True crime must-see on Netflix: Amy Bradley Is Missing
It has been 27 years since 23-year-old Amy Bradley disappeared during a cruise with her family. Since then, the case has captivated her family, the FBI, and the public. How is it possible that Amy has still not been found after all this time? It's not that there were never any clues. The new Netflix docu ‘Amy Bradley Is Missing’ investigates the disappearance and every step taken in the investigation. All in the hope of finally finding answers.
The mysterious disappearance of Amy Bradley
On March 21, 1998, Amy Lynn Bradley boarded the Rhapsody of the Seas with her parents Iva and Ron and younger brother Brad; a cruise ship that would take them to various Caribbean islands. After a stopover in Aruba, the ship continues towards Curaçao. That night, Amy and her brother decide to go to the ship's nightclub for a party. Once back in their room, they chat on the balcony. The place where father Ron last sees Amy around half past five in the morning. When he looks again half an hour later, she is gone. He doesn't really worry. The ship is about to dock, and Amy is probably just watching from the deck with a cup of coffee. But when he can't find her there, anxiety sets in. He doesn't want to raise the alarm immediately and first searches the ship himself. After an hour without any trace of his daughter, Ron tells the news to his wife. Panic ensues, and the endless series of questions begins. The most important one: what happened to Amy?
The first theories about the disappearance of Amy Bradley
When the family realizes that they really can't find Amy, they raise the alarm with the ship's crew. They beg them to warn everyone via the PA system and to wait with docking. If someone is involved in the disappearance, that person is still on the ship. But the crew does not agree; there are too many other passengers whose vacation should not be disrupted. The cruise director of the Rhapsody is also convinced that it is not a crime. According to him, Amy must have fallen or jumped off the ship, something that, frighteningly enough, happens more often than one would think. The family believes none of this. The railing of the ship is too high to just fall over, and there was no reason to think that Amy was suicidal. Perhaps the most important clue that seems to confirm their suspicions: no body has ever been found. And according to the local coast guard of Curaçao, that should have happened with such strong currents.
The FBI quickly identifies a first suspect
With two theories that couldn't be true, a third idea quickly circulates: Amy must have been kidnapped. But by whom? Thanks to camera footage and statements from passengers, the FBI soon stumbles upon their first suspect: Alister Douglas. He was a bassist in the ship's band and had been spotted with Amy several times the night before. They danced together and seemed to look for a quiet spot afterward. Alister was seen afterward, but not Amy. The bassist claims to have nothing to do with the disappearance. A lie detector test provided no clarity, and thus the agents could no longer hold him. He still insists he is innocent, even while his own daughter Amica doubts him. She decides to confront him again in the docu.
Amy Bradley is spotted several more times, but is it really her?
After Allister Douglas is ruled out, the FBI again has no idea. In the years following Amy's disappearance there are multiple reports that she has been spotted somewhere, both in Curaçao and Barbados. Everything indicated according to witnesses that Amy was trapped in human trafficking and prostitution. They seemed like valuable clues for the agents, but they couldn't do much with them. The reports often came much later after the sighting, making it pointless to return to those places. The only truly valuable tip was a photo of a woman on a site with sex workers. According to research, it should be Amy, but that is not one hundred percent certain either. For the family, at least a sign of life and hope, a reason to keep searching.
The Bradley family does not give up
Amy's family is still convinced after all this time that she is alive, and that they will find her. They regularly update their website with information and family photos in the hope that Amy sees them and knows that she is not forgotten. Every day they wake up with the words ‘maybe today’, and go to bed with ‘maybe tomorrow’. Their gut feeling tells them to keep going.
The goal of the creators behind Amy Bradley Is Missing
The case surrounding Amy Bradley still raises many questions, and that is precisely why the creators wanted to make this documentary. By discussing all the theories again and letting the main players speak for themselves, they hope, according to director Ari Mark, to help the investigation. “Things happen and change as a result of these shows. When you make these mysteries public, something almost always comes to light.” Who knows, thanks to the docu, a breakthrough might finally come. ‘Amy Bradley Is Missing’ is now available on Netflix.
Image: Netflix
