It has been nearly 11 years since Michelle Parker disappeared after dropping off her 3-year-old twins at their father’s house in Orlando, Florida. Parker was 33 years old at the time of her disappearance, and her case remains unsolved.
Despite an extensive search and multiple tips from the public, Parker has never been found.
The only clues in the case are a few pieces of her jewelry that were found in a lake near Smith’s home, and surveillance footage of Parker’s car that showed her driving away from Smith’s house on the day she vanished. Given the lack of evidence, it is possible that Parker was the victim of foul play.
However, it is also possible that she left voluntarily and is still alive somewhere. Until more information comes to light, Parker’s case will remain one of Orlando’s most mysterious disappearances.
The day after Parker and her ex-fiance, Dale Smith, appeared on a recorded episode of “People’s Court” to argue about a misplaced engagement ring, they vanished.
Police in Orlando said she was last seen dropping off her twin children at Smith’s condo near Lee Vista Boulevard and Goldenrod Road.
Sheriff’s divers located Parker’s iPhone under an Orange County bridge in December 2011, and her Hummer was discovered on November 18, 2011, in a parking lot in Orlando.
Smith is the only suspect in the case, but no charges were ever brought against him.
Orlando Police Chief Orlando Rolon was questioned in 2020 regarding the status of Smith as a suspect.
How do Michelle’s mother & sister remember her?
On October 17, 2011, Michelle Parker vanished after leaving her family’s salon in Orlando, Florida. She was headed to work at a bar in Sanford, but she never arrived.
Her car was found abandoned in a Target parking lot later that day, her purse and phone were found inside. There has been no sign of Michelle since then, and her family remains hopeful that she will be found safe.
Michelle’s mother and sister remember the last time they saw her. She was leaving the family salon for the day and headed to work at a bar in Sanford.
“I’m going to pick up the babies, take them to their Dad’s and I’m going home to take a nap because I’m tired and I have to work tonight,” Yvonne Stewart, Michelle’s mom, told FOX 35 last year.
“She made it right there and put her hand on the door, and I yelled out, ‘What am I, chopped liver?” Lauren Erickson, her sister, recalls. “She turned around and she said, ‘You know I love you too!’ and that was it.”
Michelle’s loved ones have never given up hope that she will be found. They continue to hold annual marches and fundraisers in her honor, and they urge anyone with information to come forward. “Someone knows something,” Erickson says. “It’s been nine years now… Somebody has to say something.”
