The Last Exit: The Disappearance of Phoenix Coldon

Summary

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Podcast Summary

Clues with Morgan Absher & Kaylyn Moore

Episode: The Last Exit: The Disappearance of Phoenix Colden

Date: May 13, 2026
Host: Crime House

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Overview of Main Theme

This episode examines the perplexing and tragic disappearance of 23-year-old Phoenix Colden from St. Louis, Missouri, in December 2011. Hosts Morgan Absher and Kaylyn Moore guide listeners through the timeline, key evidence, shifting narratives, and prevailing theories, analyzing missed investigative opportunities and the social context surrounding the case. Emphasis is placed on media coverage disparities, the role of police and private investigation, and persistent unanswered questions that have haunted the case for over a decade.

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Key Discussion Points & Insights

1. Phoenix’s Disappearance: Timeline & Immediate Response

• [05:08] On Dec 18, 2011, Phoenix Colden leaves her parents’ house without notice after a seemingly normal day. Her parents expect her to return but she never does.
• Phoenix was last seen driving away from her family’s Spanish Lake home around 3:00pm.
• Both parents immediately sense something is wrong due to Phoenix's patterns and strict household rules.

2. The Mirage of Phoenix’s Life

• [06:38] Phoenix’s private life is described as a “mirage,” shifting depending on perspective—contradictory stories from those closest to her leave many facts unclear.
• Homeschooling, tight parental control, and pressure to conform define her upbringing, yet Phoenix led a double life unknown to her parents.

3. Initial Police Response and Family’s DIY Investigation

• [11:17] Police are reluctant to consider an adult missing, citing her age and independence:
  “They’re like, you guys, she’s 23, she’s an adult, she can leave, you know...” – Morgan ([11:20])
• Phoenix’s parents investigate themselves: calling hospitals, friends, distributing flyers, eventually contacting Black and Missing Foundation to drive media attention.

4. Unveiling Secret Lives: Hidden Relationship & Dropping Out

• [12:42] After her disappearance, two major secrets emerge:
  • Phoenix secretly lived with boyfriend Michael Burris during college.
  • She had withdrawn from the University of Missouri–St. Louis without telling anyone:
    “She hadn’t actually signed up for classes for that fall semester... This idea that she would just stop taking classes and not have a reason... was just so confusing and bizarre.” – Kaylyn

5. The Discovery & Mishandling of Phoenix’s Truck

• [20:01] Two weeks after her disappearance, Phoenix’s black Chevy Blazer is found abandoned in East St. Louis. Mishaps abound:
  • The vehicle, towed three hours after she left home, sat unconnected in the impound due to poor cross-state police communication.
  • Conflicting accounts about the truck’s condition (running/doors open vs. off/closed/locked)—no photos or forensic evidence were collected:
    “Totally opposite reports. Totally different scenarios... One is like someone getting jacked out of their car and the other is like someone leaving willingly.” – Kaylyn ([25:13])
• Key evidence not processed, records lost, no official notification to her family.

6. Forensic Clues & The “Mysterious Note”

• [31:40] Items in Phoenix’s car: shoes, purse, glasses, food, but no clear sign of what happened.
• A torn, ominous note is found—possibly in Phoenix’s handwriting:
  • “We think you need to make up your mind what you’re going to do before 2012, or else I’m going to have to show you what I can do about your parents.”
  • Goldia (mother) suspects a threat or sign of manipulation ([34:29]).

7. Investigating Her Relationships & Technology Clues

• [34:38] Phone records show persistent contact with boyfriend Michael before her disappearance; accounts diverge on his helpfulness.
• Police and family narratives differ starkly regarding witness cooperation and the investigation’s thoroughness.

8. Media Push, False Hope & Family Devastation

• [40:25] After months of inaction, media coverage increases and hope surges with leads, but each is debunked:
  • A 4am call supposedly from Phoenix is a cruel prank.
  • A Texas tip leads only to another hoax.
  • Family’s home faces foreclosure due to expenses seeking her.

9. Mental Health & Disturbing Video Evidence

• [43:17] Friends describe Phoenix as paranoid, withdrawn, and anxious in months before vanishing.
• A troubling selfie video, dated Nov 2011, reveals depression:
  • “I just want to start over. I just feel like I can’t... I just want to be happy, man. I can’t remember a time when I was happy, genuinely happy.” – Phoenix ([46:59])

10. Breakthroughs and Theories Years Later

• [49:09] A credible airport sighting in 2014 by close friend Kelly remains unresolved; hints of possible trafficking.
  • “As recently as 2018, Kelly says that she was still 9 out of 10 sure that she saw Phoenix that day.” – Kaylyn ([51:10])
• Discovery of a secret second phone and possible alias (Phoenix Reeves) leads an Oxygen documentary team to Alaska, but with no definitive result.

11. Prevailing Theories Explored

• [61:07] The hosts outline four main theories:
  1. Sex Trafficking: I-70 corridor is dubbed “the sex trafficking superhighway”; odds and context analyzed.
  2. Voluntary Disappearance / Escape: Discipline at home, mental anguish, double life—but friends disagree she would willingly vanish.
  3. Mental Health Crisis: Possible episode or psychosis, evidenced by paranoid behavior, note, and video.
  4. Foul Play: Wrong place, wrong time; flaws in the abduction scenario due to personal items left behind.

12. System Failures & Activism

• [28:05, 56:13, 65:17] The hosts repeatedly highlight systemic failures—police inertia, lack of communication, crucial forensic steps skipped, and evidence withheld for years.
• Advocacy for organizations like the National Institute for Law and Justice (NILJ) and Black and Missing Foundation, both providing support and investigative resources for families of missing persons.

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Notable Quotes & Memorable Moments

• On narrative contradictions:
  “Her story is kind of like a mirage... it changes shape depending on how you’re looking at it.” – Kaylyn ([06:38])

• On the failure of law enforcement:
  “Here we are years and years and years later. Keeping cards close to your chest hasn’t helped. Like, what are we doing this for?” – Morgan ([56:13])

• Phoenix’s video clip (paraphrased):
  “I just want to start over... I can’t remember a time when I was happy. Genuinely happy.” ([46:59])

• On trafficking statistics:
  “In 2024, the National Human Trafficking Hotline reported 11,999 potential cases in the US alone. …Sex trafficking generates $173 billion in annual profits worldwide.” – Morgan ([61:36])

• On friends’ conviction about the airport sighting:
  “As recently as 2018, Kelly says that she was still 9 out of 10 sure that she saw Phoenix that day.” – Kaylyn ([51:10])

• Goldia’s message to Phoenix:
  “If you ever get a chance, get away, run and go for it. Don’t be afraid. You’ll be safe.” ([66:54])

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Important Timestamps & Segments

• [05:08] – Church, family habits, Phoenix’s departure
• [11:17] – Police pushback on missing adult reports
• [12:42] – Secret boyfriend & dropping out
• [20:01] – Discovery, mishandling of truck, systemic police issues
• [31:40] – Forensic clues inside Phoenix's car
• [34:29] – The torn “threatening” note
• [43:17] – Phoenix’s declining mental health & behavior shift
• [46:59] – Clip and analysis from Phoenix’s video diary
• [49:09] – Unconfirmed airport/later Vegas sighting
• [53:27] – The secret second phone and “Mike”
• [58:09] – Alaska lead and alternate identities
• [61:07] – Four prevailing theories
• [65:20] – Highlighted activism, tips, and hotline numbers

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Conclusion & Takeaways

• Phoenix's case remains a chilling, unresolved mystery rife with contradictory narratives, lost forensic opportunities, and heartbreaking systemic failures.
• The episode spotlights the importance of rapid, thorough investigations and the ongoing efforts of family, advocacy groups, and (sometimes tardy) media.
• Beyond the facts, the story is marked by resilience—of Phoenix’s parents, the volunteers, and the broader community demanding answers—while raising awareness of similar missing persons cases and the broader epidemic of trafficking.
• The hosts encourage activism, awareness sharing, and compassion for the families left behind.

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Calls to Action

• If you have any information on Phoenix Colden, contact St. Louis County Police at 636-529-8210 or the anonymous tip line at 866-371-8477 (TIPS).
• Learn more or support investigations via the National Institute for Law and Justice (NILJ) and the Black and Missing Foundation.

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For episode visuals and ongoing discussion, follow @CluesPodcast on Instagram and @CluesPod on YouTube.

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Transcript

[Morgan Abshur]

I'm Dr. Haruni Bhat, host of Hidden History. Every Monday I go where history gets uncomfortable. Banished civilizations, doomsday prophecies and events that

[Kayla Moore]

science still can't fully explain.

