Vanished with Beth Holloway (2011): Season 1, Episode 3 - Bradley - full transcript

Narrator: An
all-American girl vanishes

from a Caribbean cruise liner.

-Somebody saw her,
somebody wanted her,

and somebody took her.

Narrator: Her parents'
search for answers

leads them into
unimaginable territory.

-It was just horrible.

-It wasn't the Amy that I know.

Narrator: And the
trail of witnesses

uncover the unthinkable.

-That's the girl I
saw in Barbados.



-I'm 100% sure right now as
I'm speaking that she's alive.

Tim buckholz: Somebody
knows what happened.

One way or the other,
somebody knows.

Narrator: Beth holloway
ventures to curacao

to track the mysterious
disappearance of Amy Bradley.

Now, on "Vanished."

-2005, I got the call
telling me that my daughter

Natalie had vanished.

Every parent's worst
nightmare became my reality.

I ask the world to help me.

I found myself in an
unimaginable fight.

My search for answers gave
me a new mission in life...

Bring the missing home
and criminals to justice.

When a loved one goes
missing in a foreign country,



the feeling of pain and
helplessness is unbearable.

It's something I
know about firsthand

as does this next family whose
own Caribbean vacation left

them wondering if
their daughter was

the victim of an
unspeakable crime.

Narrator:
Chesterfield, Virginia.

Home to the Bradley family...
Ron, iva, Brad, and Amy.

-Amy was born first
and ran the show.

Amy lettered in five
sports in high school.

Brad did the same thing.

-Was Amy a take-charge sister?

-Focused and a fireball. And...

-a lot like her mother.

[Laughter]

Narrator: Amy receives
multiple college scholarship offers

but chooses the
school closest to home.

Amy and her brother,
Brad, are especially close.

-"brother, I'll
always be there for you.

I love you, little brother."
Ron Bradley: Hey!

-Thank you.

[Applause]

Narrator: By 1998,
23-year-old Amy

has built a life of her own.

She has a new apartment
and is making plans

to pursue a master's
degree in sports psychology.

-She seemed to just be as
happy as she could and was very

excited about everything
at home and how things

are going with her
life at that point.

Narrator: In early
march, Amy's parents

call with more exciting news.

Her father's employer
is sending the family

on a seven-day Caribbean cruise.

Surprisingly, Amy is
reluctant to join them.

-She was a little apprehensive
about the big boat thing

and about the ocean, even
though she is a swim team coach

and swam all her life.

Narrator: Despite her
fears, the opportunity

to spend time with her family
is one Amy can't pass up.

On march 21, 1998, the bradleys
step aboard a 1,000-foot cruise

liner and cast off
from Puerto Rico.

-So the day arrives, you
board the ship, and you set sail.

-I looked at them and thought,
wow, how special and how great

everybody looks.

And everybody's
having a great time.

-And that's what
you're there for... having

a good time, enjoying
yourself, relaxing,

and... and what
you should be doing.

-Mm-hm.

Narrator: On the
morning of march 23,

the ship drops anchor
in oranjestad, Aruba.

The bradleys Mark the
occasion with a family photo.

-The wind's blowing,
and Amy's hair

standing straight
up on her head.

And we've got Brad and
Ron in the background.

And I'm just tickled to death.

Narrator: After a day
of exploring the island,

Amy and her family
returned to the ship

for dinner, followed
by a calypso party

on the upper deck.

Brad Bradley: There was music.

And, uh, we did
the limbo contest,

which I won that night.

You know, just having
drinks, having a good time.

Narrator: Around
1:00 am, the ship

sets off for
curacao, a tiny island

off the coast of Venezuela.

Exhausted, iva and Ron
decide to call it a night.

Amy and Brad head for
the ship's 24-hour dance club

to hear a performance
by the house band.

Brad Bradley: We're just
dancing, having a good time

until... I got back to the
room I think around 4 o'clock

in the morning.

And I was sitting
outside on the balcony.

And I think it was
around 4:15 or 4:30, uh,

that she came in and
joined me on the balcony.

Narrator: Shortly
after that, Brad

decides to call it a night.

But Amy is still wide awake.

Brad Bradley: She
said she was going

to stay out on the balcony
and get some fresh air.

