Real Crime/Paranormal/Conspiracy Theories Book III

Missing: Tara Calico

Tara Leigh Calico (born February28, 1969) is an American woman who disappeared near her home inBelen, New Mexico, on September 20, 1988. She is widely believed tohave been kidnapped. In July 1989, a Polaroid photo of anunidentified young woman and boy, gagged and seemingly bound, wastelevised to the public after it was found in a convenience storeparking lot in Port St. Joe, Florida. Family friends thought thewoman resembled Calico and contacted her mother, who then met withinvestigators and examined the Polaroid. She believed it was herdaughter after taking "time, growth and lack of makeup"into consideration, and noted that a scar on the woman's leg wasidentical to one that Calico had. Scotland Yard analyzed the photoand concluded that the woman was Calico, but a second analysis by theLos Alamos National Laboratory disagreed. An FBI analysis of thephoto was inconclusive.

Calico's case received extensivecoverage on television programs such as A Current Affair, UnsolvedMysteries, and America's Most Wanted. It was also profiled on TheOprah Winfrey Show and 48 Hours. As of 2020, no arrests have beenmade and the case remains open.

Disappearance

On Tuesday, September 20, 1988, Calicoleft her home at about 9:30 A.M. to go on her daily bike ride alongNew Mexico State Road 47. She rode that route almost every morningand was sometimes accompanied by her mother, Patty Doel. However,Doel stopped riding with Calico after she felt that she had beenstalked by a motorist. She advised Tara to think about carrying mace,but Tara rejected the idea. On the morning of Calico'sdisappearance, she had told Doel to come and get her if she was nothome by noon, as she had plans to play tennis with her boyfriend at12:30. When her daughter did not return, Doel went searching for heralong Tara's usual bike route but could not find her; she thencontacted the police. Pieces of Calico's Sony Walkman and a cassettetape were later discovered along the road. Doel believed that shemight have dropped them in an attempt to mark her trail. Severalpeople saw Calico riding her bicycle, which has never been found. Noone witnessed her presumed abduction, although several witnessesobserved a light-colored pickup truck (possibly a 1953 Ford) with acamper shell following closely behind her.

Photographs

Toyota van

On June 15, 1989, a Polaroid photo ofan unidentified young woman and a boy, both gagged with black ducttape and seemingly bound, was discovered in the parking lot of aconvenience store in Port St. Joe, Florida. The woman who found thephoto said that it was in a parking space where a white windowlessToyota cargo van had been parked when she arrived at the store. Shesaid that the van was being driven by a man with a mustache whoappeared to be in his 30s. Police set up roadblocks to intercept thevehicle, but the man has never been identified. According toPolaroid officials, the picture had to have been taken after May 1989because the particular film used in the photograph was not availableuntil then.

The photo was broadcast on A CurrentAffair in July, and Doel was contacted by friends who had seen theshow and thought the woman resembled Calico. Relatives of MichaelHenley, also of New Mexico, who had disappeared in April 1988, sawthe episode and said that they believed he was the boy in the photo.Doel and Henley's parents both met with investigators and examinedthe Polaroid. Doel said that she was "convinced" itwas Calico. She also noted that a scar on the woman's leg wasidentical to one that Calico had received in a car accident. Inaddition, a paperback copy of V.C. Andrews' My Sweet Audrina, said tobe one of Calico's favorite books, can be seen lying next to thewoman. Scotland Yard analyzed the photo and concluded that the womanwas Calico, but a second analysis by the Los Alamos NationalLaboratory disagreed. An FBI analysis of the photo was inconclusive.

Henley's mother said that she was"almost certain" it was Michael in the Polaroid. The identification of the boy in the photograph as Henley isconsidered highly unlikely: his remains were discovered in June 1990in the Zuni Mountains, about 7 miles (11 km) from his family'scampsite from which he had disappeared and 75 miles (121 km) fromwhere Calico disappeared. Police believe that Henley wandered off andsubsequently died of exposure.

Other photos

In 2009, twenty years after thePolaroid photo was found and shared by the media, pictures of a boywere sent to the Port St. Joe police chief, David Barnes. He receivedtwo letters, postmarked June 10 and August 10, 2009, fromAlbuquerque, New Mexico. One letter contained a photo, printed oncopy paper, of a young boy with sandy brown hair. Someone had drawn ablack band in ink on the photo, over the boy's mouth, as if it werecovered in tape as in the 1989 picture. The second letter containedan original image of the boy. On August 12, The Star newspaper inPort St. Joe received a third letter, also postmarked in Albuquerqueon August 10 and depicting the same image, of a boy with black markerdrawn over his mouth. The boy has not been confirmed to be the sameone as in the previous photo. None of the letters contained a returnaddress or a note indicating the child's identity, making theofficials there believe it may have something to do with thedisappearance of Tara Calico. The letters were sent at the same timethat a self-proclaimed psychic had called about Calico, saying thatshe had met a runaway in California with whom she worked in a stripclub; this girl was eventually murdered. The caller said she haddreams suggesting the runaway may have been Calico and that she maybe buried in California. Searches did not lead to any discoveries.The photos were given to the F.B.I. for further investigation in hopeof finding fingerprints or possible D.N.A. evidence.

Two other Polaroid photographs,possibly of Calico, have surfaced over the years. The first was foundnear a construction site in Montecito, California, and is a blurryphoto of a girl's face with tape covering her mouth and light bluestriped fabric behind her, "similar to that on the pillow inthe Toyota van photo". It was taken on film that was notavailable until June 1989. The second shows "a woman looselybound in gauze, her eyes covered with more gauze and largeblack-framed glasses", with a male passenger beside her onan Amtrak train. The film used was not available until February 1990.Calico's mother believed the first one was Tara, but thought that thesecond may have been a gag. Her sister stated, "They had astriking, uncalming resemblance. As for me, I will not rule them out.But keep in mind our family has had to identify many otherphotographs and all but those three were ruled out."

Later developments

In 2008, Rene Rivera, the sheriff ofValencia County, reported that he received information that twoteenagers had accidentally hit Calico with a truck, panicked, andsubsequently killed her. According to Rivera, the boys, who knewCalico, drove up behind her in a truck and some form of an accidentfollowed. Calico later died and those responsible covered up thecrime. Rivera stated that he knew the names of those involved, butthat, without a body, he could not make a case. He did not releasethe evidence that led him to this conclusion. Calico's stepfather,John Doel, said that the sheriff should not have made these commentsif he was not willing to arrest anyone and that strong circumstantialevidence should be enough for a conviction.

In October 2013, a six-person taskforce was established to reinvestigate Calico's disappearance. As of2017, no arrests have been made and the case remains open.

On October 1, 2019, the FBI announcedthat they are "offering a reward of up to $20,000 for precisedetails leading to the identification or location of Tara LeighCalico and information leading to the arrest and conviction of thoseresponsible for her disappearance."