This pushed investigators to search the residence on December 18, 2018, with the search including the home’s basement and two vacant lots.
Two days later, police also searched another property located in Pittsburg, Kansas. This search included a home, two outbuildings, and the surrounding region.
The following year, the Ozark Drug Enforcement Team then received a tip that a property located in Newton County may be linked to Sarah’s disappearance. So, authorities conducted a search there as well, but no information regarding the findings was released to the public.
At the time Sarah disappeared, she did have three pending charges against her – including drug possession, stolen identities, and stealing a motor vehicle. However, she was free on bail, and her parents believed she wouldn’t have run away due to her legal issues.
Rather, Sarah had actually shown up for all of her court appearances, and her attorney claimed that she may have been able to get two charges dismissed, as well as a suspended sentence for the third charge.
That’s why foul play is suspected in her case, and a $5,000 reward is currently being offered for any information that leads to the arrest and conviction of the person(s) responsible for her disappearance.
“We are very concerned for her well-being. We are desperately asking for anybody that has any information to come forward,” stated Joplin Police Captain Trevor Duncan.
“She would not walk away from her family or her little boy. Somebody is holding her against her will, or God forbid, has done something to her,” said Sarah’s cousin, Michael Burton.
At the time of her disappearance, Sarah was five foot seven, weighed between 160 and 170 pounds, and had brown hair and blue eyes. She was last seen wearing blue jeans, a purple and white blouse, and black flats.
If you have any information regarding her case, you are urged to contact the Joplin Police Department at (417) 623-3131.
