Maura Murray
Encyclopedia
Maura Murray disappeared on 9 February 2004 after a one-car accident on New Hampshire Route 112
in Haverhill, New Hampshire
. Murray, a nursing student at the University of Massachusetts Amherst
, left campus on the afternoon of her disappearance after telling her professors and her work supervisor by e-mail that she was taking a week off because of a family emergency. Official investigators suggested that she may have wanted to disappear and initially considered her disappearance to be a standard missing persons case, but her family and friends believe that she was abducted and her father has been critical of state investigators. As of May 2011, seven years after her disappearance, there is no suspect and her whereabouts remain unknown.
On the Saturday before she went missing, Maura went used-car shopping with her father, Fred Murray, and they later went for dinner with a friend of Maura's. Maura dropped her father off at his hotel room, and then borrowed his Toyota Corolla
, returning to the UMass campus to a dorm party with her friend. She left the party at 2:30 am, and drove to her father's hotel room, hitting a guardrail on Route 9 in Hadley
, causing $8,000 of damage, which would be covered by the insurance. Her father says she was shaken up and apologetic. Maura called her boyfriend, who was stationed in Oklahoma
, from her father's cell phone. Her father rented a car, dropped Maura off at UMass, and headed to Connecticut
for work. In the evening, Maura agreed with her father that she would get the forms pertaining to the accident from the DMV
on Monday, and they would discuss the forms over the phone that evening. According to a later police search of her computer, Maura searched MapQuest
for directions to Burlington, Vermont
.
that her family had annually vacationed at for years, leaving a voicemail with another student, and a number giving recorded information about Stowe, Vermont
for approximately 5 minutes. Maura called her boyfriend for approximately 1 minute at 2:18 pm.
At about 4 pm, Maura e-mailed one of her work supervisors and some of her teachers to inform them that there had been a death in her family and that she would be out of town for several days, despite there being no such case of death. Maura packed all her belongings into boxes and removed the art from her room walls. Soon after, at 3:30–4:30 pm, a dorm mate says they saw Maura leave the UMass Amherst campus. Maura withdrew $280 from an ATM, and was alone as seen by CCTV footage. Her bank account was left nearly empty, with paychecks due from her job in the coming days. Maura then bought $35–$40 of alcohol, again while alone. Sometime after 4 pm, Maura left Amherst, probably heading up Interstate 91
north. She checked her cellphone messages at 4:37 pm.
resident, who reported an accident near her house on Route 112
. At 7:43 pm another Woodsville resident reported a black Saturn
partially in the road. A bus driver says that he spoke to a girl he later identified as Maura, and asked if she wanted him to call the police. She told him not to bother, as she had called AAA. However, there was no cellphone reception in the area and AAA says no call was made to them.
At 7:46 pm, an officer from Haverhill Police arrived on the scene. The girl who was seen by the second caller and the bus driver was not present. The car was facing westbound in the eastbound lane, locked and with a cracked windshield and two deployed airbags. A damaged box of Franzia wine
was found on the rear passenger seat. Other items found in the car include Maura's AAA
card, the insurance forms she retrieved for her earlier accident, her gloves, music CDs, her makeup, directions for Burlington and Stowe, a favorite stuffed monkey, and the Nicholas Howe book, Not Without Peril, a book about climbing in the White Mountains
. A rag from Maura's emergency roadside kit was discovered stuffed into the Saturn's muffler pipe.
The EMS
and a fire truck arrived just before 8 pm, and quickly cleared the scene. Maura's car was towed to a local auto repair garage by 8:49 pm, and the police officer left to attend another call at about 9:30 pm. A New Hampshire State Police
trooper stopped by the scene of the accident, but it is unknown at what time he arrived, if he was dispatched or if he stopped on his own accord. The family reports that they were told there was no radio communication between the officer and his station for approximately two hours upon arrival to the scene. There was no immediate search as it was assumed that Maura had left the scene by herself. Her bank card, credit cards, and cellphone have not been used since.
, Littleton
, Haverhill
, and Lisbon
. A voicemail was left on Maura's father's home answering machine at 3:20 pm stating that the car was found abandoned. He was working out of state and did not receive this call until later in the day. At 5:00 pm, Maura's older sister contacted her father to tell him that Maura's car had been found abandoned. He contacted the Haverhill Police Department and was told that if Maura was not reported safe by the following morning, New Hampshire Fish and Game Service would start a search. Maura's family members contacted the University of Massachusetts Police Department at 6:46 pm, and requested that her dormitory room be checked.
