Michael August Cannon -- Missing Since December 25th, 1966 From Hawaii

This article is part of a series that looks at missing trail hikers. Click the "trail hiking series" hashtag at the end of this blog to see all thematically related articles.

Paraphrased Details from NamUs**: 

Michael August Cannon left his family's Kahala home in Hawaii early Christmas morning in 1966. He left a note stating that he planned to hike on Tantalus. His empty car was found at the top of Tantalus the next morning. The resulting search and rescue mission, which at the time was the largest and most expensive ever in Hawaii, failed to find Michael. However, his vehicle was found at Tantalus trailhead the next morning. This vehicle had his jacket in it and five dollars. The doors were locked.

Missing Person: Michael August Cannon
Last-contact date: December 25th, 1966 -- left a note in the morning, he may have been seen on the Tantalus Trail at about 5pm later that day (HSB Jan 3 1967 A-1A), however, I considered sightings of this missing person to be tenuous
The area where the MP was last seen: Honolulu, Hawaii
Link to government source: NamUs MP 

VITAL DETAILS

Ethnicity: White or Caucasian
Sex: Male
Age at time of disappearance: 18 years old
Birthdate: Michael August Cannon was born between December 26th, 1947, and December 25th, 1948 based on his reported age at the last date of reported contact.
Hair: Brown, short-cropped and curly
Eyes: Brown
Scar: None indicated
Height/weight: 5'11" and 165 to 175 pounds
BMI*: Michael August Cannon was in the normal range for BMI.
Tattoos: Michael August Cannon did not have any tattoos associated with his profiles.

Michael August Cannon was last heard from on December 25th, 1966 when he was 18 years of age. This individual has now been missing for about 55 years as of the original publication date of this blog post.

A couple things stood out to me while researching this missing person case. Firstly, he went missing on Christmas Day. Often, the holidays at the end of the year are a time of celebration but there is a lot of depression at that time of year as well. However, I didn't really find anything mentioning depression or despondence with this missing person. He seemed to have a bright future that he was looking forward to.

One detail that stands out with this case is that Michael Cannon had a share in a $2,750,000 inheritance at the time of his disappearance ($5.5M; half went to mother, mother left the other half to her children). According to SmartAsset.com, $1,000,000 in 1966 would be worth $8,269,865 in 2021. Accordingly, $2.75M would now be worth $22,742,128.75. He was not the sole inheritor to this amount but was one of five grandchildren to a "chemical magnate" who made a fortune. 

31 Dec 1966, Sat Honolulu Star-Bulletin (Honolulu, Hawaii) Newspapers.com

The area where the hiker went missing is one that I'm familiar with from another case. Michael's car was found at Tantalus trailhead on December 26th, 1966. In more recent times, Wynn Lindsey went missing in the same area. Lindsey's car was also found near a trailhead. One difference is that Michael's doors were locked while Lindsey's car had a door open.

Michael Cannon remains lost, however, he is not lost without a trace. A shirt of his was found, the only result of a well-financed expedition over ten months that included ground searchers, "professional mountaineers from California," "search dogs from Canada," and some not-so-helpful psychics and something called "map-reading mystics." As soon as you see psychics or 'mystics' involved in a search, don't be surprised if the person isn't found: it means someone that doesn't have a scientific mentality is influencing the search. 

16 Jul 1997, Wed Honolulu Star-Bulletin (Honolulu, Hawaii) Newspapers.com

The shirt that was found seemed like a tenuous connection to Michael to me. It was found tied to a bush by a man named Richard Davis. Also, there were people that thought they saw someone matching his description, however, these sightings seemed tenuous to me.

The possibility that Michael disappeared intentionally was mentioned in many articles, often as an opinion of the police. It's hard to imagine someone giving up such a large inheritance, in my opinion. Furthermore, police, in my opinion, seem keen to believe in whatever hypothesis is easiest on their budgets. If Michael is missing voluntarily, then what need is there to search? It's an easy way out for them. Michael's mother was adamant that he remained on Oahu in all sources that I encountered.

I did some research on the trail that he went missing on, the Tantalus Trail. It seemed that in 1966 there was Tantalus Trail 1 and Tantalus Trail 2.

