MISSING: Amy Bradley

Summary

MISSING: Amy Bradley – A Detailed Exploration of a True Crime Mystery

Podcast: Crime Junkie
Host: Ashley Flowers
Episode: MISSING: Amy Bradley
Release Date: July 24, 2025

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Introduction

In this gripping episode of Crime Junkie, hosts Ashley Flowers and Brit Prawat delve into the mysterious disappearance of Amy Bradley, a 23-year-old woman who vanished during a family cruise in 1998. Through meticulous storytelling and detailed analysis, the episode uncovers the numerous facets of this unresolved case, highlighting the challenges faced by the family and the investigative shortcomings that have left Amy's fate shrouded in uncertainty.

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The Disappearance of Amy Bradley

Amy Bradley’s disappearance occurred in March 1998 during what was intended to be a memorable family vacation aboard the cruise ship Rhapsody of the Sea. The cruise was a family affair, with Amy, her parents Iva and Ron, and her brother Brad setting sail from San Juan, Puerto Rico. Despite Amy's apprehensions about the trip, the family hoped it would be a cherished memory before their lives became busier with adulthood.

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Timeline of Events

[04:16]
Ashley Flowers: "Amy’s story begins in March of 1998... This was going to be one last trip for the family to remember."

Upon boarding, the family enjoyed the initial days of the cruise, engaging in typical activities such as fine dining, swimming, and attending parties. However, on the second night, during a formal dinner followed by a lively calypso party on the upper deck, the events took a dark turn.

[09:05]
Alison Brie (Ashley): "Amy and Brad were even photographed together on this fancy dinner night by the cruise ship photographer. And this is one of the most infamous pictures in Amy's case because it was the last still photograph taken of Amy on the ship."

After the party, Brad decided to retire for the night around 3:35 AM, while Amy chose to stay outside for some fresh air. The next morning, their father Ron noticed Amy was missing.

[11:54]
Ashley Flowers: "He peeks at the clock and it's about 6 o'clock in the morning. When he looks out onto the balcony, Amy isn't there."

Despite a search conducted by family members and ship security, Amy was nowhere to be found. The lack of immediate and thorough action raised suspicions and frustrations.

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Potential Suspects and Theories

One of the primary suspects emerging from the investigation was Alistair Douglas, nicknamed Yellow, the bass player for the ship's band Blue Orchid.

[23:47]
Alison Brie (Ashley): "The man Yellow becomes someone of interest in the FBI's mind because they are seen dancing closer and closer together throughout the night."

Footage from a promotional video captured Amy dancing with Yellow multiple times throughout the night, culminating in them holding hands. Discrepancies in Yellow’s statements further fueled suspicions.

[24:29]
Ashley Flowers: "Yellow was lying about when he last saw Amy... this is a lie."

Another oddity was the disappearance of all photographs featuring Amy after the formal dinner, suggesting a possible attempt to erase evidence.

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FBI Involvement and Investigation Flaws

The initial search for Amy was hampered by the cruise ship officials’ reluctance to involve everyone on board. Punishing jurisdictional ambiguities and lack of cooperation from the ship's administration delayed effective investigation efforts.

[15:25]
Alison Brie (Ashley): "They won't even tell anyone... I feel like it's a little bit worse."

When the FBI eventually got involved, they identified gaps in the search protocols, particularly the superficial examination of common areas while neglecting secluded spots that could hold crucial evidence.

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Family's Pursuit of Justice

Determined to find their daughter, Amy's family embarked on a relentless pursuit of leads. A Private Investigator, Frank Jones, was brought in with promises of locating Amy. However, this turned out to be a devastating con, as Frank exploited the family's desperation for financial gain.

[35:20]
Alison Brie (Ashley): "This guy is just using your money to live the good life here on the island."

The fraud not only stripped the family of $24,000 but also cost them valuable time that could have been used to find Amy. This betrayal compounded their grief and distrust in those who were supposed to assist.

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Ongoing Efforts and Conclusion

Years passed with sporadic leads, including a sighting by a Canadian scuba diver and an online advertisement featuring a woman resembling Amy. Despite these glimmers of hope, no substantial evidence has surfaced to confirm Amy's whereabouts.

[37:48]
Alison Brie (Ashley): "He didn't realize how important what he saw was until he got back to the States and saw a story about Amy."

The case remains unresolved, serving as a haunting reminder of the vulnerabilities and complexities surrounding missing persons cases, especially in isolated environments like cruise ships.

[39:05]
Unknown Speaker (Brit): "You can definitely see the similarities... both women have really high, defined cheekbones..."

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Calls to Action and Final Thoughts

In wrapping up, Ashley emphasizes the importance of community involvement in solving such cases. She urges listeners to stay vigilant and proactive in sharing information that could lead to breakthroughs.

