The Disappearance of Cieha Taylor

Source: Finding Cieha on Facebook

Cieha Taylor vanished under suspicious circumstances on February 6th, 2020. The then-28-year-old was reportedly last seen leaving a residence on Cowart Road in Plant City, Florida. Cieha never returned home and has never been seen or heard from again.

Reports state that Cieha drove her boyfriend to the Cowart Road residence on the day of her disappearance. She and her boyfriend then allegedly got into a fight, and she subsequently left the residence around 4:00 PM. According to a report from News Nation, Cieha called a friend crying about the fight. She made plans to go to said friend's house, but never arrived.

A few hours later, Hillsborough County Dispatch received a call about an abandoned car that was blocking traffic on railroad tracks near East Trapnell Road. When police arrived on the scene, they found the vehicle with the engine running and the driver's side door opened. A cell phone was found nearby on the ground and a wallet found was inside the car. The officers pulled the car over to the shoulder, turned it off, and left the cell phone and the keys inside. 

The vehicle - a black two-door Toyota Solara - belonged to Cieha. It had been abandoned an approximate mile away from the Cowart Road residence where Cieha was last seen. The car was left on the shoulder for three days before one of Cieha's friends went to that location and found the car abandoned with Cieha's belongings inside. 

By this point, it was determined that nobody has seen or heard from Cieha since February 6th. This was inevitably worrisome to Cieha's loved ones, and a missing person's report was subsequently filed. It was then that Cieha's family learned that police had actually moved the car to the spot after it was initially found abandoned, while the engine was running, in the middle of the road. Despite those suspicious circumstances, it appears that police did not attempt to identify or contact the owner of the vehicle at the time it was found. 

Investigative efforts by both police and Cieha's loved ones have not turned up any answers. In 2022, police told reporters that they were at a "dead end" with the case. Since then, there have been very few media updates. However, there has been some information provided by various online and local sources that shed more light on the events surrounding Cieha's disappearance. 

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The lead-up to Cieha's disappearance.

Source: newsnationnow.com

The Finding Cieha page on Facebook has been spreading awareness about Cieha's case for years. On February 6th, 2024, the 4-year anniversary of when Cieha was last seen, a post was made describing the events surrounding her disappearance. 

The post identifies Cieha's boyfriend as Jason Roberts, also known as J.D. The Cowart Road residence that Cieha allegedly brought J.D. to on the day of her disappearance belongs to the family of J.D.'s friend, Kevin Ring. Various news reports indicate that J.D. was living at the residence during February of 2020. 

The Facebook post notes that the family was told Cieha left the Cowart Road residence "upset and yelling". Kevin Ring's father told Cieha's family members that he saw her car driving away from the house. However, the Facebook post also states, "No other information has been given to us as to what conspired that day, or if she even was actually at that house. No proof has been given she was there or left. Only the three statements." 

Finding Cieha on Facebook

It's worth noting that news reports have stated that Cieha called a friend about the alleged fight between her and JD. If this phone call did, in fact, take place, then it seems that the fight can be corroborated. Still, the events that followed this argument still seem a bit unclear. 

The Facebook post states that Kevin Ring's father saw Cieha leave the residence at 4:00 PM. Three hours later, the post explains, Cieha's car was found abandoned just a mile away:

Finding Cieha on Facebook

As previously noted, police did not attempt to contact Cieha or anyone else after finding her car abandoned on East Trapnell Road. Reports state that the officers who moved the vehicle simply thought the driver would return. However, it seems quite odd that anyone would voluntarily abandon their car in the middle of the road while it was still running. 

Cieha's car is recognized.

The car remained untouched on the shoulder until February 9th, 2020. That evening, according to the Facebook post, J.D.'s mother Lisa was bringing clothes to J.D. at the Ring's house when she recognized Cieha's car abandoned on the shoulder. Lisa subsequently reached out to Cieha's mother, Canitha Taylor.

Around the same time, J.D. reached out to Cieha's friend, Tiffany Hall. Tiffany went to the car's location herself and called AAA to have the doors unlocked. She then drove the car to Canitha's house in Pasco County. 

Finding Cieha on Facebook

By the time Cieha's car made it to her mother's house, her cell phone was dead. Her friend charged the phone and found messages between Cieha and J.D. that indicated they were in an argument. Cieha's last outgoing message was to J.D., and it read, "you sent your wyt supremacists (sic) friends to deal with me you think you are so smart I'm smart."

Finding Cieha on Facebook

Investigating Cieha's disappearance. 

Cieha's friends met up with authorities the following day to explain all the suspicious circumstances surrounding the discovery of Cieha's vehicle- namely, the fact that Cieha herself was still nowhere the be found. After this, Cieha's missing persons' case was finally opened. 

Flyers about Cieha's disappearance were handed out and posted around the area. Police interviewed several people, including J.D. and Kevin Ring. Still, no suspects or persons of interest have been identified. 

According to Cieha's page on The Charley Project, Cieha's "shoes were found in a drainage pipe near the road where her car had been abandoned" about three weeks after her disappearance. The shoes were found "next to a telephone pole that had a missing persons flier about her hanging on it." 

The Charley Project also states that Cieha's mother "believes the shoes were deliberately placed there some time after she went missing; she stated the area had been previously searched multiple times."

In August 2020, an investigator in Cieha's case went on a podcast and said that Cieha's vehicle had been searched thoroughly. Fingerprints were found, but they all reportedly belonged to "people known to have been in the vehicle."

Where the case stands.

As previously noted, investigators told reporters that they were at a "dead end" in the case during 2022. Since then, very few updates in Cieha's case have been provided. 

There is still a lot of speculation that both J.D. and Kevin Ring are responsible for Cieha's disappearance, but at this time, neither have been charged with anything related to her case. It appears that investigators have not been able to find enough evidence to prove their involvement. It is unknown if any other persons of interest have been looked into by authorities.

Cieha's loved ones are still desperately hoping for answers. A monetary reward is available for anyone with information that could lead to her whereabouts. If you have any information that could help the investigation, please contact the Hillsborough County Sheriff's Office 813-247-8200.

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Sources:
Charley Project
Finding Cieha
News Nation
Uncovered
WFLA