Amber Swartz-Garcia was 7 years old when she disappeared from the front yard of her Pinole, California, home on June 3, 1988. She had been allowed outside to play jump rope for a short time; her mother Kim Swartz checked on her about 15 minutes later and found that Amber was gone. Extensive searches produced no sign of her, and her body has never been recovered.

Over the years multiple suspects were investigated. Timothy Bindner was long considered a person of interest. Curtis Dean Anderson, a convicted kidnapper and murderer, later confessed shortly before his death in 2007, claiming he had taken Amber to Arizona and killed her. No physical evidence has ever been found to support that confession, and Amber’s mother and others have expressed skepticism.

The Pinole Police Department reopened the investigation in 2013 and applied new forensic techniques, but the case remains unresolved and Amber’s family continues to seek closure. If anyone knew Amber, her routines, or saw anything in Pinole on June 3, 1988, please come forward with information.