[Morgan Abshur]

Listen to and follow Hidden History available now wherever you get your podcasts, This is Crime House. A week before Christmas, 23 year old Phoenix golden leaves her parents house without saying goodbye. They think she's just running a quick errand, only she never returns.

[Kayla Moore]

As the investigation kicks off, her family learns she's been living a life they knew nothing about. One filled with secret cell phones, secret lovers, and a video that changed everything.

[Morgan Abshur]

Hi guys. Welcome back to Clues, where we sneak past the crime scene tape to explore the key evidence behind some of the most gripping true crime cases.

[Kayla Moore]

I'm Kayla Moore and I'm going to be the one digging deeper into the timelines, the backstories and the court files released on these cases.

[Morgan Abshur]

And I'm your Internet sleuth Morgan Abshur. I'm the one who's diving into anything I can find online to talk about the lesser known details and point at the threads that just don't add up. Don't forget to share your thoughts on social want ad free listening and early access. Subscribe to Crime House plus on Apple Podcasts and make sure to go back and listen to our previous episodes wherever you get your podcasts. Now let's get into Phoenix Colden's case and the clues that defined it. This episode is brought to you by Groons. I am really, really prioritizing my health and I know that I wasn't getting enough vitamins and nutrients and that is where Groons came in. Groons are a convenient comprehensive formula in one delicious daily pack of gummy bears. The this isn't a multivitamin, a greens gummy or a prebiotic. It's all of those things and then some at a fraction of the price. And bonus, it tastes great. I have a pack of Gruns in my purse pretty much constantly now. It's my little sweet treat, my snack that also makes sure I'm getting the nutrients I need. It's this perfect solution to have a daily pack of gummies because you can't fit the amount of nutrients Groons does into just one gummy. And my favorite part, they are vegan, nut free, gluten free, dairy free. They don't have artificial colors or flavors, but they do have 20 plus vitamins and minerals and 60 ingredients that are nutrient dense whole foods. They even have a low or sugar free option. Gruns has 6 grams of prebiotic fiber. That's more than 2 cups of broccoli. And you may even be eligible for reimbursement with HSA. FSA and Gruyn's ingredients are backed by over 35,000 research publications. If you're ready to try it for yourself, save up to 52% off with code CLUS at Gruns Co. That's Clouz. Hey, before we jump back into the show, let's take a quick break. But not just any break. This is a refreshing break with Snapple. We all know about Snapple's iconic real facts, so let's take a minute to go over some of my favorites. Snapple real fact964 it is illegal in the United Kingdom to handle salmon in suspicious circumstances. Snapple Real fact 1013 it is illegal to sing off key in North Carolina. Snapple real fact 2033Americans consume 150 million hot dogs on July 4th. Snapple real fact 705. Every ton of recycled paper saves about 17 trees. So grab a Snapple, take a second and enjoy the moment because let's be honest, this might be the most refreshing part of your day. Snapple, make your break more interesting. Alright, now let's get back to clues. This one I fell down the rabbit hole on. I watched so many different documentaries, so many different podcasts, so many different blogs, so many different Reddit posts, everything. And all of them say slightly different things.

[Kayla Moore]

Yeah, we're gonna get into that. This episode today. But it kind of is one of those things, like depending on the angle you're looking at it, it changes.

[Morgan Abshur]

Yeah. And what source you're pulling from. I mean, yeah, things have changed quite, quite recently in regards to some of the information. Like key, big, big parts have changed.

[Kayla Moore]

Yeah.

[Morgan Abshur]

So.

[Kayla Moore]

So we're gonna need you guys in the comments. All your thoughts on this one.

[Morgan Abshur]

Absolutely.

[Kayla Moore]

Who you think is telling the truth, who you think is lying? There's a lot of that in this.

[Morgan Abshur]

There is. Let's get into it.

[Kayla Moore]

Okay. If you're watching the episode on YouTube, just a reminder, you're gonna see some photos and videos and stuff that will help you visualize the case. And if you're not watching, if you're listening, you can find all those same assets on our social media, which is Clues podcast on Instagram, which you should follow Anyways.

[Morgan Abshur]

Also, a lot of people on YouTube watching are probably gonna be happier that we stopped switching so much.

[Kayla Moore]

I know. Yeah. We actually have committed to chairs at this point.

[Morgan Abshur]

I know. Which is this is not my side you guys, but I'm doing it for you. Just a warning before we begin this episode. It does contain discussions of abduction, murder, suicide and mental illness. So please listen with care.

[Kayla Moore]

All right, so this case starts on December 18, 2011 in St. Louis, Missouri. That morning, 23 year old Phoenix Colden goes to church with her mom, 65 year old Goldia Colden. Phoenix has handbell choir rehearsal at 10am and after that is the 11am service at the church. For some reason, Phoenix and Goldia sit separately that day, with Phoenix two pews behind her mom and after the sermon ends around noon, Goldia goes into the church parlor to socialize with the fellow congregants. It's part of a weekly ritual called fellowship. But Phoenix isn't in the mood that day. She tells her mom she's going to wait outside in her SUV. It's a black 1998 Chevy Blazer with dark tinted windows and Phoenix uses her truck a lot when she wants to sneak away and get a little bit of privacy. She just moved back home last year after spending about four years in her own apartment near her college campus, so being back under her parents roof isn't necessarily easy for her. Both of her parents are retired, which makes it hard for Phoenix to get any alone time. And plus, even now that Phoenix is an adult, her parents expect her to follow a lot of strict rules. But Goldia doesn't give Phoenix a hard time about waiting outside that day. At around 1pm, Goldia meets her back at the car and the two head to a local grocery store where they pick up some lunch. By 2pm they're back at the family home in Spanish Lake. That's a community of about 20,000 people. It's 10 miles north of St. Louis. Phoenix spends a few minutes playing basketball outside since it's pretty warm out considering it's December. And later that day the family's planning to decorate their Christmas tree together. But at around 2:20pm, Phoenix goes back to her truck for a little bit more privacy and she sits in that driveway for about 40 minutes. Her parents assume that she's outside making a phone call, but a few minutes later, around 3pm, Phoenix's dad, 67 year old Lawrence Colden, sees her truck back out of the driveway. Yes, Phoenix wants her space, but but it's not really like her to leave without telling her parents, especially because they have plans together. So Lawrence assumes that she's just running out for a second. Maybe she's going to the corner store, maybe she's going to a friend's house real quick. But hours pass, and Phoenix never walks back through that door. And this starts the central case that we're investigating today, which is centered around one question. Where did Phoenix Colton go that day? We're going to rewind just a little bit and talk a little bit more about Phoenix. Usually, you know, we like to talk a little bit more about the victim's early life, but it's a little bit tricky to do in Phoenix's case. Her story is kind of like a mirage, which is what we talked about earlier. It changes shape depending on how you're looking at it. The people closest to Phoenix who tell her story have been known to contradict themselves over time. But here are some things that we know for sure about Phoenix. She was born in California as Phoenix Lucille Reeves on May 23, 1988. Reeves was Goldia's maiden name, and after she and Lawrence met and got married, they legally changed Phoenix's name to Colden. At some point in Phoenix's childhood, when she was about 12 years old, Lawrence's job as a computer systems engineer brought the family to Missouri. They landed in Spanish Lake, which was going through this rapid demographic shift at the time. The area was 83% white in 1990, but by 2010, more than 80% of residents were black, including Phoenix and her family. By the time they arrived around 2000, there was a thriving black middle class of proud homeowners like the Colden in the area. But there was also this rising rate of poverty and violent crime. The Colden were determined to protect Phoenix from Spanish Lakes seedier side. So instead of enrolling her in public schools, her parents decided to homeschool her. The Phoenix found other ways to meet people her own age. Like she joined a local fencing club where she eventually became a junior champion. She also played basketball for fun. And Phoenix loved to play music. She played guitar, she played piano, and she played handbells, which is what she played at church. After arriving in Missouri, the Colden's joined the Westminster Presbyterian Church, which really prided itself on inclusivity. Their website shows photos of a diverse multiracial congregation, a mission statement that prioritizes social justice, and a commitment to embracing the LGBTQIA community. And once Phoenix joined the handbell choir there, she made even more friends. But the pastor noticed that she seemed a little bit sheltered for her age. He said, quote, it was very clear that she wasn't particularly worldly. She had some maturing, I think, in terms of, like, living life. Someone who is somewhat naive about some of the ways of the world. Now we know that as Phoenix got older, she did become more independent. In 2006, the year she turned 18 and graduated from homeschool, she got an apartment with a friend which wasn't very far from her home. Her parents were not really about it at first though. But after a lot of convincing from Phoenix, Goldia co signed the lease. And around the same time, Phoenix enrolled at the University of Missouri, St. Louis. But in 2011, when she was 23 years old, Phoenix moved back in with her parents. Her parents who were financially supporting her, just couldn't justify the cost anymore. And Goldia was happy about this because she liked having Phoenix at home. And despite her being 23, she felt that having a 1am curfew for her daughter was fair. Despite all this, she was very proud of the young woman that Phoenix was becoming. She described her daughter as intelligent, compassionate, athletic, well read, deeply religious. But Phoenix's parents didn't know everything that was going on with their daughter. Not even close. On December 18, 2011, 23 year old Phoenix left home at around 3pm her parents were waiting, but eventually they decided they were just going to decorate the tree without her. They wrapped her presents and they placed them underneath. But when Phoenix still hadn't made it back by midnight, her parents really started getting the feeling that something was wrong. And when she hadn't come home by the following morning, December 19th, they went ahead and reported her missing with the St. Louis County Police, which they did

[Morgan Abshur]

get a lot of pushback for doing.

