NM NM - Tara Calico, 19, Belen, 20 Sept 1988

[Bodine]

If that is true and I suspect you are right then that is so unprofessional I dont even know what to say. Hard to find words

It's not uncommon. As long as LE has identified suspects and can get warrants for phone taps, it can be pretty effective. Getting those suspects nervous and talking to others may be the only way to solve this and bring Tara home.

Worth a shot IMO.

 

[CharlesRedding]

It's not uncommon. As long as LE has identified suspects and can get warrants for phone taps, it can be pretty effective. Getting those suspects nervous and talking to others may be the only way to solve this and bring Tara home.

Worth a shot IMO.

Great point. I wrote the previous comments out of frustration and I was having a bad day. Thanks for explaining.

 

[NeverPersonal]

It's not uncommon. As long as LE has identified suspects and can get warrants for phone taps, it can be pretty effective. Getting those suspects nervous and talking to others may be the only way to solve this and bring Tara home.

Worth a shot IMO.

Agreed. I understand the frustration. They may be readying the scene for the next act, so to speak.

 

[CharlesRedding]

Im thinking this may have been only a bluff?

 

[TwinkieDefense]

September 24, 2023, Updated 10/8/23 article

4 Investigates: New leads in the Tara Calico case

There one minute, gone the next. For 35 years, the disappearance of a Valencia County teenager has stumped detectives. Until now. Just three months ago, investigators made a huge announcement. Valencia County Sheriff’s investigators said they say they know what happened to Tara Calico and who...

www.kob.com

[…]

Valencia County Sheriff’s investigators said they say they know what happened to Tara Calico and who murdered her. But can they prove it?

The case, including those persons of interest, went to the 13th Judicial District Attorney’s Office for review in June. Since then, officials with the office said they’ve put together a team of attorneys to go through the 35 years-worth of files to see if there’s enough to criminally charge anyone.

[…]

 

[Cascadia Mount]

September 24, 2023, Updated 10/8/23 article

4 Investigates: New leads in the Tara Calico case

There one minute, gone the next. For 35 years, the disappearance of a Valencia County teenager has stumped detectives. Until now. Just three months ago, investigators made a huge announcement. Valencia County Sheriff’s investigators said they say they know what happened to Tara Calico and who...

www.kob.com

[…]

Valencia County Sheriff’s investigators said they say they know what happened to Tara Calico and who murdered her. But can they prove it?

The case, including those persons of interest, went to the 13th Judicial District Attorney’s Office for review in June. Since then, officials with the office said they’ve put together a team of attorneys to go through the 35 years-worth of files to see if there’s enough to criminally charge anyone.

[…]

I'm glad he officially discounted the polaroid. I think it's irresponsible for Esquibel to feature it so prominently--why not a picture of Tara?

 

[sony12]

Yeah good to hear they have completely moved on from the Florida photograph. Though I'm not sure if the authorities ever took the photograph connection that seriously and it was always more of an online sleuth connection (after all Patty Doel just said she couldn't rule the photo out).

They seem to have closed the case on the Florida photo anyways so I'm not sure if the girl in the photo came forward and requested that it not be made public or what.

 

[CooperDyl]

Still waiting for an update on this one. I understand there’s plenty of files to go through, but if LE had handed a brief to DA to consider charges, they would only consider the brief at that stage wouldn’t they?
Hopefully a word either way soon.
Imo.

 

[Richard]

Tara Leigh Calico, age 19
Missing since 20 September 1980 from Belen, NM

 

[dotr]

Resolved Post in thread 'FL - Port St Joe -2 Children Bound & Gagged in Photo - 96UMFL & 66UFFL - Jun'89 - #2'

Dec 3, 2022

Quote from Thread #1 - Nov 30, 2022 at 12:40 AM

I recieved a response from Becky Turner, who is the Florida Researcher for Doe Network

Hi (my name)
......I was as baffled about this case as your were.

The only thing listed on Doe is the following:
66UFFL discovered on June 15, 1989 in Port St. Joe, Florida is now a closed case. No further information is available.

Apparently the police didn’t release any info about who this woman was.

I tried searching online using a variety of words and found nothing.

Sorry I couldn’t be of more help.

Take...

• Truly_Mysterious

• 
• 

 

[mjm076]

Tara Calico should be 56 years-old this February 28th. She has been missing now for over 36 years!

