Share and Follow
On Wednesday, state and federal authorities searched the former home of a 13-year-old Mississippi girl who vanished more than 32 years ago.
According to WTVA, the FBI and Mississippi Bureau of Investigation were at the Tupelo home where Leigh Occhi disappeared in 1992. Not only were dogs seen searching the property, but people were also spotted digging near a drainage ditch perpendicular at the end of a cul-de-sac.
The Mississippi Bureau of Investigation declined to say why specifically they were at the home on Wednesday. They did reveal to WTVA that it was related to Occhi’s case — which remains open.
According to the Daily Journal, Occhi was home alone when she vanished. After leaving for work, Occhi’s mother called home an hour later because she was worried about the stormy weather. Nobody answered the phone — leading Occhi’s mother to return home and discover blood on the walls and floor. However, there was no sign of her daughter.
About two weeks after Occhi’s disappearance, a letter containing her sunglasses was sent to her home. The Daily Journal reported that the letter was addressed to Occhi’s stepfather even though he and Occhi’s mother split up two weeks before the teen’s disappearance.
The publication also noted Oscar Kearns, a Sunday school teacher at the church Occhi and her mother attended, drove to Tennesee and kidnapped and raped a 15-year-old girl less than nine months after Occhi vanished. After serving less than half of an eight-year sentence, Kearns kidnapped a Union County couple and raped the wife.
Kearns was sentenced to 20 years for the Union County rape. He was released early in 2019, two years before his death. He was never interviewed by police regarding Occhi’s case, according to the Daily Journal.
Occhi’s parents had her declared legally dead in October 2024, citing a lack of developments in her case.
“It has now been 32 years,” their petition stated. “During that time, no evidence has come to light that she remains alive.”
[Feature Photo: National Center for Missing & Exploited Children]
