The Disappearance of Ben Coffey

Ben Coffey mysteriously vanished at the age of 27 on December 31st, 2012. The young man lived in Gloucester, Virginia, and he was last heard from that evening around dinnertime. Although it was New Years Eve, Ben told a friend over the phone that he was tired and was going home for the night. He has never been seen or heard from again.

The following day, on January 1st, 2013, police in Tappahannock, Virginia responded to a report of a disabled vehicle abandoned on Route 698. When officers went to investigate, they found a full-sized Dodge van registered to Ben Coffey. Ben’s dog and many of his other personal items were found abandoned inside the van. Two days later, Ben’s parents were notified about the vehicle being found. They immediately knew something was off when they learned the dog had been inside the car, and they reported him missing shortly thereafter.

Ben’s family and friends are baffled by his disappearance. The location where his car was found is around 45 miles away from his home in Gloucester, however cell phone records confirm that he was in Gloucester when he called his friend on the evening of December 31st. This means that Ben’s car ended up Tappahannock at some point after that phone call. 

It is unclear if Ben has any ties to that area. Investigators conducted a search in the surrounding area, during which a blood hound traced Ben’s scent to a swamp, but then lost the scent. Other than that, there have been very few clues and leads in Ben’s case.

Ben’s family is offering a $10,000 reward for information that either leads to Ben’s whereabouts or an arrest and conviction in his case. If you have any information that could help, please contact Virginia State Police Special Agent A.S. Witt at (804) 537-6770.

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Sources:
Charley Project
NBC News
WTKR

The Disappearance & Death of Crystal Dawn Morrison

31 year-old Crystal Morrison

Crystal Morrison (31) has been missing since August 23rd, 2012. She was last seen at her workplace, Connextions Recruiting, in Concord, North Carolina. Crystal had only been at work for about an hour before she told a co-worker she was not feeling well around 10:30am. She walked about of the building at that time, and called a friend and asked to be picked up. However, by time her friend showed up, Crystal was gone. She has never been seen or heard from again.

Crystal left behind a 1 year-old son, which is uncharacteristic of her. Her cell phone and bank accounts have also been unused since her disappearance. It appears Crystal seemingly vanished into thin air; there are very few details available about the investigation and no persons of interest have been publicly identified. There is a rumor that Crystal was seen walking towards a McDonald’s restaurant shortly after she left work, however this has never been confirmed. 

Both the FBI and the Concord Police Department are investigating Crystal’s disappearance. If you have any information that could lead to her whereabouts, please contact the Concord Police Department at 704-920- 5000 or the CUE Center for Missing Persons at 910-343-1131.

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UPDATE: The remains of Crystal Morrison have been found.

In December 2019, a survey crew working in a wooded area near the intersection of NC Highway 73 and Winecoff School Road spotted human remains and alerted police. The area had already previously been searched twice throughout the investigation into Crystal's disappearance. Investigators have not determined Crystal's cause of death, however certain reports have stated that a private investigator hired by Crystal's family believes she died of natural causes. The case is still being investigated and updates will be provided as they come.

Rest in peace, Crystal.

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Lists including this case:

[Workplace Mysteries]
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The Murder of Natalie Bollinger

19-year-old Natalie Bollinger vanished from her family’s home in Broomfield, Colorado, on December 28th, 2017. A few weeks before her disappearance, Natalie wrote on her Facebook page about struggles she had been having with a stalker. She identified her stalker as a man named Shawn Schwartz, and wrote the following about him:

“I met this man when I was young, I ran into him about two years ago. Long story short, I became friends with him. I helped him out with rides and stuff. I moved to Virginia. He drove across the country to see me, slept behind my work for weeks. He’s sent e-mails for over a year close to everyday, harassing me. Making numerous different accounts until I block him again. Threatening my family, telling me he’ll kill himself in front of me, and sending my friends and family threatening messages as well.”

At the time this Facebook post was written, Natalie was living back in her hometown of Broomfield, Colorado. Once she went missing, suspicions immediately fell on her accused stalker, Shawn Schwartz. Schwartz continued to post on Facebook after Natalie’s disappearance, defending himself. Unfortunately, the following day, Natalie’s body was found on the side of the road in a wooded area near Adams County. Her death was classified as a homicide.

