Episode 90 Missing Persons Alert: Avery Doherty

Avery Lydia Doherty is a child missing out of Ames, Iowa and is presumed to be the victim of a familial abduction at the hands of her mother, Esther Bender. She's been missing since October, 2023. Her mother Esther, had an 'unofficial' shared custody agreement with Avery's father, Brandon Doherty who is the guest in this episode. The relationship between Esther and Brandon officially ended when Avery was much younger, but the pair remains on good terms for Avery's benefit. When Brandon moved 3 hours away to Kansas City, MO, he continued to stay in touch, and alternated between having Avery stay with him, and him going to visit her in Ames. While their shared custody agreement wasn't organized by the court, it was working for them for a while. Then, Brandon noticed that Esther seemed to be trying to phase him out of his daughter's life. She would miss pre-arranged meetups and drop offs. She then began to explore changing her daughter's last name. Brandon sensed something was 'off' and decided to hire an attorney and get the courts involved so that the shared custody was in an official capacity recognized by the court. Instead of showing up to court, Esther and Avery vanished. Esther un-enrolled Avery from her school without notifying Brandon. When Brandon was not able to contact Esther, he feared something was wrong, and went to Esther's residence only to find it had been haphazardly cleaned out, and was left in a mess. Esther's minivan was left behind, and there has been no contact with her or Avery since. In light of the parental abduction, the court stepped in and issued a ruling that if and when Avery is found, she is to be returned to Brandon to have full custody.

There is evidence that Esther pre-planned this abduction, and purchased a burner phone, and minutes to keep off of investigator's radar.They fear that she left the state, and may have had assistance by one or more people to help pull off this abduction.

Avery Doherty is described as weighing 45 pounds and standing 4 feet, 5 inches tall. She is white and has blonde hair and blue eyes. Esther Bender, who may be using her maiden name, Yoder. Although no clear description of Esther was given, she is described as White with dark Brown hair.

Anyone with information on the case should call Ames police at 515-239-5133.

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