TEENAGER Melissa Witt's actions on her final day reveal chilling signs of her shocking fate, an author and private investigator has claimed.

The 19-year-old student's body was discovered in a remote stretch of woodland some 50 miles from where she was abducted close to her home in Fort Smith, Arkansas.

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Some six weeks after her disappearance on December 1, 1994, Melissa's naked body was found in the Ozark National Forest.

She had been strangled and her body left against a headstone-shaped rock.

But despite one of the largest missing person investigations in Arkansas's history, as well as an extensive billboard and flier campaign, Melissa's killer remains unknown almost 30 years after her brutal murder.

LaDonna Humphrey is an author and private investigator who lives less than an hour away from where Melissa grew up, and even had mutual friends with her, although the pair never met.

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She has dedicated the past eight years of her life to investigating the case, authoring two books on the subject - The Girl I Never Knew, and Strangled.

LaDonna also produced and starred in the Amazon Prime documentary Uneven Ground, which covers Melissa's murder.

Speaking to The U.S. Sun, the mom of seven explained the red flags which were apparent in Melissa's behavior in the last 24 hours that she was seen alive.

Melissa and her mother had argued on the day of her disappearance after the college student and trainee dental hygienist had asked to borrow some money.

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The first suspicious sign, LaDonna said, was when Melissa left work to drive home and her car wouldn't start.

"This really flagged to authorities that she was abducted on the day she disappeared," she said.

Later in the day, her mother had tried to reconcile with her daughter by leaving a note inviting her to a nearby bowling alley where she would buy her a burger.

It is clear that Melissa got her car to start eventually, and made it back to hers where she read the note.

"We know that Melissa saw the note, we know that she went and made it to the bowling alley, but she never made it inside," LaDonna went on.

"Those events are pretty critical in the case because there's a lot of things that happened there that raise red flags."

The car not starting was a major focus of the investigation early on because police had to determine whether there really was a battery issue, or whether someone had tampered with the vehicle.

Another major red flag was when Melissa never turned up on that night, which was a school night.

We know that Melissa saw the note, we know that she went and made it to the bowling alley, but she never made it inside

LaDonna HumphreyPrivate investigator

LaDonna added: "When Melissa didn't come home that night, which is a Thursday night, her mom was suspicious because this wasn't like Melissa not to return home, and so she was out searching for her by 3am."

However, LaDonna believes Melissa's mother, who tragically passed away in 2011, made a crucial error in not going back to the bowling alley to look for her daughter's car.

The vehicle was later found by cops close to a blood stain and a crushed earring belonging to Melissa.

"When Melissa didn't show up that night, she assumed she'd gone out with friends," she said.

"This was the 90s, we saw things so much differently then. There had never been a crime like this that had happened in Fort Smith."

LaDonna admits that Melissa's mother was "naive" in not going back.

Although no one has ever been charged with Melissa's disappearance and murder, police have a major suspect in mind.

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Larry Swearingen kidnapped, raped, and murdered 19-year-old Melissa Trotter in Conroe, Texas in December 1998.

He was known to have been in Arkansas at the time of Melissa Witt's disappearance, and there are several chilling similarities between the two cases.

Trotter, too, was kidnapped from a parking lot before being strangled and her body left in a national forest, almost an hour's drive away.

Swearingen was executed by lethal injection in 2019 and went to his grave maintaining his innocence.

LaDonna - who has done a deep-dive into Swearingen's life interviewing ex-wifes, relatives, and former associates, said she believes he killed other women besides Melissa Trotter, although she is not certain he murdered Melissa Witt.

All those she spoke to described Swearingen as "a very calculating, manipulative liar, who was responsible for many more crimes than he'll ever be charged with."

But she said that one key factor missed at the time makes her doubt that he was behind the murder.

"I am confident this will be solved," she said. "We are looking at some top suspects, Swearingen being one of them, and another who was someone Melissa knew, whose name was in her diary.

"There's a lot of evidence that points to his potential involvement in the case," she added.

"I am absolutely confident that if we can prove this suspect's involvement in the case, we will be able to see him charged."

She went on: "I think we're closer now than we ever have been and that's exciting to me.

"I've spent eight years of my life on this case, that's more than some marriages last!

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"I'm determined to see justice and I believe there's a strong possibility that an arrest is imminent."

Anyone with information about the murder of Melissa Witt is urged to contact the Fort Smith Police Department at , or by calling (479)709-5100.