The suspicions against Schwartz only intensified after the discovery of Natalie’s body. However, throughout the investigation, it was discovered that Schwartz was not even in the same state as Natalie at the time of her death. Many still questioned if he was still somehow involved–and that maybe he had hired a hitman to kill Natalie. Still, by this point, police had officially cleared Schwartz of all suspicion.

Finally, on February 8th, 2018, a 22-year-old man named Joseph Lopez was arrested and charged with first degree murder in Natalie’s case. It turns out, Lopez was, in fact, a hitman–but Schwartz was not the one who put the hit on Natalie. Instead, Lopez told authorities that Natalie actually put the hit on herself. Lopez apparently responded to a Craigslist post entitled “I want to put a hit on myself,” that was created by Natalie on December 28th, 2017. 

Lopez and Natalie met for the first time later that day. The two drove around discussing how Natalie would pay Lopez for killing her, before he eventually shot her and left her on the side of the road where she was found the following day. An autopsy confirms that Natalie died of a gunshot wound to the head; however, it was also noted that she had lethal amounts of heroin in her system at the time of her death as well.

In December 2018, Lopez pleaded guilty to the second-degree murder of Natalie Bollinger. He allegedly agreed to this plea to avoid a sentence of life in prison. Lopez was initially charged with first-degree murder, but since he accepted the plea deal for the second-degree murder charge, he will likely spend up to 48 years in prison plus 5 years of probation.

Although Lopez allegedly responded to Natalie’s Craigslist ad titled “I want to put a hit on myself”, he claims that he tried to talk Natalie out of it after he picked her up. Lopez maintains that Natalie insisted on ending her life due to issues with her boyfriend. Lopez said that the two of them prayed together before he eventually followed through with shooting her once in the head. Afterwards, he fled the scene with the gun and Natalie’s purse.

Natalie’s family is reportedly unhappy with the plea deal and the proposed sentence. Natalie’s father told reporters, “We said no [to the plea deal] and they still offered it to him today. Our family does not agree with this or is willing to do any plea bargain. I’m dumbfounded. I’m so disappointed in the legal system in Adams County.”

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Sources:
9 News
The Denver Post
KDVR

The Disappearance of Danica Childs

Danica Childs has been missing from Federal Way, Washington since December 21st, 2007. Prior to her disappearance, 17-year-old Danica was living with her mother and siblings in an apartment located in a Federal Way neighborhood that is well known for prostitution activity. A few days after she vanished, her purse, coat and cellular phone were found at a Sunset Motel in Kent—an area that is also well known for prostitution activity. 

According to her mother, Danica was dating a man who was rumored to be a pimp at the time of her disappearance and had been spending nights out with him on a frequent basis. Danica denied these rumors, but when she did not return home on December 21st, her mother began to fear that the rumors were in fact true.

Messages on Danica’s phone confirmed her mother’s fears, and also revealed that Danica, who was still a minor, was working as a prostitute herself. Her phone was reportedly filled with several sexually explicit messages from clients. Due to this, authorities believe that Danica left on her own accord. 

However, Danica’s family members do not believe that Danica would leave her cell phone or other belongings behind, and they also do not think she would go this long without contacting them. Her mother fears that she was kidnapped and sold against her will.

Danica remains missing today. If you have any information about her whereabouts, please contact the Federal Way police department at (253) 835-6700.

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Sources:
Charley Project
Washington State Police
Your Tango

The Disappearance of Mercedes Toliver

18 year old Mercedes Toliver made this selfie her Facebook cover photo on December 12th, 2016. This is her last known Facebook activity. Five days later, she vanished.

During the earlier morning hours of December 17th, 2016, Mercedes left her home in Prescott, Arkansas on foot and never returned. Since then, she has not been seen or heard from by family or friends and there has been no activity on her social media or bank accounts. 

