NASHVILLE, Tenn. (WKRN) — More than three decades ago, a woman was seen getting into a car with an unknown man. Little did anyone know, that would be the last time she was ever seen.
That woman was 30-year-old Pamela Jean Mitchell. At the time, she was living in Nashville and had two young children. In an interview with News 2 in 2022, Mitchell's daughter said she left for camp that summer and never saw her mother again.
Mitchell's family said she had fallen into some bad habits around the time of her disappearance, including occasional drug usage and prostitution, but that she was still dearly loved.
“She was a good person and just got into the wrong stuff,” said Ashley Neal, who was just 9 years old when her mother disappeared. “She is a human being just like the rest of us and we all matter to somebody. She mattered to us… to a lot of people.”
According to investigators with the Metro Nashville Police Department, the last place Mitchell was spotted was at the Krystal on West Trinity Lane.
Patrons recalled seeing Mitchell at the fast-food restaurant on Aug. 19, 1992, with one witness telling police she saw the young mother get into a vehicle with an unidentified man. Mitchell lived only about two miles north on Dickerson Road, but she never returned home that day.
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The search for Mitchell took detectives to Shelby Park, where a team combed the bottom of the river. However, it's still unclear what may have happened to her. Mitchell's family believes foul play was involved in her disappearance.
Mitchell would have turned 62 in February. When she was last seen, Mitchell had brown hair, brown eyes, weighed around 105 pounds and was about 5-feet, 5-inches tall.
Anyone with information on her disappearance is asked to contact the Metro Nashville Police Department at 615-862-8600 or Crime Stoppers at 615-742-CRIME (615-742-7463).