So told her I loved
her and went inside.

Narrator: 5:30 am, as
the ship arrives in curacao,

Ron Bradley wakes to find
his daughter still on the balcony,

relaxing.

-Knowing that she
was comfortable,

I just decided to lay my
head back down because I

knew in about 20 minutes, we
were going to get up and go off

on the island and
have breakfast.

Narrator: But when Ron
wakes up again 20 minutes later,

Amy is nowhere in sight.

Ron Bradley: Right
away, I said, well,

she must have gone up on
the deck to take some pictures,

drink some coffee.

So i... I fully anticipated
going out of the room

and finding her up on deck.

Narrator: But
Amy is not on deck.

All of her belongings
are still in the room.

Yet after searching the
ship for more than an hour,

Amy is nowhere to be found.

Ron is starting to panic.

-Where in the world is she?

Then I came back in and told
my wife that I can't find Amy,

you need to get up
and help me look.

-What was your initial gut
reaction when he told you that?

-I'm immediately, um,
very, very, very upset

and concerned because
I took one look at him,

and he didn't
even look like him.

He was completely frantic.

Narrator: Where is Amy Bradley?

Passengers are preparing
to spend the day in curacao.

Ron and iva Bradley
begged the crew

not to let down the gangplank.

-My wife was pleading not to
let anyone off the ship, please.

Muster everyone to
account for everyone.

And look over the ship, search
the rooms, please find her.

Narrator: The captain agrees
to launch a search for Amy,

but refuses to make
an announcement

or seal off the ship.

Minutes later, the cruise
liner opens its doors

to the streets of curacao.

-Your thoughts must have
just been racing with panic

that... that Amy is
nowhere to be found.

And now, the ship
is just emptying out.

Iva Bradley: I said, there's
about 30,000 people on hand.

There's 3,000 eyes
and there's 3,000 ears.

You've got to put out a picture.

You've got to make
an announcement

that she's missing.

We need help.

-He said, we can't make
an announcement like that.

It will disturb the passengers.

Narrator: For now,
the bradleys can only

start searching the ship.

-We went up and
looked around the disco

and all the different floors.

And we realized it wasn't
just an everyday situation.

Ron Bradley: I don't know
how to describe the feeling.

It was just helplessness and,
uh, frantic at the same time.

Narrator: 5:00 pm,
the bradleys have yet

to find any sign of Amy.

They've also been
informed by the ship's captain

that his search turned
up nothing either.

-He said, every nook and cranny
of this ship has been searched.

Your daughter
is not on the ship.

Narrator: Amy
Bradley has vanished.

When pressed by the
bradleys, the captain

suggests Amy could
have fallen overboard.

The bradleys are skeptical.

-She wouldn't come
near the rail and never did

in the first couple days
of the... of the cruise.

I don't think that
there's any chance

she fell over accidentally.

Narrator: But if Amy didn't
fall overboard accidentally,

what could have happened?

Some members of
the ship's crew suggest

Amy might have jumped on
purpose, committing suicide.

Again, the
bradleys don't buy it.

-Knowing the type
of person that she is

and the fact that she had
just graduated from college

and just gotten a new English
bulldog that she had always

wanted, as far as jumping
from the ship, uh, just

never been a
possibility in my mind.

Narrator: Another
crew member suggests

Amy might have
disembarked in curacao.

Iva Bradley: He
suggested that Amy

might be found on curacao, that
maybe we should leave the ship.

And we said, well, maybe
we should stay on the boat.

And he said, well, if
you stay on the boat

and she ends up in
curacao, we can't get you off.

Narrator: At 5:30 that
evening, the bradleys

reluctantly stepped off the
boat into a foreign country.

-How did you get off that ship?

How did you do it?

-It's the hardest
thing I've ever done.

You're just kind of
stunned and you leave.

Narrator: In less
than four hours,

the ship will set sail
for its next destination

with or without the bradleys.

The search for Amy is
a race against the clock.

Iva Bradley: We're
in a foreign country.

We don't know what to do.

Try and get in touch
with authorities.

We're trying to get in
touch with the embassy.

That was closed.

It was complete chaos.

Narrator: Amy's parents
reached out to the FBI.

But it will be at least
24 hours before agents

can get to the island.