[Kayla Moore]

From the police.

[Morgan Abshur]

From the police. I mean they're like, you guys, she's 23, she's an adult, she can leave, you know, but both of them are saying, but she lives with us. This is so unlike her. Like, no, we want to report her missing. But they got a lot of pushback on that.

[Kayla Moore]

It's hard to report adults as missing people, you know, because they always say like adults are allowed to leave.

[Morgan Abshur]

Yeah.

[Kayla Moore]

Police eventually kind of concede and they run the plates for the black Chevy Blazer Phoenix drove. But there were no new tickets, no accidents, no towing records that came up in their system. There wasn't really anything they learned from doing that.

[Morgan Abshur]

After that.

[Kayla Moore]

Goldia said the police told her that there wasn't really a lot they could do. Like they said, Phoenix was an adult. She had the right to leave home without telling them if she wanted to. And since Lawrence had watched her drive off alone, they didn't really suspect that there was any foul play just yet. But as a retired social worker, Goldia understood the importance of starting a missing persons investigation as soon as possible. So until they could get authorities to believe that Phoenix was in danger, the Coldens decided that they were just going to investigate on their own. Goldia and Lauren spent the rest of that first day, Monday the 19th, looking for Phoenix themselves. They called the local hospitals to see if there were just any Jane does that match their daughter's description. They also called Phoenix's friends trying to find anyone who had seen or heard from her after 3pm the day before. And sadly, they came up empty handed.

[Morgan Abshur]

They did learn something new about their daughter Phoenix though. Details that came as a complete shock to them. Which brings us to our first clue. A hidden relationship. It turns out some of Phoenix's friends had been keeping a pretty big secret for her. Back in 2006, when Phoenix first got that apartment, she told her parents that she was moving in with her friend named Brianna. As far as Goldia and Lawrence knew, that's exactly what happened. Whenever they stopped by the apartment to visit, they never noticed anything strange. And in one of the documentaries I watched, Goldia even kind of notes to the reporter she's sitting with. I, you know, I checked the medicine cabinet. I kind of went through stuff when I was there. I never saw anything that would belong to a guy. But after Phoenix disappeared, her friends broke the news that she had actually been living with a boyfriend too. According to Phoenix's friends, Goldie and Lawrence were extremely strict and religious. They actually didn't even want Phoenix dating until she was ready to get married. So with Phoenix not ready to take such a huge step and being so young, she kept her relationship a secret. Even after she had moved back in with her family, she never mentioned a boyfriend. But now with Phoenix possibly in danger, her friends told the colden who this boyfriend was. And it was 25 year old Michael Anthony Burris Jr. Whose great uncle was reportedly a well known politician in Illinois. Phoenix had met Michael through her summer job. At the time she was working at a car dealership where Michael's father also worked. It's not entirely clear if he lived full time with Phoenix or or just stayed at her apartment so much that he practically lived there. Either way, her parents had no idea that this guy existed. But Goldia learned that the relationship wasn't necessarily a secret for everyone in their lives. It wasn't a secret to Michael's family. She discovered that Phoenix actually spent a fair amount of time with his parents. However, Phoenix's friends weren't sure if Michael and Phoenix were still even together at the time of her disappearance, which only added to the mystery. But before the Colden's could even start asking questions about Michael, they learned another shocking piece of information, which is our second clue. Phoenix dropping out of college. Phoenix was supposed to be finishing her junior year at the University of Missouri St. Louis when she disappeared. But when her parents started looking closer at her life, they saw that she hadn't actually signed up for classes for that fall semester. Phoenix never spoke to her family about taking time off. And they weren't the only ones that were in the dark. She never told her friends either. Her childhood friend Tim Baker had just seen Phoenix over his Thanksgiving break the month before she disappeared. She also told Tim that she was attending umsl. She didn't say anything to him about skipping the fall semester. Goldia had always seen Phoenix as such an enthusiastic student who loved to learn. So this idea that she would just stop taking classes and not have a reason or not tell anyone was just so confusing and bizarre. Goldia figured that there must have been like a real solid reason for it, but she had no idea what that could be.

[Kayla Moore]

Ideally, the police would be the ones able to help the Colden solve that riddle. But even after the Colden shared what they had learned, the police still didn't want to investigate. Goldia and Lawrence realized they were going to have to find another way to get more eyes on this case. I think the police just assumed that that was more reason for her to run away.

[Morgan Abshur]

I know, which, hey, like take the report, right? I gave them a little bit of leeway when you know, it's 12 hours later or whatever. Like, I know some people are like, no, wait until the first 24 and then you can report them missing. No, you can report someone missing at any time. But hey, you know, she's an adult. I get a little bit of pushback then. But now it's way later and you're finding out all this info. At least take a missing persons report. Come on. So they're getting one botched mark here for this?

[Kayla Moore]

Yes. Goldia and Lawrence decided they're going to print out missing persons flyers and they're just going to take stacks of them every time they leave the house and try to pass them around. They basically wallpapered the outside of their home with pictures of Phoenix. They covered the doors and the windows. They were everywhere. They also walked around the UMSL campus and handed out Phoenix's photo to people. And we talked about this foundation when we covered relish of Rudd, but they contacted the Black and Missing foundation for help and the organization blanketed social media with Phoenix's picture. And that finally got some reporters interested in this case. And that's when the St. Louis County Police started to take this case seriously. Because it's already in the press and they're going to have to do their jobs.

[Morgan Abshur]

Yeah, now there's someone else holding them accountable.

[Kayla Moore]

Exactly. So around December 23rd, that's five days after Phoenix was last seen. Five days now.

[Morgan Abshur]

Yeah. That crucial 48 hour window already passed.

[Kayla Moore]

The St. Louis county major Case Squad was brought in to investigate. But they weren't the ones who found the next clue. It was someone who contacted Goldia. And what they discovered would turn the entire case on its head.

[Morgan Abshur]

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[Kayla Moore]

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[Morgan Abshur]

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[Morgan Abshur]

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[Kayla Moore]

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[Morgan Abshur]

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[Kayla Moore]

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[Morgan Abshur]

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[Morgan Abshur]

Christmas passed without any sign of Phoenix, as did New Year's Day. It wasn't until two weeks later that there was a real substantial development in Phoenix's case, but not the kind her parents were hoping for. January 2, 2012, our third clue appears. And that's Phoenix's truck. That afternoon, an unidentified person close to the Colden's checked a tow lot in East St. Louis, which is in Illinois, just across the state line from St. Louis, Missouri. And Phoenix's truck was there. It had been there since December 18, the very day Phoenix went missing. And it was the East St. Louis Police who had it towed because we

[Kayla Moore]

already talked about how the police ran her plates and tried to figure out where her car was.

[Morgan Abshur]

Yeah.

[Kayla Moore]

And just said that they couldn't find anything, that there was. There was nothing outstanding on the car.

[Morgan Abshur]

I mean, from what I've seen too, this car was registered to Goldia. Like, why are we not calling whoever is on the registration for this vehicle when it gets towed to this impound lot and starts to sit there? Have we made no notification to this person so they can come collect their vehicle?

[Kayla Moore]

I've never had a car be towed before. What do they usually do?

[Morgan Abshur]

Honestly, my friend Jordan got her car towed in college a lot. You basically just had to call the impound lot. Yeah, but her car was also registered to her parents and it was during snow emergencies, so she kind of knew where it went. Got it, got it, got it. But yeah, she had to get it out of. Out of Hawk a lot.