[42:30]
Ashley Flowers: "Don't forget about these people because their families need you looking."

The episode concludes with a poignant reminder of the ongoing search for Amy Bradley and the collective responsibility to aid in uncovering the truth.

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Notable Quotes

• Ashley Flowers [04:16]: "Amy’s story begins in March of 1998... This was going to be one last trip for the family to remember."

• Alison Brie (Ashley) [09:05]: "Amy and Brad were even photographed together on this fancy dinner night by the cruise ship photographer. And this is one of the most infamous pictures in Amy's case because it was the last still photograph taken of Amy on the ship."

• Ashley Flowers [24:29]: "Yellow was lying about when he last saw Amy... this is a lie."

• Alison Brie (Ashley) [35:20]: "This guy is just using your money to live the good life here on the island."

• Unknown Speaker (Brit) [39:05]: "You can definitely see the similarities... both women have really high, defined cheekbones..."

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Final Remarks

Crime Junkie's detailed examination of Amy Bradley’s disappearance sheds light on the myriad challenges in resolving such cases. From investigative oversights to fraudulent exploitation, the episode underscores the complexity and emotional toll associated with missing persons investigations. As the episode concludes, listeners are left with a blend of sorrow and hope, urging them to remain engaged and supportive of ongoing efforts to find Amy.

For those seeking more information or wanting to contribute to Amy Bradley's case, Crime Junkie provides resources and encourages the community to stay connected through their website and social media channels.

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Stay Connected:

• Website: crimejunkiepodcast.com
• Instagram: @CrimeJunkiePodcast
• Twitter: @crimejunkiepod

This episode is a production of audiochuck Media Company.

Transcript

[Ashley Flowers]

Hi Crime Junkies, it's Ashley Flowers. And listen, if you're the kind of crime junkie who presses play the moment a new episode drops, or you're always wishing there was just one more case for you to dive into, then the Crime Junkie Fan Club was made for you. In the Crime Junkie Fan Club, you get early ad free access to all episodes of Crime Junkie that you listen to. Each week you get additional exclusive episodes of Crime Junkie that you haven't heard, other bonus content you can't find anywhere else, and so much more. So for more Crime Junkie, join the Crime Junkie Fan club today. Visit crimejunkiepodcast.com fanclub. That's crimejunkiepodcast.com Fanclub to learn more and.

[Britt]

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[Alison Brie]

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[Alison Brie]

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[Britt]

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[Ashley Flowers]

High crime junkies. You are all asking me did I watch Amy Bradley is missing on Netflix.

[Alison Brie]

Boo.

[Ashley Flowers]

I watched all three episodes before lunchtime on the day it came out. No one can out Crime Junkie. The Crime Junkie and listen, I have thoughts. I actually even met with the team that put out the doc at Netflix, like the day before it came out. And even they were divided on what happened. So I get why all of you are talking about this, debating this. And I actually noticed that our old episode on Amy's case has spiked over the last week. People are going back and digging in the archive for it. So I wanted to make life super easy on all of you who haven't been with us since the beginning and put it at the top of the feed. Now listen, be kind. Our episode is like six years old. We were baby crime junkies, but it holds up. And may this be the lesson to you. If you want to know about the most interesting cases years before the rest of the world is talking about them, Crime Junkie is the show to follow. Jody Husentruit doc on Hulu already covered it. Yogurt shop doc coming out on HBO Max already covered it. Let me be your crime junkie guide. So re listen to our episode, then go watch the Netflix doc because there is a little bit of new information around what was going on in Amy's life leading up to her disappearance. And then some real interesting stuff about website pings that show someone where Amy went missing is real interested in her case. All right everyone, enjoy this blast from the past.

[Alison Brie]

Hi crime Junkies. I'm your host, Ashley Flowers.

[Unknown]

And I'm Britt.

[Alison Brie]

And today I want to talk about a type of case that terrifies me to my core. And that's when someone goes missing from a cruise ship.

[Unknown]

That seems pretty specific. And like, I know I have like my ride or die freaky case of Tonya Ryder. But why cruise ships? Why out of all the dark things that we talk about, cruise ships are your thing.

[Alison Brie]

Because if you are going to go missing, literally the worst place it can happen is in international waters on a moving vessel. The search area is just so vast. There are so many possibilities, many of.

[Unknown]

Which no one's responsibilities, right?

