Martha Dunn

Status:

Open

Jurisdiction:

Morris County Sheriffs Department (TX)

Missing From:

Daingerfield, Texas

Summary:

Martha Wes Dunn, a 15-year-old white female, was last seen in Daingerfield, Texas on September 5, 1990. She disappeared with her 17-year-old boyfriend, Eric Glenn Owens, the day after returning home from visiting relatives in Oklahoma to start the school year. Martha has remained missing for over 34 years. She was featured in Soul Asylum's 1993 "Runaway Train" music video, which highlighted missing children across the United States.

Vital Statistics

Circumstances of Disappearance:

Martha had been visiting relatives in Oklahoma when her parents brought her home to Texas on September 4 to start the school year. She was reportedly unhappy and argued with her parents. The last time her parents saw her was at 2:20 p.m. At approximately 10:00 p.m., she spoke with her boyfriend, seventeen-year-old Eric Owens. The next day, both were gone. She may be with a male companion. She was last believed to have been in Oklahoma. On September 30, her father got a call from a friend in Durant, Oklahoma. The friend claimed to have seen the pair together and described them as "dirty and hungry." The friend claimed to have fed them and cleaned them up. This report was investigated, but police couldn't find the pair.

Additional Details:

Chief Deputy Robbie Gray has been on the case since 1999. One theory held that they had run away together to live in Hayworth, Oklahoma, where Owens aunt lived. There was a tip that Dunn was working as a waitress near New Boston. About a year ago, Gray heard about a woman in Mississippi who reportedly resembled Dunns age progression photo. That, too, came to nothing. That was the last time anyone has called about Martha Wes Dunn. Gray stated, "I don't know if I would go so far as saying that she's alive...But there's no evidence to the contrary." Dunn is one of the remaining missing persons featured in the music video for Soul Asylum's song "Runaway Train." It is believed that Martha was pregnant at the time of her disappearance. The pair were heavily involved with drugs at the time of their disappearance, so their disappearance may be drug-related, but foul play is not suspected.

Case Last Updated:

Oct 09, 2026