On Wednesday 11 February 2004, Maura's father arrived before dawn in Haverhill, New Hampshire
. At 8:00 am, the New Hampshire Fish and Game Service, the Murrays, and others began to search for Maura. A police dog tracked the scent from one of Maura's gloves 100 yards east from where the vehicle was discovered, but lost the scent. At 5 pm, Maura's boyfriend and his parents arrived in Haverhill Police Department. He was interrogated in private, and then was joined by his parents for questioning. At 7 pm, the police said that they believed Maura came to the area to either run away or commit suicide, although her family believed that this was unlikely. That evening, Maura's boyfriend allegedly received a voicemail message, since deleted, that he believes was the sound of Maura sobbing. His cellphone had been turned off during his flight. The call was traced to a card issued to the American Red Cross.
Maura's father and her boyfriend held an evening press conference in Bethlehem, New Hampshire
on 12 February, and the next day the first press coverage was published. The Haverhill police chief said that "Our concern is that she's upset or suicidal." Maura's father and boyfriend were interviewed by CNN's American Morning
a week after her disappearance. Maura's family expanded their search into Vermont
.
Although missing person cases are normally handled by local and state police, the FBI joined the investigation ten days after she disappeared. The FBI interviewed some of Maura's friends and family from Massachusetts, and the Haverhill police chief disclosed that the search for Maura was now nationwide. Ten days after her disappearance, New Hampshire Fish and Game conducted a second ground and air search, using a heat-seeking helicopter, sniffer dogs and cadaver dogs. Maura's older sister discovered a ripped white pair of women's underwear lying in the snow on a secluded trail near French Pond Road on 26 February, but DNA tests found that the underwear did not belong to Maura.
At the end of February, the police returned the items found in Maura's car to her family, and on March 2 Maura's siblings checked out of their motel, exhausted from the search, her father also checking out after three weeks of searching, returning nearly every weekend. In April, Haverhill Police informed him of complaints of trespassing on private property. In May, based on a tip, New Hampshire Fish and Game conducted a ground search near where a young person was seen running the night of Maura's disappearance, but no scent or leads were reported from the search. Her father petitioned New Hampshire Governor Craig Benson
for help in the search. and appeared on The Montel Williams Show
in November 2004 to publicise the case.
On the anniversary of her disappearance, a service was held where Maura's car was found, and her father met briefly with New Hampshire Governor John Lynch. In June 2005, police dismissed any connection between Maura's case and that of Brianna Maitland, and retrieved the items found in Maura's vehicle from her family. In July, another search was conducted around the area in which Maura's car was discovered. In late 2005, Maura's father filed suit against several law enforcement agencies, with the aim of seeing files on the case. The New Hampshire League of Investigators, ten retired police officers and detectives, and the Molly Bish Foundation
started working on Maura's case in 2006. Tom Shamshak, a former police chief and a member of the Licensed Private Detectives Association of Massachusetts said "It appears ... that this is something beyond a mere missing persons case. Something ominous could have happened here."
In October 2006, volunteers led a two-day search within a few miles of where Maura's vehicle was found. In the closet of an A-Frame house, cadaver dogs allegedly went "bonkers," identifying the possible presence of human remains. A sample of the carpet was sent to the New Hampshire State Police
. The Arkansas group Let's Bring Them Home offered a $75,000 reward in 2007 for information that could solve her disappearance. In July 2008, volunteers lead another two day search through wooded areas in Haverhill. The group consisted of dog teams and licensed private investigators. Senior Assistant Attorney General Jeffery Strelzin said in February 2009 that the investigation is still active. "We don't know if Maura is a victim, but the state is treating it as a potential homicide. It may be a missing-persons case, but it's being handled as a criminal investigation."
who went missing within a few months of Maura's disappearance, and was later found murdered. The two families have become close. There are more than 21,500 active missing person cases involving people between the ages of 18 and 29. Maura's case was one of those cited by proponents of a cold case unit for New Hampshire. Her case was added to the newly established cold case unit in late 2009.