[Alison Brie]

And it can all be dead ends. Nobody knows who's supposed to like, take charge. I've been on two cruises myself, and don't get me wrong, they are fun and they are, but I don't think people realize how common it is for people to go missing from ships and then never be found. Since the year 2000, there are over 200 people that have just disappeared from cruise ships. And I could probably do an entire series just on that. In fact, we're releasing this episode on our main feed today, this Monday. But tomorrow we're releasing an entirely different kind of cruise ship mystery. And these two cases don't even begin to scratch the surface. So I hope no one has a cruise ship vacation planned anytime soon because after you hear the story of Amy Lynn Bradley's disappearance, you might just be a little extra paranoid on your tr. Amy's story begins in March of 1998. Amy was just 23 years old and a recent college graduate who just got her own apartment and was about to start life really out on her own. Amy had just secured a full time job and her family decided before she started they should all go on one more family vacation. Amy, her mother Iva, her dad ron, and her 21 year old brother Brad, who was still in college. This was going to be one last trip for the family to remember, like their life together before their kids started having their own lives and becoming adults and having their own kids.

[Ashley Flowers]

You know what I mean?

[Alison Brie]

Like that last family trip.

[Unknown]

Yeah, definitely. My we went to the Niagara Falls.

[Alison Brie]

Oh. And my family did the same thing. Like we had this, you know, everyone's kind of growing up and like, let's just do one more family thing together. So they board their cruise ship, Rhapsody of the Sea in San Juan, Puerto Rico. The ship was massive and held almost 2,000 people. It had fine dining, pools, entertainment. It looks like a blast. But the Bradleys had no way of knowing that what they expected to be the most fun, relaxing part of their year would actually turn out to be the worst, most devastating time of their lives. And a trip I'm sure they've thought back on a hundred times, wishing they wouldn't have taken it, wishing maybe they would have listened to Amy's instincts because Amy didn't want to go. Amy was incredibly apprehensive of going on the cruise, even though she was a strong swimmer and had been on the swim team in high school with her brother. She didn't like the idea of going out on the open ocean in this big boat. Something wasn't sitting right with her. And this is where, like, it catches me. I wonder how much of her fears were just general anxiety. The kinds of things that a lot of people have to push through to experience new and wonderful things in life. Like my husband, he is deathly afraid of flying every single time, but he pushes through. And some of our best memories are on trips that we've taken together. We. But what if what Amy was feeling was something more? What if she had some kind of sense of something bad that was going to happen? But no one knew how to interpret that and her family didn't. They thought her fears were completely unfounded. And her brother pushed her heart, telling Amy this was going to be an amazing trip, nothing bad would happen. People take cruises every single day and they're totally fine. Amy finally relented, agreeing to take the trip. And so she, with a smile across her face, boarded the cruise ship. And when she got on, she saw what all the fuss was about. The ship was gorgeous. The cabin she and her brother shared with their parents was spacious and beautiful, with a balcony overlooking the ocean. For the next two days, Amy had the time of her life soaking up the sun, swimming, dancing and spending time with her family. The second night the Bradleys were on the ship, the they got totally decked out for a fancy dinner. Like Brit, I don't know if you've been on a cruise, but they always have.

[Unknown]

I have, I've been on a couple.

[Alison Brie]

Okay. Yeah. So they have their like fancy dinner nights where you.

[Unknown]

The formal night.

[Alison Brie]

Yeah, yeah. You're like going to prom, basically. Amy and Brad were even photographed together on this fancy dinner night by the cruise ship photographer. And this is one of the most infamous pictures in Amy's case because it was the last still photograph taken of Amy on the ship. After dinner, the family went to their room, changed out of their dress clothes and went to the upper deck of the ship for this calypso party. There was this live band, people were dancing and drinking. It was a blast. Around one o' clock in the morning, Amy's parents, Iva and Ron, decide that it's time to throw in the towel. They find the kids, say goodnight to each of them before heading off. Now, after Iva and Ron leave, Brad and Amy decide to follow the young crowd down to the ship's nightclub. They went together at the same time, but they weren't really like hanging out together. Brad had met some girls, Amy was kind of doing her own thing too. It doesn't seem that Amy hung out with like just one person the whole time. It seemed like she kind of mingled with a number of different people that night. Some other ship passengers, some of the crew members, and specifically at least one of the members of the ship's band called Blue Orchid. And this guy was their bass player named Alistair Douglas and his nickname was yellow. Now, around 3:35 ish in the morning, Brad decides that he's going to call it a night and he goes back to the room alone, leaving Amy dancing in the club. When he gets back to the cabin, he decides to sit on the balcony for A while. And it's not too long before he hears the door open and he knows Amy is in as well. She joins him on the balcony and they start to talk for a little while about their plans for the next day. Or I guess actually it'd be the same day since it was around 4 in the morning at this point. Like, I miss being young and staying up that late. I need so much sleep now. So that day the ship was scheduled to be docking in Curacao for the day and there's gonna be a ton of new things to see. They're talking about their day on the island, they chit chat for a little bit, and then Brad decides to go to bed, but Amy says she wants to stay out in the fresh air. Now it's amazing how much this next part gets misreported because I've seen at least five different timelines of what happened, but the best I can piece it together, sometime before sunrise, Amy's dad wakes up in his room. And from his bed he can see out onto the balcony. And he sees Amy still sitting there. And he thinks, like any dad, like, oh, good, the kids are back, everyone's safe, I don't have to worry. And he falls back asleep. He closes his eyes for what feels like just a couple of minutes, but realistically, it could have been a little bit longer. You know how sometimes you wake up early before your alarm and you're like, great, more time. And then you, yeah, you close your eyes for what feels like 20 seconds and it's like 45 minutes.

