Shraman Mitra
When the Oakville, Washington, police were asked to conduct a welfare check on 6-year-old Oakley Carlson in December 2021, they were surprised to find her missing from her home. Eventually, authorities realized that Oakley was last seen alive in February 2021, which immediately made them suspect something fishy. Paramount+’s ‘Never Seen Before’ chronicles the strange disappearance and shows how law enforcement officials tried their best to get to the bottom of the matter.
What Happened to Oakley Carlson?
Oakley Carlson had a happy life with her foster parents, Eric or Erik and Jamie Jo Hiles, but she was returned to her parents in November 2019, based on a court order. Surprisingly, reports mention that a family friend last saw Oakley alive on February 10, 2021, after which she was believed to be residing with her parents. Interestingly, Oakley’s biological father, Andrew Carlson, called the police on November 6, 2021, to inform them about a sudden fire at their home.
Although Andrew mentioned that Oakley was responsible for starting the fire, neither the police nor family acquaintances could spot the 6-year-old in the house. Her sudden disappearance raised quite a few questions, and once Jessica Swift, the principal of Oakville Elementary School, did not get satisfactory answers, she asked the police to conduct a welfare check on Oakley. Strangely, when the police reached the Carlson residence, they were met by Andrew Carlson, who allegedly insisted that his daughter was with his parents.
Authorities immediately got in touch with Andrew’s father, who stated that he had not come across Oakley since December 2020. Thus, realizing something was wrong, the police organized massive search parties and began looking for the missing 6-year-old. Within no time, the FBI and the Washington State Patrol troopers got involved in the search, as authorities left no stones unturned in their efforts. They even used up every single facility available at that moment, but there was no news about the missing girl. Thus, as the hours went by, Oakley’s loved ones began losing hope about her safe return.
Oakley Carlson’s Mysterious Disappearance Continues, Remains Unfound
Unfortunately, Oakley Carlson remains missing to this very day, making her current status a complete mystery. Although the investigators combed through the nearby areas in search of the missing girl, they soon realized that they needed to get a warrant for the Carlson house. Once the warrant was approved, authorities ran combed through the house and came across a few startling discoveries.
For starters, all the Carlson kids had their toys and clothes in order other than Oakley. Additionally, they also found blood splatters on the front door and curtain blinds while a handprint was lifted from a wall. Furthermore, in another shocking twist, the show mentioned that Oakley’s parents, Andrew Carlson and Jordan Bowers, seemed quite unperturbed about the disappearance of their child, and Jordan even refused to answer the police’s questions, choosing to lawyer up instead. While the police found this behavior to be quite suspicious, they soon got their hands on more incriminating evidence.
According to the show, Oakley’s grandparents mentioned they were quite concerned about the six-year-old’s well-being when she visited them back in December 2020. In fact, the grandparents had even contacted Child Protective Services, but the case did not lead anywhere. Thus, with a mountain of circumstantial evidence against Andrew Carlson and Jordan Bowers, the police arrested them and charged them with obstruction of law enforcement and first-degree manslaughter.
However, as the investigation rolled on, the police dropped the first-degree manslaughter charge and instead accused them of abandonment of a dependent person and alleged that they had failed to provide essential medicines to their other daughter for around 15 months. Additionally, they were also charged with two counts of endangerment with a controlled substance. When produced in court, Andrew Carlson pled guilty to the endangerment charges and was sentenced to 12 months in prison in 2022.
On the other hand, Jordan Bowers initially insisted on her innocence but soon changed her plea to guilty for the two endangerment charges. Although the police dropped the abandonment charge as a part of the plea deal, Jordan was sentenced to 20 months in prison in the same year. Unfortunately, Oakley remains missing to this very day, although the police claim it to be an ongoing investigation.