As the ship prepares
for departure,

the bradleys make the
gut-wrenching decision

to stay behind and
continue searching for Amy.

Ron Bradley: And we
sat there and watched

the ship leave the island.

One thing that we
noticed, we knew

exactly where our
room was on the ship.

And it was... it was dark.

All the other lights were on.

And... and everybody was
partying and having a good time.

And there we were by ourself.

Narrator: Five days into what
should have been a dream

vacation, the Bradley
family is living a nightmare.

Their daughter, Amy, has
vanished from a cruise liner.

After frantically
combing the ship,

the bradleys disembark
and search for Amy

on the streets of curacao.

Iva Bradley: We
got off of the boat.

I can't really tell you
what was going on

in those next few hours.

We were distraught beyond
even being able to explain it.

Narrator: That's when
Amy's mother, iva,

receives alarming
news from the FBI.

It turns out their
decision to stay behind

in curacao might have
been the wrong one.

Iva Bradley: They've been
in contact with the boat.

And actually, there was not a
thorough search on the boat.

They searched the common areas.

They searched the restrooms.

But they did not search
every nook and cranny.

Narrator: Could Amy
still be aboard the ship?

Accompanied by a
team of FBI agents,

the bradleys raced to St.
Thomas, the ship's next stop

and confront the captain.

Iva Bradley: I looked at the
captain eyeball-to-eyeball.

And I told him, I
said, you lied to us.

You did not search
this ship in its entirety.

I said it would behoove
you to let the FBI on here

so we can find out who has Amy.

Narrator: On march
26, the FBI conducts

an extensive search of the ship.

Iva Bradley: They did what
they call a bomb search.

And they had three
members walking around

with Amy's picture
folded up in their hand.

You know, they
were looking here,

and they were looking there.

Narrator: Meanwhile,
Amy's family

continues their own search.

Beth holloway: So now,
you have rejoined the ship.

What are some tips and leads
that are coming to you guys?

-We were just walking down
the hallway, and these two

college-age girls, they
came screaming up

to us, just frantic.

We saw Amy.

We saw Amy with a band member.

We saw Amy.

And we couldn't find you.

Where have you been?

And we said, well, we
just got back on the ship.

What are you talking about?

Narrator: The girls claim
that around 5:45 am,

they saw Amy heading back
to the ship's all-night dance club

with the band's bass
player, a Grenadian man

by the name of alister Douglas.

Iva Bradley: They said they
saw them come up the elevator.

And then when the elevator
door opened to the disco,

she turned and they
stepped into the disco.

-So the very last
person that Amy

was known to be seen
alive with is alister Douglas.

-Yes, it's him.

Narrator: Amy's
brother, Brad, also

recalls seeing her
dancing with Douglas

earlier, the night of
her disappearance.

More importantly, Brad
recalls a strange encounter

he had with Douglas
the next morning.

-He comes up to me.

And the first thing
he said was, uh,

he said, hey man, I'm sorry
to hear about your sister.

Narrator: Alister Douglas's
statement triggers alarm bells

with the bradleys
because at that time,

the only people that
knew Amy was missing

were the captain
and his security team.

-That's the only
people, beside Brad,

that knew that we
were looking for Amy.

Narrator: The bradleys
report the incident to the FBI.

And alister Douglas is
brought in for questioning.

Authorities want to know how he
knew about Amy's disappearance

even though it was
never announced.

But Douglas changes
his story and claims

to know absolutely nothing
about Amy's disappearance.

-What are your next steps?

-They brought a
polygrapher on the ship.

And they did a polygraph.

Narrator: Ship security
and law enforcement

both questioned Douglas.

But there is not enough
evidence to detain him.

-[Sighs] Wow.

So you were thinking,
he's it, you know.

I want to get to him because
that is the person that's

last know to be seen
with my daughter alive.

Do you get to him?

-I never had anything,
personally, to say to him.

I was in another world.

I was trying to just stay alive.

Ron remembers sitting outside
of the, um, interview room.

And he had to just
about be restrained.

-He came out with a
thumbs' up and kind of smiled

and, like, everything's cool.

And, uh, it was
all I could do to, to,

to keep my
composure at that time.

