As explained in the in the first 'Small Town Mysteries' list, most of these towns are considered quiet communities with relatively low violent crime rates. This is one of the many reasons these cases are so perplexing and frightening. Additionally, due to the small residency numbers, these cases cause many to question whether or not there is a killer or predator lurking amongst their inner circles. These mysteries all remain unsolved today.
10. The Disappearance and Death of Thomas Brown
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| Vanished and was later found deceased in Canadian, Texas (population of 2761) |
Thomas Brown vanished at the age of 18 on November 23rd, 2016. He spent that evening with two friends in their tight-knit hometown of Canadian, Texas. One of his friends dropped him off at their high school parking lot around 11:30pm, where Thomas’s car was parked. A few minutes later, at 11:36pm, Thomas was seen getting gas at a nearby gas station. He was expected to be home by his 12am curfew, but unfortunately he never showed up. At 12:03am, Thomas’s brother texted him to ask where he was. That message was never read. His phone was shut off very shortly thereafter. Thomas rarely ever missed his curfew, so his family immediately grew concerned when he did not show up as expected. They reported him missing by 1:30am.
The search for Thomas began immediately. At 8:45am on November 24th, searchers found Thomas’s car parked under some trees at a wastewater treatment. Thomas’s personal belongings such as his wallet, keys, laptop and cell phone were missing from the car. Additionally, a small fresh blood stain was found on the driver side door. That blood was later identified as Thomas’s. A .25 caliber shell casing was found at the scene as well. By this point in the investigation, detectives stated that they were almost certain that Thomas was deceased.
Their fears were unfortunately confirmed a little over 2 years later. In January 2019, human remains were found off of Lake Martin Road in Lake Marvin, Texas in early 2019. On January 15th, 2019, it was confirmed that the remains were that of Thomas Brown. Authorities have not released his cause of death at this time, however locals have stated that he was murdered. An investigation is ongoing. [read more]
9. The Disappearance of Jalesa Reynolds
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| Vanished from Scotland Neck, North Carolina (population of 1899) |
Jalesa Reynolds vanished at the age of 18 on February 22nd, 2010. The teen lived in the small town of Scotland Neck, North Carolina at the time of her disappearance. She lived within walking distance of the local library, and she frequently visited there so she could access the Internet. On the day of her disappearance, Jalesa walked to the library as usual. She checked her Facebook page on one of the library's computers before logging off around 11am. She never returned home that afternoon and has never been seen or heard from again.
After she was reported missing, it was discovered that Jalesa accessed her Facebook account from another location on the day she disappeared as well. Around 1:40pm, she logged on to her account at the home of Dwayne Hosea Davis, located about a mile and a half away from the library. Davis told authorities that Jalesa left his residence between 2 and 3pm. This is the last known indication of her whereabouts. Davis is a registered sex offender; he served almost seven years in prison for a 1994 rape conviction. He maintains that Jalesa visited his house frequently to use his computer and visit his horses, however he denies harming her or knowing about her whereabouts. Jalesa remains missing today. [read more]
8. The Disappearance of Keiosha Felix
Vanished from Duson, Louisiana (population of 1780)
Keiosha Felix was only 15 years-old when she vanished at April 30th, 2012. She was a teen mother to a one year-old daughter at the time of her disappearance. Keiosha's mother was in prison, which left Keiosha and her daughter living at a group home for teenage mothers and/or expecting mothers. However, shortly before Keiosha vanished, Keiosha got a weekend pass to visit her paternal aunt Patricia Andrus. She was last seen leaving Patricia’s Duson, Louisiana home and she has never been seen or heard from again.
It was later revealed that Keiosha had told her family members that Patricia's boyfriend, Leon Wilkerson Jr., had been sexually assaulting her. In fact, Keiosha reportedly told Patricia about it, but Patricia never reported this to the authorities, nor did she tell investigators about it after Keiosha went missing. In July 2012, Leon was arrested and charged with rape and second-degree kidnapping in connection with Keiosha’s disappearance. Patricia was arrested and charged with improper supervision of a minor and accessory to rape. Keiosha’s cousin Portia, who told investigators that she heard from Keiosha after her disappearance, was arrested and charged with obstruction of justice.
