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Unsolved October 27, 1989 Homicide

Amy Mihaljevic

Status Unsolved
Type Homicide
Date October 27, 1989
Location Bay Village, Ohio
Victim Age 10
Gender Female

Ten-year-old Amy Mihaljevic was lured from a Bay Village shopping plaza by a man who called her on the phone promising a surprise for her mother. Her body was found months later in a field. Despite extensive investigation, her killer has never been identified.

In late September 1989, 10-year-old Amy Renee Mihaljevic began receiving phone calls at her home in Bay Village, Ohio from a man who claimed to know her mother. The caller told Amy that her mother had recently received a promotion at work and suggested Amy help him buy a gift to surprise her. Over several calls, the man gained Amy's trust and arranged to meet her.

On the afternoon of October 27, 1989, Amy walked from her school to the Bay Square Shopping Center, where she met the caller. Witnesses saw her walking through the plaza with a man described as white, approximately 35-50 years old, with a moustache. Amy left the plaza with the man and was never seen alive again.

Amy's body was discovered on February 8, 1990, in a field in rural Ashland County, approximately 50 miles south of Bay Village. She had been stabbed in the neck. The discovery prompted a renewed investigation, but the rural location yielded few forensic leads. The case generated enormous publicity in Ohio and beyond.

Over three decades, investigators have pursued hundreds of suspects. In 2006, journalist James Renner published 'Amy: My Search for Her Killer,' which named several potential suspects and generated new tips. DNA evidence collected at the time has been preserved and periodically tested against suspects. The FBI's Behavioral Analysis Unit has assisted with profiling. Despite these efforts, Amy Mihaljevic's killer has never been identified, and the case remains one of Ohio's most haunting unsolved murders.

homicide Ohio child abduction 1980s
1989-09-25
Amy Mihaljevic begins receiving phone calls from an unknown man.
1989-10-27
Amy meets the caller at Bay Square Shopping Center and disappears.
1990-02-08
Amy's body is found in a field in Ashland County.
2006-01-01
James Renner publishes investigation naming potential suspects.

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