The Vanished Podcast

On April 11, 1981, 15-year-old Barbara Cotton vanished without a trace from Williston, North Dakota. A bright and ambitious young woman, Barbara had big dreams for her future. She was saving money for her first apartment, which she planned to rent when she turned 16 that fall. But those dreams were abruptly shattered on that chilly spring evening when Barbara disappeared, seemingly into thin air. To this day, piecing together even the most basic details about that night remains a challenge. Who was the last person to see Barbara, and at what time? How can we verify these accounts after so many years? Conflicting stories and missing pieces of the puzzle make it difficult to discern the truth. However, the investigation into Barbara's disappearance has not been forgotten, and there is a renewed drive to uncover what really happened. With each passing day, more people are committed to uncovering the truth—and they may be getting closer to solving the mystery. If you have any information regarding the disappearance of Barbara Cotton, please contact the Williston Police Department at 701-577-1212. You can follow Barb’s story on social media at Find Barb Cotton. You can find more information at FindBarbCotton.com [http://findbarbcotton.com/], and check out Dakota Spotlight [https://www.inforum.com/topics/dakota-spotlight] wherever you get your podcasts. If you have a missing loved one that you would like to have featured on the show, please fill out our case submission form [http://www.thevanishedpodcast.com/case-submission/]. Follow The Vanished on social media at: Facebook [https://www.facebook.com/thevanishedpodcast/] Instagram [https://www.instagram.com/thevanishedpodcast/] Twitter [https://twitter.com/thevanishedpod/] Patreon [https://www.patreon.com/thevanishedpodcast] See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy [https://art19.com/privacy] and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info [https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info].

On April 11, 1981, 15-year-old Barbara Cotton vanished without a trace from Williston, North Dakota. Her mother, Louise, immediately began contacting Barbara’s friends, hoping to learn to find her. When no one had seen her, Louise reported her daughter missing to the Williston Police Department and passed along any tips she received. However, as the weeks and months passed, there was no sign of Barbara, and the case went cold. To those closest to her, it seemed as though little was being done to locate her, fueling their suspicions that the investigation was stagnant. The prevailing assumption at the time was that Barbara may have run away, a common conclusion for missing teens in that era. However, decades later, the case remains unsolved, and there is now a renewed push to uncover the truth behind Barbara Cotton’s disappearance. Many questions remain unanswered, and the search for answers continues. If you have any information about Barbara Cotton’s disappearance, please contact the Williston Police Department at 701-577-1212. You can follow Barb’s story on social media at Find Barb Cotton. You can find more information at FindBarbCotton.com [http://findbarbcotton.com/], and check out Dakota Spotlight [https://www.inforum.com/topics/dakota-spotlight] wherever you get your podcasts. Support us by supporting our sponsors! If you have a missing loved one that you would like to have featured on the show, please fill out our case submission form [http://www.thevanishedpodcast.com/case-submission/]. Follow The Vanished on social media at: Facebook [https://www.facebook.com/thevanishedpodcast/] Instagram [https://www.instagram.com/thevanishedpodcast/] Twitter [https://twitter.com/thevanishedpod/] Patreon [https://www.patreon.com/thevanishedpodcast] See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy [https://art19.com/privacy] and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info [https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info].

