Case Details

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This person was missing Missing Since 04/25/2018

Missing Since:

Missing Since 04/25/2018

Missing From:

Missing From Bakersfield, California

Classification:

Classification Endangered Missing

Gender:

Female

Race:

Race White

Date of Birth:

Date of Birth 06/03/1997 (27)

Age:

Age 20 years old

Height and Weight:

Height and Weight 5’4 – 5’7, 105 pounds

Clothing/Jewelry Description:

Clothing/Jewelry Description A green shirt, black leggings, possibly black or white Adidas or Converse sneakers, and possibly leather anklets and oversized sunglasses. Possibly a backpack and a crossbody purse.

Distinguishing Characteristics:

Distinguishing Characteristics Caucasian female. Brown hair, green eyes. Despot has a mole on the right side of her nose by her eye, a mole on the back of her neck at the hairline, and a large scar on her left knee. She has the following tattoos: a peace sign and an alien head on her fingers, the phrase “For those I love I will sacrifice” on the right side of her torso, stars on the right side of her torso, a black rose on the inside of her left wrist, and a sleeve with lotus flowers, an eye, a red gem and a tribal band going down her right arm. Photos of some of Despot’s tattoos are posted with this case summary. She may use the last name Parrent.

Details of Disappearance:

Despot disappeared from her Bakersfield, California home on April 25, 2018. Before she vanished, she had a difficult time: a divorce, drug use, and legal trouble (including an assault). She was living with her boyfriend, Matthew Queen.

Around the same time, two other men, Micah Holsonbake and James Kulstad, also disappeared or were killed in Bakersfield. Because of this, Despot, Holsonbake, and Kulstad became known as “the Bakersfield Three.”

In 2020, Despot and Queen were charged with murdering Holsonbake. Another man, Vandecasteele, was also charged for helping them. Police say Despot and Queen killed Holsonbake, keeping him captive in Vandecasteele’s garage before killing him. They even looked up how to get rid of a body online.

While Holsonbake’s murder is solved, Despot is still missing. Police aren’t sure what happened to her—she might have run away after the murder, or something else might have happened to her. Her mother suspects Queen was involved in her disappearance, and believes Despot was pregnant and trying to leave Queen when she vanished. Although she’s still listed as a missing person, Despot now also has an arrest warrant for her role in Holsonbake’s death. Kulstad’s murder is thought to be unrelated.

Agency:

Kern County Sheriff’s Office 661-861-3110

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