Michelle Curran was 16 when she disappeared from her Las Vegas home on April 4, 2001, after leaving to walk to school and never returning. Her family says she left without extra clothing or money; Las Vegas police initially treated the case as a possible runaway but the family believed she had been abducted. Michelle was a sophomore at Western High School and had planned to become a beautician and to attend prom and graduate.

Investigators later tied Michelle’s disappearance to Michael Forrest Thornton and Janeen Marie Snyder of Rialto, California. According to charges, the pair transported Michelle to Southern California, held her captive, and subjected her to restraint, drugs, sexual assault, and torture. Deputies arrested Thornton and Snyder on burglary allegations at a Rubidoux horse ranch on April 17, 2001, where bloody evidence was found and Michelle’s identification was located in the suspects’ vehicle. Her body was recovered from a horse trailer on the property on April 22, 2001; she had suffered a fatal gunshot wound to the head.

Prosecutors accused the couple of kidnapping, rape, torture, and murder and said other women reported similar abuse by Thornton and Snyder. Anyone with information about Michelle, her last movements, or the ranch should come forward.