[Unknown]

Yes.

[Alison Brie]

So we don't know exactly how long he closed his eyes for, but it didn't feel like long when something woke him back up. He doesn't know what it was. Maybe he heard something. Maybe he just woke up on his own. He couldn't be sure, but he knew he was startled awake this time. He peeks at the clock and it's about 6 o' clock in the morning. When he looks out onto the balcony, Amy isn't there. He gets up, he checks his kid's room and Brad is in the bed. But Amy isn't. The only thing missing is her cigarettes and her lighter and even her shoes are still in the room. And this is also where I see a lot of misreporting. Many articles say that she left the room with her cigarettes and lighter and no shoes, but we don't know that for sure. We just know what's missing. Maybe it's the sound of the door closing that woke her dad. Maybe she left, but we just don't know. So Ron decides to go look around for her, even though he said he wasn't super worried at the time. He thought maybe she'd gone to one of the upper decks for a smoke or to take some. Some pictures. Now, to me, this is a little bit weird. And before I go into why I think it's weird, I don't think her family had anything to do with her disappearance. I think maybe deep down, he was a little more worried than he actually put on, because the ship is massive. There are no cell phones. So to just walk around and try and locate someone, to me, seems almost impossible. Like I said, I went on a cruise recently with my family back in, like, 2004. 14ish. And we couldn't find each other even when we were looking for each other and we were on a ship that was like, half this size.

[Unknown]

Yeah. On one of the cruises that I went on, it was with my entire extended family, and one of my cousins had gone back to the room with a parent, and a bunch of cousins were napping in one room. And this cousin woke up and walked out, and she was only like, five, and we had no idea she was even missing until her name got, like, blasted over the big speaker and we all kind of went running for her because no one knew where anybody else was.

[Alison Brie]

Yeah, you cannot find people. And, like, I mean, because if you imagine you're walking, they're walking. You could literally just be doing circles. So unless.

[Unknown]

Oh, yeah. And miss each other every single time.

[Alison Brie]

Right. So unless he knew she hung out somewhere very specific. I just don't get it. But he walks the ship, he doesn't see her on the deck, doesn't see her in the halls. Minute by minute, he's getting more panicked. And while he's looking, he runs into the head of security for the ship and he tells them that his daughter is missing. Now, this is about an hour in. Again, I have to think there is some kind of parental instinct kicking in, because I don't think I would tell the head of security right away, especially if I hadn't been back to the cabin. But Ron knew something was wrong. He alerts security and then goes back to the stateroom and wakes up Iva in a panic. She said that when she opened her eyes, she could barely even recognize him, he was so frazzled. She hops out of bed, puts on some clothes and starts to help him look, but she's like, this is crazy. The ship is huge. We need help. We have to go tell someone. They Go to some of the officials on the boat and ask them to make an announcement that they're looking for her a lot like they did for your little cousin. But Amy was not a little five year old girl. She was 23. And the ship officials refuse. They say that they don't want to panic the other passengers.

[Unknown]

So it's like the runaway versus missing person dilemma we have here on land.

[Alison Brie]

Yeah, but I feel like it's a little bit worse. Like, I mean they won't even tell anyone. I feel you have everyone there who could see her, like all in one place and they won't make an announcement like, hey, everyone, just look around you and see if you see this girl.

[Unknown]

It might just be because I'm a crime junkie, but I feel like I wouldn't panic that much. I would just want to try to help participate in finding this girl. Right?

[Alison Brie]

Yeah, like this does not drop a bomb to me on anyone's vacation. It's just saying like, hey, I would.

[Unknown]

Just be more excited. I'm sorry.

[Alison Brie]

Yeah, I'm gonna like if we can help out. But like hey, just look around because again, I would want someone to do it for me. I would be happy to look around for someone else 100%. But the ship officials weren't having it and things were about to get much worse.

