The 1980 vanishing of Laureen Ann Rahn remains one of the most puzzling New Hampshire disappearances, because the 14-year-old went missing from her own home while a friend was sleeping over.
Born on April 6, 1966, Laureen resided with her mother, Judith Rahn, in a third-floor apartment located on Merrimack Street in Manchester.
She attended Parkside Junior High School, where she received good grades in her classes, and enjoyed dancing and singing in her free time. Laureen even aspired to become an actress one day.
Growing up, Laureen maintained a tight-knit bond with her mother as well. And even though Judith would date different men, she still tended to her daughter and made sure Laureen was always invited on any outings with boyfriends.
That’s exactly what happened leading up to Laureen’s disappearance on April 26, 1980. At the time, Judith had been dating a professional tennis player and went out of town with him to attend a tennis tournament.
Usually, Laureen would’ve joined them, but instead, she asked to stay home, given that her spring break from school had just begun, and Judith allowed it.
So, while home alone, Laureen invited two friends, a male and a female, to hang out at the apartment. They drank wine and beer, and at one point, her male friend claimed to have heard voices in the hallway.
The boy was supposedly afraid that Judith was arriving home, and they’d get in trouble for drinking. That’s why he asked Laureen to let him out the back door and allegedly heard her lock the door behind him.
Even though he left, however, Laureen’s female friend stayed in the apartment. And when Judith got back at about 12:00 a.m., she realized the entire apartment building had gone dark. Apparently, every single light bulb in the hallways of all three floors had been unscrewed.
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Additionally, the front door to her and Laureen’s unit was unlocked. Yet, when Judith went to check on her daughter, she thought she saw Laureen sleeping in her bed.
But by the morning, it became clear that Laureen had never been in her bed at all. Instead, Judith had seen Laureen’s friend, who’d fallen asleep in the room.
Once Laureen’s friend awoke, Judith asked where her daughter was and learned Laureen had supposedly brought a pillow and blanket to sleep on the couch. Those items were still in their place, yet Laureen was nowhere to be found.
Strangely, the teen’s brand-new sneakers and her clothing had been left behind in the living room. The back door was also left open. And initially, this prompted the police to suspect she’d run away.
Judith, on the other hand, didn’t think her daughter would leave behind her purse and clothing. Soon, authorities reconsidered their theory and classified the disappearance as a non-family abduction.
Then, three months later, Judith realized her home phone had been charged for three calls to California on October 1, 1980. Neither she nor Laureen had any ties to the state.
It turned out that two calls had been placed from a motel in Santa Monica, calling a different motel in Santa Ana. As for the third call, that was to a teen sexual assistance hotline.
Years later, in 1986, an investigator visited California and found the two motels. Authorities thought a child pornographer known as “Dr. Z” might’ve been using one of the buildings. Nonetheless, the police were unable to find any links between “Dr. Z” and the teen hotline, and whether or not he was involved in Laureen’s disappearance remains unknown.
Other possible pieces of evidence include a potential sighting of Laureen in a Boston bus terminal in 1981, as well as mysterious phone calls that Judith received for around one year after Laureen vanished.
The caller always remained silent and phoned Judith around 3:45 a.m. And for numerous years, she kept receiving unknown calls around the holidays.
Eventually, Judith switched her phone number, remarried, and moved to Florida. That’s when the calls finally stopped. Still, she always believed that the first three phone calls from California were placed by her daughter. Moreover, she suspected that Laureen’s friends might’ve had more information that they didn’t share with investigators.
The male friend whom Laureen had invited over the night she vanished ultimately took his own life in 1985 and was never considered a suspect in her disappearance. And now, over 45 years later, exactly what happened to Laureen remains a mystery.
The 14-year-old was last seen wearing blue jeans, a blue plaid blouse, a white V-neck sweater, and brown shoes. She would be 59 years old today.
Anyone with information regarding Laureen’s case is urged to contact the Manchester Police Department at (603) 668-8711, or you can use their tip form.
By Katharina Buczek
Katharina Buczek graduated from Stony Brook University with a degree in Journalism and a minor in Digital Arts. Specializing in... More about Katharina Buczek