New Hampshire Route 112
New Hampshire Route 112 is a long east–west state highway in northern New Hampshire. The highway winds across the state, connecting Bath to Conway via the scenic and mountainous area of the White Mountain National Forest. Part of this highway, which runs through the White Mountains, is known as...
in Haverhill, New Hampshire
Haverhill, New Hampshire
Haverhill is a town in Grafton County, New Hampshire, United States. The population was 4,697 at the 2010 census. Haverhill includes the villages of Woodsville, Pike, and North Haverhill, the historic town center at Haverhill Corner, and the district of Mountain Lakes...
. Murray, a nursing student at the University of Massachusetts Amherst
University of Massachusetts Amherst
The University of Massachusetts Amherst is a public research and land-grant university in Amherst, Massachusetts, United States and the flagship of the University of Massachusetts system...
, left campus on the afternoon of her disappearance after telling her professors and her work supervisor by e-mail that she was taking a week off because of a family emergency. Official investigators suggested that she may have wanted to disappear and initially considered her disappearance to be a standard missing persons case, but her family and friends believe that she was abducted and her father has been critical of state investigators. As of May 2011, seven years after her disappearance, there is no suspect and her whereabouts remain unknown.
Events before her disappearance
Maura went missing on Monday 9 February 2004. Four days prior to this, she made a phone call in the evening to her older sister, Kathleen, while on a break from her work for University of Massachusetts Student Security, and she appeared normal to her sister. The next day, on 6 February, Maura received a phone call at work at 1:00 am, causing her to become upset and she was escorted back to her dorm room by her supervisor.On the Saturday before she went missing, Maura went used-car shopping with her father, Fred Murray, and they later went for dinner with a friend of Maura's. Maura dropped her father off at his hotel room, and then borrowed his Toyota Corolla
Toyota Corolla
The Toyota Corolla is a line of subcompact and compact cars manufactured by the Japanese automaker Toyota, which has become very popular throughout the world since the nameplate was first introduced in 1966. In 1997, the Corolla became the best selling nameplate in the world, with over 35 million...
, returning to the UMass campus to a dorm party with her friend. She left the party at 2:30 am, and drove to her father's hotel room, hitting a guardrail on Route 9 in Hadley
Hadley, Massachusetts
Hadley is a town in Hampshire County, Massachusetts. The population was 4,793 at the 2000 census. It is part of the Springfield, Massachusetts Metropolitan Statistical Area. The area around Hampshire Mall and Mountain Farms Mall along Route 9 is a major shopping destination for the surrounding...
, causing $8,000 of damage, which would be covered by the insurance. Her father says she was shaken up and apologetic. Maura called her boyfriend, who was stationed in Oklahoma
Oklahoma
Oklahoma is a state located in the South Central region of the United States of America. With an estimated 3,751,351 residents as of the 2010 census and a land area of 68,667 square miles , Oklahoma is the 28th most populous and 20th-largest state...
, from her father's cell phone. Her father rented a car, dropped Maura off at UMass, and headed to Connecticut
Connecticut
Connecticut is a state in the New England region of the northeastern United States. It is bordered by Rhode Island to the east, Massachusetts to the north, and the state of New York to the west and the south .Connecticut is named for the Connecticut River, the major U.S. river that approximately...
for work. In the evening, Maura agreed with her father that she would get the forms pertaining to the accident from the DMV
Department of Motor Vehicles
In the United States of America, a Department of Motor Vehicles is a state-level government agency that administers vehicle registration and driver licensing. Similar departments exist in Canada...
on Monday, and they would discuss the forms over the phone that evening. According to a later police search of her computer, Maura searched MapQuest
MapQuest
MapQuest is an American free online web mapping service owned by AOL. The company was founded in 1967 as Cartographic Services, a division of R.R. Donnelley & Sons in Chicago, Illinois, United States. It moved to Lancaster, Pennsylvania in 1969. When it became an independent company in 1994, it was...
for directions to Burlington, Vermont
Burlington, Vermont
Burlington is the largest city in the U.S. state of Vermont and the shire town of Chittenden County. Burlington lies south of the U.S.-Canadian border and some south of Montreal....
.
