MURDERED: Tara Calico

Written By M Diaries
 

In 1988, on a beautiful day in Belen, New Mexico, a 19-year-old woman got ready to do one of her favorite things: her daily bike ride.

She put on a white t-shirt with the local bank’s logo on it, white shorts with green stripes, and white sneakers. She grabbed her bright yellow Walkman with a Boston cassette tape.

Before leaving home on a neon pink mountain bike, she told her mom, “Come and get me if I’m not back by noon.”

It was the same route she took everyday. At some point, the route she knew by heart, took a terribly wrong turn.

The punctual college student did not make it back by noon. No one could predict that this daily exercise routine that brought her so much joy would haunt her name and her family for the rest of their lives.

It’s now been 35 years since that fateful bike ride, and the mystery of what happened to her has never been answered.

Her name is Tara Calico.

Photo of Tara

Pink bike

Bike Tara was riding the day she went missing.

Bike route

A section of road traveled by Tara on her bike route.

Evidence collected

Area where pieces of Tara’s Walkman and cassette tape were found.

The infamous polaroid

Polaroid found after Tara went missing.

Tara’s Parents

Tara’s parents pictured in her bedroom.

 
 

Additional Resources

Anyone with information is asked to call the FBI tip line at 1-800-CALL-FBI or the sheriff’s office at 505-866-2400.

You can also follow the latest updates as Tara’s investigation continues on Melinda’s website: https://www.taracalico.com/

 

Resources

  • https://www.fbi.gov/wanted/kidnap/tara-leigh-calico

  • https://allthatsinteresting.com/tara-calico

  • https://www.youtube.com/watch?time_continue=407&v=mM2oPGLoZ8M&embeds_euri=https%3A%2F%2Fallthatsinteresting.com%2F&source_ve_path=MjM4NTE&feature=emb_title

  • https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=eogQknVSv7E&embeds_euri=https%3A%2F%2Fallthatsinteresting.com%2F&source_ve_path=MzY4NDIsMzY4NDIsMjM4NTE&feature=emb_title

  • https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=O51sYOPdpMo

  • https://www.doenetwork.org/cases/257dfnm.html

  • https://www.newspapers.com/image/158492668/?clipping_id=21236946&fcfToken=eyJhbGciOiJIUzI1NiIsInR5cCI6IkpXVCJ9.eyJmcmVlLXZpZXctaWQiOjE1ODQ5MjY2OCwiaWF0IjoxNjc4NTQxNTg2LCJleHAiOjE2Nzg2Mjc5ODZ9.Myh0B5TGzQFpkgouwjJyc8PvJ7NsD9OiBdIkgxVQgOg

  • https://www.belen-nm.gov/about/

  • https://uncovered.com/cases/tara-calico

  • https://www.krqe.com/news/renewed-hope-for-answers-29-years-after-disappearance-of-tara-calico/

  • https://www.taracalico.com/new-blog/2018/7/31/people-magazine-new-leads-in-teens-cold-case-disappearance-while-biking-why-answers-may-be-hiding-in-her-community

  • http://www.crimemagazine.com/polaroid

  • https://www.thesun.co.uk/news/19135143/mystery-teenage-girl-vanished-bike-ride-stalked/

  • https://www.koat.com/article/tara-calico-cold-case-investigation-new-mexico/37641318#

  • https://web.archive.org/web/20031003111915/http://www.abqtrib.com/archives/news03/091903_news_tara.shtml

  • https://www.taracalico.com/thestory

  • https://www.taracalico.com/press

  • https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=mM2oPGLoZ8M&t=407s

  • https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=eogQknVSv7E

M Diaries
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