02 May 1966, Mon Honolulu Star-Bulletin (Honolulu, Hawaii) Newspapers.com

I found one case that shared some details from about the same time. A man with similar demographics to Michael went missing in what I think is the same trail network a few months earlier. I don't know if he was ever found. In addition to similar demographics, the man's car was found locked just as Michael's was. Tantalus Trail is mentioned in the article.

21 Oct 1965, Thu The Honolulu Advertiser (Honolulu, Hawaii) Newspapers.com

Michael Cannon was associated with a lot of clothing articles and/or possessions. Note the following with this case: 'Blue jeans', 'tan hiking bootsa white t-shirt with "Judson School" (of Scottsdale, AZ) on the front', 'Olive-drab backpack', 'canteen', 'high energy candy bars', 'Polaroid camera', 'first aid kit in a blue-and-white plastic case', and a map of the trail area.

Please, take a moment to share this blog post on social media using hashtags relevant to the missing person's area. Also, please include the website hashtag #MPCSL.

Popular Tag: "Car Found Person Missing" is a popular tag for this site. It describes a missing person who either owned or was using a vehicle at the time of his/her disappearance. The vehicle is found but the person is not. Click the hashtag at the bottom of this blog post to see just how many times this pattern is present in missing person cases.

 

Author: Shane Lambert (UncoolNegated on Websleuths)

All articles are subject to editing after the original posting.

Shane Lambert (UncoolNegated on Websleuths) is not a Private Investigator, however, he is currently studying to be one as of March 2021.

If you like this blog, then you can join the affiliated Facebook group: MPC Facebook Group

Website hashtag: #MPCSL

*For BMI values, I use the UPPER or HIGHER ranges that are given for height and weight.
**Text might be paraphrased. If taken verbatim, then grammar or spelling errors are not necessarily corrected from original sources. Details may be added.
Disclaimer: Whenever possible, government sources are preferred for getting the details of a missing persons case. However, any source that the article writer deems reputable may be used.

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Mattie Lou Zabel -- Missing From Cedar Falls, Iowa Since 1978

Details from NamUs**: 

"Mattie worked as a teacher's aide at River Hills School in Cedar Falls, Iowa. She was reported missing to the Cedar Falls Police Department on March 21, 1978. She left a frozen chicken thawing in the kitchen sink for dinner. No clothing was taken and she would not have had the assets to walk away. The day after she went missing, one of her sons found her car at Black Hawk Park in Cedar Falls. The vehicle was found locked with Zabel’s purse inside. An extensive search by Black Hawk County Sheriff’s Deputies, search dogs, divers and a National Guard helicopter turned up no trace of Mattie."

 
Popular Tag: "Car Found Person Missing" is a popular tag for this site. It describes a missing person who either owned or was using a vehicle at the time of his/her disappearance. The vehicle is found but the person is not. Click the hashtag at the bottom of this blog post to see just how many times this pattern is present in missing person cases.

 

Missing Person: Mattie Lou Zabel

Alias: Her maiden name might have been Garner.
Last-contact date: March 21st, 1978 at about 130pm
The area where the MP was last seen: Black Hawk Park in Cedar Falls, Iowa
Link to government source: NamUs MP 

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VITAL DETAILS

Ethnicity: White/Caucasian
Sex: Female
Age at time of disappearance: 45 years old
Birthdate: March 7th, 1933
Hair: Brown
Eyes: Brown
Scar: None listed
Height/weight: 5'2" and 118 pounds
BMI*: Mattie Lou Zabel was in the normal range for BMI.
Tattoos: Mattie Lou Zabel did not have any tattoos associated with her profiles. If you know that the missing person did have tattoos, then please post a remark at the end of this blog post on the matter.

Mattie Lou Zabel, a missing person, was last heard from on March 21st, 1978 when she was 45 years old. This individual has now been missing for about 43 years as of the original publication date of this blog post. 

I did find that this person had some information available at Ancestry. Her information there takes for granted that she died at about the time of her disappearance.

One detail that I think is missing from a lot of the online profiles for this individual is that she was seen at the park where her car was found. The way the NamUs description reads, we're to believe that the frozen chicken thawing in the sink (it was on the counter according to the husband) was the last evidence that was seen of her. However, the park staff saw her at the park. Furthermore, footprints that were presumed to be of the missing woman were found near the river.

