Name: Karen Rae Bosta
Age: 39 years old
Last seen: May 30, 2015
Location: Edenton, North Carolina
Status: Still Missing
Case Information
39-year-old Karen Rae Bosta was last seen in Edenton, North Carolina on May 30, 2015. She disappeared after leaving her home to run some errands.
Background
Karen Rae Bosta was born on December 20, 1975. She is the youngest of two children.
Bosta grew up in New Jersey and attended Morris County Community College where she studied Early Childhood Development. She was a teacher in New Jersey before she moved to Hertford, North Carolina to live with her mother in 2014 .
Bosta has cognitive impairment and a mental disorder, a condition for which she was taking daily medication. If suddenly stopped the medication can cause severe side effects.
Disappearance
On May 30, 2015, Karen Bosta left home around noon, telling her mother she was heading out to run some errands before going to see friends later in the day.
That evening Bosta sent a text message to her mother saying she would be home early.
Around 10:00 pm, Bosta was last seen leaving a Food Lion store by herself on North Broad Street and Coke Avenue in Edenton, North Carolina, where she had made three separate transactions using her mother’s Discover credit card.
Karen Rae Bosta never returned home that night and hasn’t been heard from since. Her mother filed a missing person’s report with the Perquimans County Police Department when she failed to return home.
Investigation
On May 31, 2015, Bosta’s mother’s Discover credit card was used to purchase gas from a convenience store located between Edenton and Hertford.
On June 8, 2015, Bosta’s vehicle, a red 1997 Lincoln Continental with North Carolina license plate DCC-8784, was found abandoned in a parking lot behind an apartment complex outside Gaslight Square, about a mile away from the Food Lion in Edenton.
The doors were locked and the keys were missing. There was nothing left in the car except for the pack of cigarettes Bosta had purchased at Food Lion. Authorities found no fingerprints or DNA in the vehicle.
Authorities identified the credit card’s user as an acquaintance of Bosta’s, Thomas Edward White, and brought him in for questioning. He claimed he found the credit card on his front porch and subsequently failed the polygraph test he was given.
After analyzing the polygraph results authorities do not believe White is responsible for Bosta’s disappearance, but do believe he knows what happened to her.
Cell phone tracking shows that Bosta drove around Edenton on the day of her disappearance. She went to a fast food restaurant, drove past a bridge, and went back and forth to White’s house on Johnston Street in Edenton.
Bosta made a few calls after she left the Food Lion store, and her cell phone remained active until the morning of June 1, 2016.
On September 4, 2018, 63-year-old Thomas Edward White pleaded guilty to obtaining property by false pretense. He was given the maximum sentence of six weekends in jail, including 36 months of probation and parole.
White had a long criminal record which included convictions for breaking and entering, financial card fraud, fraud of special identification, and violation of vital records laws.
Thomas Edward White denies any involvement in Karen Rae Bosta’s disappearance.
Whereabouts
Foul play is suspected in Karen Rae Bosta’s disappearance. A $20,000 reward is being offered for information leading to the arrest and conviction of the person or persons responsible for the disappearance of Karen.
The circumstances of Karen’s disappearance remain unclear and her case is currently classified as missing. His case remains unsolved.
Appearance
Physical Description:
White female born on December 20, 1975. Karen has brown hair, blue eyes, stands 5’2 – 5’4 tall, and weighs 140 – 150 pounds.
Distinctive Physical Features:
Bosta has a tattoo of a butterfly on her lower back, and a tattoo of a small red strawberry on her upper back between her shoulder blades.
Clothing and accessories:
Karen was last seen wearing a white t-shirt, white shorts, and grey Sketchers slip on shoes. She was carrying a pink quilted fabric pocketbook with a paisley print and her car keys attached on a butterfly hook holder.
Investigating Agency
If you have any information regarding the disappearance of Karen Rae Bosta please contact the Perquimans County Sheriff’s Office at (252) 426-5615, or the Edenton Police Department at (252) 482-5144.
Resources & Further Information
Karen Rae Bosta #MP30753 – National Missing and Unidentified Persons System
Gov. Cooper Offers Reward in Perquimans County Missing Persons Case – North Carolina Office of the Governor
Missing Karen Rae Bosta – Facebook
Karen Rae Bosta – The Charley Project
News & Media Links
Car of missing Perquimans woman found in Edenton – The Outer banks Voice 06/2015
Authorities search for missing Perquimans Co. woman – ABC13 News 06/2015
Warrants: Man charged with using missing woman’s credit card – The Daily Advance 10/2019
Man pleads guilty surrounding disappearance of woman in Perquimans County – WTKR 09/2018
Search for North Carolina woman Karen Rae Bosta continues four years after she disappeared – NBC News 06/2019
Woman’s disappearance remains a mystery seven years later – The Perquimans Weekly – 05/2022
Perquimans County woman missing for 8 years; Mother pushes for answers in case – WTKR 06/2023
Videos & Flyers
Given her impairment was she the ideal person to be able to teach others ? .
Given all the charges against Mr. White , and that he knowingly used the mothers card , how well does her mother know Mr. White , did he actually serve any prison time ? .
How many friends did she make when she moved into her mothers home ? .
Why did she travel so many times between Mr. White ‘ s home , was his home ever searched ? .
Is she been held against her will , or has become part of a cult ? .
Was the card ever returned to the mother ? .
Other than food and personal items ( non -consumable ) , was spent on the card , or items that the mother would not buy for herself ?.,
Is he or she been used against their will , and both been held captive , him as a front , freedom of movement ? .
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My question is, are any other authorities involved besides the local Barney Fifes?