Day of her disappearance
Maura sent her boyfriend an e-mail at 1 pm, saying that she had not felt like talking to anyone, but that she would call him later in the day. Maura made several calls between 12 pm and 3 pm, including asking about information on a condominium in Bartlett, New HampshireBartlett, New Hampshire
Bartlett is a town in Carroll County, New Hampshire, United States. The population was 2,788 at the 2010 census. Bartlett includes the villages of Glen, Lower Bartlett and Intervale. It is set in the White Mountains, surrounded by the White Mountain National Forest...
that her family had annually vacationed at for years, leaving a voicemail with another student, and a number giving recorded information about Stowe, Vermont
Stowe, Vermont
Stowe is a town in Lamoille County, Vermont, United States. The population was 4,339 at the 2000 census. Tourism is a significant industry.-Geography:...
for approximately 5 minutes. Maura called her boyfriend for approximately 1 minute at 2:18 pm.
At about 4 pm, Maura e-mailed one of her work supervisors and some of her teachers to inform them that there had been a death in her family and that she would be out of town for several days, despite there being no such case of death. Maura packed all her belongings into boxes and removed the art from her room walls. Soon after, at 3:30–4:30 pm, a dorm mate says they saw Maura leave the UMass Amherst campus. Maura withdrew $280 from an ATM, and was alone as seen by CCTV footage. Her bank account was left nearly empty, with paychecks due from her job in the coming days. Maura then bought $35–$40 of alcohol, again while alone. Sometime after 4 pm, Maura left Amherst, probably heading up Interstate 91
Interstate 91
Interstate 91 is an Interstate Highway in the New England region of the United States. It provides the primary north–south thoroughfare in the western part of New England...
north. She checked her cellphone messages at 4:37 pm.
Disappearance
At 7:29 pm, police dispatch received a call from a Woodsville, New HampshireWoodsville, New Hampshire
Woodsville is a census-designated place in the town of Haverhill in Grafton County, New Hampshire, U.S., along the Connecticut River at the mouth of the Ammonoosuc River. The population was 1,126 at the 2010 census...
resident, who reported an accident near her house on Route 112
New Hampshire Route 112
New Hampshire Route 112 is a long east–west state highway in northern New Hampshire. The highway winds across the state, connecting Bath to Conway via the scenic and mountainous area of the White Mountain National Forest. Part of this highway, which runs through the White Mountains, is known as...
. At 7:43 pm another Woodsville resident reported a black Saturn
Saturn S-series
The S-Series was part of a family of compact cars from the Saturn automobile company. This was the first series of Saturn vehicles. The automobile platform, the Z-body, was developed entirely in-house at Saturn and shared very little with the rest of the General Motors model line...
partially in the road. A bus driver says that he spoke to a girl he later identified as Maura, and asked if she wanted him to call the police. She told him not to bother, as she had called AAA. However, there was no cellphone reception in the area and AAA says no call was made to them.
At 7:46 pm, an officer from Haverhill Police arrived on the scene. The girl who was seen by the second caller and the bus driver was not present. The car was facing westbound in the eastbound lane, locked and with a cracked windshield and two deployed airbags. A damaged box of Franzia wine
Franzia
Franzia is a brand of wine produced by The Wine Group, known for its box wines sold in 3 and 5-liter cartons. Franzia wines are quite inexpensive, making it well known and popular among college students in the United States. Flavors include White Wine Chardonnay and Red Sangria...
was found on the rear passenger seat. Other items found in the car include Maura's AAA
American Automobile Association
AAA , formerly known as the American Automobile Association, is a federation of 51 independently operated motor clubs throughout North America. AAA is a not-for-profit member service organization with more than 51 million members. AAA provides services to its members such as travel, automotive,...
card, the insurance forms she retrieved for her earlier accident, her gloves, music CDs, her makeup, directions for Burlington and Stowe, a favorite stuffed monkey, and the Nicholas Howe book, Not Without Peril, a book about climbing in the White Mountains
White Mountains (New Hampshire)
The White Mountains are a mountain range covering about a quarter of the state of New Hampshire and a small portion of western Maine in the United States. Part of the Appalachian Mountains, they are considered the most rugged mountains in New England...
. A rag from Maura's emergency roadside kit was discovered stuffed into the Saturn's muffler pipe.