[Kayla Moore]

Yeah. I'm curious if anyone's had their car towed, like two weeks. Steps were but two weeks.

[Morgan Abshur]

Yeah. Like if your car has been towed, did you get a notification? Don't they charge you per day too?

[Kayla Moore]

Yeah, it's there.

[Morgan Abshur]

So, like, this is like, it's based on time. Yeah, for me, this is a bit of a botch.

[Kayla Moore]

Yeah, we're hitting it.

[Morgan Abshur]

We're hitting it number two for us. So the reason that this car ended up in the impound lot is someone had called to report an abandoned vehicle in the 900 block of St. Clair Avenue. This is about a 25 minute drive. From Phoenix's house. And that call came in at 5:27pm on December 18th. That is less than three hours after Phoenix left home. Just two and a half hours. Basically. Her car is found abandoned.

[Kayla Moore]

Yeah.

[Morgan Abshur]

Now, because East St. Louis is in Illinois, the Missouri police couldn't see the abandoned vehicle report when they ran her plates. And coming from the police officer himself who found this vehicle, essentially, if Goldia and Lawrence would have reported this vehicle as stolen that very first day, it would have pinged. But there's not a database for just missing vehicles. Like you have to report it stolen for it to be connected.

[Kayla Moore]

Yeah, got it.

[Morgan Abshur]

So that's why again, like, even if they're calling impound lots days later, calling and trying to find this vehicle and Phoenix, it wasn't gonna ping. And you guys might remember this from the case we did on Maury Travis, but there was a lot of communication problems between St. Louis and East St. Louis. Again, it's state lines and as we've seen in a lot of our cases, police organizations have a hard time communicating.

[Kayla Moore]

Yes.

[Morgan Abshur]

At the time, East St. Louis was a pretty dangerous spot. The kind of place where, according to online comments, people rolled through stop signs because they didn't want to attract carjackers, drug dealers getting solicited. Even one of Phoenix's fencing friends was like, I don't know what reason she would have gone over there. I don't know why she would be there. Like, the only reason that comes to mind when thinking about East St. Louis is going there to get drugs. But like, that wasn't Phoenix.

[Kayla Moore]

Yeah.

[Morgan Abshur]

So not sure why she would even be there. And all of her family and friends agreed she wasn't on any drugs, she wasn't doing drugs. So it would have been weird for her to be there. Especially the spot that her truck was found. It's a narrow two lane road near an intersection off of three major highways. There's not really a safe place to pull over and nothing nearby except railroad tracks, vacant lots and abandoned buildings. That roadway has changed quite a bit since Phoenix's car was towed. Like if you go look at it now, there's a big cement medium and like a right hand turn lane that goes onto an adjacent road. So it's changed a bit. But if you look at old Google map pictures, like it was very odd to like pull over there.

[Kayla Moore]

Yeah.

[Morgan Abshur]

And here is where stories really, really start to differ. Initially, on all of the coverage of Phoenix's case, it said that her truck was found running. The keys were in the ignition and the door Was wide open. At least that's what the Colden's told journalists. Which, if true, would make it seem like maybe Phoenix was attacked or ambushed. Like someone got her to pull over and then, like ripped her out of the car. Like keys in it, shoes on the ground, on the front seat. That's what you would think. But Officer Kendall Perry, the one who responded to the call about Phoenix's abandoned truck, said that wasn't the case at all. According to Officer Perry, the truck's engine was off when he found it. All the doors were closed, the headlights were off, and the key was not in the vehicle.

[Kayla Moore]

Hugely different reports.

[Morgan Abshur]

Totally opposite reports. Totally different scenarios you go through in your head.

[Kayla Moore]

Yes. One is like someone getting jacked out of their car and the other is like maybe someone leaving willingly.

[Morgan Abshur]

Yeah. And Officer Perry said there were no signs of a struggle. So to him, it kind of just looked like maybe the car ran out of gas and then was abandoned. As you know, they went to go get gas or got help or got a ride from someone. The nearest gas station, though, is about two miles away, which would have been a long walk in a rough part of town. This would have been pretty dangerous for Phoenix, likely, if that's what she actually left to do. But police have not revealed whether the truck's gas tank was actually empty. So we don't know if this theory is correct. And by the time Officer Perry shared this side of the story, it was actually in this Oxygen documentary investigation. And it's the reporter who did that initial story on Phoenix. And she's like, wait, what? Like the parents told me. And then it cuts to a clip of her initial report where she's like, car was found running. And she's like, this is what I was going off of. Like I reported falsely.

[Kayla Moore]

Yeah.

[Morgan Abshur]

She goes to the Colden's and asks them, like, hey, you guys, like, where did you get this information? And by this time, they can't remember where they heard it.

[Kayla Moore]

Yeah.

[Morgan Abshur]

So now they're like, which is it? Yeah, who's telling the truth here?

[Kayla Moore]

And where did that information come from, really?

[Morgan Abshur]

Exactly. And because this truck was actually impounded as abandoned rather than processed as being a part of maybe evidence of a crime investigation, no photos were taken of it at the scene, and it really wasn't processed at all. Officer Perry said that he just ran the plates to make sure it hadn't been reported stolen. And once he found out that it wasn't, he basically just called a private company to come tow it to collect it. And there's no way to prove either version of stories.

[Kayla Moore]

I'm curious if they had filed a missing persons report, though, if it would have pinged as belonging to a missing person, though.

[Morgan Abshur]

He says no, like in the oxygen doc when they're asking him about, like, why it wasn't corroborated that the car was in custody.

[Kayla Moore]

Yeah.

[Morgan Abshur]

By the time they called, like, this car was in custody two and a half hours after she went missing.

[Kayla Moore]

Yeah. Right.

[Morgan Abshur]

So when they're calling, they already have the car. But he said our system's not set up like that.

[Kayla Moore]

That's wild to me.

[Morgan Abshur]

If they would have reported it stolen, that is a nationwide system and it would have pinged. It wouldn't have mattered if it was across state lines.

[Kayla Moore]

What does that say about the system we've set up where, like, if it's stolen property, will like, we're on it. But if it's a missing person, who cares?

[Morgan Abshur]

It's insane. You know, I mean, you hear about this too, where people will get taken to jail because, like, their parents report their car stolen and things like that. But yeah, I mean, that's seemingly how you get things done if your person goes missing, report their car stolen.

[Kayla Moore]

Yeah. That's the only way to get any attention on it.

[Morgan Abshur]

That's why that's not how it should have to work. And I'm not saying do that like, I'm just saying, like, that's what would have had this dot connected for Phoenix's family way sooner. Hours later.

[Kayla Moore]

Wait.

[Morgan Abshur]

Yeah, hours.

[Kayla Moore]

It's upsetting.

[Morgan Abshur]

And because of all this, we don't really know what was in the car. No mention of dusting for fingerprints, no mention of DNA, nothing. So a lot of potentially really helpful forensic evidence was destroyed or not even collected.

[Kayla Moore]

Well, after Phoenix's truck was discovered, investigators at least ramped up their efforts. So police still said that there was no evidence of foul play. But they also told the press the that they were worried for Phoenix's safety. On January 5, three days after the truck was discovered in the tow yard, officers from both the St. Louis county and East St. Louis conducted a thorough search of the area around 9th and Sinclair. They looked along the roadside, bagging anything that seemed like it could have been evidence. Police even had cadaver dogs search for Phoenix around where her truck was abandoned, but they did not detect her scent. The police ended their search without finding really evidence, anything of note. But Lawrence was not satisfied with that answer. After the cops left, he continued leading volunteer search parties in East St. Louis. He scoured the abandoned buildings he Looked through all the construction sites, all these empty fields that were there as best as he could, and still there was nothing there. No sign.

[Morgan Abshur]

I would love to get in contact with a dog handler because I have so many questions in relation to the dog searches now.

[Kayla Moore]

Yeah.

[Morgan Abshur]

Especially because of the case we did on Inga with, like, the magic dogs that could search further because this is now weeks later. Again, like, we've got two botched marks because they could have been at that spot just hours after Phoenix went missing.

[Kayla Moore]

Yeah.

[Morgan Abshur]

But if she would have walked on foot to go get gas, would there have even been a scent trail left at this point in time? Right.

[Kayla Moore]

Have you listened to your own backyard on Kristen Smart? The podcast on Kristen Smart? It's fantastic. It's like, truly the best true crime podcast that's ever been made. But they dedicate pretty much an entire episode into. I want to go. Go back and listen to it, because that ends up being a huge part of that case is a dog alerts in his room. Yeah. And so they really get into the science of dogs, or at least, like, dog scent tracking. Yeah. Is really interesting. It's not a perfect science.