Earlier on into the investigation, the Prescott Police Department apparently had leads that Mercedes was in Clark or Lafayette counties, but those leads did not pan out. Ever since, there have been very few leads and very little information available about Mercedes’ case. There is currently a $2000 reward in place for information about Mercedes’ whereabouts. If you have any information about Mercedes’ case, please contact the Prescott Police Department at 870-887-2676.

The Disappearance of Jennifer Pautenis

Jennifer 'Jenn' Pautenis has been missing since October 20th, 2019. The 29 year-old woman was reportedly last seen leaving her home in Granbury, Texas, where she lives with her husband, Ed Pautenis, and their two young children. Jenn and Ed had moved to Texas two years prior, during 2017, so they could be closer to Ed's family. Previously, the couple lived in Florida, where many of Jenn's family members still live. Due to the distance, it took a few days for Jenn's family members to realize she was missing. According to Jenn's sister, Daisy Thornton-Newhouse, they learned about Jenn's disappearance when her employer notified them that she had not shown up for her job as an EMS dispatcher. When Jenn's family members questioned Ed, he explained that he was putting their children to bed on the evening of October 20th when he heard his wife leave the house and drive away. He stated he did not file a missing persons report because he believed Jenn had left the house voluntarily--for another man.

Jenn's family members were skeptical of Ed's story, and they reported Jenn missing on October 25th, 2019. Jenn's sister told reporters that Jenn would not voluntarily abandon her children or stop showing up for work. Additionally, Jenn was very active on social media, but has not had any activity since the night of her disappearance. Investigators have stated that the case is active and leads are being followed. Ed Pautenis has not been publicly named as a person of interest at this time, and investigators have stated that he is currently cooperating with the investigation.

Jenn's family members fear that Jenn is deceased and they are desperately seeking answers. The Hood County Sheriff's Office is investigating her disappearance. If you have any information that could help the investigation, please call (817) 579-3307.

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UPDATE: On December 6th, 2019, the Hood County Sheriff's Office announced that they have found the remains of Jenn Pautenis. 59 year-old Ed Pautenis has been arrested and charged with her murder. In a jailhouse interview, Ed stated that he killed his wife after she attacked him during an argument. He explained that he shot her multiple times and had to tell his children that they were pulling a Halloween prank. Prosecutors have described Ed as a cold-blooded killer. He remains behind bars as his case is pending. 

The Disappearance of Nicholle Torrez

Nicholle Torrez has been missing since December 14th, 2006.

Prior to vanishing, 27-year-old Nicholle and her three children lived at Nicholle’s mother’s home in Denver, Colorado. She shared custody of her children with their father, who lived just a few blocks away. 

On the evening of December 14th, Nicholle was asked to bring medicine to her four-year-old son, who was staying with his father at the time. She left her other two children at home with her mother and said she would return later that night. Unfortunately, Nicholle never returned home and has never been seen or heard from again. She was reported missing the following day, after she failed to show up at work.

Nicholle’s disappearance has baffled both her family and investigators. Denver police interviewed Nicholle’s friends and family members but were unable to identify any suspects or clues about her whereabouts. Finally, over six months later in July 2007, investigators appeared to find a clue: Nicholle’s car was found abandoned in the parking lot of an apartment complex in Aurora. 

The car was processed by the Denver crime lab, but no indication of a crime or foul play was found. Still, Nicholle’s mother does not believe that Nicholle parked the car there herself. Her mother told reporters, “We don’t live on that side of town, so I can’t see Nicholle going there. So we feel like somebody took it there and dropped it off.” While everyone was hopeful that Nicholle’s car would provide clues, it appeared to bring about more questions than answers in her disappearance.

Years have passed, and Nicholle still remains missing today. Both investigators and Nicholle’s family members believe that foul play was involved in her disappearance. Nicholle’s family does not think she would abandon her children, nor would she lose contact with her loved ones. 

Investigators are hoping to receive knew leads that may lead to Nicholle’s whereabouts. If you have any information that could help, please contact Denver CrimeStoppers at 720-913-7867.

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Sources:
Blair Miller
Charley Project
Denver 7
Uncovered