Katharina Buczek
Fifteen-year-old Ashley Martinez attended Robidoux Middle School in St. Joseph, Missouri, and was known to be a happy teen.
Ashley had two brothers with whom she was very close and a cherished pet cat she adopted.
But, the Martinez family’s life turned upside down during the summer of 2004. It all began on July 6, after Ashley visited the local Kurg Pool with her younger brother to get some relief from the heat.
Later that afternoon, she supposedly borrowed a friend’s cellphone to contact Christopher Hart– a thirty-two-year-old man who lived in the neighborhood.
Apparently, Ashley and Chris wanted to road trip together and were deciding between California and Oregon. The Martinez family had no knowledge of this, though– only Ashley’s friends did.
Then, once Mrs. Martinez traveled to the pool to pick up her children, Ashley was gone. The mom immediately reported Ashley missing, despite her having a tendency to run away in the past.
Mrs. Martinez just had a gut feeling that this incident was different– especially since Ashley left all of her belongings behind.
At the time of Ashley’s disappearance, Chris had been on house arrest due to numerous arrest charges, including assault, resisting arrest, and unlawful use of a weapon.
TheDoeNetwork; pictured above is Ashley
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