Susan Powell was a fair haired girl who grew up in Puyallup and went to Rodgers High School.
In December of 2009, she was an apparently happily married mom of two young sons. Husband Josh Powell told police he took his sons for an unplanned overnight camping trip and when they came back Susan was gone.
Police quickly name him a person of interest and he moved back to Washington. His in-laws were suspicious of his story from the beginning.
"He's got representation here he's got parents maybe he'll feel comfortable enough to come forward with some verifiable story,” said Judy Cox, susan's mother.
In Utah, neighbors decorated the Powell house with the color purple - Susan's favorite.
In Puyallup, a candle-light vigil brought out friends, family - and Josh. Friends launched a multimedia blitz, keeping the case the news.
In September of 2010 a possible break, but a body found in a Wyoming pasture was somebody else.
In October 2010, Susan’s family celebrated her 29th birthday.
"It’s a lot of emptiness… my family doesn’t feel complete with her being gone," said her mother.
Last summer, there was another glimmer of hope. Police search a shallow grave in Utah. First reports were that it contained human remains.
"It’s been a long time coming,” Josh Powell said in his last interview with KING 5. “Frankly I am overjoyed they have found something they believe is credible.”
He always maintained his innocence.
"Susan is my wife. I will always love her,” he said.
But the Utah grave was empty. The case goes cold and Susan Powell's integrity is attacked. Her father-in-law, charged with voyeurism and child pornography, publicly questioned her sexual morals and hints at a family attraction.
"She loved my attention, she craved it, and she responded to it positively,” he said.
Susan Powell is still missing, her case still cold.
Officers from the West Valley, Utah police department are already on their way here. Their missing person case is still open.
The chief says he believes Josh Powell killed his wife, but so far their case is built mostly on circumstantial evidence.
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