news reported authorities believed a single serial killer had been using the area for nearly twenty years to discard remains of prostitutes. Additional news reports cite possibly up to three killers may be responsible for the murders, though one would have to conclude coincidence that as many as three killers would use the same dumping ground.
Shannon Gilbert
Eight women, the remains of a young Asian man wearing women’s clothing and a female toddler were all found hidden in the deep thicket and bramble alongside the road. Only half of the victims have so far been identified. With the exception of the toddler, believed to be related to one of the female victims, all are believed to have been prostitutes.
Authorities Speculate
On December 13, 2011, with an official positive identification still pending from the medical examiner’s office, Suffolk County Police Commissioner, Richard Dormer, held a press conference. Dormer announced to reporters remains had been located and believed to be that of Shannan Gilbert and went on to explain if the remains were that of Shannan, the probable cause of death was accidental. Dormer stated the location where the remains were located were indicative that Shannan had attempted to make her way through the wetlands and surmised she had been trying to get to the causeway where she would have seen lights in the early morning hours but the rough terrain would have made it impossible for her. Dormer then offered condolences to Shannan’s family.
Despite Dormer’s hurried public announcement, Mari Gilbert, Shannan’s mother, maintained she would hold out hope until an official announcement was received from the medical examiner confirming the identity of the remains. On December 17, four tortuous days later, confirmation was received the skeletal remains were those of her daughter.
Based upon Dormer’s comments during the press conference, it is speculated Shannan may have fallen and drowned. Shannan’s mother also confirmed Shannan did not know how to swim. Currently, the official determination of cause of death is still pending. Due to advanced decomposition, experts agree the exact cause of death may be impossible to determine.
Shannan-Gilbert
Shannan Gilbert
Though Shannan was confirmed to have been involved in prostitution and her remains found just east of the other bodies, police continue to offer conjecture Shannon’s death is unrelated to the other homicides. Shannan’s family, other victim’s family members that were recovered and identified and even residents in the area where the bodies were located are not so sure the crimes are unrelated and questioning why authorities would so quickly dismiss a connection between the multiple homicides.
The Night of Shannan’s Disappearance – Mystery Remains
The night Shannan vanished, witnesses said they saw her running from a home in Oak Beach. It has been confirmed in April 2010, 47-year-old Joseph Brewer responded to an ad Shannan had placed on Craig’s List, a social networking site commonly used by prostitutes to solicit clients.
Brewer claims a sexual encounter did not occur. He told the New Jersey Star-Ledger that Shannan began asking him odd questions about transvestites, leading him to believe she was a man and claims he asked her to leave when she began acting erratically.
Michael Pak was Shannan’s driver that night and affirmed he drove her to Brewer’s residence at approximately 2a.m. and waited until 5 a.m. until he received her call. Upon receiving the call, Pak claims he went to Brewer’s apartment to get Shannan and witnessed Brewer attempting to grab her from behind but she escaped his grip and began cowering behind a couch inside the residence.
According to Robin Sax, an attorney hired by the Gilbert family, Shannon made a panicked call to 911 that lasted 23 minutes. “She told 911 she was in fear and they were going to get her, they were going to kill her.” Sax adds, “They is the big question. Who are they?”
According to both Brewer and Pak, Shannan was acting irrational and paranoid and ran out of Brewer’s residence to a neighbor’s home down the street. Gustav Coletti, a retired insurance fraud investigator, told the Star Ledger he heard banging at his door. When he answered and asked Shannan what was wrong she just responded, “Help me, help me, help me.” When Coletti informed Shannan he called police and they were on their way, she then bolted out of his home.
Pak claims he searched the neighborhood but never found Shannan. Coletti recalled seeing a man driving a black SUV stopping and going as if he were searching for something. Coletti’s statements to police indicate he spotted Shannan hiding under a boat in his yard suddenly running away with the man in the SUV following behind her. She then seems to have vanished into thin air.
Despite her trail going cold the evening of her disappearance, questions regarding who Shannan was fleeing from only deepens the mystery. Was she the one who almost ‘got away’ only to fall victim to the terrain and tragically drown?
Just Another Prostitute
Nearly one year later, news stories describe how the search for one missing New Jersey prostitute resulted in the discovery of ten bodies and providing some families with answers to what happened to their missing loved ones. The stories also brought attention to the high-risk lifestyle that accompanies those working in the sex trade industry and highlighted the dangers of advertising on sites like Craig’s List where there is little oversight to help ensure the safety of the site’s users. However, the news reports appeared to sidestep what the families of those branded as prostitutes went through during the years prior to discovery of the bodies.