However, all charges against all three individuals were dropped within the next few months, after it was revealed that Duson PD’s Assistant Chief of Police, Lt. Gerald Credeur, had mishandled the case. Credeur was accused of illegally arresting two people for kidnapping, giving false testimony and making an illegal search and seizure during the investigation. Credeur was fired and a new police department has taken over the case. The new department is no longer investigating Keiosha's family members as persons of interest. Keiosha's disappearance remains unsolved. [read more]
7. The Disappearance of Elaine Smallcanyon
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| Vanished after posting that she was en route to Kaibito, Arizona (population of 1522) |
Elaine Smallcanyon has been missing since December 15th, 2015. The 20 year-old lived on a reservation in Kaibito, Arizona at the time. On the day she vanished, Elaine posted the following message to her Facebook page: “Heading back to Kaibito so anyone wanna text or message feel like messaging lol.” This was her final Facebook post. Kaibito is a remote area that belongs to the Navajo Nation. According to the initial reports on Elaine’s disappearance, she was last seen in Page, Arizona—which is located roughly 40 minutes away from Kaibito. She was reportedly seen with 3 unidentified people at that time. Those individuals remain unidentified today.
Elaine’s missing persons report also states that the group she was with might have traveled to the Black Mesa area, or to Phoenix. Black Mesa and Phoenix are approximately 3 hours apart, and both are located hours away from Page as well. It is unclear if there is a specific link between Elaine and those places. Other than those vague details, there is very little information out there about Elaine’s disappearance. She remains missing today. [read more]
6. The Disappearance of Ashley Loring Heavyrunner
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| Vanished from the Blackfeet Reservation in Browning, Montana (population of 1026) |
Ashley Loring Heavyrunner has been missing since June 13th, 2017. The 20 year-old was last seen at Native American Bank, located on Blackfeet Reservation where she lived. Browning itself has a very small population, and the population on the reservation is even smaller. Prior to her disappearance, Ashley was planning to move to Missoula, Montana, where her sister Kimberly Loring lived. Ashley and Kimberly last spoke on June 6th, 2017, while Kimberly was on a trip to Africa. The two sisters spoke about Kimberly’s impending return to her home and Ashley's impending move. When Kimberly returned a few weeks later, she was unable to get in touch with Ashley at all. After reaching out to Ashley’s friends, Kimberly learned that nobody had heard from Ashley since early June. After learning this, Ashley’s family members filed a missing persons report with tribal police.
There have unfortunately been very few clues leading to Ashley's whereabouts. Her family members have noted that the investigation has lacked the resources it needs in order to throughly search for Ashley. The young woman remains missing today. [read more]
5. The Disappearance of Max Greenfield
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| Vanished after leaving a casino in Smith River, California (population of 866) |
Max Greenfield vanished during the early morning hours of March 18th, 2018. The 25 year-old was last seen exiting the Lucky 7 Casino in Smith River, California. The casino is located in a remote area with quite a small residential population. Max was captured on surveillance cameras walking alongside an adult white male in the casino's parking lot. The two are seen walking and talking before they eventually step out of the frame. Less than 20 minutes later, the man who was seen with Max returned to the casino alone. Max has never been seen or heard from again.
Although the identity of the man Max was last seen with has not been publicly identified, authorities were able to locate him for questioning. In fact, he has reportedly been interviewed several times by police. According to detectives, the man has always stood by his original statement, which is that he and Max “went separate ways after leaving the casino.” At this time, it is unclear if investigators consider this man a person of interest, but they have questioned numerous other people in the case as well—including the friends who drove Max to the casino, and the other friends that Max planned to meet that night. Investigators have also not revealed the names of said friends, citing that they are not publicly identifying them to protect the integrity of the investigation. Max remains missing and the investigation is ongoing. [read more] [also on the 'Unsolved Mysteries with Surveillance Footage' list]
4. The Disappearance of Taylor Devin Johnson
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| Vanished from Gilbert, South Carolina (population of 631) |
Taylor Devin Johnson vanished on May 31st, 2016. The 22 year-old was last seen in his hometown of Gilbert, South Carolina. Gilbert is a tight-knit community with a population of less than 700 residents. Most of the residents live within walking distance of each other. In fact, on the night of Taylor's disappearance, he was last seen walking towards his ex-girlfriend's house. Around 7pm, Taylor’s father spotted Taylor walking alongside the road near the Dollar Store on Pond Branch Highway. His father noticed Taylor looked a little upset, so he pulled up to him and asked him if he wanted to get in the car. Taylor refused.