Thu, Mar 23, 1978 – 3 · The Courier (Waterloo, Iowa) · Newspapers.com

What would have been interesting in this case if they found footprints leading away from the river or a second set of footprints near hers. But in early journalism after the disappearance, there was no indication of foul play. 

The river around where the footprints were found was searched many times by divers. About four months after she disappeared, someone spotted a body in the same river downstream in a town called Gilbertville. The sheriff of Cedar Falls wondered if it was that of the missing woman. The person who saw this body claimed that it had long hair and a green shirt. I did not find any follow-up journalism on this lead until 1992 when there was a suggestion that it was someone else. It seems that a description of what the missing person was wearing as per the park staff would have helped.

Wed, Jun 7, 1978 – 5 · The Courier (Waterloo, Iowa) · Newspapers.com

In addition to the NamUs description at the start, according to her case summary at Iowa Cold Cases all of the following are true:

• she had a husband and three children
• "Police hypothesized that Zabel either fell into the swift and swollen Cedar River while taking a walk or committed suicide"
• This missing person was known to struggle with depression but was thought to be improving
• Her credit cards were not used in the years after her disappearance and she was declared dead in absentia seven years later

If these kinds of mysteries intrigue you, then you can find more like them at Websleuths.com.

Author: Shane Lambert, (Freelance Writer)

All articles are subject to editing after the original posting.

Shane Lambert, (Freelance Writer) is not a Private Investigator, however, he is currently studying to be one as of March 2021.

If you like this blog, then you can join the affiliated Facebook group: MPC Facebook Group

Website hashtag: #MPCSL

*For BMI values, I use the UPPER or HIGHER ranges that are given for height and weight.
**Text might be paraphrased. If taken verbatim, then grammar or spelling errors are not necessarily corrected from original sources.
Disclaimer: Whenever possible, government sources are preferred for getting the details of a missing person's case. However, any source that the article writer deems reputable may be used.

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Cindy Lee Mellin -- Missing During Tire Change in January 1970

Case Overview: Cindy Lee Mellin’s Disappearance

Details from NamUs**:

"Mellin was employed by the Broadway Department Store in the Buenaventura Shopping Center. She left work shortly after closing on the night of January 20, 1970. She was last seen standing next to her car in the shopping center parking lot while an unidentified male changed her tire. When she failed to return home that night, her father (Leonard Alfred Mellin) went to the shopping center looking for her and found her car still up on a jack with the flat tire still attached"

   

---

Key Information About Cindy Lee Mellin

Missing Person: Cindy Lee Mellin (may go by Cynthia in some databases of records)
Last-contact date: January 20th, 1970 at about 9:45pm
The area where the MP was last seen: Ventura, California in the parking lot of Buenaventura Shopping Center which was probably close to 34.26974109569808, -119.24888050781114 on Google Maps
Link to government source: NamUs MP#6849 

---

Vital Details of Cindy Lee Mellin

VITAL DETAILS

Ethnicity: White/Caucasian
Sex: Female
Age at time of disappearance: 19 years old

Birthdate: December 3rd, 1950
Hair: Brown
Eyes: Blue
Scar: None listed at NamUs
Height/weight: 5-foot-6 and 105 pounds
BMI*: In this case, the missing person was underweight by BMI at the time of the disappearance.

• BMI is body mass index. It relates to an individual's height and weight. I include it believing it can help picture a missing person or describe one.

Tattoos: Cindy Lee Mellin did not have any tattoos associated with her profiles. If you know that the missing person did have tattoos, then please post a remark at the end of this blog post on the matter.

Circumstances of Disappearance

Cindy Lee Mellin, a missing person, was last heard from on January 20th, 1970 when she was 19 years old. This individual has now been missing for 51 years as of the original publication date of this blog post. Her ancestry page lists her date of death as the date of her disappearance which suggests that family members consider her dead.

What stands out with this case is that she may have been a victim of the so-called "Good Samaritan's Ruse." This is when someone offers help to an individual but actually has sinister intentions.