Narrator: According
to the bradleys,

the mystery surrounding
Amy's disappearance

deepens further when
investigators discover

that the ship's photo
service, which snaps and sells

pictures of all its
passengers, has somehow

lost every photo of Amy.

-So all of your daughter's
pictures are missing.

-Her pictures were
missing about 9 to 10 hours

before she disappeared.

-Out of everyone on
that ship, her pictures

were the only ones missing.

Narrator: The bradleys
attempt to find out

who removed the
photos, to no avail.

Between the missing photos
and the suspicious behavior

of Douglas, there
was growing concern

that Amy's disappearance
might be related

to some sort of
kidnapping conspiracy.

-My intuition as a mother...
Somebody's got her,

somebody saw her,
somebody wanted her,

and somebody took her.

Narrator: Despite
searching the ship

and interviewing
several crew members,

the FBI doesn't have
the necessary evidence

to charge anyone
with kidnapping.

On march 28, the Bradley's
dream vacation ends in despair.

They disembark the
ship one final time

and catch a flight back home.

-I know it had to
have been the hardest

point in this entire
nightmare for you

to leave that ship
without your daughter.

-Had I known that,
Beth, we would have not

taken our treasures on a trip
because we came up without Amy.

-You were absolutely
robbed of any opportunity

that you had as her mother
and as her father to determine

her last known whereabouts.

Narrator: Despite
their heartbreak,

the bradleys refused to give
up and launched a campaign

to bring nationwide
awareness to Amy's case.

-A dream vacation that
turned into a nightmare

for iva and Ron Bradley. Last...

Iva Bradley: We hit
the ground running

pretty quickly
after we got back.

It would have been much
easier to come home and just

crawl into bed.

But that's not how we are.

I said, let me tell you
what... Amy is counting on us.

Narrator: The bradleys also
announced a $200,000 reward

to anyone with information
leading to Amy's safe return.

But despite the media
attention and the hefty reward,

four weeks passed without
any new developments.

On April 21, Brad and Ron
decide to return to curacao

to search for Amy once again.

-We went down to hand
out flyers all over the island.

And we rented a vehicle
and just, you know,

went all over the place.

Narrator: Within 24
hours, Ron and Brad

received a critical tip.

A taxi driver recognizes Amy
from the flyer and tells them

he saw her the
morning she vanished.

-He walked up to us and
pulled us aside and told us

that he want us to know
that Amy was on that island.

Narrator: According
to the driver,

Amy approached
his cab just minutes

after the cruise ship
docked on the island.

Ron Bradley: He was waiting
at the ship where people got off.

And he said she came
up kind of frantic acting

and asked where
the telephone was.

He said, I'll never
forget her green eyes.

She has green eyes.

Narrator: It seems
the bradleys finally

have the break
they are looking for.

With the help of local
police, Ron and Brad

scour the tiny island
for any trace of Amy.

Iva Bradley: It
was a crazy search.

They were looking in
huts and going in the water

and crawling up on
the back of boats.

-We were just
looking for her, looking

for any clues, anything.

-Then four days
into their search,

Brad here's an
eerily familiar voice.

-I heard Amy call my
name... pretty distinctive,

growing up my
whole life with the way

that she would say
my name and call me.

Narrator: The voice seems to
be coming from a passing Van.

-So we kind of whipped a
u-turn and followed the car

that we thought it came from,
back in all these neighborhoods

and those side roads and things.

Narrator: Eventually, Ron
and Brad catch up to the Van.

-We've got up to him,
and just some guy,

you know, by himself
in the... in the Van.

So either, you
know, we obviously

followed the wrong car or
heard what I wanted to hear.

I don't know, but that
was a little bit, uh, intense.

Narrator: After nearly
a week on the island,

Ron and Brad return
home empty-handed.

-We just made a
decision to come home

because we had done
everything that we could think of.

Narrator: It's been four weeks
since Amy Bradley vanished

from the deck of the
Caribbean cruise ship.

But after a frustrating
week searching

the island of curacao, her
father and brother return home

empty-handed once again.

-You're leaving and
you're going home,

and there's nothing
else you can do there.

I mean, you've done
everything you can do.

It's just... it was
just horrible.

Narrator: Despite
the unthinkable horror

of their situation, Ron
and iva refuse to give up.