24-year-old, Melissa Barthelemy vanished July 12, 2009. Melissa had made a move on her own from Buffalo to New York City after graduating from beauty school. Her family believed she was doing well working as a hairdresser but following her disappearance, shocked to find out she had been working as an online escort.
melissa barthelemy
Melissa Barthelemy
Approximately a week after Melissa’s disappearance, Amanda, Melissa’s 15-year-old sister received a call from Melissa’s cell phone. Relieved and excited, expecting to hear her sister’s voice, Amanda found herself speaking to a man who authorities believe was Melissa’s killer. During the call, the man said sexually explicit things to the child and began describing horrific things he was going to do to her. It wasn’t until the third phone call police finally requested a tap on the phone. On August 26, 2009 the male caller made his last call to Amanda and reportedly admitted to killing Melissa. He also warned Amanda he knew where she lived and would come and kill her too.
The common complaint made by several of the families of the Long Island victims was the lack of response they received from authorities when reporting their loved one missing. Lynn Barthelemy, Melissa’s mother, attempted to make a missing person report for three days without success. Finally, family attorney, Steven Cohen contacted NYPD in an attempt to make a report and said he was told, “She’s a hooker. She’s a prostitute. She was – she’s an escort and we are not assigning a detective to this.”
A family left feeling alone in the limbo of ambiguity. Though reports were eventually taken, the Long Island victims would never be mentioned in news headlines that captivated the country like the disappearances of Natalie Holloway, Laci Peterson or Chandra Levy. Shannan and Melissa didn’t fit the typical ‘Damsel in Distress’ case of a young missing woman commonly seen in the news headlines. The families of the Long Island victims quickly became aware empathy for missing prostitutes is minimal. In fact, it wasn’t until news of the horrific discoveries of body after body and the suspicion a serial killer was on the loose that the two words ‘Missing Prostitutes’ finally were printed on the same the front page of newspapers.
Not Just Prostitutes
The ‘hooker headlines’ finally spurred national attention but surely broke the hearts of the families of the victims who were missing a daughter, sister, mother, father, granddaughter, son, brother, aunt or uncle. It appeared the Long Island victims lives were now defined by words that lessened their value as humans who already suffered an undeserved fate dumped in an isolated personal graveyard of a human predator.
Stereotypes are used far too often and can’t begin to appropriately define the value of a human life. In fact, by using stereotypes it can reduce the compassion felt for the victims and even hinder efforts to recruit the support necessary to effectively search for the missing person.
Labeling victims is dehumanizing and can create a lack of public empathy for the victims, media and even within the investigating law enforcement agencies. Diminishing a victim’s importance in society can even hamper efforts to educate the public which is key to ultimately saving others from becoming victims.
Lessons Learned
During my nearly twenty years serving as founder and former CEO of the National Center for Missing Adults, I learned to be an effective advocate we must speak out for those who are unable to speak for themselves. Early on in my career, two young women who were best friends vanished and later found murdered, one body placed on top of the other discarded in a remote desert location. While working closely with a Glendale Police Sergeant shortly after their disappearance, I urged the Sergeant to meet with the families at a restaurant rather than the precinct. He reluctantly agreed to accompany me. The families shared stories and the devastation they were experiencing could not be ignored.
Upon the Sergeant’s retirement he informed me that one experience had changed the way he handled all missing person cases. From that day forward he said he no longer permitted his investigators to refer to any missing person as a case and required them to always refer to a missing person by their name. He thanked me but I thank every victim’s family I’ve ever been honored to serve for showing me that maintaining strength and courage is possible while enduring the unimaginable and that tragedy does not discriminate . . . it can happen to anyone.
Reducing the dehumanization can start by simply acknowledging every victim has a family who loves them regardless of where they come from or the choices they may have made. Most importantly remember the victims – for every one has a name and all grew up with dreams.
Author – Kym L. Pasqualini
Founder, National Center for Missing Adults
& Social Network Advocate
Missing Persons Advocacy Network
Phone: 800-889-3463 (FIND)
David Armstrong says he will not accept a landfill as the final resting place for his daughter. No parent should have to live with the thought of their child lay amidst refuse let alone have to personally pay to have their daughter’s body retrieved. Working nearly 20 years in the field of missing persons and homicide cases, I find this not only a disservice to Kelly Armstrong’s family but a slap in the face to every family in this country who awaits the return of their missing loved one, if even to give them a proper burial. It is heart-wrenching to think that this family does not have the assistance from authorities to their loved one but being expected to visit a landfill to pay respects to your murdered child is unthinkable. When a family is told their loved has been murdered yet their remains are not returned the family is sentenced to a tortuous limbo and unable to begin a natural mourning process. For the family of Kelly Armstrong, their sentence could last well after Funke is released from his voluntary manslaughter sentence. This is the epitome of injustice.
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