[Morgan Abshur]

I imagine not. I mean, they're animals. We can't.

[Kayla Moore]

They're dogs. Yeah.

[Morgan Abshur]

They're still dogs. They can communicate with their handlers in the way that they're trained and best they can. But still.

[Kayla Moore]

I know, but it's. It's really interesting. But, yeah, I don't.

[Morgan Abshur]

Who.

[Kayla Moore]

I don't even know if it would have still been there. They said some. They say that, like, dogs can smell you in a grocery store up to, like, two weeks after you've been there, which is wild.

[Morgan Abshur]

But this is over two weeks, and if she would have then gotten into a vehicle, like, there's no way there would be any sense. So, again, like, time is of the utmost importance, and it's why, again, I'm so frustrated at this point in this case. But the police did at least have the truck, and as far as they believe, its contents weren't tampered with during the towing process. Which does bring us to our fourth clue. What's inside Phoenix's truck? Phoenix had a lot of personal items on the seats, in the glove box, on the floor, in the CD player, as any normal person does.

[Kayla Moore]

Yeah.

[Morgan Abshur]

There were a pair of her shoes on the ground in the car. Stack of CDs, glasses, couple shirts, socks, air fresheners, some hot tamales, a highlighter, pencils, lotion, a book. There was also a sandwich bag full of lemon slices, which wasn't unusual for her. Goldia said that she loved sour snacks, even plain lemons.

[Kayla Moore]

Plain lemons. Wow.

[Morgan Abshur]

But what really stood out was that Phoenix's wallet and purse were also still in the truck. Which made sense considering there hadn't been any activity noticed on her credit cards or cell phones or any accounts since her disappearance. We don't know if forensic testing was done on any of the items found, but outside of Phoenix, leaving her wallet and purse behind, nothing seemed too out of the ordinary. Which, again, kind of goes against that police officer's theory of, like, running out of gas. If wallet and purse are still there, how's she gonna pay for gas?

[Kayla Moore]

Yeah, of course you would take your stuff. Yeah.

[Morgan Abshur]

Again, it just kind of goes back to, like, which account is conflicting.

[Kayla Moore]

Yeah.

[Morgan Abshur]

But Goldie and Lawrence did see some of these items as being potential leads. They tried to find out where Phoenix bought the lemons in case that she got them after leaving home. They figured it might provide maybe a last known time and location. Maybe we could find some surveillance footage. But after visiting all the stores in the area, they didn't get an answer. There was even a 32 ounce cup of soda in the cup holder with soda still in it. And to her parents, this kind of confirmed their theory that she was just planning on making a quick trip to the corner store and something happened. Unfortunately, none of the stores remembered seeing her. And again, no surveillance footage. Like, we don't even know if any of them had cameras, but if they did, there was never any security footage of Phoenix at the stores ever released. And it's thought that it likely would have been released at this point to help with the search. There was another important item that was found, though. Although where it was discovered is kind of confusing. Again, there's kind of conflicting accounts on this. Some say it was in her truck, others say it was found in her bedroom. But either way, it's our fifth clue. And it's a mysterious note. The note was supposedly torn into pieces with some parts of it even missing. At first, Goldia believed that the note wasn't in Phoenix's handwriting. But when she put the pieces together and took a closer look, she actually changed her mind. And she felt that it was Phoenix's handwriting, just maybe a little sloppier, a little rushed for some reason, and it was hard to read the message. It actually took Goldia several weeks to figure out what it even said. And when she eventually deciphered it, it was along these lines. Quote, we think you need to make up your mind what you're going to do before 2012, or else I'm going to have to show you what I can do about your parents. End quote. Now, to Goldia, this looked like maybe Phoenix was writing something that was said to her or that she overheard. Maybe she was, like, writing it down to recount it so she wouldn't forget. And Goldia kind of interpreted this as like a threat to Phoenix's family. Like, what a weird statement for it not to be.

[Kayla Moore]

Yeah.

[Morgan Abshur]

And she thought that it might be evidence that someone was manipulating Phoenix through fear, and maybe that person could have lured her into leaving.

[Kayla Moore]

So while Goldia was pouring over the note, police spent time looking into Phoenix's close relationships. Her cell phone record showed that before she disappeared, she was still talking to Michael, her secret, secret boyfriend. There were 10 calls to or from his number on December 17th alone. That was the day before her disappearance. And the last one started at 10:59pm and lasted 116 minutes. On December 18, the day she disappeared, Michael's number called her once at 9:41am Right before choir practice. But this one lasted only six minutes. Phoenix also called Michael once at 1:46pm but that call was only one minute long. And that, you know, might mean that it just went to voicemail. Basically, that was the last call that Phoenix made before she vanished. And there was no activity on her phone after she left the house that day. So detectives got in touch with Michael. You know, they're thinking that maybe he knows something. According to police sources, Michael was completely cooperative. But Goldia and Lawrence remember things a little bit differently. And this is where we get into the two competing narratives. They said that he was evasive and that he was even unhelpful at times. And it kind of seemed like he was hiding something. According to the Colden's, Michael claimed to not remember what he spoke to Phoenix about during their last phone conversation. But the police felt like they did get everything they needed to rule Michael out as a suspect. With 100 confidence.

[Morgan Abshur]

Yeah. When you hear the police give kind of their take on Michael, they even go as far as to say he's. He's one of the most helpful people we've encountered during this investigation.

[Kayla Moore]

Yeah, the most helpful, yes. They describe him as being very open and cooperative, and it's a totally different read that the Colden's get. So a couple of weeks into the investigation, police activity does start to die down. Following the unsuccessful January 5 search around East St. Louis, the Colden's started getting afraid that, you know, their daughter might become forgotten. So once again, they started fighting for more media coverage. They remembered how many TV news stories they saw about Natalee Holloway, who went missing in 2005. And Goldia wanted that kind of exposure for Phoenix's story. So on March 8, 2012, which was a little more than two months after Phoenix's disappearance, the Colden's held a press conference at her college. The Colden's also started a Facebook page called Missing Phoenix Colden. And that got thousands of followers pretty much right away. And meanwhile, the Black and Missing Foundation Cold called every media outlet in the St. Louis area to ask them to put Phoenix photos on the air. And slowly but surely, the media started paying more and more attention, as did their audiences. And shortly after, the phone rang at the Colton household and Goldia was sure that it was going to be her daughter. On the other end of that line,

[Morgan Abshur]

Another one of this week's partners is Solace. Navigating the healthcare system can be impossible. Impossible to do it on your own. What if your claim's denied? What if you're not feeling heard by your care team? What if you're dealing with caregiver burnout? That is where solace comes in.

[Kayla Moore]

Solace matches you with a dedicated advocate, experts who take on the hardest parts of your healthcare. They find doctors, get insurance to cover your care, keep your doctors on the same page, and work with you one on one for as long as it takes to get the care you need.

[Morgan Abshur]

There's studies that show that 98% of patients feel more in control of their career after working with an advocate.

[Kayla Moore]

And this is something that I'm seeing play out in real time right now. I have, you know, my grandmother has Alzheimer's. It's so hard to watch her go through the medical system without an advocate because she forgets everything her doctors tell her. Like, it's so amazing when you can have someone who's actually paying attention with you and helping you throughout this entire process.

[Morgan Abshur]

It's incredible. And some of Solace advocates are registered nurses or other healthcare professionals with an average of 16 years of experience.

[Kayla Moore]

Go to Solish Health.com to see if you qualify. It takes about two minutes and it's covered by insurance. That's Solish. Health.com must be 18 or older. Advocates do not provide medical or legal advice.

[Morgan Abshur]

One of this week's partners is Instacart. I hate grocery shopping. I hate going to the store. I hate getting overwhelmed by all the choices. And I really, really hate forgetting items.

[Kayla Moore]

And now that I have a baby, I legitimately just don't have time to go. That's like so low on my priority list that I always open my fridge and I have truly nothing inside. Instacart Instacart is more than a grocery technology platform. It's a care company designed to make life easier. It connects you with thousands of stores across the United States, giving you time back to focus on what matters most. Like my baby. With just a few taps, you can shop from your favorite stores and have quality groceries and household essentials carefully selected and ready for pickup or delivered to your door in as fast as 30 minutes.

[Morgan Abshur]

The app is super easy to use. You can pick exactly what you want and even message your shopper, which is key for me. When things are out of stock, I want to know what replacement I'm getting and make sure it's the right one.