Someone using this modus operandi may cause damage to an individual's vehicle and then show up pretending to be of help for the problem when the vehicle operator discovers the damage. The phony Good Samaritan then earns the trust of the victim and disappears her.

There are many cases where this ruse is known to have happened and probably more where it should be part of the debate. I covered many cases of missing people and car troubles in another blog post a few years back in an article called "Women With Car Troubles Go Missing."

Cindy Lee Mellin's tire had been punctured. There was someone on the scene to assist her, this much was witnessed. It's possible that whoever punctured the tire was this same individual that attempted to help her change the tire. After all, the evidence suggests that she did disappear during the tire change.

Historical Newspaper Clippings

Tue, Jun 30, 1970 – 2 · The Napa Valley Register (Napa, California) · Newspapers.com

Location and Workplace Details

Cindy worked at the Broadway Department Store. I think the mall has changed names since the time of her employment there. I did go into the newspaper database to find the following plans that dated from the time of construction. It could help pinpoint the scene of the abduction if you are interested in that. If you can't read the legend then the store she worked at is marked with a "1." I'm guessing that she likely parked near there.

Fri, Apr 5, 1963 – 17 · Ventura County Star-Free Press (Ventura, California) · Newspapers.com

Clothing and Identification Tips

Finding Cindy Lee Mellin could involve searching the Jane Doe databases for unidentified women found in relation to clothing that Mellin had. She was thought to have had the following articles when she disappeared: a navy blue dress (might be size 9) with red buttons, a brown corduroy coat (she was a size 10), size-7 blue shoes (medium heels) with gold buckles, and a gold ring with a single pearl. If you find a Jane Doe with one or more of these items, then cross-reference the other particulars between the missing person and the Jane Doe, especially the timeline.

The man seen in Mellin's company was thought to be 30-40 years old, tall, and slim.

Fri, Jan 23, 1970 – 2 · Valley Times (North Hollywood, California) · Newspapers.com

Call to Action: Share Cindy’s Story

Please share this article to social media using hashtags that are related to where the missing person went missing from, which is Ventura, California.

Notes and Disclaimer

*For BMI values, I use the UPPER or HIGHER ranges that are given for height and weight.
**Text might be paraphrased. If taken verbatim, then grammar or spelling errors are not necessarily corrected from original sources.
Disclaimer: Whenever possible, government sources are preferred for getting the details of a missing person's case. However, any source that the article writer deems reputable may be used.

Shaelene Keeler Bell: From Missing Chilliwack Mom to Stolen Memorial

Update: this individual, formerly missing, was found deceased in early June 2021.

Source: Global News

Shocking Theft: Shaelene Bell’s Memorial Plaque Stolen in Chilliwack, November 2024

• Discovery: Two individuals found Shaelene Bell’s memorial plaque missing on November 8, 2024.
• Location: Stolen from Luckakuck Creek Trail, Chilliwack, BC.
• Description: Plaque read “In loving memory of Shaelene Keeler Bell,” with her photo and sons, on a granite rock by a maple tree.
• Damage: Metal flower busted; “love” rock smashed.
• Context: Honored Shaelene, missing January 30, 2021, found deceased June 2, 2021, in Fraser River.
• Installation: Placed summer 2021 by family; tree from Rotary Club.
• Police: RCMP notified, file #24-49179.
• Appeal: Alina asks for its return, no questions asked.
• Reported: Abbotsford News, November 9, 2024.

Hyperlink: The Abbotsford News - Memorial Plaque Stolen

---------------------------------------

Details from a missing person's poster in North Vancouver: 

Her car was found with her cell phone and belongings inside on February 1st, 2021.

Missing Person: Shaelene Keeler Bell
Last-contact date: January 30th, 2021 at about 8:30pm
The area where the MP was last seen: Chilliwack, British Columbia near the 9300 block of Edward Street
Link to government source: No government source found at the time of publication but police are commenting on this disappearance so it is a credible missing person case.

• Facebook Group: Find Shaelene Bell
• News source: City News

VITAL DETAILS

Ethnicity: White/Caucasian
Sex: Female
Age at time of disappearance: 23 years old
Birthdate: between January 31st, 1997 and January 30th, 1998

• When the birthdate isn't known, I calculate a range using the age at the date of the missing person's disappearance.

