CANADA Canada - Carol Bigtobacco, 8, Siksika First Nation, reported missing 1986, 19 March 1983

[Goecke]

Canada's Missing | Case details

BIGTOBACCO, Carol May

Aliases
CATFACE, Carol May
Missing since
March 19, 1983
Year of birth
1974
Age at disappearance
8
Gender
Female
Bio group
Aboriginal
Eye colour
Brown
Hair
Black, Straight
Height
150cm / 4 ft 11 in
Weight
40kg / 88lb
Build
Medium
Complexion
Dark

On November 25, 1986, Carol Bigtobacco was reported missing to the RCMP. She was 8 years old when she was last seen 3 years earlier on March 19, 1983. It is believed she had wandered off from the family residence on Siksika Nation. She may have suffered from a disability.

 

[Goecke]

A lot about this case doesn't make sense to me. It would sound like she just wandered away (the fact that it said she might be disabled makes me wonder if she was autistic?) but the fact that it took over three years to report her missing makes this whole case seem suspicious.

 

[LadyL]

that seems really tall & heavy for an 8 year-old

 

[Stunned]

that seems really tall & heavy for an 8 year-old

Yes it does! I hate when they mess that up!

 

[Goecke]

that seems really tall & heavy for an 8 year-old

I agree. Then again, there are some really big 8-year-olds out there so I guess it's not impossible, but still unlikely. And we have no idea what she actually looked like since we don't have any recent photos.

 

[chemicalpixie]

I for one would be very interested in who last saw her, and what the details of that were — if it was only reported to the police three years after the girl had gone missing, how do we know for certain that was the last date she was seen? Specifically, her height (4'11") is very close to the estimated height of St. Louis Jane Doe, who was found about three weeks before this little girl was supposedly last seen. If someone had the wrong dates or had a vested interest in concealing the date when she actually went missing for some reason (whether or not that had anything to do with Carol's disappearance) then that would give authorities a reason to try DNA testing with Carol's remaining relatives.

 

[UnitedProblem5645]

I for one would be very interested in who last saw her, and what the details of that were — if it was only reported to the police three years after the girl had gone missing, how do we know for certain that was the last date she was seen? Specifically, her height (4'11") is very close to the estimated height of St. Louis Jane Doe, who was found about three weeks before this little girl was supposedly last seen. If someone had the wrong dates or had a vested interest in concealing the date when she actually went missing for some reason (whether or not that had anything to do with Carol's disappearance) then that would give authorities a reason to try DNA testing with Carol's remaining relatives.

SLJD's height wasn't estimated at 4'10." That was the point to where the head was severed. So the height would be off.

 

[ktm44]

A lot about this case doesn't make sense to me. It would sound like she just wandered away (the fact that it said she might be disabled makes me wonder if she was autistic?) but the fact that it took over three years to report her missing makes this whole case seem suspicious.

I live in this area and this happened a long time ago so I'm sure I only remember the absolute basics.

If I'm not mistaken, there was a social worker involved with the family and a report was filed much sooner but the RCMP spoke with the social worker and who indicated that they had seen the child with the parents after the report so the initial file was closed.

Things may have been confusing for the worker because Carol was in foster care due to problems in the home but there was parental access.

There was a partial skull and clothing similar to what Carol would have been wearing found some distance from the family home a few years after and there has always been some belief that she died of exposure but there was no positive identification.

I believe second missing person report, that is now on record was written up about the time that the remains were discovered but I would think that modern forensics should be able to give the family some answers.

ETA, I believe the unspecified disability was Fetal Alcohol Syndrome.