SheWhoMustNotBeNamed
Former Member
Missing Since: March 11, 1987 from South Bend, Indiana
Classification: Endangered Missing
Date Of Birth: March 15, 1970
Age: 16 years old
Height and Weight: 5'5, 130 pounds
Distinguishing Characteristics: African-American female. Black hair, brown eyes. Several of Powell's teeth are chipped. She has a scar on the right side of her neck. Powell's ears are pierced.
Medical Conditions: Powell was approximately four months pregnant at the time of her disappearance.
Details of Disappearance
Powell was last seen in South Bend, Indiana on March 11, 1987, four days before her seventeenth birthday. She and a friend went out together and became separated, and Powell has never been heard from again. Her friend stated Powell had a phone conversation with an unknown person the night before her disappearance, but the friend did not hear what the conversation was about. Her friend stated Powell had not indicated any plans to run away. She did not take any of her belongings or money when she went missing.
Powell testified at a murder trial in 1986, one year prior to her disappearance. She had witnessed the shooting of one of her friends. A suspect was convicted in the killing and is still in prison. Powell was threatened afterwards by an unidentified person, as were several of the other witnesses in the trial. Authorities are uncertain whether her disappearance is related to the trial. Shortly before her disappearance, the father of her baby told her he was marrying someone else, which upset Powell very much.
One of Powell's friends thought she saw her on the television show Soul Train. Law enforcement attempted to obtain a videotape of the show, but never got one. It has never been verified whether or not the woman on the film was Powell. Another tipster stated Powell was an adult films actress, and her relatives watched several pornographic films to investigate this, but never saw Powell. Authorities stated they had not received any credible tips about her disappearance in years. Her dental records were never collected by police and have since been lost, which would seriously hinder the identification of her body if it were ever found.
Powell lived with her mother on south Camden Street on the far west side of South Bend in 1987. She attended Washington High School. Her case was originally classified as a runaway case, but the classification was changed to Endangered Missing about fifteen years after her disappearance.
Investigating Agency
If you have any information concerning this case, please contact:
South Bend Police Department
219-235-9201