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(#1) Thomas Hymer Falsely Confessed To Taking Alissa’s Life
An official investigation into Alissa's disappearance didn't commence until a serial killer, Thomas Albert Hymer, confessed to taking her life. After he was taken into custody in Georgia following the brutal slaying of a woman in Florida, Hymer selected Alissa's photo from a lineup and identified her as one of his victims.
Hymer told authorities that he took Alissa to a motel and violated her, after which he strangled her and dismembered her body in the bathtub. His story contained several details that conflicted with other witness statements about Alissa, including his claim that she used dope and had uncommon sexual appetites.
Authorities determined Hymer did not end Alissa's life and was merely seeking notoriety, but his confession launched a greater investigation into what actually happened to the young woman.
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(#2) Alissa’s Family Initially Thought She Ran Away
Alissa's disappearance left much confusion in its wake. She left all of her personal belongings behind, including her cellphone, and she never cashed out the $1,800 in her bank account. She did not call anyone or contact any of her friends. Her stepfather claimed to have found a note she left in her room stating she had run away from home and was moving to California.
Authorities did not question the note, although a runaway leaving all of their possessions and cash behind is highly unusual behavior. Alissa's family was shocked that she would leave them, but police declined to investigate further.
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(#3) Alissa's Stepfather, Michael Turney, Was The Last Reported Person To Hear From Her
Alissa's younger sister, Sarah Turney, walked home from school on May 17, 2001, when her father failed to pick her up. He was also not at their family home. Sarah went to a friend's house, where Michael Turney finally came to get her and informed her that he couldn't get in touch with Alissa. The two of them searched for her and attempted to contact her, but with no luck.
About a week later, Mike claimed to have received a call from Alissa, who allegedly told him not to look for her. If the call did take place, it marked the last time anyone ever heard from Alissa.
Mike did eventually reveal that he took her out of school early on the day she vanished. The two had lunch together, but the outing ended in an argument. If true, this interaction makes Mike Turney the last person to see Alissa before she disappeared.
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(#4) Mike Surveilled Alissa Through Secret Video Cameras In Their Home
As police investigated Alissa's case further, they uncovered many strange things about the Turney home. Mike Turney had reportedly outfitted the house with security cameras, both outside and inside. He also installed surveillance equipment on all the phones, allowing him to record every call.
Turney has been described as a "strict" father to his children, especially toward Alissa. Sarah Turney even claimed Mike would follow Alissa to her job at Jack-in-the-Box and watch her as she worked.
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(#5) Mike Refused To Turn Over Video Footage From The Day Alissa Disappeared
Although Mike Turney's in-home surveillance system covered a large portion of the home, he did not comply with police requests to turn over the footage from the day of Alissa's disappearance. He claims to have independently reviewed the tapes and found nothing important, frustrating investigators. He did, however, send them footage of Alissa with her boyfriend and other young men, asserting they might be suspects.
Will Andersen, a detective with the Phoenix police department, went on record to discuss the missing tape:
Even if you think it shows nothing criminal, it shows me what she's wearing. It shows me how her hair was styled. It shows her walking out of the home, which would direct my attention somewhere other than that home. His opinion of nothing is different than my opinion of nothing. I want that tape.
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(#6) Alissa's Friends Claimed Mike May Have Abused Alissa Before She Disappeared
By all accounts, Alissa's relationship with her stepfather was strained. She was known as the rebel of the family, and Mike was allegedly controlling of her because of this. As investigators interviewed those closest to Alissa, they learned her relationship with Mike may have been darker than initially imagined.
Her friends told investigators Alissa revealed to them that Mike had attempted to sexually abuse her on multiple occasions. One story claimed Mike had driven her out to the desert and forced himself on her. Another describes an incident in which he tied her to a chair and pushed a gag into her mouth.
Police also discovered that Mike made Alissa sign bizarre parent/child contracts in a seeming attempt to control her every action. One of these documents, signed by Alissa, contained a line clarifying that Mike never assaulted his stepdaughter.