[Kayla Moore]

Instacart brings convenience, quality and ease right to your door so you can focus on what matters most. Download the Instacart app now and get groceries just how you like when someone

[Morgan Abshur]

goes missing, the headlines focus on what happened, but the truth often lives in the smallest details. I'm Sarah Turney. After my sister disappeared, I learned how those final hours, the last conversations, the last decisions can haunt families forever.

[Kayla Moore]

And I'm Courtney Nicole. After seeing crime impact my own family, I've learned how overlooked moments, missed red flags and unanswered questions can change everything.

[Morgan Abshur]

Together, we're bringing those lived experiences into the work. This is the Final Hours A couple Crime House Original powered by Pave Studios A podcast that puts the moments before a disappearance under a microscope.

[Kayla Moore]

Listen to and follow the final hours wherever you get your podcasts. New Episodes every Monday. In early 2012. Around two months after 23 year old Phoenix Colden vanished, her family gets this mysterious 4am phone call. Goldea answers and she hears a voice that sounds exactly like Phoenix saying mom three times. And Goldia asks, phoenix, is that you? But then the line goes dead. Now Goldia was sure that it was Phoenix on the phone and that she sounded frightened and weak. But when the police traced this call, which they were able to do, they gave Goldia some bad news. The call was placed by a 14 year old girl in Beverly Hills. It was a prank by a teen girl. And that wasn't the only false hope that came out of this media push that the family was doing. This man in Texas posted Phoenix's photo on Facebook describing her as his long lost daughter. And when the Coldons reached out for more information, the man claimed that he knew where Phoenix was. So Goldia and Lawrence believed him because they felt like he knew things about Phoenix that only someone who had met her would know. But the police, you know, decided to not do anything about this. They thought it was a total waste of time. But the Colden's poured their life savings into hiring a private investigator to follow up on the lead. And sadly the PI traveled down to Texas and made contact with this tipster and it just turned out to be another hoax.

[Morgan Abshur]

Even sick are people.

[Kayla Moore]

People are so sick. I mean that's something that happens today a lot as well. I hear about it from victims getting just like fake photographs and fake videos of their loved ones that's gone missing.

[Morgan Abshur]

Horrible.

[Kayla Moore]

It's just so wild.

[Morgan Abshur]

Absolutely horrible.

[Kayla Moore]

The amount of people that call in f hips too. Why?

[Morgan Abshur]

What possesses you in your deranged head to toy with people?

[Kayla Moore]

I have no idea.

[Morgan Abshur]

They're going through the worst tragedy and heartbreak.

[Kayla Moore]

They call the families. Like this 14 year old girl got their landline and called them in the

[Morgan Abshur]

middle of the night too.

[Kayla Moore]

Yes, yes, exactly.

[Morgan Abshur]

Sick.

[Kayla Moore]

Really, really sick. Even before this Texas tip though, the Coltons were running low on money. And after they hired the PI, they were broken. They couldn't pay their mortgage anymore. And by April of 2012, four and a half months after Phoenix vanished, the bank started the foreclosure proceedings on their home. They hated the idea of leaving the house that Phoenix knew. A lot of people do because you

[Morgan Abshur]

think that she comes back, that's where

[Kayla Moore]

she's gonna go back to. Their synthetic Christmas tree was even still up with Phoenix's wrapped gifts under it, still waiting for the day that she would come home to open them. Goldia and Lawrence worried that changing anything about the house would make it harder for Phoenix to come back. And moving to a whole different place would make it even worse. Phoenix's parents were really worried about her emotional health after she came home. They were still convinced that she was going to come home one day and they were hopeful that that day would be soon.

[Morgan Abshur]

Now more and more evidence was starting to come up and it was pointing to Phoenix not really being in a great place emotionally before her disappearance. As investigators spoke to Phoenix's friends for more information, a new troubling story was starting to emerge. Which brings us to clue number six. Phoenix's mental health. At some point during the investigation, one of Phoenix's close friends, Akira Hogan, was interviewed and she basically said that Phoenix hadn't been her usual self for six months before she disappeared. She seemed to be really paranoid, really sad, maybe depressed even. And Akira Says that Phoenix started to talk about someone following her or something being after her. According to Akira, Phoenix had also been arguing with her parents more often than usual. And she seemed to have kind of a shorter fuse and would kind of have a quick temper all of a sudden. In early December 2011, the week before Phoenix disappeared, Akira said that they actually got into a pretty serious verbal argument, and Phoenix pulled a knife out of, like, the side of her driver's side door and showed Akira was kind of, like, holding it in a somewhat menacing way. And according to Akira, this was all because Phoenix felt that she was talking about her. And Akira denied this. She's like, I haven't been saying anything about you. I'm not talking about you. I'm not.

[Kayla Moore]

What?

[Morgan Abshur]

No. And so no one was hurt during this confrontation. Akira said they resolved their argument that day, but this behavior wasn't like Phoenix at all. And after this argument, like, kind of was getting resolved between them. Akira said Phoenix then just kind of went off and was like, I'm gonna pack up my stuff. I'm gonna leave. She didn't share a specific plan to leave home. More like she was just venting. And Akira didn't really know anything else beyond this because they actually stopped talking the week before Phoenix disappeared. Kind of still in relation to this fight or just kind of a growing separation between the two of them. But there was a flash drive found in Phoenix's things, and on that flash drive was a shocking video from Phoenix herself. Now, the full video has never been released. I'm not even sure if we're able to share clips of it, because it's been copywritten by Oxygen. And, like, that's been something that a lot of other true crime podcasts have talked about, where they're like, this is kind of unhelpful to copyright all this material when we're trying to get the word out about Phoenix.

[Kayla Moore]

Yeah. That Oxygen just, like, bought evidence.

[Morgan Abshur]

Yeah.

[Kayla Moore]

Now you have to license it from them.

[Morgan Abshur]

Yeah, exactly. But this selfie video from Phoenix is our seventh clue in 2018 on the oxygen documentary called the Disappearance of Phoenix Colden, a short clip of this video is played again. We don't ever see it in its entirety. According to data retrieved from this video, though, it is from November 15, 2011, just a month before Phoenix disappeared. Now, Phoenix starts off in the clip saying, got ditched. This is ridiculous. She doesn't explain who ditched her or why. And after a long pause, she says, quote, I just want to start over. I just feel like I can't Start the new me over. People don't give a fuck. Now, some parts of this video are very kind of muffled by the way Phoenix, like, has her hands, but it does go on. And there's another quote, I've got to see things for what they are. And she repeats this a couple of times and then says a modified version of the Serenity Prayer. At another point she says, quote, I just want to be happy, man. I can't remember a time when I was happy, genuinely happy. I feel so stupid because I let myself go a little bit. I probably would have been in a better situation if I would have stuck with how it used to be. Towards the end of the clip that's shared, Phoenix does say, quote, the only person that won't let me down is me. You just get this sad, somber. Yeah, hurting girl. And it's a very confusing video to watch.

[Kayla Moore]

Well, no matter how much she was struggling emotionally, Phoenix's parents weren't really sure that she would have disappeared voluntarily.

[Morgan Abshur]

And friends do agree with that. Friends are like, she wouldn't have just ran away.

[Kayla Moore]

Yeah. And as we've talked about in the. I think it was the Esmeralda Gonzalez case, which she was another person having, like a mental health episode. But that just made her incredibly vulnerable to people who ultimately kidnapped her and killed her, you know, so even if you're on camera saying that you're having like a rough time, it doesn't necessarily mean that you've left on your own volition.

[Morgan Abshur]

No.

[Kayla Moore]

In fact, her parents at this point are still convinced that she's alive, even after May came and went and they had celebrated Phoenix's 24th birthday without her. The one silver lining was they did get to celebrate at home. They managed to slow down the foreclosure process enough to avoid becoming unhoused. And then the Colden's got another little ray of hope. The national media was finally paying attention to Phoenix's Keys. On December 3, 2012, leading up to the first anniversary of Phoenix's disappearance, Goldia and Lawrence were interviewed by Katie Couric on the Katie Couric Show. John Walsh, who was the host of America's Most Wanted, was also featured in the segment. And five months later, on May 11, 2013, John appeared with the Colden's again. And this time he was their advocate while they were interviewed by Anderson Cooper for a story about families of missing adults. And before long, it was Phoenix's 25th birthday, May 23, 2013. And the media appearances at that point hadn't done much. They were still no closer to finding Phoenix than they were on the first day of the search.