The EMS
Emergency medical services
Emergency medical services are a type of emergency service dedicated to providing out-of-hospital acute medical care and/or transport to definitive care, to patients with illnesses and injuries which the patient, or the medical practitioner, believes constitutes a medical emergency...
and a fire truck arrived just before 8 pm, and quickly cleared the scene. Maura's car was towed to a local auto repair garage by 8:49 pm, and the police officer left to attend another call at about 9:30 pm. A New Hampshire State Police
New Hampshire State Police
The New Hampshire State Police is a state police agency within the Department of Safety of the U.S. state of New Hampshire. Police employees of the State Police are ex officio constables and have the primary role of patrolling the state highways, enforcing the laws and regulations of the highway...
trooper stopped by the scene of the accident, but it is unknown at what time he arrived, if he was dispatched or if he stopped on his own accord. The family reports that they were told there was no radio communication between the officer and his station for approximately two hours upon arrival to the scene. There was no immediate search as it was assumed that Maura had left the scene by herself. Her bank card, credit cards, and cellphone have not been used since.
Search efforts
Early investigation
The following day, Tuesday 10 February, a BOLO (Be On the LookOut) for Maura Murray was issued at 12:36 pm to Grafton CountyGrafton County, New Hampshire
Grafton County is a county located in the U.S. state of New Hampshire. As of the 2010 census, the population was 89,118. Its county seat is North Haverhill, which is a village within the town of Haverhill. Until 1972, the county courthouse and other offices were located in downtown Woodsville, a...
, Littleton
Littleton, New Hampshire
Littleton is a town in Grafton County, New Hampshire, United States. The population was 5,928 at the 2010 census. Situated at the edge of the White Mountains, Littleton is bounded on the northwest by the Connecticut River....
, Haverhill
Haverhill, New Hampshire
Haverhill is a town in Grafton County, New Hampshire, United States. The population was 4,697 at the 2010 census. Haverhill includes the villages of Woodsville, Pike, and North Haverhill, the historic town center at Haverhill Corner, and the district of Mountain Lakes...
, and Lisbon
Lisbon, New Hampshire
Lisbon is a town in Grafton County, New Hampshire, United States. The population was 1,595 at the 2010 census. Lisbon hosts an annual "Lilac Festival" on Memorial Day weekend....
. A voicemail was left on Maura's father's home answering machine at 3:20 pm stating that the car was found abandoned. He was working out of state and did not receive this call until later in the day. At 5:00 pm, Maura's older sister contacted her father to tell him that Maura's car had been found abandoned. He contacted the Haverhill Police Department and was told that if Maura was not reported safe by the following morning, New Hampshire Fish and Game Service would start a search. Maura's family members contacted the University of Massachusetts Police Department at 6:46 pm, and requested that her dormitory room be checked.
On Wednesday 11 February 2004, Maura's father arrived before dawn in Haverhill, New Hampshire
Haverhill, New Hampshire
Haverhill is a town in Grafton County, New Hampshire, United States. The population was 4,697 at the 2010 census. Haverhill includes the villages of Woodsville, Pike, and North Haverhill, the historic town center at Haverhill Corner, and the district of Mountain Lakes...
. At 8:00 am, the New Hampshire Fish and Game Service, the Murrays, and others began to search for Maura. A police dog tracked the scent from one of Maura's gloves 100 yards east from where the vehicle was discovered, but lost the scent. At 5 pm, Maura's boyfriend and his parents arrived in Haverhill Police Department. He was interrogated in private, and then was joined by his parents for questioning. At 7 pm, the police said that they believed Maura came to the area to either run away or commit suicide, although her family believed that this was unlikely. That evening, Maura's boyfriend allegedly received a voicemail message, since deleted, that he believes was the sound of Maura sobbing. His cellphone had been turned off during his flight. The call was traced to a card issued to the American Red Cross.
