On a seemingly ordinary day, November 18, 2000, 62-year-old Leland Alton Jones, a man who had long battled cancer, vanished from Peoria, Arizona. A resident of Phoenix, he was last seen in the vicinity of the 8500 block of Northwest Grand Avenue, specifically at the Peoria Bazaar where he had gone to purchase a new hot plate. A worker from the market later confirmed having seen him there.
Leland, who had courageously fought cancer for over two decades, required medication to manage his pain, and his family expressed that he would have been in considerable discomfort without it. For years, he lived with a brain tumor and had undergone numerous surgeries, one of which resulted in the surgical removal of his right ear. His medical condition also caused hearing problems and could lead to confusion and disorientation.
The days following his last sighting turned into a period of anxious uncertainty for his loved ones. Six days later, on November 24, 2000, a significant but grim discovery was made. Leland's red 1993 Dodge Caravan was found abandoned approximately 45 miles southeast of the bazaar. The vehicle was stuck in the mud on the Gila River Indian Reservation, a location far from where his day's errand should have taken him. Despite a search of the area, there was no trace of Leland himself. The circumstances surrounding his van's location only deepened the mystery of his disappearance.
Leland's sister, Clovis Gordon, firmly dismissed the idea that he might have taken his own life. She pointed out that he had a loaded gun at his home and could have chosen that path long ago if he had wished. Instead, she harbored the fear that he had been the victim of a robbery and murder. Despite his prolonged illness, his family maintained that he was a fighter and not suicidal. Over the years, very few details about the investigation have been made public, with only a single newspaper article reportedly published in the week his vehicle was found. The case of Leland Jones is a story of a man who, after years of battling a relentless disease, disappeared without a trace. The known facts are sparse: he was last seen on a simple shopping trip, and his van was later found abandoned miles away. The vast distance between these two points holds the unanswered questions of what happened to him, leaving his family with a lingering sense of loss and an unresolved mystery.Last Seen: Nov 18, 2000
