Case Details

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This person was missing Missing Since 09/14/1986

Missing Since:

Missing Since 09/14/1986

Missing From:

Missing From Atlantic City, New Jersey

Classification:

Classification Endangered Missing

Gender:

Female

Race:

Race Black

Date of Birth:

Date of Birth 09/17/1984 (40)

Age:

Age 1 year old

Height and Weight:

Height and Weight 2’0 – 2’6, 20 – 30 pounds

Clothing/Jewelry Description:

Clothing/Jewelry Description A short-sleeved yellow shirt, blue pants and blue and white sandals.

Distinguishing Characteristics:

Distinguishing Characteristics African-American female. Black hair, brown eyes. Bonita Karen has an abdominal hernia scar. She also has a scar on her the joint of left wrist. One of Bonita Karen’s hands is slightly deformed and curves inward. She is left-handed. Her nickname is Nita.

Details of Disappearance:

Little Bonita Karen disappeared from her stroller on the porch of her apartment building in Atlantic City, New Jersey, on September 14, 1986. Her mother, also named Bonita, said she last saw her daughter at 6:00 pm eating a popsicle. An hour later, Bonita Karen was gone.

Bonita’s story has been questioned. She had a history of abandoning her children: she left Bonita Karen at a hospital at birth and later abandoned a newborn son in a bus station. She was uncooperative with the police investigating Bonita Karen’s disappearance and lied to them. The father, Abdul Salaam, who was fighting for custody at the time, also doubts her account.

Police investigated several leads. Cadaver dogs found nothing behind the apartment building. A search of a wooded area, based on a tip from Bonita’s friend, also yielded nothing. While some believe Bonita Karen might have choked on her popsicle and was buried nearby, there’s no proof.

Despite searches and investigations, Bonita Karen has never been found. The case remains unsolved, with authorities leaning towards the theory that she died on the day she disappeared and was buried, rather than being abducted.

Agency:

Atlantic City Prosecutor’s Office

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