-There's not many people
that knows how this feels.

-You're not going to
have me crying, iva.

-Even through the tears and the
being anxious and being upset,

we have got to stay
focused and positive.

Narrator: But the bradleys'
darkest hour is yet to come.

On their way back home,
Ron and Brad lay over in Miami.

While there, they receive
some chilling news from iva.

-The harbor chief on
curacao had called our house

and told her that
they had found a body

and said it was a
female, had brown hair.

And, uh, he thinks that
it... probably, Amy's.

-Just had to have been just
absolutely crushing to you.

-I remember coming back
into chesterfield airport.

We're getting ready to land.

And the wind was blowing
about 40 miles an hour that day.

And normally, I'm not
real crazy about flying.

But... but that day,
if it had gone down,

it wouldn't bother me.

Narrator: It will take
investigators in curacao

24 hours to ID the remains.

The wait is excruciating.

-I felt like we
were about this big.

And we didn't know
what to do, where to go,

how to handle things.

Narrator: Finally,
the phone rings.

Though it's unclear whose
remains authorities have found,

they can tell it's not Amy.

Ron Bradley: What
they found on the beach

was not a female
with brown hair.

Actually, it was a male.

And it was, uh,
just a pelvic girdle

and a piece of a spine that
was determined to be for a man.

Narrator: The
bradleys are relieved,

but they are no closer
to finding their daughter.

Once again, they turn
to the media for help.

Ron Bradley: It was
just a constant thing

from the time we
got up in the morning

until the time we
went to bed at night.

And it never stopped.

Iva Bradley: It's like a
hole blown through you

with a bunch of jagged edges.

There is no closure
until we find Amy.

Narrator: May 1999, after
watching a TV segment

on Amy's case, a
Canadian businessman

by the name of David
Carmichael calls the bradleys

with an astonishing lead.

He also tells them he has
no interest in their reward fund.

Iva Bradley: I'll
never forget that day.

I'll never forget it.

He said, I have
seen your daughter.

I've absolutely
seen your daughter.

Narrator: According
to Carmichael,

the encounter took place while
he was scuba diving in curacao,

some five months
after Amy vanished.

-We were over in
a small area where

we wash off the
equipment in fresh water.

And I looked down the beach.

And I saw a, uh, a girl walking
down the beach with, uh,

being flanked by two people.

Narrator: At first,
Carmichael paid no attention

to the three strangers.

But then the woman
did something bizarre.

-The minute she heard I spoke
English, she picked up her pace

and was putting
distance between her

and the two people
that were flanking her.

Within what was
probably seconds,

she was within
3 or 4 feet of me.

Narrator: According
to Carmichael,

just as the young woman
was about to speak,

the two men caught up to her
and pulled her into a nearby cafe.

David decides to follow them.

-Something went off
in my brain to tell me,

gather more information
about this person.

Narrator: David notices a
scar on the woman's right shin.

And she also seems to be
pointing out several tattoos.

She has a tasmanian devil
on her left shoulder blade.

David's description is chilling.

-The credibility
is unquestionable.

-This time, this could be it?

This could really be Amy?

-He described her to a
t, to include her tattoo.

David Carmichael: I was 2
feet away from her, 2 feet.

That's how close I was.

I don't even have
to think about it.

It's 100%.

It's not 99, it's 100.

It's 100% it was her.

It was.

Narrator: If the
woman on the beach

was Amy, then who were
the mysterious men with her?

-It made us wonder what
type of situation Amy was in

and who had or who
was controlling her.

Narrator: The bradleys
contact local authorities

who searched the area where
the encounter allegedly took place.

They find no sign of Amy.

But Carmichael's tip
does convince the bradleys

that Amy has been kidnapped.

-It was just a confirmation
of somebody's got her

because she was
definitely under control.

She was not walking on the
beach under her own free will.

Narrator: Three months
later, another man

comes forward with
additional information that

seems to prove without a doubt
that Amy has been kidnapped.

The man's name is frank Jones.

Jones is a private
investigator who

claims that Amy is
being held captive,

and that her captors specialize
in one of the Caribbean darkest

secrets... human trafficking.

-People take a look
at human trafficking

and they go, Tsk, that's crazy.

Go on the Internet and type
in human traffic in the united

states alone, it
will blow your mind.

