MURDER
CASE #: 1989-19
Mei-Ling White
Status:
Open
Date of Offense:
Date of Offense:
Jurisdiction:
Offense Location:
Troy, New York
Summary:
Mei-Ling White was nine years old when she mysteriously disappeared while playing outside of her home in Troy, New York during the summer of 1989. Four days after she went missing, Mei-Ling’s body was found in a wooded area not far from where she lived. It was determined White had been sexually abused before her killer asphyxiated her. Police presently have no suspects in the case which remains unsolved.
Vital Statistics
Circumstances of Offense:
Mei-Ling was last seen in Troy, New York at 7:00 am on July 21st 1989. Accounts differ as to how exactly she disappeared. Some news reports from 1989 state she was collecting returnable bottles in her neighborhood and that she was last seen walking back to her residence at the Phelan Court Apartments by a neighbor while carrying said bottles. Recent news coverage of the case states that an eyewitness saw Mei-Ling playing with two children at the foot of Thompson Street near Winslow Avenue. These two children have not been identified but they were described as being 8-10 years old in 1989. The witness said a teenage boy, about fifteen years old walked over and joined the three younger children as they played. Eventually the two unidentified children left to presumably return home or play elsewhere, leaving Mei-Ling and the teenage boy alone on Winslow Avenue. White never returned home that day and was reported missing quickly afterward. Fifteen detectives from the Troy Police Department spent the next few days scouring the area for any clues. On July 24th 1989, they found a piece of clothing that Mei-Ling was wearing when she disappeared.
Additional Details:
On July 25th 1989, Mei-Ling’s partially clothed body was discovered on a hillside just 300 yards away from her apartment complex at 10:30 am. The medical examiner determined White had been sexually abused and was murdered through asphyxiation. Convicted child serial killer, Lewis Lent, was looked at in connection with Mei-Ling’s murder but no evidence was found to suggest he was involved. Police also questioned a fourteen year old boy about Mei-Ling’s case but further information about him is unavailable. There were also witness reports of unidentified white men in three vans trying to talk to young girls in Mei-Ling’s neighborhood on the day she disappeared. To date, no suspects have been publicly identified in Mei-Ling White’s murder.
Case Last Updated:
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