Disappearance of Amy Lynn Bradley

Amy Lynn Bradley (born May 12, 1974) is an American woman who went missing during a Caribbean cruise on the Royal Caribbean International cruise ship Rhapsody of the Seas in late March 1998 at the age of 23 while en route to Curaçao.[1] Amy was an outgoing and athletic girl who attended the local Longwood university on a basketball scholarship. She was also known to be a strong swimmer and trained lifeguard but had an uncharacteristic fear of the open sea. Amy’s family thought it would be a good idea to celebrate her university graduation on the Royal Carribean’s Rhapsody of the Seas cruise.

"Amy Bradley" redirects here. For the American educator, see Amy Morris Bradley.

Amy Lynn Bradley
Born(1974-05-12)May 12, 1974
Petersburg, Virginia, U.S.
DisappearedMarch 24, 1998 (aged 23)
While onboard a Royal Caribbean cruiseliner, the Rhapsody of the Seas, she disappeared during the leg of the cruise while en route to Curaçao
StatusMissing for 23 years, 8 months and 21 days
NationalityAmerican
Parents
  • Ron Bradley (father)
  • Iva Bradley (mother)

Searches turned up no sign of her and investigators believe it is unlikely that she fell overboard. There have been possible sightings of Bradley in Curaçao. In 1998, tourists saw a woman resembling Bradley on a beach and in 1999 a member of the U.S. Navy claimed a woman in a brothel said she was Bradley and asked him for help.

Disappearance

On March 21, 1998, Amy Lynn Bradley, her parents Ron and Iva and her brother Brad, left for a weeklong cruise on Rhapsody of the Seas.[2][3] On the morning of March 24, Bradley was drinking in the dance club with the ship's band, Blue Orchid. One of the band members named Alister Douglas, known as Yellow, claimed he parted ways with Bradley at about 01:00.[1] Some time between 05:15 and 05:30, Bradley's father, Ron, saw her asleep on the cabin balcony. When he got up at 06:00, however, she was no longer there. He later said, "I left to try and go up and find her. When I couldn't find her, I didn't really know what to think, because it was very much unlike Amy to leave and not tell us where she was going."[4]

The ship left Oranjestad, Aruba, and was en route to Curaçao, Antilles, at the time Bradley was last seen[1] and docked there shortly after it was realized that she had gone missing. Extensive searches on the ship and at sea produced no signs of her whereabouts.[5] The Netherlands Antilles Coast Guard conducted a four-day search that ended on March 27, 1998 and Royal Caribbean Cruise Lines chartered a boat to continue looking for her, but they ended their search on March 29.[6] Bradley was a trained lifeguard, and investigators said there was no evidence that she fell overboard or that she died by suicide either.[7]

Possible sightings

There were possible sightings of Bradley in Curaçao in 1998 and 1999. Two Canadian tourists reported seeing a woman resembling Amy on a beach in Curaçao in August 1998.[7] The woman's tattoos were reportedly identical to Bradley's and one of the two men said he was “two feet away from her” and he was sure it was her with complete certainty.[4] Bradley's tattoos included a Tasmanian Devil spinning a basketball located on her shoulder, the sun on her lower back, a Chinese symbol located on her right ankle and a gecko lizard on her navel. She also had a navel ring.[8] A member of the United States Navy stated that he saw Bradley in a brothel in 1999. He claimed she told him that "her name was Amy Bradley and [she] begged him for help", explaining that she was held against her will and not allowed to leave.[4][9]

There was another potential sighting in 2005 when a witness named Judy Maurer claimed to have seen Bradley in a department store restroom in Barbados. She claimed a woman entered the restroom accompanied by three men who proceeded to threaten her if she did not follow through on a deal. She alleges that after the men left, she approached the distraught woman who said that her first name was Amy and that she was from Virginia before the men re-entered and took her away. Maurer called authorities and they created composite sketches of three men and the woman based on her account.[10][1]

