WILMINGTON — Four years after Ebonee Spears was last seen in downtown Wilmington, a rally is being held to maintain awareness of her case, solicit new information, and to remind the community that the search for her is still active.
The Wednesday afternoon rally will be held in front of Wilmington City Hall, and is being organized by the Center for Missing Persons, also known as Community United Effort (CUE), a non-profit founded in Wilmington dedicated to helping the family and friends of missing persons continue the search.
According to Mary Bethea, the CUE vice president and board member who organized the event, “we’re holding this on the anniversary of Ebonee’s disappearance. We’re doing it to bring awareness back to the community — she is still missing, and we want people to know we’re still actively looking for her.”
Bethea said CUE encourages people to show up, show their support, and if they have information to share. Those who attend are also encouraged to make their own signs.
According to CUE, Ebony Shanetta Spears was last seen at the Pointe-Taylor Estates in downtown Wilmington on January 15, 2016. When she disappeared, Spears was 30, described as about 130 pounds, 5-feet 8-inches tall, with black hair (partially died blonde at the time of her disappearance) and brown eyes. Spears has a tattoo of a rose on her right shoulder and a tattoo of a butterfly on the top of her right foot.
The same evening Spears disappeared, she walked several blocks to the Wilmington Police Department headquarters on Bess Street.
“[Spears] was acting strangely and appeared to be disoriented. She was directed to the payphone in the lobby and was unable to operate it. She paced back and forth between the front desk and the phone for about ten minutes, then left. She has not been seen or heard from since and her case remains unsolved,” according to CUE.
The Wilmington Police Department conducted a wide-ranging search for Spears in the days and weeks after her disappearance. Her case remains active.
If you have any information on this case, please contact the CUE Center for Missing Persons at (910) 343-1131 or call the CUE Center 24-hour tip line at (910) 232-1687. All information submitted to CUE Center for Missing Persons is confidential. Information can also be provided to the Wilmington Police Department at (910) 343-3600.
The rally will be held at 4 p.m. on Wednesday, January 15, in front of Wilmington City Hall, 102 North 3rd Street.