Nineteen-year-old Anastasia Ferreira, affectionately known as "Stasia" by those closest to her, was the kind of person who couldn't help but be noticed. Though Anastasia stood just around 4'11", her personality loomed large, making her impossible to overlook. She was a vibrant force of nature to her family: a ball of energy with a heart big enough to embrace everyone she encountered. As a child, Anastasia was a daredevil, fearlessly climbing swing sets to the highest bar and filming herself spinning on ceiling fans. Her loved ones remember her as adventurous and bold, someone who constantly pushed boundaries and wasn't afraid to stand up for herself. Yet, beneath that fearless exterior was a young woman shaped by early childhood trauma and a relentless desire for stability in a chaotic world. In mid-March 2023, Stasia vanished without a trace from Albuquerque, New Mexico. The details surrounding her disappearance are as perplexing as they are devastating. One moment, Anastasia was engaging with friends and posting on social media; the next, she was gone, leaving her family in a state of agony, desperately searching for answers in the face of her sudden and unexplained absence. Upon learning that Anastasia was missing, her family began searching the streets of Albuquerque for clues about what may have happened to her. They began hearing a flurry of stories that seemed conflicting. Nearly two years later, they are still sifting through the puzzle pieces they have gathered, hoping that the truth will come into focus. If you have any information regarding the disappearance of Anastasia Ferreira, please call the Albuquerque Police Department at 505-242-2677. If you have a missing loved one that you would like to have featured on the show, please fill out our case submission form [http://www.thevanishedpodcast.com/case-submission/]. Follow The Vanished on social media at: Facebook [https://www.facebook.com/thevanishedpodcast/] Instagram [https://www.instagram.com/thevanishedpodcast/] Twitter [https://twitter.com/thevanishedpod/] Patreon [https://www.patreon.com/thevanishedpodcast] See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy [https://art19.com/privacy] and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info [https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info].

21-year-old Jessica Foster, known to those close to her as Jessie, disappeared from Las Vegas, Nevada in late March of 2006. Jessie was far from her home in Canada, and her family didn't really know the ins and outs of Jessie's daily life in Sin City. They had last seen Jessie in late 2005 when she returned home to visit her loved ones for the holidays. She didn't seem quite like herself, but her family couldn't quite pinpoint the changes in her demeanor. Her once-vibrant spirit seemed to have faded, raising quiet concerns. In March, her family lost all communication with her. It was later revealed that her journey to Las Vegas was far darker than anyone had known. Nearly 19 years later, Jessie's family continues to search for the truth behind her disappearance, hoping to uncover the story of what happened to their beloved daughter and sister. If you have any information regarding the disappearance of Jessie Foster, please contact the North Las Vegas Police Department at (702) 633-9111 or the Crime Stoppers Tip Line at (702) 385-5555. See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy [https://art19.com/privacy] and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info [https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info].

Last week, you heard Part 1 of Bethany Collins Buckles’ story. You learned about her life, struggles, and sudden disappearance just as she planned for her mother’s Thanksgiving visit. Jolinda had expected to hear from Bethany, but she grew concerned when the call didn’t come. At the time, Jolinda was in Atlanta, hours away from Bethany’s condo in Asheville. She contacted the Asheville Police Department, requesting a welfare check. Officers reported that no one was home, and Bethany’s car was missing. When Jolinda finally arrived in Asheville, she discovered something even more troubling—Bethany’s dog had been left alone in the apartment for days without food or water, which was out of character for her daughter. Yet, there was no sign of a struggle inside the condo. Jolinda immediately reported Bethany missing, and the investigation began. Authorities traced Bethany’s phone, which appeared to be moving around the Asheville and Swannanoa areas before going radio silent.  Then, months later, in February 2022, a break in the case came when Bethany’s car was found in a grocery store parking lot not far from her Asheville condo and near where her phone had been pinging in late November. But the mystery deepened; whoever had left the car there managed to avoid detection, and no one had seen anything. This week, we will dive deeper into the mystery of what happened to Bethany and explore why she may have been targeted. What were the circumstances leading up to her disappearance, and who might have been involved? We’ll examine the details surrounding the car’s discovery and the investigation that followed, as we search for answers to this puzzling case. If you have any information regarding the disappearance of Bethany Collins Buckles, please contact Detective Kevin Taylor from the Asheville Police Department at 828-259-5945. If you have a missing loved one that you would like to have featured on the show, please fill out our case submission form [http://www.thevanishedpodcast.com/case-submission/]. Follow The Vanished on social media at: Facebook [https://www.facebook.com/thevanishedpodcast/] Instagram [https://www.instagram.com/thevanishedpodcast/] Twitter [https://twitter.com/thevanishedpod/] Patreon [https://www.patreon.com/thevanishedpodcast] See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy [https://art19.com/privacy] and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info [https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info].