[Ashley Flowers]

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[Alison Brie]

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[Alison Brie]

At the height of the family's panic, when the ship officials won't announce that Amy is missing, the ship is already docked at the next stop in Curacao. They were about to lose total control of the situation. If something happened to Amy on the ship, they needed to search everywhere. They needed to question everyone. But if they were going to let everyone off the ship to dock and, like, go explore the island, they could lose Amy and any hope of finding her. They beg the officials, please, please do not let people off. We have to find our daughter. But at the end of the day, these people had a business to run. They don't have to follow any kind of U.S. laws. The jurisdiction is really super fuzzy. And this is what is most terrifying to me. There are no law enforcement on the ships. They have security, but no one is concerned with preserving a crime scene. At the end of the day, that security works for the big business. And thousands of passengers disembark off the ship to the island of Curacao. While they're gone, ship officials do conduct a formal search of the ship, but they find no sign of Amy. So the family's like, what now? Can we stay here and question everyone when they get back on? And again, like, the people are like, no way. We have a schedule to keep. Like, we're going to keep going, stop by, stop by, stop. But if we know she's not on here, maybe she got off. So if you want, you guys can get off here and find your own way home.

[Unknown]

What a decision to make. You have to get back on the boat, right?

[Alison Brie]

Well, the Bradley family is just kind of looking at themselves and, like, there's no instruction book for this. What do you do? So they decide if they're telling them they've completely searched the ship and she's not here, then maybe someone has taken her off and she's on the island. So they gather their things, they leave the ship, and it's the most tragic thing. Like, I heard an interview from her dad, Ron, and he said, you know, we're in the island of Curacao, our daughter is missing. We have our bags. We have no clue how to begin looking for her. And we're just like looking out at the end of the night at this boat after everyone's redocked. There's lights and you can hear music, and everyone's having a good time. And these poor people are just totally lost and totally devastated in a totally foreign country. Well.

[Unknown]

And you have no idea if she's.

[Britt]

Still on that boat or not.

[Unknown]

I mean, it has to be in the back of your mind, right?

[Alison Brie]

Absolutely. So they decide to find the local American Embassy to ask for some help. They can at least begin to search the ocean, because, of course, this is one of the many possibilities looming in everyone's mind. Amy was last seen on the balcony. Maybe, maybe she fell overboard. Maybe she went to have a smoke and fell overboard somewhere else on the ship. But if anyone thought this was going to be a simple search, they were sorely mistaken, because there wasn't even a time that they could pinpoint as to when she went missing. We know she was seen around, like, the early morning dawn hours. Then we know she's not in her room around six. But if she did leave her room and maybe fell overboard somewhere else, like, this search window is much, much wider, and a cruise ship can cover vast distances in that time. They bring in helicopters and boats and the Coast Guard to search the path of the ship, but nothing is found, just empty ocean. During the search, the FBI was also brought in to investigate more sinister possibilities. Did someone do something to Amy on the ship? Or is it possible someone was able to take her off? The family learns from the FBI that perhaps they made a mistake by getting off the ship. They found out that there really wasn't a thorough search done. Really, all security had done was to look in the common areas and in the bathrooms, but they left all of the other nooks and crannies on the ship untouched. So the Bradleys decide they need to get back on that ship and they want the FBI with them. So they hop a flight to St. Thomas to meet the FBI, where the cruise ship had its next scheduled stop so that they can all get back on together. They know that they are running against a clock. Here at least everyone is still in one place. But they don't have long before the cruise is over and all of their witnesses and potential suspects scatter back to their lives all over the world. The FBI does eventually get on the ship to do their own search. And a very fuzzy outline of Amy's last movements comes into picture. A man comes forward who was filming a promotional video for the cruise liner. He was in the nightclub that night and had what we now know is the last footage of Amy on the cruise ship. And she isn't alone. He gives this footage to the security officers on the ship. And what we see is Amy. She's dancing at the nightclub. She is very near to a man whose name we've heard before. Alistair Douglas, AKA Yellow. He was the one who was a member of the band. And the video confirms what people had been hearing from other witnesses, that Amy was seen with him dancing, seen with him over and over through different parts of the night. And there's something a little bit hinky about this tape. So, like I mentioned, the guy who took it gave a copy to the cruise ship security. And he gets this call from them that's like, we want the original. And he's like, I don't give the original to anybody ever. Like, that's not something I'm gonna do. And he's like. They're like, well, the FBI are gonna want the original. And he's like, that's fine. You have the FBI.

[Unknown]

The FBI can ask for it, right?

