Missing
Michelle Ellis
Ellis, approximately 1978
Date and time person was reported missing : 08/02/1978
Missing location (approx) :
Indianapolis, Indiana
Missing classification : Endangered Missing
Gender : Female
Ethnicity :
Black
DOB : 10/20/1954 (66)
Age at the time of disappearance: 23 years old
Height / Weight : 5'4, 115 pounds
Description, clothing, jewerly and more : Blue jeans, a gray sweater with multicolored stripes and blue or black cuffs, and white sneakers.
Distinguishing characteristics, birthmarks, tattoos
: African-American female. Black hair, brown eyes.
Information on the case from local sources, may or may not be correct : Ellis was last seen leaving her home in Indianapolis, Indiana at 8:00 a.m. on August 2, 1978. At 9:00 a.m., her red 1973 Oldsmobile Omega was found in the 3700 block of Fall Creek Parkway, out of gas, about half a block from a service station.
The driver's side door was locked, but the passenger door was open. Inside the vehicle was Ellis's car keys and her purse, which contained her driver's license, identification, checkbook, credit cards and $2 in cash.
Ellis was part-time model and a student at the Herron School of Art at Indiana-Purdue University at the time of her disappearance. She had worked as a cashier in the automotive department at a Sears store at Castleton Square, but she quit on July 28 and never picked up her last paycheck. She lived with her parents in the 3700 block of north Drexel.
On December 11, 1980, two years and four months after her disappearance, Ellis's parents got a phone call from someone who said "This is Michelle." The caller then hung up and never called back. It hasn't been verified that the caller was in fact Ellis. She has never been heard from again; her case remains unsolved.
Other information and links : ncy
Indianapolis Police Department
317-327-6915
September 2021 updates and sources
A missing person is a person who has disappeared and whose status as alive or dead cannot be confirmed as their location and condition are not known. A person may go missing through a voluntary disappearance, or else due to an accident, crime, death in a location where they cannot be found (such as at sea), or many other reasons. In most parts of the world, a missing person will usually be found quickly. While criminal abductions are some of the most widely reported missing person cases, these account for only 2�5% of missing children in Europe.
By contrast, some missing person cases remain unresolved for many years. Laws related to these cases are often complex since, in many jurisdictions, relatives and third parties may not deal with a person's assets until their death is considered proven by law and a formal death certificate issued. The situation, uncertainties, and lack of closure or a funeral resulting when a person goes missing may be extremely painful with long-lasting effects on family and friends.
Several organizations seek to connect, share best practices, and disseminate information and imAge at the time of disappearance: s of missing children to improve the effectiveness of missing children investigations, including the International Commission on Missing Persons, the International Centre for Missing & Exploited Children (ICMEC), as well as national organizations, including the National Center for Missing & Exploited Children in the US, Missing People in the UK, Child Focus in Belgium, and The Smile of the Child in Greece.
The Indianapolis Star
The Franklin Daily Journal
Indiana Missing Persons Bulletin
October 12, 2004. April 17, 2018; DOB : added.
Interactive Missing Person Search Map