Narrator: The us
state department

estimates that more than
12 million people worldwide

are the victims of human
and sexual trafficking.

And frank Jones
believes that Amy

has been forced
into sexual slavery.

He also believes that if anyone
can bring Amy home safely,

he can.

-This is a guy that presented
himself as a special forces guy

that's rescued people like this.

Narrator: But according to
Jones, operations like these

take time and tens of
thousands of dollars.

The bradleys are
more than willing to pay.

Iva Bradley: He seemed to
back up what he was saying.

He was following Amy.

He knew where she was.

I say to myself,
hey, if that's where

she is, let's get this done.

Maybe today is the day.

-When your daughter's
missing, you're

willing to do anything and
spend any amount of money

if you think it's
going to help find her.

So that's what we did.

Narrator: Over the next
year, Jones and his team

of reconnaissance experts
conduct operations in curacao,

staking out suspected
brothels and drug dens,

ultimately
concluding Amy is still

alive and is being
held on the island.

As evidence, they send the
bradleys surveillance photos.

Iva Bradley: Some of the shots
were Amy's tattoo on her ankle.

Another shot was her facing
away and a tattoo on her shoulder.

She stood like Amy.

She was built like Amy.

And so we thought it was Amy.

Narrator: On September
22, 1999, frank Jones

informs the bradleys
that he's gathered enough

intel to successfully
extract Amy.

But to do so, he'll need
an additional $100,000.

Ron Bradley borrows
the money from his boss.

-We were able to get
the money together

by our former
employer, who said, hey,

if that... if that's where
she is, let's get this done.

Narrator: It seems
the bradleys are

prepared to bring
Amy home at last.

Two years after Amy Bradley
vanished from a cruise liner,

her family seems to be
closing in on the truth.

Former special forces
officer frank Jones

and his reconnaissance
team are convinced

Amy is being held
against her will

on the Caribbean
island of curacao.

But first, Jones needs a
final payment of $100,000.

The bradleys' employer
is willing to help out,

but wants to make
sure the tip is legitimate

before he hands over the cash.

So on November 1, 2000,
he sends a trusted source,

security contractor
Tim buckholz,

to curacao in order to monitor
frank Jones and his team.

Iva Bradley: He's very kind.

He's very gentle.

But he scary.

He's the kind of guy
that can go on an island

or go anywhere in the world,
and he just straight up says,

I need to meet the
criminal element here.

Narrator: After just a
few hours on the island,

buckholz contacts the bradleys
with some heartbreaking news.

-He called us saying that
frank Jones is down here,

drinking rum, and,
uh, having a good time

and with absolutely nothing
going on concerning Amy.

Narrator: Tim has
also discovered

that frank Jones is not
the former special forces

operative he claims to be.

Jones is a con artist.

And that the alleged photos
of Amy are phony as well.

Ron Bradley: He had
gotten copies of the tattoo

from us that he took
to a tattoo parlor.

And they did a stencil
and put it on this girl.

And they posed her
on the beach as Amy

in order to get some
additional funding.

-How much money
had iva given to frank?

-Frank had actually, uh, taken
over $200,000 from that family.

From... and the fam... it
wasn't the family's money.

It was donations,
and everybody that

was giving donations
to help find Amy.

Narrator: In February
2002, frank Jones

is arrested in Virginia and
charged with mail fraud.

He is sentenced to
five years in prison

and ordered to repay every
penny he conned from the bradleys.

But what the
bradleys can't recoup

is the time they have wasted
on this bogus investigation.

Iva Bradley: Frank Jones
stole two years of our ability

to be able to do the
legitimate things that we

needed to do to find Amy.

I think about it
at this point, and I

get so angry over the
amount of time that we lost.

Narrator: But while
the bradleys are

trying to jump-start the search
for Amy, another lead comes in.

This time, from a sailor
stationed on curacao.

-A Navy officer
went into a brothel.

And a girl approached him.

-And she leaned down and
said my name is Amy Bradley.

And I need help.

And he said, well, you know,
what kind of help you need?

And she says, I need help.

I can't get out.

And then somebody
motioned her away.

Narrator: The details
of the sailor's story

are strikingly similar to
those of David Carmichael,

the Canadian scuba
diver who encountered Amy

three years prior.

