In 1988, on a beautiful day in Belen, New Mexico, a 19-year-old woman got ready to do one of her favorite things: her daily bike ride. She put on a white t-shirt with the local bank’s logo on it, white shorts with green stripes, and white sneakers. She grabbed her bright yellow Walkman with a Boston cassette tape. Before leaving home on a neon pink mountain bike, she told her mom, “Come and get me if I’m not back by noon.” It was the same route she took everyday. At some point, the route she knew by heart - took a terribly wrong turn. The punctual college student did not make it back by noon. No one could predict that this daily exercise routine that brought her so much joy would haunt her name and her family for the rest of their lives. It’s now been 35 years since that fateful bike ride and the mystery of what happened to her has never been answered.

Her name is Tara Calico.

This is her story.

Anyone with information is asked to call the FBI tip line at 1-800-CALL-FBI or the sheriff’s office at 505-866-2400.

You can also follow the latest updates as Tara’s investigation continues on Melinda’s website: https://www.taracalico.com/

Resources:

https://www.fbi.gov/wanted/kidnap/tara-leigh-calico

https://allthatsinteresting.com/tara-calico

https://www.youtube.com/watch?time_continue=407&v=mM2oPGLoZ8M&embeds_euri=https%3A%2F%2Fallthatsinteresting.com%2F&source_ve_path=MjM4NTE&feature=emb_title

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=eogQknVSv7E&embeds_euri=https%3A%2F%2Fallthatsinteresting.com%2F&source_ve_path=MzY4NDIsMzY4NDIsMjM4NTE&feature=emb_title

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=O51sYOPdpMo

https://www.doenetwork.org/cases/257dfnm.html

https://www.newspapers.com/image/158492668/?clipping_id=21236946&fcfToken=eyJhbGciOiJIUzI1NiIsInR5cCI6IkpXVCJ9.eyJmcmVlLXZpZXctaWQiOjE1ODQ5MjY2OCwiaWF0IjoxNjc4NTQxNTg2LCJleHAiOjE2Nzg2Mjc5ODZ9.Myh0B5TGzQFpkgouwjJyc8PvJ7NsD9OiBdIkgxVQgOg

https://www.belen-nm.gov/about/

https://uncovered.com/cases/tara-calico

https://www.krqe.com/news/renewed-hope-for-answers-29-years-after-disappearance-of-tara-calico/

https://www.taracalico.com/new-blog/2018/7/31/people-magazine-new-leads-in-teens-cold-case-disappearance-while-biking-why-answers-may-be-hiding-in-her-community

http://www.crimemagazine.com/polaroid

https://www.thesun.co.uk/news/19135143/mystery-teenage-girl-vanished-bike-ride-stalked/

https://www.koat.com/article/tara-calico-cold-case-investigation-new-mexico/37641318#

https://web.archive.org/web/20031003111915/http://www.abqtrib.com/archives/news03/091903_news_tara.shtml

https://www.taracalico.com/thestory

https://www.taracalico.com/press

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=mM2oPGLoZ8M&t=407s

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=eogQknVSv7E

Music Used:

Walking with the Dead by Maia Wynne

Link: https://freemusicarchive.org/music/Maiah_Wynne/Live_at_KBOO_for_A_Popcalypse_11012017

License: https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc-nd/4.0/

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