[Alison Brie]

You have them contact me. Well, the FBI never contacts him. He never hears from anyone again. And years later, to fast forward a little bit, he sees Amy's story on TV a couple of times, and the tape that he took, the last tape of her dancing with this guy who she was last seen with, is never shown, never even mentioned. And so he finally makes contact with the family and finds out that a year later, the family had never heard about this footage. And it seems very suspicious, Almost like the cruise ship was trying to bury it because one of their employees was seen with her.

[Unknown]

Yeah.

[Alison Brie]

Now, while nothing nefarious happens on the tape, this guy Yellow becomes someone of interest in the FBI's mind because they are seen dancing closer and closer together throughout the night. And at one point, they're seen holding hands. Now, Amy's seen on this video on and off with yellow. Around 3am the last time Amy is seen, we get a quick shot of her dancing alone near the elevators, and it looks like she's waiting for the elevator. And this is around 3:35, the same time her brother is getting into his room. And just five minutes later, Amy's key swipes into their room as well. Now the FBI are looking closer at Yellow. They bring him in for questioning and a polygraph, and his story isn't lining up. He tells the agents that he last saw Amy around 1:00'. Clock. They had a drink at the nightclub and then he took the staff elevators to his room to go to bed. But we know from that video that that's a lie. He was dancing with her around 3 o' clock in the morning. Now, when Brad learns that the FBI is looking at Yellow, he gets chills when he remembers an encounter he had with him. Something that didn't stand out at the time, but looking back, he should have realized was all wrong. The very morning Amy disappeared. In the height of the family's panic, Brad was sitting at a table by the pool pool when Yellow came up to him and told him he was sorry to hear about his sister. Now, at the time, Brad didn't think anything of it. But now that the FBI are interviewing people and Yellow's name keeps popping up, something strikes him as really odd. How exactly did he know something had happened to Amy? Yellow had approached Brad in the early morning hours before any announcements had been made to the ship's crew. Yellow would later say that a staff member had woken him up very early to ask him if he knew where she was since he was with her the night before. But no staff even knew Amy was missing except her dad. He said someone came to his door at 6am the only person who knew she was gone then was her dad. Her mom and her brother didn't even know. And security didn't start going around asking crew members about Amy until closer to 7:30 or 8. So again, we know this is a lie. To compound suspicion, two girls found the Bradley family after they had gotten back on the ship to tell them that they saw Amy and yellow together around 5:45 in the morning. They were getting off of an elevator and actually going back into the nightclub where Yellow gave Amy a dark drink, what they suspected to be coke or maybe coffee. So maybe she did leave her room and maybe Yellow was with her around 5:45 or 6 in the morning. But either way, he was definitely lying. And Brad kept thinking back to that interaction. How did Yellow know something had happened to his sister before everyone else? Now, Brad wasn't the only one. Looking back on circumstances from earlier with a new lens, the family remembered something that happened at their fancy dinner. And at the time it seemed like a total fluke and totally harmless. I mentioned that the family had had their pictures taken by a professional photographer before going to dinner. Well, if you aren't familiar with cruise ships, they basically take your picture and then while you're eating, they print all of them out. And post them up on board. So when you come out, you, like, find your picture, maybe buy it for a souvenir if you want. Well, the family comes out to look at their pictures, and every single picture that had Amy in it were missing.

[Unknown]

Wait, seriously?

[Alison Brie]

