Claim: Reachelle Marie Smith is missing from her Minot, North Dakota, home.
TRUE
Example: [Collected via e-mail, June 2006]
Please look out for this little one.
AMBER ALERT!!!!! Body: I need everyones help!!!! Please repost this ASAP. This is the daughter of a very close personal friend. Her worst nightmare came true as a parent. Her little girl was abducted by what they thought was a family friend. We need to get the word around so we can get this sweet little girl back to her family. Follow the instructions at the bottom to repost this message please!!
BEFORE YOU SKIP THIS, LOOK AT THE KID. DO IT AGAIN. NOW TRY TO REPOST. IT TAKES
SOMETHING GOOD.
Variations: An April 2009 version changed the missing girl's location to Tamworth, Australia.
Origins: The above-quoted message is a legitimate missing child alert. The girl pictured, three-year-old Reachelle Marie Smith, has been missing from her home in Minot, North Dakota, since
Initial reports indicated that Reachelle was believed to be in the company of a 22-year-old man named
Reachelle's case has been profiled on the America's Most Wanted television program, and although the case remains open, authorities say they now have few leads to go on, and the active search for her has effectively ended:
be a suicide. Unfortunately, the discovery of Cowen's body didn't shed any light on where Reachelle might be. But that doesn't mean investigators are giving up. As of Search teams scoured parks, a local river and a city landfill in hopes of finding clues. The National Guard also joined the search. But following the weekend search, police say the search is taking a new Reachelle Smith was last seen at her house on Tuesday,
Cops in Minot, N.D., are now searching for new clues that will lead them to Reachelle Smith. Investigators say they initially thought the little girl may have been traveling with 22-year-old Leigh Cowen. But any hopes of finding the 3-year-old with him vanished when cops found Cowen's dead body following what appeared to
Additional information:
| Missing Person: Reachelle Smith (FBI) |
Last updated: 2 June 2010
Sources: |
Wynn, Kelli. "Officers Alert Residents to Suspicious E-Mails" Dayton Daily News. 3 July 2008 (p.. RD1). Associated Press. "Missing Minot Girl Not Forgotten by Police." 8 December 2007. KXMB-TV [Bismarck]. "Still Unsolved: The Reachelle Smith Mystery." 1 October 2007.