Case Form A: Missing Persons Who Vanish Abroad

By: Shane Lambert
Original Publication Date: September 30th, 2025

Case Form A: The Vanishing Traveler

In my Missing Persons Commentary blog, I use “Case Forms” to categorize missing persons cases into patterns. A “form” groups disappearances by key circumstances—locations, events, or behaviors—to reveal insights and aid investigations. One thing it does, which is a weakness, is that it doesn't treat cases as wholly unique. With this approach, you can try to gain insight between cases based on similar sets of facts.

Case Form A is defined as follows: 

(1) Subject Travels Abroad
(2) Subject Does Not Check-in For Return Transportation. 

In this case, it’s the latter condition—missing a flight or paid transport—that triggers the missing person designation, whether soon or in the future. Unlike missing a coffee date, a class, or casual appointment, which might be shrugged off, a missed flight costs hundreds, even thousands, of dollars.

In 2005, a transatlantic ticket ran $600–$1,200, a hefty sum to abandon. Usually, transportation, especially flights, is considered important enough that people will not merely abandon it. Therefore, the missed transportation often signals a problem—be it choice, accident, or foul play.

Last call for a missing passenger.

Christine Linda Longino

Christine, 31, from Sandy Springs, Georgia, embodies Case Form A. In early November 2005, she was dropped off at a MARTA station (Atlanta-area transit), took a train to Hartsfield-Jackson Airport, and flew to London’s Gatwick Airport. She missed her November 12th return flight.

Was it a new life, foul play in London, or an accident that caused her to miss her flight home? Timeline gaps—October 14 vs. November last-seen dates—and an unknown drop-off person cloud the case, still unsolved in 2025.

Ani Ashekian

Ani Ashekian, a Canadian, went missing in Hong Kong in 2008. She missed her return flight and media coverage of her case started soon afterward. This case remains unsolved as of October 2025. But in Ani's case, it wasn't just her return transportation home but her travel itinerary during her trip that remained unchecked-in for.

Natalee Holloway

Natalee, 18, traveled to Aruba in May 2005 for a graduation trip. She was last seen leaving a bar on May 30th, then later that day, she missed her group’s prepaid return flight to Miami that morning. Her mother raised the alarm immediately, launching a search. Joran van der Sloot’s 2023 confession confirmed foul play, but her body remains missing.

Join the Search

It's important to not get tunnel vision. There are good reasons why someone might miss their paid transportation. Furthermore, what amounts to a lot of money for one person might not be a lot to the next.

Other examples will be added as time goes by. But I want the reader to note that missing paid transportation, especially expensive transportation, is a clue that something is significantly wrong with someone's life. That person needs to be located immediately and their well-being accounted for.