Winona police say they found missing mom Madeline Kingsbury's phone, ID, jacket and wallet.
The items were found inside her home, the Winona police chief said in a news conference.
"Based on all of this we believe Maddie’s disappearance is involuntary, suspicious and we are all concerned for her safety,” Winona Police Chief Tom Williams said in the news conference.
Kingsbury, 26, a researcher at the Mayo Clinic in Minnesota, disappeared on the morning of March 31, 2023, Winona police wrote in a news release.
She "has not had contact with friends or family since,” police wrote in the news release. “She was last seen at her home in Winona, Minnesota. Kingsbury was supposed to show up for work that morning but didn’t. In addition, numerous calls and messages from friends and family went unanswered. Kingsbury was supposed to pick her children up from daycare that afternoon but didn’t show up or make arrangements. All of this is extremely out of character for her.”
A major search effort was launched but, on April 8, 2023, police announced that they were suspending it without having found Kingsbury, a mother of two.
The timeline
Winona Police Chief Tom Williams said in the news conference that Kingsbury dropped her kids off at daycare with the father of her children around 8 a.m. on the day she disappeared. By 8:15 a.m., her vehicle had returned home, but then she did not show up to work, police say.
Williams said that the father of her children said he left the home in Kingsbury's van around 10 a.m. but returned it a few hours later, only to find her gone.
Williams said it is “very unlike her" for Kingsbury to not contact loved ones for so long.
A major clue
There is one major clue in the case: A van similar to Kingsbury's was spotted, Winona police say.
Police believe "a van matching the description of Kingsbury’s was seen traveling from Winona to the eastern part of Fillmore County during the day on March 31,” Winona police wrote in the news release.
They have not said whether they believe Kingsbury was driving it, however. Police are trying to trace the van's path, but they say they are not looking for the van as it was found parked at Kingsbury's home.
Police said: "Please call the Winona Police Department at 507-457-6302 with any information. If you wish to remain anonymous, please submit your tips at www.crimestoppersmn.org or at 800-222-8477.”
Comments / 0