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(#7) Police Found Homemade Explosives And A Manifesto In The Turney Home
Police didn't search the Turney home for signs of foul play until 2008, but even seven years after Alissa's disappearance, they managed to make a startling discovery. Inside the home were 26 improvised explosive devices made by Mike Turney, as well as multiple firearms and a detailed manifesto outlining a sinister plot. They also found bizarre contracts bearing Alissa's signature, some of which contained references to an intimate relationship between stepfather and daughter.
Mike had previously told authorities he believed Alissa was taken by a local electrician's union in response to a former feud between himself and the association. In his manifesto, he described his plan to bombard the union's hall and eliminate as many people as possible before ending himself.
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(#8) Alissa's Sister, Sarah Turney, Believes Mike Is Responsible For Alissa's Disappearance
Sarah Turney was only 13 when her sister disappeared, but she never felt as though the facts of the case lined up. When police discovered evidence linking her father, Mike, to Alissa's disappearance, she initially didn't believe them. In her own words, the detectives told Sarah this:
We think your father did it. Your house is being raided... Also, your father probably molested your sister.
Sarah has been a vocal advocate for her sister ever since, and she now believes that her father is likely responsible for whatever happened to Alissa.
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(#9) Mike Was Sentenced To 10 Years In Prison For Possession Of Illegal Explosives
On June 21, 2010, Mike Turney plead guilty to the charge of possession of illegal explosives, and he was sentenced to 10 years in prison. Police say his devices could have taken out hundreds of people.
In fact, so many explosives were found in the home, the police were forced to evacuate a large chunk of the neighborhood. When asked about Mike's eventual release, daughter Sarah Turney said:
It’ll be an adjustment. I don’t know if I want him in my life at all.
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(#10) Alissa’s Disappearance Wasn’t Investigated Until Five Years After The Fact
One of the reasons Alissa's case is still a mystery is the massive delay between her disappearance and the start of the investigation itself. Alissa has been missing since May 17, 2001, but investigators wouldn't look into her case until 2006.
Alissa was only 17 when she vanished, and a note in Alissa's handwriting was allegedly left behind, so local law enforcement assumed she ran away and would eventually return home.
Years later, Alissa's sister, Sarah, would claim the police didn't seem to take Alissa's disappearance seriously. A formal investigation into her disappearance was finally initiated in 2008.
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(#11) Mike Was Set To Go On Trial For Alissa's Demise, But The Phoenix PD Opted Out
According to Alissa's sister, Sarah Turney, the Phoenix Police Department was planning on trying Alissa's stepfather, Mike Turney, for her slaying upon his release from prison. As they didn't want him to receive a plea deal for both the murder charges and explosives conviction, they planned to wait until he was free.
However, only days before Mike was set to be released, the detectives who had been working the case for nearly a decade were suddently reassigned, and the department informed Sarah they would not be prosecuting her father after all. They claimed the lack of a body meant they wouldn't win the case, though they also declined to search for a body.
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(#12) Sarah Set Up A Website Dedicated To Seeking Justice For Alissa
Sarah Turney has never given up hope that justice will be served for her sister. She set up the site JusticeForAlissa.com, which is dedicated to Alissa's memory and the ongoing search for her whereabouts. Sarah wants her father, Mike, tried for Alissa's demise and created the site in hopes of pressuring the Phoenix Police Department to charge him.
If you have any information pertaining to the disappearance of Alissa Turney, you can reach out to Sarah at JusticeForAlissa.com.
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About This Tool
In 2020, a bizarre disappearance that happened 19 years ago has once again attracted widespread attention on social networks. Why has such an old case been frequently mentioned recently? Nearly 20 years after 17-year-old Alissa Turney disappeared from her home in Phoenix in 2001, her stepfather, Michael Turney, was accused by a grand jury of murdering the girl.
At first, the police thought this was just an ordinary runaway of a teenager because the girl left a note, they only record Alissa Turney as a missing person and did almost nothing else. Until many years later, many suspicious clues led the police to investigate the case again. The random tool lists 12 things about the true crime.
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