Yeah, every single one. And the photographer said that he distinctly remembered printing them out, so someone had to have come and taken them. But the FBI and the family were never able to to determine who. To this day, the FBI questioned multiple people on the ship, and they interviewed Yellow extensively. But they never had enough information to determine what happened to Amy or to make any kind of arrest. Eventually, the ship docked and everyone left, going back to their normal lives. But the Bradleys never could. How can they go home when their daughter, their sister, was still missing? A month goes by, and back in Virginia, where the Bradleys live, they've made a website for Amy. They've tried to get national news attention for Amy, but nothing seems to help. Brad and Ron make trips back to Curacao to search. And truthfully, they don't even know if they're searching in the right place. It's just one place they know to start. And they wouldn't know if they were on the right track until May of 19, 1999, when a new lead comes in that gives the family new hope. America's Most Wanted featured Amy's case, and a hot tip comes in. A Canadian scuba diver named David calls in and says that In August of 1998, just five months after Amy went missing, he was on the beach in Curacao and he saw this girl being walked along the beach by two tough looking men. And he said that, like, there was this weird interaction where she. He felt like she wanted to tell him something, but these men intervened and he said that it looked exactly like the picture of the girl on America's Most Wanted. And I'm sure at first whoever was taking this tip was a little bit skeptical. But the caller went on to described Amy's very distinctive tattoos. She has this gecko tattoo on her stomach, she has one on her ankle. She has this Tasmanian devil that she designed herself on her shoulder blade. And the FBI said that it was the most credible lead that they had gotten. And they send their local people out to canvas looking for her. But again, this call came in eight months after David had actually seen her. And the FBI weren't able to find whoever this woman was, if it was Amy. When August of 1999 rolls around, the family decides to take a more proactive approach. They are introduced to a Private investigator, a man named Frank Jones. Frank says he is an ex Special Forces, and he has a team of men who specialize in these recovery kinds of missions, like getting people out who've been captured, who are kidnapped. But he says, let me do some poking around first. Let me see if I can find out anything about Amy and whether or not she's really even here. Not too long after, Frank comes back to them with amazing, amazing news. Amy is alive, and she is on the island. She's been seen on the beach in the company of a couple of, like, scary dudes, which fits exactly with what the other stories that they've been hearing. Now, Frank says he can hire a team to get her out, but he needs $24,000 to put this plan into action. The family sell their car. They, like, raise the money. They give it to Frank and his team, go away for a while, and then they report back to the family that he's made contact with the men. They do have Amy, and now they're demanding a ransom for her return. He's like, listen, we aren't playing their ransom games. I think I can go in with my team and do recovery operation and get her out, but it's going to be pricey. I need about $100,000 to make this happen. Of course, the Bradleys are going to pay anything to get their daughter back, but they're no dummies. And so they say, we want proof of life. Give us something so that we know you have eyes on her. So Frank gets them some pictures. What we see in the pictures is this woman walking the beach. You don't see her face. She has a hat on, but she has the same tattoos as Amy, and this is enough for the family. They send Frank the money, and he lays out this plan and then tells the Bradleys, all right, what we're doing is dangerous. So I need you to be ready to take Amy as soon as we get her. I need you to get to Miami and wait for my call. When I call, have a jet ready to come and get her out. We won't have any time to waste. So the Bradleys pack a bag for Amy. They're thinking they're going to see her for the first time in years. Her mom sets up doctor's appointments for when she gets back. They fly to Miami. They wait by the phone for the call that they've literally waited for for years. And they wait, and they keep waiting an entire week. They wait in Miami before getting a call from Frank Jones. Something terrible had happened. He had to abort the mission because a gunfight broke out when they were trying to get her and some of his men were injured. The Bradleys are absolutely devastated. They didn't know what to do, where to turn, or if there would ever be another opportunity for Frank to rescue their daughter. As they're packing up their bags to head back for Virginia, they get another phone call that changes everything.

[Britt]

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[Alison Brie]

A man the Bradleys had never met calls their hotel and tells him, hey, look, I'm working with Frank Jones and I think he's scamming you. I just overheard a conversation he had with you telling about all this stuff he's been doing about us watching all these people. We haven't done any, any of that and from what I can tell, this guy is just using your money to live the good life here on the island.

[Unknown]

Oh, I was so scared of this and it sounded like it wasn't going to go in this direction.

[Alison Brie]

Yeah, unfortunately, this isn't the first time I've heard of this happening on a missing person's case. This is actually all too common. And con artists will come out of the woodwork to prey on and get money from desperate families. And there better be a special place in hell for a person who would take advantage of a family at their absolute lowest.

[Unknown]

I mean, yeah, they're awful for taking the family's money when they're hurting, but honestly, that's not even the worst part to me. Like, how much time was lost jerking around with this guy. You think he's finding your daughter, but maybe you're looking in the wrong place altogether, and your daughter is a completely different place and is actually needing help.

[Alison Brie]

That is exactly what the family said. Like, yeah, he robbed them, but money can be replaced. There is nothing more critical in a missing person's case than time, and they can never get that back.

[Unknown]

Did Frank ever have any repercussions for what he did to the family?

[Alison Brie]

Yes, he was prosecuted for fraud and sent to jail and ordered to repay the family their money. But the family was more distraught than ever after this. At least before, they had some kind of hope that she was alive, that maybe they had a chance of getting her. Now they weren't even sure if Amy was alive anymore. And they didn't get another solid lead until May of 2002. This is when a young American man comes forward. He had been in the military and was in Curacao years before at a brothel when a woman came up to him after she noticed him speaking English, and she said, I'm Amy Bradley, and I need your help. And this guy is super confused. He doesn't know what this is about. And he's like, you know, there's like, a Navy ship just down the way. Like, if you need help, go ask them. And she's like, you don't understand. I can't leave. I need you to help me. But the woman got pulled away by some men. And the guy never reported this.

[Unknown]

Did he just not take her seriously?

