Podcast
The Vanished Podcast
Hosted by Audible · EN
The Vanished is a true crime podcast that explores the stories of those who have gone missing. The Vanished goes beyond conventional news reports to take a deep dive into the story of a different missing person each week. Host Marissa Jones brings you exclusive interviews with family members, friends, law enforcement and experts. What will The Vanished uncover next?
Audible subscribers can listen to all episodes of The Vanished Podcast ad-free right now. Join Audible today by downloading the Audible app.
110episodes
Episodes
Newest firstAll episodes
Dan Davis
Jan 1901:07:22Tap to summarizeIn the days leading up to Thanksgiving 2025, the family and friends of 59-year-old Daniel Davis began to grow increasingly concerned. Dan was known as deeply reliable. His coworkers couldn’t even remember him missing a single day of work in decades. Much of Dan’s life revolved around his job at 115 Bourbon Street, a well-known music venue in Merrionette Park, Illinois, a southwest suburb just outside the city of Chicago.They soon learned that Dan had been involved in a car accident late on the night of Monday, November 24. After the crash, Dan was dropped off at his workplace, where he walked inside and briefly greeted the two remaining coworkers. In the early morning hours of November 25, Dan was seen walking away from 115 Bourbon Street.Once Dan's loved ones learned about the accident, questions immediately followed. Where was he, and why wasn’t he answering calls or text messages? Had Dan sought medical attention afterward? As hours passed without contact, it became clear that something was wrong. Dan was reported missing to the Chicago Police Department, and surveillance footage began to surface.Almost immediately, they noticed something troubling. The surveillance footage was bizarre, but it didn’t clearly point to what had happened or where Dan might have gone. When they entered his apartment, they found items left in a manner out of character, deepening the confusion rather than providing answers. The final known surveillance video of Dan was recorded on Wednesday, November 26, around 6:30 p.m. Dan was seen exiting a church in Blue Island, Illinois, a community just south of Chicago. After that moment, Dan Davis vanished without a trace.Despite exhaustive search efforts by law enforcement, family, friends, and volunteers, no further confirmed sightings or answers have emerged. Nearly two months later, what happened to Dan Davis remains a mystery.If you have any information about the disappearance of Dan Davis, please contact the Chicago Police Department Area 2 Special Victims Unit at (312) 747-8274.If you have a missing loved one that you would like to have featured on the show, please fill out our case submission form.Follow The Vanished on social media at:FacebookInstagramPatreonSee Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.
Transcribe →
Robert Maguire
Jan 1201:01:37Tap to summarizeOn January 12, 2025, 50-year-old Robert Maguire, known to those closest to him as Bobby, said goodbye to his father and boarded a bus in Wilmington, Delaware. His destination was Scranton, Pennsylvania. Those cities are only about 2 to 3 hours apart, but the route the bus Bobby boarded included a stop at the Port Authority Bus Terminal in New York City, where he was expected to transfer to a second bus bound for Scranton. On the other end of the trip, Bobby’s cousin was waiting for a call to let him know he had arrived and was ready to be picked up. That call never came.At first, the silence did not raise an immediate alarm. Bobby’s cousin assumed he had decided not to make the trip. His family in Delaware believed he had arrived safely. As more time passed with no word from Bobby, those assumptions fell away, and the family realized something was wrong. What makes Bobby’s disappearance especially difficult is the uncertainty of where it occurred. Somewhere between Wilmington, New York City, and Scranton, Bobby vanished. With multiple buses, a major transit hub, and time unaccounted for, his last confirmed location remains unclear. This has left his family unsure where to focus their search. One year later, they’re still searching for answers.If you have any information about the disappearance of Robert Maguire, please contact the Wilmington Police Department at (302) 654-5151.If you have a missing loved one that you would like to have featured on the show, please fill out our case submission form.Follow The Vanished on social media at:FacebookInstagramPatreonSee Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.
Transcribe →
David Horn Jr.
