Account
Sep 18, 2009
Jul 29, 2020
Michelle
Lakey
49
11
57 inches
80 lbs
White / Caucasian
Female
On a summer day in 1986, 11-year-old Michelle Jolene Lakey, who was known to her loved ones as Jolene, vanished from her neighborhood in Scranton, Pennsylvania. On August 26th, she had been to visit her mother at Mercy Hospital and was last seen walking along North Washington Avenue, heading towards her home in the 1300 block of the same street. That evening, Jolene had plans to sleep over at a friend's house on Myrtle Street. She was last seen wearing dark blue sweatpants, a white t-shirt with purple trim and a tie in the front, and brown sandals. Witnesses reported seeing her speaking to someone in a light yellow car just a block from her house, and it is believed she may have gotten into the vehicle. From that moment on, no one has reported seeing or hearing from Jolene again. In the immediate aftermath of Jolene's disappearance, her family and law enforcement were faced with a frustrating lack of leads. Police were initially hesitant to classify the case as an abduction, as there were no witnesses who saw her being forced into a vehicle and no ransom demands were made. The family felt a profound sense of isolation and a "screaming silence" from the community, with her sister recalling being teased and ostracized by classmates. This painful environment eventually led Jolene's mother and siblings to move away from Scranton. The investigation into her disappearance was handled by the Scranton Police Department before being transferred to the Pennsylvania State Police. Despite numerous searches, no significant evidence was uncovered that could lead to answers about what happened to the young girl. Years later, a person of interest emerged in the case: a local auto mechanic named Frank Osellanie. In 1990, Osellanie was convicted for the kidnapping, rape, and murder of another young girl from Scranton. This conviction led investigators to consider him a suspect in Jolene's disappearance, as well as other unsolved cases in the area. Osellanie admitted to knowing Jolene and giving her rides home from his auto shop, but he denied any involvement in her disappearance and was never charged. He passed away in prison in 2020. The case of Michelle Jolene Lakey officially remains an unsolved, non-family abduction. Her family continues to honor her memory, with her sister traveling back to Scranton each year on the anniversary of her disappearance to walk the route Jolene would have taken home, a symbolic gesture to complete her final journey.
Aug 26, 1986
Scranton
Pennsylvania
Lackawanna County
No
25958
Scranton Police Department
Scranton
Pennsylvania
Lackawanna County
18503
100 South Washington Avenue, Pennsylvania
5703484134
Local
Law Enforcement
Scranton Police Department
7513
Brown
Brown
Brown
05/13/2026