Tara Calico, if you’re still alive, where are you? If you are no longer on earth, please guide those looking for you so that they may finally get answers and justice for you!

 

[CooperDyl]

Unfortunately it’s still crickets, but can’t imagine after 18 months that the brief of evidence proved enough for prosecutors to charge.
Hopefully LE are working behind the scenes to gather more evidence and we see some more movement on the case some time this year.

 

[Cascadia Mount]

People within that community--come clean. Lighten the burden of lies you have been carrying all these years. Think how you would feel if Tara were your family.

 

[Vaderman]

I just heard about this case. Not sure that the Polaroid snaps are of her but they are unsettling, nonetheless.

Haunting Polaroid snaps give chilling clues about missing teenager

Haunting Polaroid snaps gave investigators chilling clues to what happened to missing woman. Tara Calico disappeared on September 20, 1988, while on a routine bike ride near her home in New Mexico

www.dailymail.co.uk

 

[Aegon_the_Conqueror]

Regarding the Polaroid in the van, the explanation that makes the most sense to me is this:

They're alive, and came forward themselves so that LE could disregard it as evidence. Had it closed another case, we would've heard about it. But they probably didn't want press attention or threats from people who thought that they were playing a cruel joke on Tara Calico's family. They might not have been aware of the photo for decades until seeing it on TV or the Internet.

It was probably a photograph from a kidnapping that was over and done with in a day or two and the victims made it back home. It doesn't look like they've been gone very long.

As for the other two photos...

The blurry one could be anybody. It's almost useless.

I hope the one on the train was a hoax (as is generally suspected), because if not it's sickeningly disturbing. But it doesn't look like Tara Calico at all. I don't want to know what the guy's doing to that girl.

 

[Aegon_the_Conqueror]

People within that community--come clean. Lighten the burden of lies you have been carrying all these years. Think how you would feel if Tara were your family.

There's a good chance the suspects are dead now.

 

[Cascadia Mount]

There's a good chance the suspects are dead now.

I'm sure some of them are but if the theories are correct several people knew about it.

 

[Jets4Life]

Regarding the Polaroid in the van, the explanation that makes the most sense to me is this:

They're alive, and came forward themselves so that LE could disregard it as evidence. Had it closed another case, we would've heard about it. But they probably didn't want press attention or threats from people who thought that they were playing a cruel joke on Tara Calico's family. They might not have been aware of the photo for decades until seeing it on TV or the Internet.

The boy that was thought to be in the Poloroid was found dead in New Mexico in 1990, a couple of miles from where he was reported missing- in a wilderness area where his family was camping. He died of exposure.

The woman in the photo was supposedly confirmed to be a Florida woman. I believe she contacted authorities a few years later. It was concluded that Calico was not the girl in the photo 30 years ago.

 

[Ciel Phantomhive]

Iv'e always looked at this case and decided it needs some attention, I think its crazy that so many trails were left and so much information was gathered yet no one could actually find out anything and considering the fact that this person seem to be leaving trails on purpose they wanted to have that chase but unfortunately it only made things harder for Police . I wanna shed more light on this case and was hoping to get different theory's and ideas on this case, I feel people tend to forget that anything could've happened during that time and it could've been anyone doing just about anything so all ideas are welcome because its good to get a full look at the whole picture, as well as old information is welcome too because anyone even the smartest people make mistakes and maybe there is old evidence that was actually overlooked?or maybe we are all look at this wrong ? maybe we are focusing on one thing to hard? once you read the case give me your thoughts ( if that doesn't work just look up her name on uncovered or look at any news feed remember different sites carry different information) Missing: Tara Calico | Belen, NM | Uncovered

 

[bearfossils]

Really, the only reason those two cases have been linked is because of a polaroid found in the parking lot of a gas station/convenience store (IIRC) in Florida that was speculated to show two unknown children bound in the back of a van. Some people believed the female in the photo was Tara, and the younger male was Michael.

All of this was pretty much debunked for a multitude of reasons. Multiple people and agencies have looked into the photo, and there is significant evidence in both cases which point away from either of them being individuals in the photo.

Both were likely murdered and/or died not far from where they were last seen. There is absolutely no evidence to support they were somehow both kidnapped by the same individual who took them Florida and casually left a polaroid of them tied up in a public place.

The polaroid was more than likely a bizarre prank.