Hair: Blonde
Eyes: Brown
Scar: None indicated
Height/weight: 5-foot-2 and 95 pounds
BMI*: In this case, the missing person was underweight by BMI at the time of the disappearance.

• BMI is body mass index. It relates to an individual's height and weight. I include it believing it can help picture a missing person or describe one.

Shaelene Keeler Bell has not been seen since January 30th, 2021 at about 8:30pm, when she was 23 years old. When people have been missing for such a short time, then the details regarding their disappearances are more likely to be updated. Be sure to check the news for regular updates regarding this case. City News in Chilliwack is one source that is covering this case, however, any Google search for her name is likely to produce some news hits.

What stands out with this case, is that her car was found and there were possessions in it that she would likely want to have on her person (ie. cell phone). The vehicle was found on Ballam Road near the Fraser River in the 47000 block. This vehicle was a 2021 Hyundai Tucson (a four-door SUV). I 'walked' this road using Google Maps and the stretch near the Fraser River looks secluded. I don't see there being much traffic there at any point in the day and hardly any at night.

If you know where this person might be or have any information on this case, then please contact the authorities. Contact information is included in the missing person poster at the start of this blog post.

 

Author: Shane Lambert (UncoolNegated on Websleuths)

All articles are subject to editing after the original posting.

Shane Lambert (UncoolNegated on Websleuths) is not a Private Investigator, however, he is currently studying to be one as of March 2021.

Website hashtag: #MPCSL

*For BMI values, I use the UPPER or HIGHER ranges that are given for height and weight.
Disclaimer: Information posted is thought to be correct as of the time posting. If a missing person is found, then this article might stay posted until that is noticed. I try to stay on top of the news but it's not possible to follow all cases. Articles will be edited or deleted when credible news of the missing person is authenticated.

Patrick N. Chapman -- Missing in Missouri Since May 2020

Missing person: Patrick N. Chapman

Last-contact date: May 1st, 2020 as per NamUs; another source says May 10th, 2020
Disappeared from: Greenville, Missouri but car found near Mill Spring, Missouri

Link to Government Source: #MP70614

NamUs description: "Patrick was last seen in the Greenville, Missouri area on 5/1/2020. His vehicle, a burgundy color 1995 Ford Escort, was also missing at the time. The vehicle was later recovered on 5/29/2020 in Mill Spring, Missouri." 

Facebook Group: Bring Patrick Chapman Home

Ethnicity/Race: White
Sex: Male
Age at time of disappearance: 34 years old

Birthdate: February 24th, 1986
Hair: Brown, may have a beard
Eye color: Brown
Height and weight at the time of disappearance: 5'6" and 160 pounds

Tattoos: "Chapman" on right forearm, sun between shoulder blades, cross on shoulder
Vehicle: He was driving a burgundy 1995 Ford Escort (station-wagon style). "His car was discovered weeks after his disappearance on a gravel road not too far from the Mill Spring Cemetery" (Wayne County Journal Banner).

Articles: 

1. May or may not have had a necklace with a wisdom tree on it.
2. May have had sunglasses.
3. Possibly wearing blue work pants, black boots, and a black and white woven pullover. Was known to wear a ball cap.

Author: Shane Lambert (Facebook profile)

Facebook Group: Missing Person Commentary

Twitter: @UncoolNegated (Twitter)

Pinterest: Missing Person Board
Original Time of Writing: February 15th, 2021

All articles are subject to editing after the original posting.

I am not a Private Investigator, however, I am currently studying to be one as of February 2021.

Website hashtag: #MPCSL 

Michael Frank Fullerton -- Missing From Seattle Since 1986

Author: Shane Lambert
Original Time of Writing: January 14th, 2021
All articles are subject to editing after the original posting.

Missing person: Michael Frank Fullerton

Last-seen date: September 27th, 1986 -- maybe October 2nd, 1986
Last-seen location: Seattle, Washington -- car found abandoned on Capitol Hill
Link to Government Source: NamUs #MP11140
Ethnicity/Race: White
Sex: Male

Age at time of disappearance: 26 years old
Hair: Dark blonde/strawberry; wore a mustache
Eye color: blue
Height and weight at the time of disappearance: 6'2" and 185 pounds
Clothing: Street shoes

Other: Scar on one of his wrists; his jaw was cracked and healed in several places.