Because the sailor
wasn't supposed

to be inside the brothel, he
waited more than two years

to come forward.

Ron Bradley: Since then, that
brothel has been burned down.

It seems like they'd had
a lot of places on curacao

get burned down
for whatever reason.

Narrator: Though Amy's trail
has once again grown cold,

it now seems
clear to the bradleys

that Amy has been
forced into prostitution.

But they are grateful
that Amy is still alive.

-You guys are such
fighters to keep Amy's name,

her face, the circumstances
surrounding her disappearance

in the forefront.

-We can't let her down.

And any parent will do
whatever, as you well know,

whatever you have
to do to find your child.

Narrator: Four more years
passed without a single new lead

in the case.

But finally, in September
2005, the bradleys

receive a shocking tip.

An anonymous source sends
them photos he found online.

The woman in the pictures bears
a striking resemblance to Amy.

Iva Bradley: Could
these possibly be Amy?

Heavy makeup, kind of wild hair.

My sister, the artist,
first thing she does

is she takes the picture.

She says, squint your
eyes at that picture

and see what you see.

And Beth, when I squinted, it
was like... it just shocked me.

It was just Amy.

Narrator: Even
more telling is the fact

that the pictures were pulled
from an adult website based

in the Caribbean.

And the young woman is being
advertised as a female escort.

After droves of false
leads and dashed hopes,

the bradleys want to be
100% sure it's really Amy.

-We got in touch with
a forensic detective

in one of the
police departments.

And he took those pictures.

And he took Amy's pictures.

And he did overlays.

Narrator: The forensic
detective determines

that facial structure, hairline,
and multiple ear piercings

make the girl in the photo
a perfect match for Amy.

Iva Bradley: He gave us
the complete breakdown on it.

And he said, I
will tell you that I

will bet my career
that this is Amy.

Narrator: Investigators
begin tracing the ip address

of the website
hosting the pictures.

After nearly eight
years of false leads

and multiple sightings,
shocking photos

have been found on
a website advertising

prostitutes in the Caribbean.

The picture seemed to confirm
that Ron and iva Bradley's

daughter, Amy, has been abducted
and forced into sexual slavery.

Iva Bradley: When I
first looked at the picture,

it wasn't the Amy that I know.

It wasn't the soft,
kind, innocent Amy.

The picture looks like a
harsh and tormented Amy.

And it's tough to look at.

Narrator: Investigators
are having trouble

pinpointing the exact location
of the website's ip address.

Until that happens, they
will be hard-pressed to move

the case forward.

But now that they're armed with
recent photos of the woman they

believe is their daughter,
Ron and iva turn to the media

once again, confident
someone somewhere

will recognize Amy,
who is now 31 years old.

-Joining us now are her parents.

-Someone saw Amy and took
Amy from that ship in some way.

Narrator: In December 2005,
the bradleys' tireless efforts

yield another breakthrough
on the tiny island of Barbados.

It involves an Ohio
woman named Judy maurer.

-What took you to
Barbados, Judy?

-My husband and
I went on a cruise.

The ship docked in
Barbados at Bridgetown.

And we decided to go
downtown and do some shopping.

Narrator: While using a
department store ladies' room,

Judy find herself trapped
in a frightening situation.

Judy maurer: I
went into the stall.

Soon I got into the
stall and sat down,

I heard somebody
coming into the restroom,

and I heard men's voices.

My automatic
response was to hide

because I was afraid they
came in to Rob me or, you know,

rape me or something. I
didn't know what was going on.

Narrator: Gripped with fear,
Judy listens as one of the men

makes a threatening
statement to someone.

Judy maurer: He must
have said five or six times,

the deal's at 11 o'clock.

You better be ready to go.

He goes, and I'm warning
you, you better cooperate.

This is my deal.

And you better not mess it
up. And he just kept saying that.

-You had to have been
just trembling with fear.

-I was... I was petrified.

I was practically holding my
breath because I'm thinking,

I'm witnessing something
that I shouldn't be witnessing.

Narrator: Then as quickly
as they enter the restroom,

the men leave.

But Judy maurer
is still not alone.

Cowering by the
sink is a young woman

who appears to
be in her early '30s.