[Morgan Abshur]

And that is kind of how things stay for a while, at least until a very strange incident in March of 2014, which is our eighth clue. The airport sighting. Phoenix's friend Kelly Fraunhardt was boarding a Southwest Airlines flight home to St. Louis after a trip to Las Vegas. Once Kelly took her seat, she glanced up at the passengers still boarding, and that's when she spotted someone who she believes was Phoenix. She was with a group of other women, as well as two large, fit men who Kelly compared to NFL players. Kelly even called out Phoenix. And the woman turned to look and then responded to her and was like, oh, do I look like someone? And Kelly said, yeah, you do. You look like my friend Phoenix. The woman didn't reply any further, just essentially kept boarding the plane. But Kelly was so sure that this was Phoenix that she reported the sighting at the Southwest Airlines counter the minute she got off the plane. Southwest did contact the police, but they were unable to locate the woman who looked like Phoenix. If police found out what name that mystery woman was traveling under, that information could have been shared with the public. Unfortunately, that wasn't the case. And I was super curious if they ever looked into airport security footage to, like, even see, like, is this Phoenix? I mean, this is 2014. We know after, you know, September 2001.

[Kayla Moore]

Yeah.

[Morgan Abshur]

Airports got a lot of upgraded security, a lot of cameras. Nothing I could find ever showed that they went through surveillance footage or released any footage, but, like, even airport records. And, like, ticket, like, you would have had a phone number associated with that ticket.

[Kayla Moore]

Yeah. So they would have known who it was.

[Morgan Abshur]

Why not just, like, release that? Like, oh, it's confirmed it's not her.

[Kayla Moore]

Yeah, right. So that people know.

[Morgan Abshur]

Yeah.

[Kayla Moore]

And her family knows.

[Morgan Abshur]

Yeah. And, I mean, Kelly was absolutely convinced that this was Phoenix. As recently as 2018, Kelly says that she was still 9 out of 10 sure that she saw Phoenix that day.

[Kayla Moore]

And so I wonder what the implication is that it was her and another girl maybe being trafficked by those two men, the two big guys.

[Morgan Abshur]

I mean, that's what I would start to think, especially coming back from Las Vegas.

[Kayla Moore]

I know. That's so true. And now in airports, too, like, when you go to the bathroom, you see the posters. Like, if you think someone's being trafficked in this airport, like, you have to say something.

[Morgan Abshur]

So when I was a flight attendant, we actually turned our plane around to get two girls off of a flight that we thought they were being trafficked. Really? Yeah. We were leaving Minneapolis, heading to Las Vegas.

[Kayla Moore]

Wow.

[Morgan Abshur]

And these two women were in the back row of the plane with a group of, like, guys in front of them. And they were like, we wanna go. We don't wanna be here. We wanna go. We don't wanna be here. And we're taxiing, like, we're going down the Runway, about to leave and take off. And the guys were like, it's fine. It's fine. Like, no, no, no. And my lead was like, we're not doing this. I don't care what's going on, whatever reason. Like, we're going back to the gate. And we got them off the flight.

[Kayla Moore]

Wow.

[Morgan Abshur]

And the guys ended up staying on the plane.

[Kayla Moore]

Wow. So it was just like.

[Morgan Abshur]

It was so weird. And I. We never found out anything that happened afterwards. Yeah. The flight attendants, they're not gonna tell you. Like, we're trained on that.

[Kayla Moore]

Like, even could have stopped something.

[Morgan Abshur]

Yeah.

[Kayla Moore]

Oh, my gosh.

[Morgan Abshur]

And it was weird that, like, they were all seemingly together, but then they. It was just. It was super weird. So it's something that, like, in airports, flight attendants, everyone is taking very, very seriously.

[Kayla Moore]

Yeah. They're, like, trained to look out for that. Absolutely. Which is wild. And that's why it's even more confusing that we never learned anything about.

[Morgan Abshur]

I know. Well. And Kelly does go on to share her story in the Oxygen documentary. And that documentary also reveals something new about Phoenix's life leading up to her disappearance. Like another thing her parents and not even all of her friends knew about, which is the fact that Phoenix had a mystery cell phone. On camera, Goldia and the host went through a bag of items recovered from Phoenix's truck, which had since been returned to the family. And there they found a collections notice for an overdue T mobile phone bill.

[Kayla Moore]

Because that's a T mobile bill that went into collections. That's a collection agency.

[Morgan Abshur]

This is not. No.

[Kayla Moore]

So this is another phone that she had.

[Morgan Abshur]

Evidently. Now, Phoenix's phone, or like the phone that her parents thought was her only phone, was on her family's phone plan. So to get this other bill with a different number, especially one that had gone to collections, it's seeming like Phoenix had a secret cell phone. Now, the police had already looked at all of Phoenix's belongings. So both law enforcement and the cold ins may have known about this second phone already, but this was the first time that the public was hearing about it through this document. And apparently this phone had a very specific purpose for Phoenix. You see, Phoenix had recently met a guy Named Mike at a T mobile store that he worked at. This is a different person than her boyfriend Michael. Now, Mike went to school with Phoenix at umst. This second secret phone apparently was used for just talking to Mike. She didn't want to get caught by her parents or her boyfriend Michael. Now, Goldia doesn't think the two were romantically involved. She believes Mike was expressing interest in Phoenix, but he wasn't necessarily a boyfriend. Akira does share that, like, Phoenix could have been seeing the two at the same time. Like, that's kind of what's implied that she thinks was happening. Now, Mike chose not to speak publicly about this case and referred Oxygen's producers to his lawyer. So we don't even get his side of the story. We have no idea. We also don't know what her boyfriend Michael thought about all of this. We don't even know if he knew about this other guy Mike, because he's never spoken publicly about this case either. Now, something I find interesting is these Oxygen investigators do go and interview police, and they're kind of asking like, hey, you know, she had two phones. They're like, yeah, did you trace these phones? Like, were the phones recovered in the truck? Like, what about GPS data? And the police say that they've gone through. They've looked at all the records, They've reviewed GPS location data for both of Phoenix's phones, but they're not sharing any information about that. And they essentially tell these investigators, like, you know, we're keeping all of our cards close to our chest. And for me, I feel like this is kind of another botched point, because here we are years and years and years later. Keeping cards close to your chest hasn't helped. Like, what are we doing this for? If she was using that second phone after her disappearance, that could lead to answers and maybe finding out where Phoenix is.

[Kayla Moore]

Yeah, of course. Of course.

[Morgan Abshur]

Like, so it's getting a mark from us.

[Kayla Moore]

Yeah, big time.

[Morgan Abshur]

But there is one more shocking new revelation that the documentary does release, and it hints at a location for Phoenix after her disappearance. One of this week's partners is Peloton. There's a specific kind of joy and freedom that comes from a truly great workout. That feeling where everything just clicks. Peloton is helping you unlock that feeling with the new Peloton Cross training tread plus. Powered by Peloton iq, it's cross training

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[Morgan Abshur]

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[Kayla Moore]

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[Morgan Abshur]

Yeah, these are pieces you're gonna have in your closet for years to come. They stand the test of time. And I needed a closet refresh. So I've got my Quint bodysuit on. Some of the softest, most flattering bodysuits I know.

[Kayla Moore]

I was just rubbing your arm. I love that I felt how soft it was.

[Morgan Abshur]

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[Kayla Moore]

I just put in a new order. I'm so excited. I'm getting the Bella Stretch relaxed straight leg jeans and also the 100 organic cotton boyfriend crew sweater which looks so soft and like slouchy.

[Morgan Abshur]

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[Kayla Moore]

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[Morgan Abshur]

Refresh your everyday with luxury. You'll actually use head to quince.com clues for free shipping on your order and 365 day returns. Now available in Canada too. That's Q-U-I-N-C-E.com Cluze for free shipping and 365 day returns. Quince.com clues so seven years after 23 year old Phoenix Colden disappeared in 2011, Oxygen actually hires private investigators to dig into her case for the documentary. And they find an address and it's an address in Alaska. As we mentioned earlier, Phoenix's last name was changed from Reeves mom's maiden name to Colden when she was pretty young. So Phoenix actually had two birth certificates. One for Phoenix Reeves and another for Phoenix Colden. When the Oxygen team found out about the Phoenix Reeves birth certificate, it kind of gave investigators this idea, what if she's going by this other name and we've been looking for the wrong person this whole time. So they start searching for any sign of Phoenix Reeves in case she's out there using this name. And they actually find four people named Phoenix Reeves. And one of them has very, very little information listed about them. The only thing out there connected to this person is an address of where they lived from January 2012 until June of 2012. And that's the first six months after Phoenix vanished. And that address was up in Anchorage, Alaska, more than 3,700 miles away from St. Louis. Now, this team does travel up to Alaska to check the address out in person, but the homeowner's mother said that her son had lived there consistently since 2002, and neither of them knew of Phoenix Reeves. They do canvas the neighborhood. It doesn't turn up anyone who recognizes Phoenix's picture either. So, aside from that eerie 2012 timeframe, there's no proven link between Phoenix and the Alaska address. But it did at least offer some hope that Phoenix was still out there.