Michael Frank Fullerton went missing in the fall of 1986 and, make no mistake, he remains missing at the time of writing. He has a grave and that might confuse some of those looking into this case.

However, the grave is a memorial only and does not contain his remains. If you are searching on Find-a-grave and finding the same-name match and same-birth-year match for a grave and think his case is still active by accident, it's not. He's not in the grave at the time of writing.

Michael's vehicle was a silver and black sedan with Washington plates. It was found ten days after he disappeared at Capitol Hill. It's possible that he was seen on October 2nd and the finding of his vehicle would be after that, on October 7th, 1986.

When you read his profile information, you have to wonder if he was depressed: scars on wrists can be a clue to a suicide attempt. That circumstance and the fact that he has not been heard from in what is now 35 years has to make you wonder if finding him will mean finding a John Doe.

On that matter, when it comes to finding Michael, Websleuths and amateur investigators can focus on the details of the jaw area from his profile. In more scientific terms, the jawbones can be called "the mandible." Even after all of this time, if Michael's remains are found then his mandible or jawbone injuries and healings may be detectable in his skeletal remains. The same can't really be assumed regarding his wrist scar. Furthermore, someone looking at his remains might be able to tell that he had injuries to the mandible or jaw in life and these details might end up in his John Doe report. Accordingly, someone familiar with the John Doe reports in the Seattle area should keep the mandible injuries in mind.

Stephanie Ann Drnovsek -- Missing From Lakewood, Colorado Since 1984

Author: Shane Lambert
Original Time of Writing: January 11th, 2021

Significant update: April 5th, 2025
All articles are subject to editing after the original posting.

/

A high-school photo for a missing 27-year-old?

Missing person: Stephanie Ann Drnovsek

Last-seen date: September 5th, 1984 (Wednesday)
Last-seen location: Lakewood, Colorado, in the 10600 block of West Virginia Avenue near South Kipling Street
Link to Government Source: #MP21211

Ethnicity/Race: White

Sex: Female

Age at time of disappearance: 27 years old
Hair: Blonde/strawberry
Eye color: hazel
Height and weight at the time of disappearance: 5'4" and 120 pounds
Other: scar on abdomen from removal of uterus; butterfly tattoo on abdomen; also, tattoo on left hip as per the Colorado Bureau of Investigation; had a fractured right femur (often called a thigh bone) at some point in her life.

Vehicle: She was driving her boyfriend's vehicle. It was found at Colorado Boulevard and Mexico Avenue (Google Maps).

Parents: Probably Shirley Diane Drnovsek (obituary claims Stephanie "preceded" her mother in death) and Charles D. Drnovsek, both deceased.

Commentary and opinion:

The case of Stephanie Drnovsek was not an inspiring one to research. She went missing after leaving her home and the home of her live-in boyfriend.

The last time she was seen was Wednesday, September 5th, 1984. She was driving her boyfriend's car at the time, which was found 17 days later. It would be two days later than this before her boyfriend filed a missing person's report on September 24th, 1984 (source: CharleyProject).

One thing that stood out to me, in this case, is that she went missing at the age of 27 years old. However, the photo of her that's used is one from her 1975 high school yearbook. She went to Iver C Ranum High School in Denver, Colorado, and the yearbook is uploaded to Ancestry.com. It struck me as strange that someone who goes missing at the age of 27 has a photo from nine years earlier used.

It did not strike me as strange that there wasn't any hit to her name with Newspapers.com. Lots of missing person cases don't end up getting covered.

Furthermore, she had aliases (Heckel, Henckel, and maybe Drnousek) for her last name, and Stephanie has variants too, like Stefanie, Stef, or Steph. I spent some time mixing and matching different ways that her name might have been reported, but found nothing. When you research this case, you don't really find that much information on what happened to her.

