Twenty-two years after the mysterious disappearance of the Bradley sisters from their homes, nothing much has been solved in the case, their relatives said. In these two decades, the case received vigorous investigation and police proceedings; however, it went nowhere and the case remains one of the unsolved mysterious incidents of all time.
Short Case Study Of “Tionda-Diamond Bradley Missing”
On July 6, 2001, Tionda Bradley, 10, and Diamond Bradley, 3, vanished from their residence in the Oakland neighbourhood. The sisters were last seen by her mother, Tracey Bradley, at about 6:30 am before leaving her apartment for work; she worked at Robert Taylor Park where she prepared lunch for children in a summer camp program.
Following Tionda-Diamond Bradley mother’s return from work, she came across a handwritten note, apparently penned by Tionda, that the Bradley sisters were leaving to visit a nearby store and school.
Bothered Tracey, she claimed that she went for a self-search before finally calling 911 when things turned out more fishy. And while the call brought a massive investigation which led nowhere.
“State police, FBI, Chicago, they threw everything they had at it. They set up a hotline, they set up a command post. As far as I know, there were entire (tactical) teams and detectives detailed in this investigation. At least for the first month, if not longer. When the tips started slowing down, it was a full-court press” claimed a close aide, Caroll.
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The Ginormous Investigation
In 2001, soon after the disappearance became a national interest, the investigation took an enormous form within months. Initially, a rotating crew of 100 detectives worked around the clock who dug through garbage and searched sewers, lagoons, abandoned buildings and factories, and investigated more than 100 sex offenders in the locality. Not only this but more than 30 of Bradley’s relatives were investigated again and again; however, none of the suspects had anything.
Detective Caroll, while mentioning how frustrating and confusing the case was, said, Almost every case I’ve ever worked, especially the violent crimes, you are always able to either include someone or exclude someone, and this was the only case I worked in my entire career where I couldn’t exclude anyone or include anyone.”
Several Claims
After the topic became a hot topic and a national interest, many tipsters came to different conclusions. One of them claimed that the girls were being held as sex slaves in a small town in Central Illinois. Meanwhile, another tipster said that it was Tionda’s biological father who was based in Morocco, and abducted the siblings, further taking the investigation overseas. Not only this but a group of psychics claimed to have visions of the location of girls’ bodies. Nevertheless, none of them helped the mystery.
False Hopes
Although the unsolved case ages 22 years now (as of 2023), their family couldn’t process the trauma of losing their daughters. Every year, the Bradley family keeps a vigil on the disappearance anniversary in the hope of keeping the story alive. Not only this, but they also gather yearly to raise awareness about missing children and hand out ID kits.
“Whenever there is a possible lead, bones found, or a tip that seems viable, we go through the emotions of excitement — Yes, this is it. But of course, we go through the emotions of ‘what if they’re deceased?.’ And there is a small part within you that says at least if you find them deceased, you can get closure” said Shelia Bradley Smith, the girl’s great aunt.
Diamond Bradley Update
As the case remained unsolved, several TikTok and YouTube videos were making rounds on the Internet even though the mystery has been over two decades.
In the series of claims, an unnamed woman went viral on the Internet, after she contacted Bradley’s aunt while affirming herself as Diamond Bradley. After a telephone conversation with Bradley-Smith, the woman went on to visit an FBI officer where she went on a fingerprint and a DNA test.
However, as of May 2023, the woman posing as one of the Bradleys already went for a Test. Nevertheless, it remains to be seen whether her DNA matches to Diamond Bradley DNA. Moreover, Diamond Bradley DNA results were not revealed online.
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Some Facts Related to The Mystery
- According to investigator Caroll, the most important evidence gathered was hair strands found on the trunk of a car. Reportedly, the car belonged to Diamond’s biological father and the hairs were soon sent for a DNA test. Nevertheless, the test showed that it belonged to either the Bradley girls or their mother. Since it was not proper evidence, it failed to help the case.
- The great aunt, Bradley Smith, in a media interaction, revealed that after the case became a national interest, many women came out posing as Tionda and Diamond Bradley. Nevertheless, none of them were true.
- Tionda and Diamond Bradley had two more sisters, Rita Bradley, 26 and mother of two young girls and Victoria Bradley, 24. In addition to it, their mother, Tracey Bradley, had two more children after the sister-duo disappearance. Meanwhile, they know nothing about the mysterious case.
- “Tionda and Diamond Bradley found” is one of the most searched things on the Internet. Not only this but several TV shows feature the mysterious story of Bradley’s sister. Meanwhile, it includes America’s Most Wanted and Investigation Discovery’s “Disappeared”
