The disappearance of James E. Early in the spring of 1995 unraveled from a local concern in Glen Carbon, Illinois, into an international mystery. On April 29, 1995, James's father, Joe Early, officially reported his 42-year-old son missing to the Glen Carbon Police Department. He informed authorities that James had been suffering from depression and had not returned home from work since April 6th. The initial days of his absence, however, did not immediately trigger alarm, as there was some communication. On April 9th, James's sister, Janet, called their father to let him know that James was with her in New York. A few days later, on April 12th, she received a letter from James instructing her to retrieve his car, which he had left at JFK Airport, marking the last known communication from him.
The case took a startling turn when Janet Early received a phone call on April 21st from a Budget Car Rental agency located in Paris, France. The agency reported that a car had been rented in James Early's name on April 13th with a scheduled return date of April 14th, but the vehicle was never brought back. This new information shifted the search for James across the Atlantic. The international dimension of the case was solidified on April 25th, when the rental car was discovered abandoned and damaged in Toulon, France, a port city on the Mediterranean coast. The discovery of the damaged vehicle in a foreign country, far from his Illinois home, deepened the mystery and heightened the concerns of his family and investigators.
Despite the passage of time, the whereabouts of James E. Early remain unknown. The investigation, led by the Glen Carbon Police Department, faced the significant challenge of a case that spanned from a quiet Midwestern town to the bustling streets of New York and ultimately to the shores of southern France. The timeline of events, from his departure from work while experiencing depression to the discovery of an abandoned rental car in another country, provides a perplexing trail of his last known movements. The circumstances surrounding his disappearance, the international travel, and the damaged vehicle have left many unanswered questions for his loved ones and the authorities who continue to seek information that might bring closure to this long-standing and enigmatic missing person case.
Last Seen: Apr 13, 1995
