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
Tanya Teresa Begay
Begay, date, approximate 2017; Rose tattoos on Begay's breasts; Jason Thornburg
Date Missing 03/03/2017
Missing From
Tohatchi, New Mexico
Missing Classification Endangered Missing
Sex Female
Race
Native American
Date of Birth 12/20/1980 (41)
Age 36 years old
Height and Weight 5'5, 135 pounds
Associated Vehicle(s) Red 2004 Dodge Neon with the New Mexico license plate number GWZ198 (accounted for)
Markings and/or Distinguishing Characteristics Native American female. Brown hair, brown eyes. Begay has a scar above her left eyebrow and a small scar under her left eye, and her ears are pierced. She has the following tattoos: a rose on each breast, a feather on her left foot, and a music note behind her right ear. A photo of the rose tattoos is posted with this summary. She wears a partial top denture plate, and either eyeglasses or contact lenses. Her nicknames are Span and Tan. Begay is of Navajo Indian descent.
Details of Disappearance Begay was last seen leaving her aunt's house in Tohatchi, New Mexico on March 3, 2017. She was en route from Leupp, Arizona to her family's home in Gallup, New Mexico, a drive of a few hours, when she stopped at her aunt's home. She left with her boyfriend, Jason Thornburg, has never been heard from again.
The vehicle she was driving, her aunt's red 2004 Dodge Neon with the New Mexico license plate number GWZ198, was later found abandoned. Thornberg was questioned by the police, then released. According to Begay's family, he was abusive towards her and has a history of violence.
Days prior to her disappearance, Jason Thornburg, allegedly assaulted Begay with a glass coffeepot. He had a history of domestic violence, dating back to 2014. She filed charges against him, but the they were dropped after she went missing, because she was unavailable to testify.
A photo of Thornburg is posted with this summary. In December 2021, he was charged with capital murder in the deaths of David Lueras, Lauren Phillips, and Maricruz Mathis, whose dismembered and burned remains were found in a dumpster in Texas several months earlier.
After his arrest, Thornburg confessed to killing Begay and also confessed to the murder of his roommate, Mark Jewell, who was killed in May 2021. He stated the murders were all "human sacrifices" and that it was his mission to serve God. He has not been charged in either of these s, however.
Begay may still be in the Tohatchi area, or she may be in Albuquerque, Gallup, or Mentmore, New Mexico or Dilkon, Arizona. Her family stated she was close to her parents and frequently called and texted family and friends. She left behind two children and her remains unsolved.
Investigating Agency
Gallup Police Department
505-722-2231
Other
The Missing Indigenous People of Canada & the US
New Mexico Department of Public Safety
Tanya Begay's Facebook Page
The Gillette News Record
MissingFlowers: Missing Murdered Indigenous Women & Men
Tanya Begay's Sister's Facebook Page
12 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