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.



Missing Person Photos

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

Kynande Kalehje Bennett
missing 2023 updates
missing 2023 updates
missing 2023 updates
missing 2023 updates
missing 2023 updates
Kynande, date, approximate 2002; Age-progression to age 11 (date, approximate 2009); Vartasha McCullough; Kevin Bennett
Date Missing 09/29/2002
Missing From
Whiteville, North Carolina
Missing Classification Endangered Missing
Sex Female
Race
Black
Date of Birth 08/24/1998 (24)
Age 4 years old
Height and Weight 3'10, 90 pounds
Clothing/Jewelry Description A gray FUBU t-shirt, blue jeans, white socks and black sneakers.
Markings and/or Distinguishing Characteristics African-American female. Brown hair, brown eyes. Kynande has a light complexion, pierced ears, and a birthmark on her arm in the shape of a seashell. When she was last seen, her hair was styled in small braids tied with small bows and/or barrettes. Kynande's name is pronounced "kee-NAHN-day."
Details of Disappearance Kynande's mother, Vartasha McCullough (sometimes referred to as Vartasha White or Vartasha McCullough White) said she last saw her daughter at a K-Mart store at 5:00 p.m. on September 29, 2002. They resided in Conway, South Carolina and were visiting Kynande's uncle in Whiteville, North Carolina that day.At first, Vartasha claimed Kynande disappeared in an aisle of the store, but she later changed her story and said she walked into the store and thought Kynande was behind her, but turned around and the child was gone.
Nobody remembered seeing the child with her mother in K-Mart that day, and video surveillance images of the establishment did not show any images of Kynande. When the police searched the couple's car, they noted there was no car seat and no other sign that a young child had been there recently, except for a single matchbox car they found wedged under a seat. In fact, investigators could find no evidence that Kynande had ever arrived in North Carolina. No one at all, other than Kynande's father and mother, reported having seen her in the two days before she was reported missing.
One witness saw Kynande with bruises on her shoulder and face just a few days before her disappearance, and when the witness asked the child what had happened, Kynande said, "My mommy did it." The witness then confronted Vartasha, who said, "I'm going to whip her ass for telling you." Another witness reported seeing cuts on Kynande's body, and marks that appeared to have been caused by a strap. Kynande's grandparents had been worried about her and on September 29, the same day the child was reported missing, her grandparents told the police in Kynande's hometown of Conway that they thought Kynande was being abused.
Police stated Kynande's parents seemed uninterested in her and never called to ask for on the investigation. They also reported that Vartasha failed a polygraph regarding her daughter's disappearance and Kynande's father, Eddie "Kevin" Bennett Jr., refused to talk one. Both parents were described as uncooperative and there were inconsistencies in their stories. Photos of Vartasha and Kevin are posted with his summary.
Police executed a search warrant on Kynande's home and her family's vehicles, and took blood and saliva samples from both parents. They later stated that the residence had been "sanitized" with bleach and still smelled of it. They noted the presence of three bleach bottles, a damp mop and towels. Vartasha stated she was cleaning the apartment in preparation for an upcoming inspection by the Housing Authority, but investigators believe she was trying to come up a crime.
The search of the apartment turned up transfer stains, which come from fluid spatters being wiped, matching Kynande's DNA, and police said the scene "would suggest that a physical assault had taken place." They also noticed that someone had already thrown away most of Kynande's toys and clothes, as if they did not believe she would ever be coming home. Vartasha and Kevin used the past tense when talking about Kynande, an indication they believed she was no longer alive.
According to authorities, after they told Vartasha she had failed her polygraph, she began crying. One of the officers said, "We both know that whatever happened to that child did not happen in North Carolina, it happened in that apartment, didnt it?" and Vartasha nodded yes. They asked her to take them to where Kynande's body was, but she said, "I can't." After she regained her composure, she retracted her previous admission and again said Kynande had disappeared from the K-Mart.
Kynande's parents were both arrested in February 2003 and charged with homicide by child abuse in connection with their daughter's . Investigators said the DNA evidence proved she died in Conway and never went to Whiteville on September 29. That, combined with Kynande's grandparents' evidence, led to the murder charges. The charges against Kevin were dropped in October 2005, but could be refiled if more evidence is located. Additional charges of unlawful neglect of a child and inflicting great bodily harm on a child were added to Vartasha's indictment in December 2005.
Vartasha maintained her innocence at the trial and testified in her own defense, stating she never harmed Kynande. The prosecution theorized McCullough had abused Vartasha and caused her death unintentionally, then panicked afterwards and attempted to conceal the crime. She was convicted of all charges in February 2006 and sentenced to twenty years in prison.
Kynande remains missing. She is described as an intelligent, well-mannered child who could read simple words and count to thirty at the time of her disappearance. She liked the cartoon character Spongebob Squarepants. Foul play is suspected in her due to the circumstances involved.
Investigating Agency
Indiana State Police
800-382-7537
Other
The National Center for Missing and Exploited Children
About Crime and Punishment
The Sun News
The Wilmington Star
The Augusta Chronicle
Chat Area
The Fayetteville Observer
WWAY NewsChannel 3
WECT 6

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.



Missing Person Photos

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