Nov 17Tap to summarizeIt was Christmas Day 2017 when 35-year-old David Horn Jr. vanished from Marcus Hook, Pennsylvania. At the time, Dave was living alone just around the corner in Trainer. That evening, the Philadelphia Eagles were set to play the Raiders. Dave had been born and raised in the Philadelphia area and was a devoted Eagles fan. Spending a holiday night at a neighborhood pub to watch the game would not have been unusual for him. What was unusual was that as other fans were filing in to settle down for the Christmas night game, Dave walked out of the bar. No one ever saw or heard from him again.Dave had plans to leave for a trip to Las Vegas right after the holiday, so when he went quiet, friends and family assumed he was already there. But in early January, Dave’s father went to check on him and found an unsettling scene. Dave’s truck was still parked outside. Inside, the lights and TV were on, and his belongings appeared untouched. Even the plane tickets for his upcoming trip were sitting out in plain view. Then his father noticed the basement door had a broken window with what looked like blood on it.By then, precious days had already passed. As his family retraced his steps, they confirmed that the last known sighting of Dave was at the pub in Marcus Hook. They learned he had ordered an Uber that evening, but the ride was canceled. After that moment, his trail went cold. Nearly eight years later, Dave’s loved ones are still searching for answers about what happened that Christmas night and why he never made it home.If you have any information about the disappearance of David Horn Jr., please contact the Trainer Borough Police Department at (610) 494-7399.If you have a missing loved one that you would like to have featured on the show, please fill out our case submission form.Follow The Vanished on social media at:FacebookInstagramPatreonSee Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.
Transcribe →
Joel Judd
Sep 29Tap to summarizeIn the northern Alberta town of Slave Lake, the nights in late December are long and unforgiving. On December 28, 2019, 27-year-old Joel Judd was staying with a relative in town. By the end of that evening, he had set out for a night out. By the next morning, he was gone, and no one ever saw or heard from Joel again.That night in Slave Lake, Joel went to a local bar where he spent time with other patrons. As the night wore on, Joel left with a few of them. On their way to one person’s home, they stopped at a local inn to purchase alcohol. Joel phoned his uncle and told him he was with a friend. Eventually, the group arrived at the home, where the party continued late into the night. At some point in the early morning hours, according to those present, Joel got up and walked out. No one saw where he went, and he never came back.When Joel failed to return to his uncle's, his family grew concerned and later reported him missing. Investigators traced his steps, using banking records to confirm who he had been with that night, which led them to a house on Whitetail Way, a few miles west of Slave Lake’s city limits. Despite extensive searches of the property and the surrounding area, no sign of Joel has ever been found.Nearly six years later, his family is still searching for answers. Why did Joel leave that home in the middle of the night? Did something happen after he stepped outside? Is it even true that he walked out on his own? Or did something occur at that house party that has never been revealed? If you have any information regarding the disappearance of Joel Judd, please contact Slave Lake RCMP at 780-849-3045 and reference case#202015563. You may also contact Crime Stoppers at 1-800-222-TIPS (8477) or submit a tip online at https://www.canadiancrimestoppers.org/submit-a-tip/submit-a-tip.If you have a missing loved one that you would like to have featured on the show, please fill out our case submission form.Follow The Vanished on social media at:FacebookInstagramPatreonSee Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.