[Kayla Moore]

And unfortunately, that was really the last major development in the case. As of the time of this recording, Phoenix Lucille Colden remains missing and unaccounted for. She'll be 38 years old on May 23, 2026. Goldia, now age 79, continues to keep a close eye on her daughter's case and on any media outlets that cover it. She and Lawrence truly believe that their daughter is still out there alive somewhere. And as far as the investigation is concerned, it's at a standstill. Though the case does officially remain open, which is why there's plenty of theories and loose ends to look into.

[Morgan Abshur]

Yeah, there's four main theories that still are really prevalent in this case. The big one that a lot of people talk about is the sex trafficking. So something they really highlight in the Oxygen doc is where Phoenix's car was located is right at this kind of cross of all these highways. And it's. Its big one is I 70. It is referred to as the sex trafficking superhighway of America.

[Kayla Moore]

Wow.

[Morgan Abshur]

So, I mean, it's right there. Like, you literally, you look at where the car was parked, you look up, there's the highway. So a lot of people do speculate that Phoenix was taken and potentially trafficked. They do share an estimate of how many people are trafficked every year. And when looking at more recent stats, in 2024, the National Human Trafficking Hotline reported 11,999 potential human trafficking cases. And that's just in the US alone. And, you know, the doc talks about how much of a billion dollar industry this is, and it's estimated that sex trafficking generates 173 billion in annual profits worldwide.

[Kayla Moore]

Whoa.

[Morgan Abshur]

So I know a lot of people are like, like, really, like, this girl was trafficked. Like, no, she probably ran away. But, like, this is a massive global issue, and it does happen. It happens. And yeah, in the Oxygen doc, they do interview, you know, a survivor of trafficking, and she kind of just says, like, the life expectancy for someone who has been trafficked is seven years.

[Kayla Moore]

Yeah.

[Morgan Abshur]

And so, like, time is of the essence. Again, like, if Phoenix is going to come out of this, like, we need to find her and make sure she's going to be safe.

[Kayla Moore]

And I think I read too, that the chances of escaping are like 1%. Like only 1% of victims actually escape it.

[Morgan Abshur]

It's insane. There are some other theories, of course. Voluntary disappearance and her just wanting to run away. A lot of people point to how strict her parents were, the homeschooling, the sheltered life and things like that. But again, everyone that knew her is like, she wouldn't just run away. So then other people and theories point to a mental health episode. And the note is kind of a big piece of evidence for this theory because of how the note didn't necessarily look like her handwriting.

[Kayla Moore]

Yeah.

[Morgan Abshur]

And psychosis can change a person's handwriting. Like, this is a well documented thing in psychology. And the last theory is just foul play. Wrong place, wrong time. Maybe her car did run out of gas and someone saw her and just took her.

[Kayla Moore]

I just don't know why. They wouldn't have robbed her too, though. And that's again, for her stuff to be left behind.

[Morgan Abshur]

Yeah, I know. Even, like, the car, like, the car wasn't taken, and even if she was

[Kayla Moore]

trafficked, you would think that they would take her. They would want to take her license or something. Like, have some of her documents.

[Morgan Abshur]

I know.

[Kayla Moore]

Which is just so.

[Morgan Abshur]

Or they just plan on like, hey, we're getting her new stuff anyways. Yeah, yeah, but I do, like, for her friend to have seen her or think she saw her and is, like, so convinced and. But a lot of people are talking about this online with other conspiracy theories, like, of approaching people who are supposed to be in prison and being like, oh, blank, like, saying their name. And the person responds and is like, what? And they're like, why are you responding to a name if it's not your name?

[Kayla Moore]

Yeah.

[Morgan Abshur]

So a lot of people are like, no, that probably was Phoenix.

[Kayla Moore]

Yeah. For her to turn and be like, oh, what?

[Morgan Abshur]

Yeah, yeah. Because, like, if I'm out and about and I hear, like, someone's name getting said, unless it's Morgan, I don't turn around. Of course. Of course you don't respond.

[Kayla Moore]

So when you were looking, like, through Reddit and on the Internet, what does the Internet typically say happened to her?

[Morgan Abshur]

I would say the Majority thinks she was trafficked.

[Kayla Moore]

Yeah. Wow.

[Morgan Abshur]

A majority. And they do point to the plane being a big thing, like she was going to Vegas where brothels and sex work is legal. So it's just really sad.

[Kayla Moore]

Really, really devastating.

[Morgan Abshur]

It would be nice to get answers and hopefully bring her home.

[Kayla Moore]

Yes. Now, Goldia and Lawrence did spend their life savings on the search for Phoenix, eventually going into the foreclosure of their home. But that felt like their only option when Phoenix's case lost attention and resources from law enforcement. So for our activism section, we wanted to mention a non profit that offers investigative services free of charge for cold, inactive missing persons cases is it's called the National Institute for Law and justice or NILJ. They're a 501c3 charitable organization which allows them to fundraise from the public in order to fund private investigations for the cases that they take on. They also have partnerships with similar groups that provide other investigative services like cadaver dogs. And you can find out more. You can also support their work or you can submit your loved one's [e-mail] missing-persons-cases and as we mentioned, Phoenix's case is still open. If you've seen Phoenix Colton or if you have any tips about her case, Please contact the St. Louis County Police Department at 636-529-8210. There's also an anonymous tip line at 866-371-TIPS or 8477 and you can also make a tip through the Black and missing [e-mail] tipline. If Phoenix is out there somewhere being held against her will, Goldia has repeatedly shared a message for her just on the off chance that someone is listening. We're going to repeat it here one more time but quote, if you ever get a chance, get away, run and go for it. Don't be afraid. You'll be safe.

[Morgan Abshur]

And on that note, we are going to move on and highlight our missing person of the week. The missing person we are going to highlight this week is Kelly Allen. Kelly Allen has been missing since March 2007. She was visiting a friend in Berkeley, Missouri for a few days. On the morning of March 13, Kelly's friend left for work and saw Kelly sleeping on the couch. Sometime later that day, investigators say Kelly left the house to attend a job interview at a telemarketing company. According to law enforcement, Kelly did schedule a second follow up interview later that week. Unfortunately, Kelly never made it to that interview because at some point on March 13, 2007, she vanished. Police say it's unclear what happened after Kelly left the job interview that day or whether Kelly ever returned back to her friend's home. But when her friend returned home from work that evening, Kelly was gone. All of her belongings had been left behind at the house, but Kelly was nowhere to be found. Her clothes, purse, and an uncashed $2,000 tax return check were untouched. It's now been 19 years, and Kelly has not been seen or heard from since. According to the St. Louis Metropolitan Police Department's Missing person Unit, Kelly's case is still an active investigation, even nearly two decades later. They have since released a new age progression image, and they hope that this will generate a renewed interest and some fresh leads. They say a single memory, even one that seems small, could make a real difference. Today, Kelly would be 39 years old. She has a tattoo of brown eyes and a flower on her left shoulder and a tattoo of a half moon behind her left ear. Investigators are asking anyone who may have known Kelly or remembers anything from March 13, 2007, to come forward. She has black hair, hazel eyes, 54 tall, about 165 pounds, and again went missing from Berkeley, Missouri. If you have any information about Kelly Allen or her disappearance, please contact the national center for Missing and exploited children at 1-800-THE-LOST or the St. Louis Metropolitan Police Department's Missing Person Unit at 314-444-5738. You can also contact the Missouri State Highway Patrol, the Missing persons clearinghouse at 573-526-6178. And that is all we have on this episode of Clues.

[Kayla Moore]

And now we turn it over to you guys. I'm so curious what people think could have possibly happened to Phoenix. And, you know, I'm glad we still got to get the word out today about what's been going on because this is just a really haunting one.

[Morgan Abshur]

It is. And hopefully clear up a little bit of misinformation that's made its way out there. I know you know, the car running or not running is. Is huge and makes all the difference in this case and the loose ends and the theories. So, yeah, let us know what you think in the comments. Again, at Crime House, we really value your support and your thoughts. So please share them on social media and remember to rate, review and subscribe. Subscribe to Clues to help others discover our show. Until next time. Bye, guys.

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[Morgan Abshur]

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