In the summer of 1987, 19-year-old Cassandra Elizabeth Durham embarked on a trip from her home in Baltimore, Maryland, with her boyfriend, Eric Buikema. The couple was headed to Roscommon, Michigan, to visit his grandparents. The last time Cassandra's father heard from her was in August of that year when she called him from the Roscommon area. She was a White female, 5'5' tall, and weighed approximately 110 pounds, with brown, neck-length hair and blue eyes. She had two tattoos on her hip/thigh area: one of her boyfriend's initials, 'EB,' and another of her college sorority's initials, though the specific sorority is unknown. When she was last seen, she was believed to be carrying a small, black purse.
The journey from Maryland to Michigan was not without incident. The couple was reportedly driving a 1980 Honda Civic station wagon and made a stop at the Cedar Point amusement park in Ohio.
It is believed that their car broke down near the Detroit area, prompting Cassandra's boyfriend to purchase a different vehicle, an Oldsmobile Cutlass. After this, they continued their trip and stayed with the boyfriend's grandfather in Roscommon. Following the phone call to her father in August 1987, Cassandra was never heard from by her family again. Her boyfriend eventually returned to Baltimore in either 1988 or 1989 without her. When questioned, he claimed that they had both returned to Maryland, but he was unaware of her current location, an account that Cassandra's father disputes, stating his daughter never came home. The inconsistencies in her boyfriend's story raised suspicions with both her family and law enforcement.
For decades, the case of Cassandra Durham's disappearance remained cold, with no significant leads to follow. The initial investigation yielded little information, leaving her family with unanswered questions and a profound sense of loss. In a more recent effort to bring resolution to the long-standing mystery, the Michigan State Police have reopened the cold case. Investigators are once again seeking any information from the public that could shed light on what happened to Cassandra after she was last heard from in that summer of 1987. Her family continues to hope for answers and closure after years of uncertainty. The overview of the case reflects a young woman who vanished after a road trip with her boyfriend, with conflicting accounts of their return and a lack of communication that has left a void in the lives of her loved ones for over three decades.Last Seen: Aug 1, 1987
