A Tale of Two Murdered Girls 30 Miles and a World Apart

She was a beautiful girl. Pale, milky skin, sun-kissed hair that fell across her narrow shoulders in perfect form and a bright unassuming smile that most would envy. One of her classmates described her as “One of the most kindhearted and nicest people I knew.”

On July 19th, 2016 while riding her bike home after a visit with her boyfriend along a remote country road in the small Ohio farm town of Delta, Sierah Joughin vanished.

Immediately, the entire town sprang into action to find the missing girl, described as a promising college student loved by many. She was reported missing at 11 p.m on Tuesday the 19th and an organized search was dispatched by 3 a.m. Wednesday morning. Within 24 hours,the local- then national- media centralized their focus on Joughin’s startling disappearance that quickly gripped the entire nation. A 100,000 reward was posted for any information leading to her safe return. The police held live televised press conferences alongside the family to appeal to the public for assistance.

The FBI issued a statewide call for help. Along with hundreds of volunteers they combed the rural area she had last been seen in before discovering her bicycle, abandoned in a nearby cornfield.