Replay: Joan Bernal Part 2

Joan Bernal's episodes originally aired in October 2020. In December of 1988, Joan Bernal, her husband, and their children had plans to leave their home in Joliet, Illinois, and head to Texas to visit her husband’s family for the holidays. Things didn’t go as planned, and they weren’t able to bring Joan’s children from a previous marriage due to custody issues. According to Joan’s husband, Gil, they decided to make the trip anyway. He later told investigators that Joan became upset during the drive and that he dropped her off near a bus stop in McAlester, Oklahoma, and gave her cash so she could return to Illinois. The plan, he said, was for Joan to pick up her other children and then fly to Texas to meet them. Joan Bernal has never been seen or heard from again.

Over the years, this case has been marked by conflicting accounts, unanswered questions, and lingering uncertainty about what truly happened to Joan. Investigators and Joan’s loved ones have wrestled with whether she could still be alive, whether foul play was involved, and why no verified trace of her has ever surfaced.

Update:

In December 2025, 37 years after Joan Bernal was last seen, the case took a significant turn. A Will County grand jury returned a sealed indictment charging Joan’s husband, Gilbert Bernal, with first-degree murder in connection with her disappearance. Stay tuned through the end of Part 2 for more details on the recent developments in this case.

If you have a missing loved one that you would like to have featured on the show, please fill out our case submission form.

Follow The Vanished on social media at:

Facebook

Instagram

Patreon

See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

Tämä jakso on lisätty Podme-palveluun avoimen RSS-syötteen kautta eikä se ole Podmen omaa tuotantoa. Siksi jakso saattaa sisältää mainontaa.

Jaksot(555)

Dona Mae Bayerl Part 3: The Aftermath

38-year-old Dona Mae Bayerl disappeared from her home in Muskego, Wisconsin on May 6, 1979. We spent the first two installments of this series going over the history of Dona Mae's case and also diving...

3 Kesä 20181h 1min

Dona Mae Bayerl Part 2: Cycles of Abuse

38-year-old Dona Mae Bayerl disappeared from Muskego, Wisconsin on May 6, 1979 after and argument with her husband, John. Dona Mae was the devoted mother of two young girls, 7-year-old Jodie and 4-yea...

26 Touko 201852min

Dona Mae Bayerl Part 1: Lost in the Night

38-year-old Dona Mae Bayerl disappeared on May 6, 1979 after and argument with her husband, John. Dona Mae was the devoted mother of two young girls, 7-year-old Jodie and 4-year-old Jackie. Dona Mae h...

19 Touko 201855min

Mikelle Biggs

On January 2, 1999 11-year-old Mikelle Biggs was playing outside with her 9-year-old sister, Kimber. Mikelle was on Kimber's bike while Kimber walked the dog on a leash. The girls could hear an ice cr...

12 Touko 201845min

Jamison Lemons

28-year-old Jamison Lemons disappeared from Savannah, Georgia on May 7th, 2017. After he finished his shift at work, Jamison went to his grandmother’s house for Sunday dinner. He then returned to his ...

27 Huhti 201834min

Marc Bohanan

60-year-old Marc Bohanan was last seen at his home in Glasford, Illinois on April 26, 2017. His daughter, Natalee, saw him that morning when she drove by while out running errands. He had plans to go ...

20 Huhti 201848min

Jason McGrath

On July 9, 2017, 32-year-old Jason McGrath set out to go kayaking in Cape George, Nova Scotia. When Jason didn't return, his family reported him missing a couple days later. The RCMP found Jason's kay...

13 Huhti 201833min

Debra Puente

On the evening of March 28, 2017, 50-year-old Debra Puente went out with some friends from work. They met at the Longhorn Bar and Grill in the Grantville neighborhood of San Diego, California. Debi wa...

5 Huhti 201840min