Saturday, Sept. 14, marked a decade since Stuttgart teen Cassie Compton disappeared, leaving her family, friends, and the community with many unanswered questions. Cassie was just 15 years old at the time. Today, she would be 25 years old. Her last contact was on Sunday, Sept. 14, 2014. Final...
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Community marks 10 years since Stuttgart teen Cassie Compton disappeared, renewed efforts for answers
Saturday, Sept. 14, marked a decade since Stuttgart teen Cassie Compton disappeared, leaving her family, friends, and the community with many unanswered questions.
Cassie was just 15 years old at the time. Today, she would be 25 years old. Her last contact was on Sunday, Sept. 14, 2014.
Final moments before Cassie Compton disappeared
Summer was winding down, and school was back in session. Cassie enjoyed the start of a new season by attending the
Arkansas County Demolition Derby with a friend in DeWitt on Saturday, Sept. 13. It was the last community event she attended.
“What We Know,” a website dedicated to finding Cassie verified by police, claims Cassie spent the night with her friend and returned home the day after the derby. At the time of her disappearance, Cassie was living with her mother, Judy Compton, and Judy’s fiancé, Brandon Lee Rhodes. The couple became engaged in 2012, but they have since separated. Cassie’s father, Roy Compton, lived in Oklahoma at the time.
Cassie reportedly texted her friend to tell him she was going out to get cigarettes shortly after he dropped her off. Judy said she never heard Cassie leave the house to buy cigarettes.
On Monday, Sept. 15, Judy realized Cassie was gone. After unsuccessful calls to Cassie’s phone, Judy contacted the authorities. Since then, authorities have conducted numerous physical searches and have followed up on countless leads. Unfortunately, the Stuttgart community and Cassie’s family are still in the dark about her whereabouts.
Renewed efforts in investigation
Tina Storz is a private investigator with Halos Investigations, Inc., a private Mississippi firm that investigates cases of missing or trafficked children. She has investigated Cassie’s disappearance since 2015.
Fresh eyes looking into Cassie’s disappearance have given Storz renewed hope. She recently shared her case folder with the Stuttgart Police Department.
“I have given them our whole file from Halos, which I had never done before,” Storz said. “After almost 10 years of looking for Cassie Compton, my heart finally felt at ease due to the new detective on the case.”
Storz said she wants Stuttgart police to re-question all suspects and those close to Cassie.
“I hope they start from the beginning and bring everybody back in,” Storz said.
Storz believes someone in the community knows what happened to Cassie. She encourages anyone with information that could be a tip to reach out.
“I believe whoever did what they did to Cassie Compton is locally there,” Storz said. “I think people are afraid to come forward, which is the problem.”
Stuttgart Police Chief David Parker said the department has partnered with Michael Knowlton, a retired homicide and major crimes detective, to investigate missing persons’ cases, including Cassie’s.
“There was a tip received this year that was immediately looked into. That information is still being investigated,” Parker said. “All leads are investigated.”
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