Dana Stidham was last seen at a grocery store in Bella Vista, AR,
(A) in the afternoon of July 25, 1989 and was reported missing that evening.
The next morning, a Bella Vista police officer noticed a battered pick-up truck and a Dodge Omni parked less than a mile north of the store along HWY 71 (now HWY 540) at its intersection with Wellington RD
(B). The officer saw a man kneeling next to the Omni, whose rear left tire was flat. Later that morning, the Omni was identified as Dana's, but the pickup truck and man were gone. There was no blood or evidence of violence at the scene, and the keys to the Omni were in the ignition.
The truck was identified as belonging to a Navy sailor stationed in Florida.
Later, some items of Dana's clothing (laundry) were found along Ealing Circle
(C).
On August 5th, items from Dana's purse were found scattered near the roadside along Hanover and Chaucer DRs.
(D, E) A dog in the area came home with Dana's purse in his mouth.
Dana's partial skeletal remains were found somewhere off Newburn RD
(F) on Sep 16 by a squirrel hunter. Her clothing and rings were buried nearby. A nick on her shoulder bone indicated she may have been stabbed in the neck, but her sternum was missing, making it impossible to determine for sure.
According to an article written 10 years after her death, LE had identified a strong suspect, a rejected suitor of Dana's, who had been seen in the area on the day Dana disappeared, who joined the Navy shortly thereafter, and who had since been convicted of stealing her grave stone. This suspect may be MM.
http://www.topix.com/forum/city/grav...UAPNGNC3501TT7
In 2008, evidence was sent to the Arkansas State Crime Lab for DNA testing. As of July, 2009, the results of those tests are unknown and no one has been arrested.
Much more at link
http://www.findagrave.com/cgi-bin/fg...&GRid=21510385
Map of key locations
http://maps.google.com/maps?f=d&sour...,0.075703&z=14
Linear Mode
