Resources for Missing Persons

According to current statistics, 4,000 people in the United States go missing every day. Sometimes a child suddenly vanishes from the bus stop or the local park or even from their own yard or bedroom. Or a teenager doesn�t return home after a walk to the neighborhood grocery store or a bike ride or a party with friends. Other times, an adult is mysteriously absent from their job or neighbors haven�t seen them for several days, and family and friends haven�t heard from them either.

Missing Person Case Updates with Photos

Cindy Lee Smith

Smith, date, approximate 1987
Date Missing 04/03/1987
Missing From
Winter Haven, Florida
Missing Classification Endangered Missing
Sex Female
Race
White
Date of Birth 09/15/1960 (62)
Age 26 years old
Height and Weight 5'1, 102 pounds
Markings and/or Distinguishing Characteristics Caucasian female. Brown hair, green eyes.
Details of Disappearance Smith was last seen by her boyfriend, William Donald Taylor, on April 3, 1987. She and her six-year-old son from her previous marriage were living with Taylor in Winter Haven, Florida at the time. Smith's relatives said she told them she was going to end her relationship with Taylor and move into her parents' home with her son; however, Taylor says their relationship was good.
Smith's mother, Elsie Sparrow, reported her missing on April 6, after Smith's boss called her to ask why Smith had not arrived at work. Elsie criticized the investigation into her daughter's disappearance, she stated the sheriff's office did not bother to contact her for three weeks after she filed the missing persons report.
A month after Smith vanished, her parents heard Taylor was selling her belongings. Smith's father, Carrol Sparrow, went to Taylor's residence with another male relative and searched it, and found Smith's bloodstained mattress inside the house.
Carrol gave the mattress to police, who tested it, but only to determine the blood type, as more sophisticated forensic tests did not exist at the time. The mattress was discarded sometime in the 1990s and no samples from it were preserved.
Authorities stated Taylor's story about Smith's disappearance conflicted with other witnesses' accounts, and they considered him a person of interest in her . He says she left with an unknown man, saying she was going to Daytona Beach, Florida, and he never saw her after that.
Smith's boss, however, stated he saw her when she left work and got into Taylor's car. Taylor died of natural causes in November 2007, however, and was never charged in Smith's .
Smith's loved ones do not believe she would have left of her own accord and abandoned her family, especially her son. She left behind her car and her two dogs, and she never picked up her tax refund check. She was employed at a K-Mart store on Havendale Boulevard in Winter Haven at the time of her disappearance.
Curiously, Smith's four-year-old nephew, her sister's son Timothy Davison, disappeared from Decatur, Illinois in 1985 and was never found. The s are not believed to be connected to one another.
Authorities believe foul play may have been involved in Smith's disappearance. Her son was raised by his father after she went missing. Her parents are still alive and hope for a resolution in her . Her remains unsolved.
Investigating Agency
Polk County Sheriff's Office
863-533-0344
863-534-6379
Other
The Doe Network
Florida Department of Law Enforcement
The Lakeland Ledger

Missing Person Photos

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 unknown. 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 to 5 percent 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. A number of organizations seek to connect, share best practices, and disseminate information and images 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.

Resources for Missing Persons

According to current statistics, 4,000 people in the United States go missing every day. Sometimes a child suddenly vanishes from the bus stop or the local park or even from their own yard or bedroom. Or a teenager doesn�t return home after a walk to the neighborhood grocery store or a bike ride or a party with friends. Other times, an adult is mysteriously absent from their job or neighbors haven�t seen them for several days, and family and friends haven�t heard from them either.

Missing Person Case Updates with Photos