Reachelle Marie Smith was a 3-year-old from Minot, North Dakota, last seen at her aunt and legal guardian Stephanie Smith’s home in the early morning hours of May 17, 2006. NamUs describes her disappearance as suspicious; she was White, with light brown hair, brown eyes, pierced ears, and a mole on her right shoulder. At the time she vanished she was about 3 feet 4 inches tall, 40 pounds, and known by the nickname Peanut.

Reachelle was seen sleeping on a couch the night of May 16. Stephanie’s roommate, Leigh Cowen, later told Stephanie that his mother had picked Reachelle up and would keep her for a few days, which initially reassured the family. Concern grew when there was no contact; an Amber Alert issued when Cowen left in Stephanie’s teal 1995 Ford van on May 22. Cowen was found dead in the van on May 23 in the Upper Souris National Wildlife Refuge; reports state he died by suicide, and Reachelle was not with him.

Police dogs tracked Reachelle’s scent from the apartment toward a nearby river channel, and searches of Minot and surrounding areas, including the refuge, involved law enforcement and volunteers. In May 2021 police announced they had concluded Cowen was responsible and cited a cooler containing a substantial amount of Reachelle’s blood; her remains have never been recovered. Who has information about Reachelle’s movements or those who were with her in May 2006?