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The mysterious disappearance of the 17-year-old Phoenix resident, Alissa Turney, on May 17, 2001, turned out to be a long-drawn affair when the Phoenix Police Department initially considered her missing report to be another runaway tale. However, as the investigation progressed over the years, Alissa's stepfather, Michael Turney, became the prime suspect in her disappearance.
Alissa Turney dreamt of moving to California and spoke of it as well. Even though her last note to her family mentioned her leaving for her aunt's place in California, she left all her belongings, including her cell phone behind. Further investigations brought forth chilling details from her Phoenix home, where she was reportedly subject to constant surveillance.
The Dateline NBC episode, titled The Day Alissa Disappeared, airs on December 1, 2023, at 9 pm EST on NBC and will bring Alissa's story to viewers worldwide.
"When 17-year-old Alissa Turney is reported missing in Phoenix, it takes years before detectives treat her case as a homicide; a new investigation unearths dark family secrets."
Five shocking details about Alissa Turney's murder
1) Alissa Turney left a note before she allegedly left for California
On May 17, 2001, Alissa Turney left school early on the last day of her junior high to spend time with her family. Her stepfather, Michael Turney, picked her up from school and the two went for lunch, where they reportedly argued about Alissa being able to stay out with her friends till late. She skipped a graduation party she was scheduled to attend and stayed home.
Michael, however, returned home later to find a note in Alissa's bedroom saying she was off to a maternal aunt's place in California.
The 17-year-old teenager from Phoenix, Arizona, often dreamt of moving to California, also speaking about it to her then-boyfriend, Jon Laakman. In 2000, she had written an essay about how long it would take to reach California if one were to drive.
2) A serial killer's confession to murder
The Phoenix Police Department Missing Persons Unit had initially considered Alissa's disappearance a case of a rogue runaway. In 2006, a confession from serial killer Thomas Albert Hymer, who reportedly admitted that he murdered Turney, changed the police's approach towards the case.
Soon, Hymer's confession was ruled out to be false under the impression that he had confused some other person for Alissa.
However, after local police conducted interviews, they discovered disturbing details about the stepfather-stepdaughter relationship.
3) Michael Turney set up surveillance devices in his home
The investigations surrounding Alissa Turney's disappearance revealed the numerous surveillance devices set up by Michael in his 17218 North 34th Street home.
Sarah Turney, Alissa's younger stepsister, was informed by the police in 2008 that Michael was the primary suspect in the case. Michael's non-cooperative behaviour strengthened their suspicion, as he refused to provide Alissa's note or allow investigators into his house.
When investigators arrived with a search warrant, they reportedly found 30 homemade explosives, 19 firearms, two silencers, a ballistic vest, and a 98-page document, titled Diary of a Madman Martyr. They also found the footage from surveillance cameras Michael had installed throughout his home to record phone calls to and from their house.
Per PEOPLE, Alissa's boyfriend, Jon Laakman shared with the police:
"She knew he was watching her.”
Additionally, Michael had Alissa sign contracts that prohibited her from specific s*xual acts and substance abuse. Out of the documents discovered, one showed Alissa's signature on what claimed Michael to be innocent in terms of s*xual assault.
4) Sarah Turney's social media campaign led to Michael's arrest
Alissa Turney's half-sister, Sarah Turney, started a podcast called Voices for Justice in June 2019 to bring attention to her missing sister. She brought in 3,000 pages of publicly released notes and case documents from the Phoenix Police Department to support her cause through the 30 episodes she created on the ongoing case. Sarah had garnered millions of views on her TikTok profile by April 2020.
Sarah Turney's online petition led to Michael's arrest and she testified against her biological father during the five-day trial in July 2023. The audio files covertly created upon a meeting with her father at a Starbucks in Phoenix led to a strong case against Michael. As Sarah confronted her father about Alissa, he said,
"Be there at the deathbed, Sarah. I will give you all the honest answers you want to hear."
5) Michael Turney was arrested twice during the investigations
The explosives found at Turney's house were reportedly part of a plan to blow up an International Brotherhood of Electrical Workers building as he believed the workers had hired men to kill Alissa and bury her in Desert Center, California. Michael was arrested and sentenced to ten years in prison upon charges of unlawful possession of unregistered destructive devices. He pleaded guilty on March 30, 2010, and was released in August 2017.
Turney was arrested again in August 2020 in Mesa, Arizona under charges of second-degree murder but was released after a five-day trial owing to lack of evidence. Michael Turney pleaded not guilty to second-degree murder and maintains his innocence to this date.