Transcribe →
David Shier Part 3: Hollow Answers
Jun 30, 2025Tap to summarizeOver the past two weeks, you’ve heard the story of David Shier, who vanished from Trinidad, Colorado, in February 2022, and the exhaustive search that followed. Despite the urgency, no clues surfaced. Dave's family was forced to reexamine every detail, lead, and possibility.On the morning of Dave's disappearance, he asked his wife to drive him to meet someone about a property. But who was that person? Why was his truck parked oddly, so unlike him? And what about the neighbor’s report of a white truck at the house around the time he disappeared?From the beginning, Dave’s loved ones felt law enforcement had dismissed his case as a medical emergency, simply an older man who had wandered off and passed away. However, for the family, when they didn't find him during the searches, they believed he deserved a thorough investigation.The last confirmed sighting was a trail camera image of Dave walking away from his home. For more than a year, the case stayed cold. Then, something unexpected happened. A grave was opened in Starkville Cemetery. It was supposed to contain one man, who had also been missing, but inside were two bodies.The coroner claimed both were buried in 2019, well before Dave vanished, but the man who performed the exhumation, a seasoned professional, said the second body seemed too intact to have been in the ground that long. That stopped the Shier family in their tracks.Dave’s wife watched the exhumation footage and couldn’t shake the bad feeling that overcame her when she noticed the outline of legs in a body bag that looked familiar. Could it be Dave? Could he have been buried without anyone telling his family?No matter who the second body was, what was unfolding at the cemetery disturbed the family deeply. The secrecy, inconsistencies, and lack of care were unacceptable. They believed no one should be buried without dignity, and no family should be left in the dark. So the Shiers acted, fighting for truth, transparency, and change.Last week, you heard how the Colorado Bureau of Investigation opened an inquiry into what happened in Las Animas County. This week, we take you inside that investigation, what it uncovered, how it ended, and where it leaves the Shier family now on their quest for answers.If you have information about the disappearance of David Shier, please contact the Las Animas County Sheriff's Office at 719-846-2211.If you have a missing loved one that you would like to have featured on the show, please fill out our case submission form.Follow The Vanished on social media at:FacebookInstagramPatreonSee Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.
Transcribe →
Charissa "Hazel Grace" Caster Part 1: Chaos Puzzle
Mar 10, 202501:12:59Tap to summarizeIn late July 2024, 32-year-old Charissa Caster vanished under mysterious circumstances, leaving behind a trail of unsettling clues. Her disappearance came to light when her belongings were found scattered along a roadway in Edmonds, Washington. Shortly after, her car was discovered abandoned near Sequim, WA, roughly 50 miles away. The last confirmed sighting of Charissa was captured on video, showing her picking flowers in the area, but after that, she seemingly disappeared without a trace.As the reality of her disappearance set in, Charissa’s loved ones immediately launched a search around the location where her car was found, but they turned up empty-handed. In a desperate attempt to piece together what happened, they began retracing her steps in the days and weeks before her July 2024 disappearance. To share what little information they had, they created a group chat to exchange details from their personal interactions with Charissa. Slowly, a haunting picture of her life in the lead-up to her disappearance began to emerge.But what do these fragmented pieces mean, and how might they help uncover what happened to Charissa?If you have any information regarding the disappearance of Charissa Caster, please contact the Edmonds Police Department at 425-771-0200.If you have a missing loved one that you would like to have featured on the show, please fill out our case submission form.Follow The Vanished on social media at:FacebookInstagramTwitterPatreonSee Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.
Transcribe →
Replay: Toby Anderson
Mar 3, 202501:08:53Tap to summarizeAt just 16 years old, Toby Anderson found himself tangled in a web of trouble. His teenage years were marked by hardship, pushing him to act out in ways that strained his relationships. Sent to a juvenile facility in Northern California, Toby was shuffled between different family members, struggling to find stability. Then, without warning, he vanished. Everyone assumed he had run away, a plausible scenario given his troubled past.Toby's father searched for him, reaching out to relatives across the country in hopes of tracking him down. But Toby never turned up. When his father passed away, the search slowly faded into the background.Decades later, a determined cousin became intrigued by the mystery surrounding Toby. As she dug deeper, she began to uncover startling truths that contradicted what she had been told. What she uncovered was not just puzzling, it was terrifying.If you have any information regarding the disappearance of Toby Anderson, please contact the Oregon State Police at (541) 776-6236.If you have a missing loved one that you would like to have featured on the show, please fill out our case submission form.Follow The Vanished on social media at:FacebookInstagramTwitterPatreonSee Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.
