Marie Elizabeth Spannhake From Unsolved Mysteries Is Still Considered A Missing Person

Among the latest episodes of Netflix’s Unsolved Mysteries is the story of Marie Elizabeth Spannhake, who was last seen in Chico, California in 1976, when she was just 19 years old. It wasn’t until 1984 that a woman named Janice Hooker came forward and said that her husband, Cameron Hooker, had kidnapped and killed Spannhake, nicknamed Marliz, all those years ago.

According to Janice’s account of events, which is shared on Unsolved Mysteries, she allegedly helped Cameron kidnap Spannhake on Jan. 31. She claimed that Spannhake was taken to the couple’s home in Red Bluff, where Cameron allegedly attacked Spannhake violently. She died in the process, Janice said, and the couple went to bury her off a dirt road toward Lassen Park. (Cameron, the Netflix doc notes, “has denied any involvement” in these events.)

While Cameron was convicted of crimes against another woman he kidnapped, Colleen Stan (who ultimately survived her seven-year captivity), Spannhake’s body was never found — so despite Janice’s testimony, Cameron was not charged with her disappearance.

But where is Spannhake’s body today? She’s still considered a missing person, per the California attorney general’s office. Unsolved Mysteries recounts several attempts to find her body, including driving out to potential burial sites with Janice herself.

Jodi Foster, a single mom who moved into Spannhake’s former apartment in 2000, described paranormal occurrences in her dwelling — and well after moving out, said she dreamt of numbers that she thought might aid in the search, including a potential road name: A17.

While her clues were followed up on, they ultimately did not lead to the discovery of Spannhake’s body, and her case is still open to this day. Of course, as is the case with any true crime mystery, there are theories. “If it wasnt Marie, I believe it was another girl that went missing ... Maybe the whole truth wasn't told about Marie, or maybe she mixed up the locations, or the remains were moved by animals or humans?” posits Redditor u/ColdHeartedSleuth.

Redditor u/CorvusCallidus theorizes that Janice might have been wary of revealing too much, potentially putting her own legal status at risk. “I doubt the immunity would extend to Marie’s case ... she probably realized at some point that disclosing more information would put her in jail alongside her husband,” they write.