Maura's father and her boyfriend held an evening press conference in Bethlehem, New Hampshire
Bethlehem, New Hampshire
Bethlehem is a hillside town in Grafton County, New Hampshire, United States. The population was 2,526 at the 2010 census. It is home to Cushman and Strawberry Hill state forests. The eastern half of the town is within the White Mountain National Forest...
on 12 February, and the next day the first press coverage was published. The Haverhill police chief said that "Our concern is that she's upset or suicidal." Maura's father and boyfriend were interviewed by CNN's American Morning
American Morning
American Morning is the morning television show on CNN. It premiered in 2001.-About the show:American Morning is hosted by Ashleigh Banfield, Zoraida Sambolin & Soledad O'Brien. Others who appear regularly are Rob Marciano with the weather, Sunny Hostin on legal news, and CNN senior medical...
a week after her disappearance. Maura's family expanded their search into Vermont
Vermont
Vermont is a state in the New England region of the northeastern United States of America. The state ranks 43rd in land area, , and 45th in total area. Its population according to the 2010 census, 630,337, is the second smallest in the country, larger only than Wyoming. It is the only New England...
.
Although missing person cases are normally handled by local and state police, the FBI joined the investigation ten days after she disappeared. The FBI interviewed some of Maura's friends and family from Massachusetts, and the Haverhill police chief disclosed that the search for Maura was now nationwide. Ten days after her disappearance, New Hampshire Fish and Game conducted a second ground and air search, using a heat-seeking helicopter, sniffer dogs and cadaver dogs. Maura's older sister discovered a ripped white pair of women's underwear lying in the snow on a secluded trail near French Pond Road on 26 February, but DNA tests found that the underwear did not belong to Maura.
At the end of February, the police returned the items found in Maura's car to her family, and on March 2 Maura's siblings checked out of their motel, exhausted from the search, her father also checking out after three weeks of searching, returning nearly every weekend. In April, Haverhill Police informed him of complaints of trespassing on private property. In May, based on a tip, New Hampshire Fish and Game conducted a ground search near where a young person was seen running the night of Maura's disappearance, but no scent or leads were reported from the search. Her father petitioned New Hampshire Governor Craig Benson
Craig Benson
Craig R. Benson is an American politician and businessman. He served as Governor of New Hampshire from 2003 to 2005...
for help in the search. and appeared on The Montel Williams Show
The Montel Williams Show
The Montel Williams Show is a syndicated talk show hosted by Montel Williams. On January 30, 2008 it was announced that The Montel Williams Show would stop production on new episodes at the end of the 2007-2008 television season after seventeen years...
in November 2004 to publicise the case.
Ongoing investigation
Towards the end of 2004, a man allegedly gave Maura's father a rusty, stained knife that belonged to the man's brother, who had a criminal past and lived less than a mile from where Maura's car was discovered. His brother and his brother's girlfriend were said to have acted strangely after Maura's disappearance.On the anniversary of her disappearance, a service was held where Maura's car was found, and her father met briefly with New Hampshire Governor John Lynch. In June 2005, police dismissed any connection between Maura's case and that of Brianna Maitland, and retrieved the items found in Maura's vehicle from her family. In July, another search was conducted around the area in which Maura's car was discovered. In late 2005, Maura's father filed suit against several law enforcement agencies, with the aim of seeing files on the case. The New Hampshire League of Investigators, ten retired police officers and detectives, and the Molly Bish Foundation
Molly Bish Foundation
The Molly Bish Foundation is an organization that was found by John and Magi Bish, the parents of murder victim Molly Bish.The organization is devoted to helping with child safety through child ID kits that help in locating a missing child. The kits include a current head and shoulder photo of the...
started working on Maura's case in 2006. Tom Shamshak, a former police chief and a member of the Licensed Private Detectives Association of Massachusetts said "It appears ... that this is something beyond a mere missing persons case. Something ominous could have happened here."
In October 2006, volunteers led a two-day search within a few miles of where Maura's vehicle was found. In the closet of an A-Frame house, cadaver dogs allegedly went "bonkers," identifying the possible presence of human remains. A sample of the carpet was sent to the New Hampshire State Police
New Hampshire State Police
The New Hampshire State Police is a state police agency within the Department of Safety of the U.S. state of New Hampshire. Police employees of the State Police are ex officio constables and have the primary role of patrolling the state highways, enforcing the laws and regulations of the highway...
. The Arkansas group Let's Bring Them Home offered a $75,000 reward in 2007 for information that could solve her disappearance. In July 2008, volunteers lead another two day search through wooded areas in Haverhill. The group consisted of dog teams and licensed private investigators. Senior Assistant Attorney General Jeffery Strelzin said in February 2009 that the investigation is still active. "We don't know if Maura is a victim, but the state is treating it as a potential homicide. It may be a missing-persons case, but it's being handled as a criminal investigation."
