In the fall of 2014, in Fayetteville, North Carolina, concerns grew for 43-year-old Meta Price Valentine, a devoted mother and church secretary. Known to her loved ones as 'Mimi,' she was last seen on October 28, 2014. The last known contact with her was a strange phone call she had with her mother at 10:30 p.m. that night, during which her mother said she was talking 'in riddles'.
The alarm was raised when Meta, a regular at the Deliverance Praise Church of Worship, missed a Wednesday evening Bible study, an absence that was highly out of character for her. Family members, unable to get in touch with her, reported her missing on October 29, 2014. At the time of her disappearance, she was reportedly wearing a blue t-shirt, gray sweatpants, and flip-flops.
The investigation into Meta's disappearance quickly focused on her former boyfriend, Reginald McDowell, with whom she had a turbulent and violent history. McDowell was the father of one of her three children, and their relationship had recently ended just two weeks before she went missing. In 1999, he had been convicted of kidnapping Meta and her then-boyfriend, for which he was sentenced to fifteen years in prison but was released in 2011. Surveillance footage from the evening of October 28th, around 5:30 p.m., showed Meta walking toward her apartment building, and shortly after, McDowell was seen on the same camera running in the same direction. Investigators noted that Meta had been fearful in the time leading up to her disappearance, often asking a fellow church member to see her home and taking different routes to avoid being followed.
Though initially cooperative with the police, McDowell later ceased communication and left the Fayetteville area. His subsequent lack of contact with his own family, including the son he shared with Meta, deepened suspicions. In the years following her disappearance, the case remained active, with her family pleading for answers and closure. In March 2018, authorities announced they had charged Reginald McDowell with first-degree kidnapping and first-degree murder in connection with Meta's case. However, McDowell remained at large, with law enforcement believing he might be in the New York area. Despite the charges, Meta Valentine's body has never been found, and foul play is strongly suspected due to the circumstances surrounding her disappearance. The case is an overview of a woman who vanished after a history of domestic violence, leaving behind a family searching for justice and the location of her remains.Last Seen: Oct 28, 2014