[Alison Brie]

Well, the reason he said he never came forward before was because he was on active duty and he wasn't supposed to be in a brothel. He could have gotten in a lot of trouble. And, you know, it's everyone else's problem. I think that's, like, a bad attitude everyone has. This woman is specifically asking him for help. He doesn't want to get in trouble, and I'm sure someone else will help Her. He didn't realize how important what he saw was until he got back to the States and saw a story about Amy. And he remembered her name because of that interaction. And that's when he alerted authorities. But this was years after he saw her. By the time they were even able to check this out, the brothel had burnt to the ground, and they were no closer to finding Amy. Years keep ticking by slowly until another lead comes out of the Caribbean. In 2005, there is an online advertisement for sex workers in the Caribbean. And there's a woman on there called Jazz who looks so much like Amy and Britt. I'm gonna send you these pictures so you can describe for our listeners like, the comparisons between the two.

[Unknown]

Oh, wow. You can definitely see the similarities to the cheekbones. Both women have really high, defined cheekbones and almost a square chin, I think I'd say. And even the shape of their noses is similar. It's a very nice, thin nose. I envy the nose, honestly.

[Alison Brie]

Great nose. But even the shape of her eyebrows are the same, which is something you can't change drastically without the help of a ton of makeup. And in the first picture, she's not wearing any.

[Unknown]

And the height of the forehead, too, the distance from the eyebrow to the hairline, her.

[Alison Brie]

Like, her lips look the same. This is. I mean, it's very, very similar. Granted, the woman who's from the Caribbean website, she looks a little bit older. She looks like she's been through some stuff, which, I mean, this is years later. And if we're to believe Amy had been sold into some kind of sex slavery, this is very close to what you would imagine that she looks like. So the family had this picture sent to a single specialist who now works for the FBI, and he said he would literally bet his career on the fact that this was Amy. But even if it was picture in hand, they weren't able to track it back to any person or any specific location. This picture is just shy of being 15 years old now, and there have been no solid leads since then. The prevailing theories I think you'll hear online is maybe it's possible that she fell over the balcony, but I highly doubt it. What people have said is they were so close to Curacao that the waters weren't treacherous. She could have probably kept swimming until those search parties came for her. She was a strong swimmer. She had been on her swim team in high school. And more than that, the railings on a cruise ship are at least three and a half feet high. They are designed so that you can't just tumble over them. That would be a disaster if anyone near the railing just fell over. The only way people tend to fall over is that if they're climbing the railing. And everyone says that Amy would have never done that. Even if she was intoxicated, she's not going to climb the railing. So the other theory is maybe something happened to her on the boat and that was covered up, but there was no sign of that. There was no blood, there was no crime scene. So the most widely accepted theory is that Amy was sold into sex trafficking. A lot of people think that perhaps she was drugged by Yellow that morning when those girls saw him give her a drink. Maybe he transported her in the staff elevator. And her family even thinks like the reason that all of her pictures were missing is that she was targeted somehow. But I always wonder what made her a target. Like she, she was there with her family, who would notice that she was missing and it was at the very beginning of the trip. But maybe these people knew what they were doing because if that was her fate, they have been able to get away with it for over 20 years. There are over 200 other people who are missing from these ships. And that's all we know right now. But this is the beauty of podcasts, everyone. TV might have a bigger audience sometimes, but it doesn't reach everyone everywhere. Our show can be downloaded by anyone anywhere. Someone in Curacao could be listening right now. Someone who's seen Amy where they live or where they were on vacation. Her family is still looking for her. Every day, waking up, hoping that today will be the day that someone finds her. So don't wait years to report something. We always post pictures of the missing people we talk about on our blog. Please take a minute and go look at those. Have those pictures in the back of your mind as you go about your life. You might be the person who runs into Amy or Bryce Laspisa or Caitlin Akins. Don't forget about these people because their families need you looking. And if you have any information, we are going to post a link to the FBI's TIP site on our website, crimejunkiepodcast.com Again, you guys can go to our website, crimejunkiespodcast.com to see all of the photos that we talked about about in today's case and to get the link to the FBI's tip site. You can also follow us on social.

[Unknown]

Media, on Instagram @CrimeJunkie podcast and on Twitter crimejunkiepod.

[Alison Brie]

And if this episode interests you, if you want to learn more about these cruise ship disappearances again. We're doing another episode that we're dropping tomorrow on Patreon. That's patreon.com crimejunkie or you can get to it from our website. And we will be back next week with a brand new episode. Crime Junkie is an audio Chuck production. So what do you think Chuck? Do you approve?

[Unknown]

Ben hadn't had a decent night's sleep in a month, so during one of his restless nights, he booked a package trip abroad on Expedia. When he arrived at his beachside hotel, he discovered a miraculous bed slung between two trees and fell into the best.

[Dave Franco]

Sleep of his life.

[Unknown]

You were made to be rechargeable. We were made to package flights and hotels and hammocks for less. Expedia Made to travel did you know.

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