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

Marion Gonangnan

Gonangnan, date, approximate 2003
Date Missing 03/30/2003
Missing From
Fairbanks, Alaska
Missing Classification Endangered Missing
Sex Female
Race
Native American
Date of Birth 12/17/1970 (51)
Age 32 years old
Height and Weight 5'9, 144 pounds
Medical Conditions Gonangnan has a history of drug abuse. She may have had an ectopic pregnancy at the time of her 2003 disappearance. An ectopic pregnancy is a life-threatening condition; the fetus cannot be carried to term and surgery is necessary to save the mother's life.
Markings and/or Distinguishing Characteristics Native American female. Brown hair, brown eyes. One of Gonangnan's ears is pierced 16 times and the other is pierced 17 times.
Details of Disappearance Gonangnan's was last seen at 9:00 p.m. on March 30, 2003, when she walked out of her home on 21st Avenue in Fairbanks, Alaska and never returned. She told her teenage daughter she was going to the hospital to get examined for a suspected ectopic pregnancy. She did not want her daughter to accompany her, which is uncharacteristic of Gonangnan's behavior.
At 10:30 p.m., Gonangnan called her daughter to say she was at the hospital. However, hospital telephone records don't show any call placed from there to the family's home that day. She has never been heard from again.
As Gonangnan had a history of dropping out of sight for a few days, her children were initially unconcerned when she did not come home. There were several unconfirmed sightings of her in the neighborhood in the days after her disappearance.
In April, the Office of Children's Services took custody of Gonangnan's children. She was not reported missing until May 7.
Gonangnan has a history of residential instability and of abandoning her family, which includes five children, three of whom were living with her in 2003.
She was involved with drug abuse and prostitution and had a violent relationship with her boyfriend, the father of her youngest child, in 2003. The boyfriend is not considered a suspect in Gonagnan's disappearance, however, as he was in jail the day she vanished.
While investigators initially thought Gonangnan had left of her own accord, they now suspect foul play in her disappearance due to the amount of time that has passed since anyone has heard from her. She has not been arrested since her disappearance, and she has not applied for a dividend from the Alaska Permanent Fund.
One of her associates, Mahogany Davis, was stabbed to death in May 2002. The murder remains unsolved and it is unclear whether it is connected to Gonangnan's disappearance, which is also unsolved.
Investigating Agency
Fairbanks Police Department
907-459-6500
Other
Alaska Department of Public Safety
The Fairbanks Daily News-Miner
The Juneau Empire
The Anchorage Daily News

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