Possible sightings
There have been several reported sightings of Maura since her disappearance, but none have been confirmed. The family dismissed a claim in April 2004 by psychic Carla Baron that Maura had been murdered.- Monday, February 9, 2004. 8:00 - 8:30 PM - A Swiftwater, New HampshireBath, New HampshireBath is a town in Grafton County, New Hampshire, United States. The population was 1,077 at the 2010 census. Now a tourist destination and bedroom community for Littleton, the town is noted for its historic architecture, including the Brick Store and three covered bridges...
local reportedly saw a young person moving quickly on foot eastbound on Route 112New Hampshire Route 112New Hampshire Route 112 is a long east–west state highway in northern New Hampshire. The highway winds across the state, connecting Bath to Conway via the scenic and mountainous area of the White Mountain National Forest. Part of this highway, which runs through the White Mountains, is known as...
, about 4 to 5 mi (6.4 to 8 ) east of where Maura's vehicle was discovered. The young person was reported to have been wearing jeans, a dark coat, and a light-colored hood. The witness reported that the person, upon being seen, quickly ran down a side dirt road. There have been inconsistencies in multiple interviews.
- June 2005. A girl with blonde hair resembling Maura was seen at a church in Barton, Vermont. A witness said that the girl said her name was "Raykel" and took off quickly when the minister started a Father's DayFather's DayFather's Day is a celebration honoring fathers and celebrating fatherhood, paternal bonds, and the influence of fathers in society. Many countries celebrate it on the third Sunday of June but it is also celebrated widely on other days...
sermon.
- June 2006. A girl resembling Maura was seen at a Cumberland FarmsCumberland FarmsCumberland Farms is a regional chain of convenience stores based in Framingham, Massachusetts, and operating primarily in the eastern United States and Florida. Cumberland Farms operates roughly 600 retail stores, gas stations, and a support system including petroleum and grocery distribution...
store in Hillsborough, New HampshireHillsborough, New HampshireHillsborough, frequently spelled Hillsboro, is a town in Hillsborough County, New Hampshire, United States. The population was 6,011 at the 2010 census...
with an older male companion. The girl was reportedly mouthing "help me." There are no security tapes of the incident available. The sighting was not reported until a few months later when the witness saw photos of Maura on a television news program.
Significance
Maura's case was compared in an episode of 20/20 to that of Brooke WilbergerBrooke Wilberger
Brooke Carol Wilberger was a student from the state of Oregon who was abducted and later murdered. Her disappearance was covered by the national media, and hers was one of the most publicized murder investigations in Oregon history.-Biography:Wilberger was born in Fresno, California on February...
who went missing within a few months of Maura's disappearance, and was later found murdered. The two families have become close. There are more than 21,500 active missing person cases involving people between the ages of 18 and 29. Maura's case was one of those cited by proponents of a cold case unit for New Hampshire. Her case was added to the newly established cold case unit in late 2009.
External links
- Maura's Profile at National Missing and Unidentified Persons System
- Maura Murray, Cold Case Unit, New Hampshire Department of JusticeNew Hampshire Department of JusticeThe State of New Hampshire Department of Justice is a government agency of the U.S. state of New Hampshire. The NHDOJ is under the executive direction of Acting Attorney General Orville B. Fitch II...
- Maura Murray Missing
- James Renner's investigation into Maura's disappearance.
- Maura Murray Missing on MySpace
- Video from CNN's Nancy Grace show
- "Where's Maura Murray?" Video from ABC's 20/20 In Touch Webcast
- 'Maura is Missing' Series, Maribeth Conway, Whitman & Hanson Express, which won the 2008 New England Press Association investigative reporting award.http://www.whitmanhansonexpress.com/index.php?option=com_content&view=article&id=752:maura-is-missing-series-honored-at-nepa&catid=912&Itemid=83
- The All-American Girl, Part 1 - Project Jason-Voice for the Missing at Blogspot.com
- Video preview of Maura's case on the Investigation Discovery Channel. Disappeared series episode which aired on February 8, 2010 at 10 PM e/p.