Monday marks 21 years since a Tennessee girl mysteriously vanished and investigators still need the public’s help in finding her.
Tabitha Tuders, 13, left her house on Lillian Street in Nashville to walk to her bus stop on April 29, 2003, but she never got on the bus and didn’t make it to Bailey Middle School. According to the FBI, the school bus stop sat at the intersection of 14th and Boscobel Streets.
Witnesses said they saw a car pull up next to her on the morning she vanished, before driving off. The descriptions of the car have varied—from a Volkswagen Bug to a Ford Mustang—and the color could be red or green.
“We’re just hoping that she comes back home,” Tabitha’s father, Bo Tuders, told News 2 earlier this year. “I woke Tabitha up, told her I loved her and I’d see her this evening. She said, ‘Okay daddy, I love you.’”
Vanished in Nashville: The Search for Tabitha Tuders
For the Tuders, life after April 29th, 2003 is forever changed, but one thing that remains the same is the 💛 they have for Tabitha.
If you have any information about Tabitha, please call 1-800-THE-LOST. pic.twitter.com/f0OdBfPUvQ
— National Center for Missing & Exploited Children (@NCMEC) May 2, 2019
In 2020, investigators combed through a property in Hickman County, following a tip about a possible person of interest in Tabitha’s disappearance. The tip ultimately proved to be unsubstantiated.
A new detective took over the case in 2021, followed by a new age progression photo in 2022.
Meanwhile, Metro police say that although numerous tips have poured in over the years, they are still looking for anyone who can help solve the case. The FBI is currently offering a $50,000 reward for information that leads to her whereabouts and the prosecution of the party responsible for her disappearance.
Anyone with information about the case is urged to contact the Metro Police Department Cold Case Unit at 615-862-7803 or Crime Stoppers at 615-742-7463.
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[Featured image: Family Handout]