Judy maurer: She looks
like she's about ready to cry.

So I tried to talk
to her because I

could see that she was
just really distraught.

So I said, where are you from?

And she talked so softly
that I could barely hear.

But at the time, I
thought she said Virginia.

Narrator: What the woman
told Judy next was unmistakable.

Judy maurer: So then I
says, well, what's your name?

And then real
softly, she says Amy.

-What did you do when
she said her name was Amy?

-Well, I said, um, oh, my
daughter's name is Amy.

She got the most
horrid look on her face.

Her mouth flew open.

And she did a pivot
towards me and then

starts walking
towards me and getting

in my space, like... like this.

And she did that
3 times, like she

was trying to get
me to be quiet.

Narrator: That instant,
the men's voices

reappeared outside the door.

-I heard a pounding
on the door real loud.

And I could hear a
man making noises.

And then the door
flew open about this far.

And soon as that
happen, she kind of

grimaced and just stood
there like she was frozen.

Narrator: Panicked, Judy
bolts out of the bathroom

and passed four
men waiting outside.

She never sees the
woman again, or at least,

for nine months when Judy
comes across the most recent photos

of Amy in an article
about missing persons.

-Judy, I mean, when you
saw this young woman's face,

did you instantly feel that
is the young woman I saw?

-I looked at this picture,
I'm going, oh my god!

That girl looks so familiar.

I think that's the girl
I saw in Barbados.

And when I read it, I
realize her name was Amy.

Narrator: Judy
ultimately contacts

the bradleys who alert the FBI.

Using Judy maurer's
eyewitness account,

the feds create
composite sketches

of the woman and
her alleged abductors.

-That lead was
absolutely phenomenal,

lifted our hope, our spirit.

I knew she was alive.

I know she is alive.

Narrator: But by the
time detectives follow up

with the department
store, no one

remembers seeing
Amy or her captors.

Ron Bradley: We thought
we had finally found her.

And that wasn't the case.

So it was just back to...
Back to square 1 again.

Narrator: 13 years
have now passed.

And there are still
more questions

than answers surrounding
Amy Bradley's disappearance.

Although Amy could
be anywhere by now,

private investigator
Tim buckholz

believes that there are still
answers to be found in curacao.

-I got a question for you.

I'm looking for somebody.

Remember this girl?

Remember her?

Somebody knows what happened.

One way or the other,
somebody knows.

Narrator: Tim believes
that somebody could still

be alister Douglas, the bass
player aboard the cruise ship

and the last person seen
with Amy before she vanished.

Douglas is believed to
still be working and living

in the Caribbean.

And though there is no
concrete evidence linking him

to any crime, Tim
buckholz would like

to ask in one simple question.

-What happened
to Amy that morning

while the ship was
docking in the curacao?

That's the only question
I want answered.

Narrator: Until then, Tim
and the Bradley family

will continue searching
the Caribbean for clues,

hoping that one day,
Amy will come home.

-I miss her when
I'm washing dishes,

when I'm taking a
shower, when I'm working.

She's my heart.

She's absolutely my heart.

She knows that we
love her and that we

will fight until the
day we die to find her.

-I know we still have hope,
even though it may not be realistic.

-"i love you,
little brother."

Ron Bradley: Hey!

[Applause]

We just can't give up looking.

We just got to do what we
have to do as long as it takes.

Narrator: Amy Bradley
was last seen in curacao

out in march 1998.

She is 5 foot 6 inches tall,
with brown hair and green eyes.

Amy also has four distinctive
tattoos... a tasmanian devil

on her shoulder blade,
a sun on her lower back,

a Chinese symbol
on her right ankle,

and a gecko around her navel.

Today, she would
be 37 years old.

If you have information about
the disappearance of Amy

Bradley, please go to
mylifetime. Com/vanished

and click on the tips button.

-Well, show me
around your grounds.

And I know that there
have been a lot of things

that you've been doing
and... and keeping

busy with in... in honor
and tributes to Amy.

-Over here, we've got this
entire area from down the side.

Uh, and this is... we have
a plaque for Amy's garden.

And the yard...
- Oh, is this Amy's garden?

Oh.

-It just uplifts us, um,
when it's all in bloom

because it just feels
so much like Amy.