In 2006, She Mysteriously Vanished After Moving To Albuquerque For A Fresh New Start
After Leah Rachelle Peebles was born to her parents, Sharon McDowell and John Daniel Peebles, in 1983, she grew up alongside her two brothers in Fort Worth, Texas.
But unfortunately, Leah suffered severe trauma starting at a very young age. When she was just a toddler, a distant relative assaulted her. Then, after turning 14-years-old, she was assaulted again by a family friend.
Despite these traumatic experiences, Leah still worked to excel as a young woman. While attending Carter-Riverside High School, she solidified her place as an honor roll student. At the same time, Leah was a cheerleader, a drama club member, and a part of the yearbook staff.
Eventually, though, the childhood anguish seemingly pervaded Leah’s life. During her sophomore year, she started to abuse alcohol and drugs. Afterward, she also quit all of her extracurricular activities.
That’s why, by the time she turned 18, Leah was eager to turn her life around. She decided to enter a drug and alcohol treatment program through Fort Worth Teen Challenge– which offers residential addiction recovery treatment for women.
Then, after successfully completing the program, Leah attended cosmetology school– graduating with her cosmetology license after just 21 months before going to work for a beauty salon.
Not long afterward, though, Leah tragically relapsed again. She was also charged with minor drug-related offenses that forced her to serve two short jail sentences. And it was the second arrest that got Leah fired from her beauty salon job.
So, by May 5, 2006, she was eager to start fresh again. That’s why Leah opted to move to Albuquerque, New Mexico, with the intention of leaving her addiction behind and beginning a new chapter.
She started living with friends at 2100 Erbbe Street Northeast and was also set to start a new job at the Flying Star Cafe– a popular restaurant.
Facebook – pictured above is Leah
But, on May 22, 2006, these plans fell to the wayside after Leah strangely disappeared. That Monday, Leah left her friend’s house at about 8:00 p.m. She had previously met a man at the Flying Star Cafe with whom she was supposed to go on a dinner date.
By the end of the night, though, Leah reportedly got into a traffic accident. So, she was going to bring her vehicle to a local transmission shop which just so happened to be in an area known for drugs.
But, it appears that Leah never actually dropped off her 2000 Volkswagen Beetle sedan– because several weeks later, the vehicle was reported abandoned. Yet, she never returned home that Monday night and has not been seen or heard from ever since.
Following Leah’s disappearance, investigators did receive one tip regarding a woman named “Mia.” Apparently, this woman worked for a man named “A.J.”
After authorities questioned A.J., though, they were unable to find any link between him and Leah. At the same time, investigators never uncovered any evidence or indicators of foul play in Leah’s case.
This pushed her father, John, to travel through Texas, Arizona, New Mexico, Colorado, and Nevada in search of his daughter in the years following her disappearance.
On August 5, 2013, though, John tragically passed away in a motorcycle accident before ever receiving any answers in his daughter’s case.
Since Leah vanished, the circumstances surrounding her disappearance have remained unclear. Her case continues to be classified as missing, and it remains unsolved.
At the time of her disappearance, Leah was five foot four, weighed 105 pounds, and had brown hair and blue eyes.
She often dyed her hair black, blonde, or red and wore eyeglasses and contact lenses. Leah also had various piercings in her left ear and was 23-years-old at the time she vanished. She would be 41-years-old today.
If you have any information regarding Leah’s disappearance, you are urged to contact the Albuquerque Police Department at (505) 242-2677.
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