Taylor never arrived at his ex-girlfriend’s home and has never been seen or heard from again. According to Taylor’s mother, he was suffering from depression at the time of his disappearance after going through the breakup with his ex-girlfriend. He reportedly missed his children very much. Due to this, both law enforcement and Taylor’s parents do not believe that Taylor is missing on his own accord. Taylor’s mother mentioned that Taylor would often take walks while stressed out, but that he had every intention of seeing his children on the evening of his disappearance.
In February 2020, Taylor's remains were found in a wooded area of Lexington County. His cause and manner of death remain undetermined to this day. [read more]
In February 2020, Taylor's remains were found in a wooded area of Lexington County. His cause and manner of death remain undetermined to this day. [read more]
3. The Disappearance of Monica Carrasco
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| Vanished from Balmorhea, Texas (population of 550) |
Monica Carrasco has been missing since October 2nd, 2003. The 16 year-old was living with her aunt and uncle at their home in Balmorhea, Texas at the time of her disappearance. Balmorhea is a very small town where several of Monica's relatives lived. Monica was last seen by her cousins during the early morning hours of October 2nd. Said cousins saw her go to bed around 11pm the previous evening and they checked on her around 1:30am. However, by 7:30am the following morning, Monica was gone. She has never been seen or heard from again.
Monica had faced quite a few hardships in the years leading up to her disappearance. Her father had died of bone cancer three years earlier, and she developed depression and anorexia afterwards. Monica also had a strained relationship with her mother, so she opted to move in with her aunt and uncle after she had to be hospitalized and treated for her anorexia. Due to all of this, and the fact that Monica left her aunt and uncle's home with her Bible, it was initially believed that Monica left on her own accord. However, as time passed, this appeared less and less likely..especially after it was revealed that her uncle failed a polygraph exam in relation to her disappearance. There are many divided theories on what might have happened to Monica, and she unfortunately remains missing today. [read more]
2. The Disappearance of Jeremy Jourdain
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| Lived in Cass Lake, Minnesota at the time of his disappearance (population of 387) |
Jeremy Jourdain was 17 years old when he vanished on October 31st, 2016. Jeremy lived with his family in Cass Lake, Minnesota, but on the evening of his disappearance he went to a Halloween party in Bemidji with friends. Around midnight, Jeremy announced that he no longer wanted to be at the party. Suddenly and without warning, he took off running from the residence. Relatives who were also at the party tried to follow him, but they were unable to see where he went. It’s possible that Jeremy tried to walk back to Cass Lake, located over 14 miles away, but he never returned and has not been seen or heard from again after that.
Authorities believe that Jeremy left on his own accord, even though he has no history of running away and did not take any personal belongings with him. Cass Lake is a very small community, so his family members believe that if somebody in the town knew of his whereabouts, they would come forward. Jeremy remains missing today. [read more] [also on the 'Unsolved Party Mysteries' list]
1. The Disappearance of Cynthia Orsborn
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| Vanished from Calvin Louisiana (population of 222) |
Calvin is a very small town with less than 300 residents, and it does not appear that any other residents recalled seeing Cynthia at all that day. This made JD's story seem suspicious, but that was not the only reason police were doubting his story. JD had a history of domestic violence and his relationship with Cynthia was tumultuous. In November 2016, Cynthia filed an order of protection against JD after multiple reports of domestic disturbances between the two of them. However, the two reconciled a few months later and ended up moving in together while the restraining order was still in effect. 10 days after Cynthia’s disappearance, JD was arrested for violating the protective order. Still, JD has never been charged with anything related to Cynthia’s disappearance—but he remains the only person of interest to this day. Cynthia remains missing. [read more]
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