The missing person case of Stephanie Ann Drnovsek, who disappeared on September 5, 1984, from Lakewood, Colorado, remains unresolved as of April 5, 2025. Based on available information, there have been no significant public updates indicating that her case has been solved or that new evidence has emerged since the original blog post by Shane Lambert on January 11, 2021.

Below is a table showing the possible combinations of her first name variants and last name aliases, which may explain the difficulty in finding information:

First Name	Last Name	Combination
Stephanie	Drnovsek	Stephanie Drnovsek
Stephanie	Heckel	Stephanie Heckel
Stephanie	Henckel	Stephanie Henckel
Stephanie	Drnousek	Stephanie Drnousek
Stefanie	Drnovsek	Stefanie Drnovsek
Stefanie	Heckel	Stefanie Heckel
Stefanie	Henckel	Stefanie Henckel
Stefanie	Drnousek	Stefanie Drnousek
Stef	Drnovsek	Stef Drnovsek
Stef	Heckel	Stef Heckel
Stef	Henckel	Stef Henckel
Stef	Drnousek	Stef Drnousek
Steph	Drnovsek	Steph Drnovsek
Steph	Heckel	Steph Heckel
Steph	Henckel	Steph Henckel
Steph	Drnousek	Steph Drnousek

Note: The table assumes her middle name, "Ann," remains constant, resulting in 16 combinations (4 first name variants × 4 last name aliases). However, if her middle name "Ann" or its variants (e.g., Anne, Annie) were included or excluded in searches, this would lead to many more keyword search variants. For example, adding "Ann" explicitly (e.g., "Stephanie Ann Drnovsek") or using variants like "Stephanie Anne Heckel" or omitting it entirely (e.g., "Steph Henckel") would multiply the possibilities significantly, potentially yielding dozens or hundreds of additional combinations depending on how many middle name variations are considered. Furthermore, there are other keyword variants involving initials, like S.A. Heckel. If she has a missing person report associated with anything but her standard name, it would be difficult to find using common search methods.

Is There Anyone Out There Who Knew Her That Wants to Expand the Details?

Having read thousands of missing persons' cases in my life, the odd thing about this case is that it just seems like no one cares to communicate some of the fundamentals. A picture is worth a thousand words, yet there is no photo of her from near the time of her disappearance. I found no coverage of her case in any news from about the time of her disappearance, and she wasn't reported missing until 19 days after she was last seen.

There's loads of work to be done on this case, and I think it's the Websleuths where you'll find people that might put some effort in. From what I saw, it was members of that website who were willing to find a photo of her, even if it was an old one.

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The vehicle that Stephanie was driving (what model???) was found on September 22nd, 1984. It had been stripped, meaning that thieves had taken whatever they could of value from it. I would not hold that to mean that the thieves who stripped the vehicle disappeared Stephanie, although I'm sure the police would want to talk with them.

I saw a vehicle abandoned on the side of a road once, and drove by it every day. Hubcaps started to disappear, and the gas cap was taken. Thieves target abandoned vehicles for sure, so the car Stephanie drove was probably stripped after she went missing.

I reached out to someone whom I thought might have known Stephanie via email. Hopefully, I can pick someone's brain to get some better coverage or details for this case.

Does Robert Charles Browne Know Something About Stephanie’s Disappearance?

I’d like to thank Websleuths user "Chuck Norris' Chin" for sending me down this rabbit hole with their comment on Stephanie’s case thread (Websleuths post). He suggests that Robert Charles Browne should be kept in mind in relation to Stephanie's disappearance.

I’ve done a preliminary timeline for Robert Charles Browne, a convicted serial killer, and plan to look at him more closely. Browne is confirmed to have been in Texas in February and March 1984, where he committed two murders. This does place him quite a distance from Stephanie's location six months later, but Browne lived in Colorado Springs during the 1980s, making it plausible he was there in September 1984, just 60 miles from Lakewood, where Stephanie went missing.

Notably, his confirmed November 10th, 1987, murder of Rocio Sperry in Colorado Springs involved finding her abandoned car in a parking lot, a detail that echoes the discovery of Stephanie’s boyfriend’s stripped vehicle in Denver. However, more work needs to be done on confirming this serial killer’s timeline to determine if he could be linked to Stephanie’s disappearance in a way that is not tenuous.