Transcribe →
Shannon Merry
Feb 24, 202501:06:39Tap to summarizeIt was Easter Sunday in 2013 when Shannon Merry's family last heard from her. During a phone call with her mother, who was in North Carolina while Shannon was in Ronkonkoma, New York, they had a disagreement, and the conversation ended on a sour note. After the call, Shannon's mother did not hear from her again and assumed that her daughter was upset. As time passed, Shannon's friends also noticed her absence; she stopped texting, calling, and posting on social media. Their concern grew as days turned into weeks, then months, and eventually years. Seven years later, they were finally able to have Shannon reported as a missing person.However, the considerable time that had passed since anyone had heard from Shannon posed significant challenges for law enforcement in their investigation. The lack of immediate leads, fading of physical evidence, and difficulties in tracking down new information after such a long period hindered investigators' efforts to piece together what happened to Shannon Merry.Today, Shannon's loved ones are appealing to the public for leads, hoping that someone will come forward with vital information. They believe that even the smallest clue could make a significant difference in their search and remain hopeful that the public’s assistance will bring them closer to finding Shannon.If you have any information regarding the disappearance of Shannon Merry, please call the Suffolk County Police Department Fourth Squad at 631-854-8452 or 911.If you have a missing loved one that you would like to have featured on the show, please fill out our case submission form.Follow The Vanished on social media at:FacebookInstagramTwitterPatreonSee Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.
Transcribe →
Roberta Michels-Hopkins
Feb 17, 202501:06:09Tap to summarizeIn February of 1981, Roberta Michels-Hopkins, a 29-year-old mother of two, disappeared from Camden, New Jersey, without a trace. The story goes that she left her home, heading out to buy a pack of cigarettes, and never returned. Roberta's sister said she received a phone call from the man Roberta was in a relationship with, asking if she had seen or heard from Roberta. This phone call prompted her sister to try to report Roberta as missing. However, no official record of a missing persons report was filed until 41 years later. Roberta's sister was told that Roberta had the right to disappear if she wanted to. It was as if Roberta had vanished, slipping through the cracks of time, and her name became seemingly forgotten.Roberta's son, who was an infant at the time of her disappearance, spent much of his childhood in foster care, lost in a world without answers. Years later, he had a daughter named Trinity, who would unknowingly step into a mystery much larger than she could have imagined. In 2019, just for fun, Trinity sent a DNA sample to one of those commercial databases, never expecting it to lead her to the unsettling truth that her grandmother had vanished and, shockingly, that no one had been searching for her.What began as a simple curiosity soon became an obsession for Trinity. She dug deeper, uncovering a tangled web of unanswered questions and missing pieces. By 2022, she had ensured that Roberta's disappearance was finally acknowledged by law enforcement, officially reporting her grandmother as a missing person. But how did Roberta's story remain buried for so long? The mystery still lingers, and Trinity is determined to uncover the truth.If you have any information regarding the disappearance of Roberta Michels-Hopkins, please contact Detective Geoffrey Chiumento of the Cinnaminson Township Police Department at 856-829-6667, ext. 2075, or the New Jersey State Police Missing Persons Unit at 609-882-2000, ext. 2554.If you have a missing loved one that you would like to have featured on the show, please fill out our case submission form.Follow The Vanished on social media at:FacebookInstagramTwitterPatreonSee Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.
Transcribe →
Tamala "Nikki" Wells
Feb 10, 202501:02:34Tap to summarizeIn early August 2012, 33-year-old Tamala “Nikki” Wells vanished from her Detroit, Michigan, home under mysterious circumstances, leaving her family in a state of confusion and despair. The last person to see Tamala, her boyfriend, claims she drove off from their home on the evening of August 6th in a white 2001 Pontiac Grand Prix, but after that, she disappeared without a trace.The following morning, Tamala’s mother, Donna, received a chilling call from her young granddaughter. She revealed that Tamala had not come home, sparking immediate concern. Donna, who lived in Florida, rushed to Detroit to help search for her daughter. What followed was a series of unsettling discoveries. Tamala’s car, reportedly driven by her on the night she disappeared, was found abandoned in a different part of town, but Tamala herself was nowhere to be found.As days turned into weeks, the case began to go cold. However, Tamala’s family believes that the investigation was mishandled from the start and that there is still hope of finding her. They are convinced that with a fresh look and renewed effort, this case could be solved.If you have any information about the disappearance of Tamala "Nikki" Wells, please contact the Detroit Police Department at (313) 596-2200 or Crime Stoppers at 1-800-Speak-Up.If you have a missing loved one that you would like to have featured on the show, please fill out our case submission form.Follow The Vanished on social media at:FacebookInstagramTwitterPatreonSee Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.
Transcribe →