Account
Feb 23, 2018
May 24, 2022
Janet
Shuglie
75
35
62 inches
64 inches
110 lbs
115 lbs
White / Caucasian
Female
On a summer day in June of 1985, a mother and daughter’s lives took a turn that would leave their family searching for answers for decades to come. Thirty-five-year-old Janet Shuglie and her 10-year-old daughter, Marisa, were last seen on June 30, 1985, in Somerset, Pennsylvania. The family, which also included Janet's husband Frank and their two young sons, had been living temporarily in Room 19 of the Coleman Motel. That morning, an argument erupted between Janet and Frank, reportedly concerning Marisa. In the heat of the moment, Janet's sons witnessed her spit in her husband's face, and he responded by slapping her. Following the altercation, Janet took Marisa and left the motel on foot, walking north along Route 985. She sought help at a nearby auto dealership, telling the owner she was trying to get a ride to Pittsburgh to be with relatives. When the owner was unable to secure a ride for them via a CB radio, Janet mentioned she was going to meet with a priest at St. Peter's Roman Catholic Church, a meeting for which she had a prior arrangement. Janet and Marisa were last seen walking off towards the turnpike interchange and have not been seen or heard from since. The hours and days following their departure were marked by strange and suspicious behavior from Janet’s husband, Frank Shuglie. According to the couple's two sons, who were just four and five years old at the time, their father did not return to the motel room until late that night, and when he did, his clothes were covered in mud. The very next day, Frank meticulously cleaned the room, going so far as to wash the walls, before checking out. He then took his sons first to his hometown of Jeanette, Pennsylvania, and shortly after, moved to an apartment in Pittsburgh. It wasn't until July 3rd, several days after his wife and daughter were last seen, that Frank reported them missing to the Pennsylvania State Police. In a bizarre and sinister twist a month later, Frank was arrested for soliciting men, who turned out to be undercover police officers, to murder Janet, kidnap Marisa, and injure two of her relatives whom he believed were hiding them. He was subsequently convicted of these charges and, having been diagnosed with paranoid schizophrenia, served part of his 16-year sentence in a hospital for the criminally insane. While incarcerated, he reportedly told fellow inmates that he had "got rid of" his wife and daughter. Decades have passed, yet the fate of Janet and Marisa Shuglie remains unknown. Foul play is strongly suspected, and their case is considered an endangered missing persons investigation. The couple's two sons grew up in the foster care system in the wake of their father's imprisonment and have spent their adult lives grappling with the loss of their mother and sister. For years, there were no new developments in the case. However, in 2019, a glimmer of hope for new leads emerged when Janet's Penn Joint Junior High School class ring was turned over to the police. A family had found it more than two decades earlier but had only recently learned it belonged to a missing person. While authorities have not disclosed where the ring was found, this discovery has brought renewed attention to the case. Despite this, the mystery endures. Law enforcement continues to view Frank Shuglie as the prime suspect, believing his attempt to hire hitmen may have been a misguided effort to divert suspicion from himself. The disappearance of Janet and Marisa Shuglie is a heartbreaking story of a family torn apart, leaving behind unanswered questions and a lingering hope for resolution.
Jun 30, 1985
Somerset
Pennsylvania
Somerset County
No
32363
Pennsylvania State Police
Somerset
Pennsylvania
Somerset County
15501
142 Sagamore Street, Pennsylvania
8144454104
State
Law Enforcement
A6418923
1989-05-22
Pennsylvania State Police
10626
Brown
Brown
Brown
05/26/2026
