She Went Missing After Skipping School: Nine Years Later, Her Family Got An Anonymous Tip In The Mail
May 1, 2001, started off like any other Tuesday for the family of 14-year-old Sarah Elizabeth Kinslow.
In the morning, at approximately 7:20 a.m., her father dropped her off at Greenville Middle School, located in Greenville, Texas. But, by the afternoon, Sarah hadn’t returned home as usual.
Her parents subsequently learned that she hadn’t attended her classes at school. Then, upon speaking to Sarah’s friends, her mother, Louise, discovered the teens had intended to skip school together that day.
The plan was for Sarah and her friends to meet up at East Mount Cemetery, yet Sarah never showed up. This revelation led Louise to contact the police and report her daughter missing.
Once an investigation was launched, authorities brought a tracking canine to Greenville Middle School. The dog was able to trace Sarah’s scent up to two blocks away, but the trail ended in the middle of the street.
“The dog ran out of scent, and I feel like at that point, she might have gotten into a vehicle,” said former Greenville Police Chief Barry Parris.
A teenage witness also came forward and claimed to have possibly spotted Sarah entering a light blue truck where the canine lost her scent. The vehicle was reportedly being driven by a white male.
Then, one week after Sarah disappeared, attention turned toward Sarah’s 18-year-old boyfriend, Curtis Wayne Bell. On May 7, 2001, he was arrested for assaulting a child and released on a $50,000 bond.
In addition to her friends, Sarah allegedly planned to meet up with Curtis on the day she vanished. Her mother, Louise, did not approve of their relationship and reportedly didn’t allow Sarah to be alone with him.
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Amidst the investigation, her diary revealed that she wanted to run away with Curtis. Still, according to Louise, her daughter had no history of running away and hadn’t packed any belongings before heading to school on May 1.
“She did not take her purse, extra clothes, or personal belongings,” Louise detailed.
Over the ensuing weeks, the police received multiple tips about supposed sightings of Sarah. One, however, stood out.
A gas station clerk contacted authorities after recognizing Sarah from a missing person flyer. Investigators were also able to review the gas station’s surveillance footage.
“She is seen on the video with Curtis. We have it on tape. He initially denied it was her and said it was a different girl. When he was asked about it again later, he denied he was the person in the video,” Louise explained.
While Sarah’s last sighting remains unconfirmed, it supposedly occurred on December 25, 2001. Louise’s neighbors allegedly spotted Sarah in a car in Quinlan, Texas, and were “positive” that it was really the missing teen.
Nonetheless, the police used the car’s license plate number to track down its owner, who resided in a different town and claimed to know nothing about Sarah’s disappearance. This lead wound up being a dead end.
Years later, Curtis pleaded guilty to assaulting a child in July 2009. He received a sentence of 60 days behind bars, as well as a decade of deferred adjudication probation.
Strangely, the Kinslow family received an anonymous letter in their mailbox about nine years after Sarah disappeared.
“It didn’t say who it was from. In essence, it told us to speak with a specific individual. The note said if we did, ‘I believe you will find the answers you are looking for,'” Louise recalled.
That specific individual turned out to be Curtis’ close friend’s ex-wife. Upon speaking to the ex-wife, though, she didn’t know anything about Sarah’s case.
Eventually, the Kinslow family did ascertain the anonymous letter writer’s identity. It was a male who Louise urged to speak up.
“After we convinced him to talk, he said he heard our daughter had been killed and disposed of in a rock quarry that is full of water. I have begged the police to please go look there, and nothing has been done,” Louise stated in 2012. It’s unclear what came of this lead.
That same year, Louise admitted to thinking that someone had “done something” to her daughter, saying, “I do not believe she is alive.”
Regardless, she refuses to give up the search for answers and closure.
“I know it is a cold case, but I would like to see something done. I would like to have some answers. I would like to know where my daughter is. We love her, and we miss her,” Louise shared.
Sarah has now been missing for over 23 years, and she would be 38 years old today. A Facebook page entitled “Help Find Sarah Kinslow” was created to continue raising awareness about her disappearance.
She was five foot four, weighed 105 pounds, and had blonde hair and blue eyes. She was last seen wearing blue jeans, a teal hooded jacket, and gray and blue sneakers. She also had a tattoo of the letter “I” on her ankle and two chicken pox scars on her left cheek.
Anyone with information regarding Sarah’s case is urged to contact the Greenville Police Department at (903) 457-2900.
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