Raechelle Smith, age 3, disappeared May 16th, 2006, from her home in Minot North Dakota. She lived with her aunt and legal guardian, Samantha Smith. The little girl was last seen by her aunt sleeping on the couch the night of her disappearance.

The next morning the little girl was missing, and Leigh Cowen who was living at the residence at the time of the child’s disappearance, told Samantha the little girl had been picked up by his mother for a few days. The Aunt grew concerned when the days passed and the weekend approached, with no sign of Raechelle returning. On May 22nd, when Samantha awoke to find Cowen missing and his van gone, she called Cowen’s mom who had no idea about Raechelle's disappearance. When Cowen's mother denied having the child, Raechelle's Aunt called police and reported her missing and possibly abducted. An Amber alert was issued the same day.

Raechelle is believed to have been taken by 22-year-old Leigh Cowen. Unfortunately, events took a strange and tragic twist when Cowen was found dead in his van the on May 23rd, in what appears to be a suicide by self induced carbon monoxide poisoning. Sadly, there is no evidence as to Raechelle’s location at this time.

If you have seen Raechelle Smith or know what happened to her please contact the local authorities, the Minot police at 701-852-0111, or contact your local FBI office. Can you help solve the mystery of this little girl’s disappearance?