Sharaun Cole Missing Person Case

Apr 15, 2010

Sep 11, 2023

Sharaun

Cole

55

12

66 inches

110 lbs

Black / African American

Female

On a mild February evening in New York City, 12-year-old Sharaun Taree Cole told her mother she was going to a nearby park to play. It was February 25, 1983, and Sharaun was last seen outside her family’s residence on Edgecomb Avenue in the Washington Heights neighborhood of Manhattan. At the time, she was described as being between 5'6" and 5'7" and weighing around 110 pounds. She was wearing a beige wool jacket, a gold sweater, blue jeans, and blue and white sneakers. When Sharaun didn't come home that evening, her mother initially thought she might have gone to stay with her godmother, something she had done before. However, after contacting the godmother the next day and learning Sharaun wasn't there, her mother reported her missing to the New York City Police Department. Initially, investigators considered the possibility that Sharaun had run away from home. While her mother maintained that there were no problems at home that would cause her to leave, some of Sharaun's friends and classmates from P.S. 128 Elementary School later suggested she was having issues with her mother. The investigation took a turn in July 1983 when two separate witnesses who knew Sharaun reported seeing her. One sighting occurred in the Greenwich Village neighborhood, while the other was near 160th Street and Broadway. Both witnesses described Sharaun as looking "very dirty" and upset, which was uncharacteristic of her as she was known to be mindful of her hygiene. It is unclear if anyone spoke to her during these sightings or if she was with anyone else. Decades have passed since Sharaun Cole was last seen, and her case remains unsolved. Over the years, her case has received very little media attention, leaving her family with few answers. Foul play is now suspected in her disappearance. Age-progression photos have been created and released to the public, showing what Sharaun might look like as an adult, in the hope that someone might recognize her. The National Center for Missing and Exploited Children and the New York City Police Department continue to list her as a missing person. The case is a painful reminder of a young life interrupted, a story without a final chapter, and a family left waiting for any information that could bring them closure.

Feb 25, 1983

New York

New York

New York County

10032

26489

New York City Police Department - Missing Persons Squad

New York

New York

New York County

10039

2770 Frederick Douglass Boulevard, New York

2126947781

Local

Law Enforcement

KNMP02618

New York City Police Department - Missing Persons Squad

Brown

Brown

Brown

08/24/2026