MEMPHIS, Tenn. — Taquila Hayes’ family might be discouraged and fearful of the worst, but they’re still holding out hope that she can be tracked down.
As soon as Hayes’ family learned that she hadn’t been at her Cordova home off Starcross since early June, they put up flyers around the neighborhood. She’s missed her 11-year-old son’s birthday and his first day of school.
“I’m frustrated that so much time has gone by, and there may be some things that might be gone now,” Hayes’ mother Roberta Nutall said.
The family hopes searching surrounding neighborhoods and talking to people in the area might jog someone’s memory.
“This is an unusual case. The time at which she’s been missing has been pretty lengthy,” Captain Anthony Buckner, with the Shelby County Sheriff’s Office, said.
Hayes’ family says the last time they talked to her was at the end of May. She committed to going to her nephew’s graduation in Mississippi, but never showed up. Her family thought she might have had to work, but her husband said he hasn’t actually seen her since early June.
“I just want everybody to know that we would have done something sooner if he wouldn’t have lied. He was still placing my sister in that house. For whatever reason, I don’t know,” Hayes’ sister, Samantha Henderson, said.
The sheriff’s office acknowledges the length of time Hayes has been missing makes the case challenging.
Hayes’ family has invited the public to join them in their search for her. They plan to meet at 8 a.m. Saturday at the Walgreens at 1943 BerryHill Road.
