On October 25, 2000, 16-year-old Robert Smith left his East Chicago, Indiana home and told his mom that he was going to a friend's house. Robert's mother had a challenging relationship with her son, as many parents of teens can relate. So when he didn't attend school the next day, she thought he was simply being rebellious and that he'd be home by the weekend. But Robert wasn't home by the weekend, and more than two decades later, he's never been seen or heard from again. With few leads and a police department who told us they have no record of Robert's case, his family wonders how his case will ever be solved.

If you have any information about Robert's disappearance, you can call the East Chicago Police Department at 219-391-8450 or the National Center for Missing and Exploited Children at 1-800-THE-LOST.

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Robert Smith

The Vanished Podcast