Look at one way, and it’s the story of a promising young woman who died in a tragic car accident and whose remains have never been found. But, from another perspective, that woman harbored dark secrets and left it all behind, never to be seen again.
In 2004, Maura Murray from Hanson, Massachusetts, was a 21-year-old nursing student at the University of Massachusetts at Amherst. A talented athlete in high school with a bright smile, Murray graduated at the top of her class and attended West Point before shifting her focus to health care. Speaking with The Independent in 2022, Murray’s sister, Sheila Flynn, called her missing sister humble. Flynn, who never stopped searching, said Murray would ” … write a thank you note to you if you gave Maura a piece of gum. Maura was so smart. She had a really quick wit. And she was a fast thinker — so she was a master smack talker.”
The day Maura Murray disappeared
On February 9, 2004, Maura Murray left school at the U of M. She told her professors there had been a death in the family and that she would be gone all week. Murray packed a bag with everything she might need — including schoolwork, and that afternoon, withdrew less than $300 from the bank, nearly all the money she had, and bought about $40 worth of liquor.
Murray left the Amherst area and drove her `96 Saturn toward New Hampshire. But at about 7:30 that night, Faith Westman, who lived near Haverhill, New Hampshire, less than 100 miles from Amherst, reported an accident. Around that same time, a bus driver encountered a woman whose car was stuck in a ditch and called 911. The driver spoke to the woman, who authorities believe was Murray.
About 15 minutes after Murray’s wreck was reported, police, fire, and EMS arrived, but Murray was gone. Authorities searched the area, but she had seemingly disappeared without a trace.
Details of the wreck and the days leading up to Murray’s disappearance
With Maura Murray missing, strange details emerged, both about the car wreck and Murray’s behavior in the hours and days before she vanished. The bus driver, Butch Atwood, now thought to be the last person to speak to Murray, said she didn’t seem injured. She told him she didn’t need help. She had already called AAA, she said. There was, however, no cell phone reception in the area.
Officers, meanwhile, said Murray’s car was locked, there was a Coke bottle filled with red liquid, a box of red wine in the backseat, and a stain on the ceiling and floor of the vehicle, suggesting Murray may have been drinking. Furthermore, the death in the family Murray told U of M never happened. Before she left, she called to rent a condominium in Barlett, New Hampshire, an area she was familiar with, but no reservations were made.
While investigating Murray’s disappearance, it was discovered that she Mapquest-searched the Berkshires and Burlington, Vermont, before she departed. She also made several texts and phone calls, including a text to her boyfriend, but gave no indication anything was wrong.
Have there been any sightings?
While the bus driver, Butch Atwood, is thought to be the last person to Maura Murray, a resident who lived near where Murray wrecked later said they saw a young person fitting Murray’s description that night. Once Murray was reported missing, her boyfriend flew to Haverhill. His cell phone was off during the flight, but once he landed, he had a voicemail message: A woman sobbing, possibly Murray. The call was traced to a Red Cross calling card.
Otherwise, Murray has not been found. In 2003, about a year before she vanished, Murray was caught using a stolen credit card to buy food. Supervisors at her campus job also reported some strange behaviors, which Murray attributed to concern over her sister’s drinking and relationship problems. Was there a dark side to this student, seemingly bound for success? Did she experience a mental break and disappear into the wilderness? Or did something in her past catch up with her, motivating her to start a new life?
Frustratingly, Murray’s family and those who’ve followed the case are no closer to those answers as of 2024, 20 years after she disappeared, than they were in 2004 when her Saturn was found in that ditch. Murray’s family, however, still has hope. In 2024, they launched the podcast Media Pressure Season 1: The Untold Story of Maura Murray.
According to CBS News, Murray’s sister, Julie Murray, said in a statement, “After two decades of fighting for answers in my family’s search for Maura, we finally have a way to tell Maura’s story in an accurate and responsible manner while putting ‘media pressure’ on those with answers and information we need to find Maura and bring her home.”