Aftermath

Bradley's mother and father appeared on the November 17, 2005 episode of Dr. Phil. An image of a young woman resembling Bradley that was emailed to her parents was shown on the program and it suggests that she might have been sold into sexual slavery.[11]

There is currently a US$250,000 reward offered by the Bradley family for information leading to Bradley's return and a US$50,000 reward for information leading to her verifiable location.[1][12] The FBI is offering a US$25,000 reward for information leading to her recovery.[13][14] Her case was featured on America's Most Wanted[15] and the television show Disappeared.[16] Her case was also the subject of episode 59 of the Casefile podcast and the podcasts Crime Junkie[17] and The Casual Criminalist.[18]

Renewed attention was paid to her case after the disappearance of Natalee Holloway in 2005.[11][19][20] On March 24th, 2010, twelve years after her disappearance, Amy Bradley was legally declared dead.[21]

See also

References
  1. Mikkilineni, Rupa (January 3, 2011). "Jawbone rekindles cruise ship mystery". CNN. Retrieved October 1, 2015.
  2. "Chesterfield Family Extends Search". Daily News-Record. Harrisonburg, Virginia. Associated Press. March 31, 1998. p. 12. Retrieved April 1, 2017 – via NewspaperArchive.com.
  3. "Family of missing woman not giving up". Daily Press. Associated Press. March 31, 1998. p. C3. Retrieved August 19, 2019 – via Newspapers.com.
  4. "The Search for Natalee: Amy Bradley". Dr. Phil. November 17, 2005. Retrieved January 2, 2017.
  5. Frantz, Douglas (November 16, 1998). "For Missing Woman's Family, No Answers". The New York Times. Retrieved January 2, 2017.
  6. "Cruise line ends search for missing passenger". Akron Beacon Journal. March 30, 1998. p. A3. Retrieved June 21, 2018 – via Newspapers.com.
  7. "Amy Bradley, 23". People (magazine). September 23, 2016. Retrieved January 9, 2017.
  8. "Amy Bradley". FBI. Archived from the original on March 8, 2013. Retrieved February 12, 2017. This article incorporates text from this source, which is in the public domain.
  9. Van Zandt, Clint (June 20, 2005). "Who's taken our daughter?". The Abrams Report. Retrieved January 2, 2017.
  10. "Vanished, with Beth Holloway - Amy Bradley, Pt. 5". A&E Television Networks (Lifetime). Retrieved February 9, 2017.
  11. "The Search for Natalee and Amy". Dr. Phil (TV series). November 17, 2005. Retrieved October 1, 2015.
  12. "Con Man Dupes Family in Hunt for Daughter". ABC News. June 26, 2003. Archived from the original on January 13, 2017. Retrieved January 12, 2017.
  13. Walker, Jim (March 28, 2017). "FBI Releases New Video Regarding Amy Lynn Bradley Who Disappeared From Rhapsody of the Seas". Cruise Law News. Retrieved September 5, 2017.
  14. "Wanted by the FBI: Missing Woman Amy Lynn Bradley". FBI. March 22, 2017. Retrieved September 5, 2017. This article incorporates text from this source, which is in the public domain.
  15. "Amy Lynn Bradley". America's Most Wanted. Archived from the original on October 17, 2012. Retrieved July 12, 2012.
  16. "Amy Lynn Bradley". amybradley.net. Retrieved July 12, 2012.
  17. "MISSING: AMY LYNN BRADLEY". Crime Junkie Podcast. March 4, 2019. Retrieved March 5, 2019.
  18. "The Disappearance of Amy Lynn Bradley". YouTube. Retrieved May 27, 2021.
  19. "Striking Similarities in Two Disappearances". ABC News. January 7, 2006. Retrieved October 1, 2015.
  20. Van Zandt, Clint (November 17, 2005). "Why some say Natalee may still be alive". NBC News. Retrieved October 1, 2015.
  21. The Disappearance of Amy Lynn Bradley: Vanished On A Family Cruise - Mile Higher Podcast #182. YouTube. Archived from the original on December 11, 2021.
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