Overview

Missing: November 2, 1998
Last Seen: Shawano Bus Station area, 1200 block of East Green Bay Street, Shawano, Wisconsin
Age When Missing: 41
Date of Birth: February 3, 1957
Status: Endangered Missing / Unresolved
NamUs: MP362

Main circumstances: Carmen purchased a Greyhound bus ticket toward Green Bay and may have planned to continue to Minnesota. It has never been publicly established where she went after leaving the Shawano bus station. She reportedly had no luggage, required medication that was left behind, and has had no known financial or Social Security activity since her disappearance. A map of Minnesota and Green Bay apartment listings were reportedly discovered at her residence.

No confirmed homicide has been established, and Carmen remains officially listed as missing.

Detailed Case Breakdown

Carmen M. Owens: Wisconsin Woman Vanished After Buying a Bus Ticket in 1998

More than two decades after Carmen Maria Owens disappeared from Shawano, Wisconsin, her whereabouts remain unknown. The 41-year-old vanished on November 2, 1998, after going to the Shawano bus station and purchasing a ticket for a trip toward Green Bay.

Carmen has never been confirmed alive or deceased since that day, and her disappearance remains an unresolved missing-person case.

Last Seen: November 2, 1998 — Shawano, Wisconsin

Carmen M. Owens was last seen on November 2, 1998, at the Shawano bus station near the 1200 block of East Green Bay Street in Shawano, Wisconsin.

She was 41 years old.

According to the Wisconsin Department of Justice, Carmen was believed to be headed toward Green Bay, Wisconsin, or possibly Minnesota. She has not been seen or heard from since.

At the time she disappeared, Carmen was approximately 5 feet 4 inches tall and weighed about 100 pounds. She had brown hair and blue eyes. She was reportedly wearing a brown polyester car coat with a hood.

A Bus Ticket and an Uncertain Journey

One of the enduring questions in Carmen’s disappearance is exactly what happened after she arrived at the bus station.

Carmen purchased a Greyhound ticket for Green Bay. Historical reporting about the investigation indicates authorities believed she presumably took the morning bus, but employees in Green Bay could not confirm that she got off there.

She reportedly had no luggage with her. She may have carried a brown, long-strapped purse containing her checkbook and keys to her home and safe.

Authorities therefore faced a basic question that has never been conclusively answered publicly: Where did Carmen actually go after leaving the Shawano bus station?

Clues Found at Carmen’s Home

Investigators discovered potentially significant items when they examined Carmen’s residence after she disappeared.

A map of Minnesota was reportedly found inside the home, along with listings for apartments in Green Bay.

Those discoveries supported the possibility that Carmen had been considering traveling or relocating. However, they did not establish that she actually reached either Green Bay or Minnesota.

Another important circumstance was what Carmen apparently left behind.

She required medication, and historical reporting indicates her medication remained at home. She also apparently left without luggage.

No Financial or Social Security Activity

Carmen lived a relatively quiet life in Shawano and reportedly had few close friends. She frequently walked around the Green Bay Street area and visited local businesses and the library.

Her mother, Verona Owens, was reportedly the person to whom she was closest. Verona died in 2009 without learning what happened to her daughter.

Investigators reported years after the disappearance that there had been no activity involving Carmen’s checking account and no record of her Social Security number being used after she vanished.

Those circumstances made it increasingly difficult to establish that Carmen had simply begun a new life elsewhere.

The Alternate Names

Another unusual aspect of the investigation involved names associated with Carmen.

Official Wisconsin missing-person information states that Carmen may have used the names Carmen Owens Farnam, Ashthanoth, or Athanor. Other case databases contain slight variations of these names.

Historical reporting indicates some of the names were discovered written on an envelope among Carmen’s belongings.

The significance of the names, if any, has never been publicly established.

Carmen’s Life Before She Disappeared

Carmen was described as someone who lived quietly and somewhat privately.

She was known to frequent the library and enjoyed reading. Wisconsin authorities also list horseback riding, making suncatchers and wood carving among her hobbies.

Her disappearance left investigators with relatively few people who could provide detailed information about her daily life, relationships or possible plans.

That lack of information became one of the challenges confronting investigators as the years passed.

Investigators Reexamined the Cold Case

By 2011, Carmen had been missing for nearly 13 years.

Historical reporting said Shawano Police officers Heidi Thaves and Noah Bunt reviewed the case file looking for additional leads. Investigators acknowledged at the time that the investigation had produced dead ends and hoped renewed publicity might prompt someone with information to come forward.

The case subsequently continued to appear in state and national missing-person databases.

Carmen was entered into the National Missing and Unidentified Persons System, where her case is identified as NamUs MP362.

Latest Information on the Carmen Owens Investigation

Carmen’s disappearance remains unresolved.

The Wisconsin Department of Justice Clearinghouse for Missing & Exploited Children & Adults continues to list Carmen Owens as a missing adult, with November 2, 1998, as her missing date and Shawano County as the location associated with the case.

Current Wisconsin records list her age as 69.

More recent public case listings continue to direct tips to the Shawano Police Department, indicating that the case remains active as an unresolved disappearance.

The Doe Network also continues to list Carmen among Wisconsin’s missing women under reference 2266DFWI. Its records indicate that Carmen’s case information received an update in December 2023.

Public discussion of the case has continued as well. Websleuths users were still discussing Carmen’s disappearance in 2024 and 2025, including questions surrounding the alternate names, her possible travel plans, and the absence of subsequent financial activity. Those discussions are not official investigative findings, and theories raised by forum participants should not be treated as established facts.

No publicly available law-enforcement announcement reviewed for this article reports that Carmen has been located, that human remains have been identified as hers, or that anyone has been charged in connection with her disappearance.

What Happened to Carmen M. Owens?

The known sequence is remarkably short.

Carmen was in Shawano. She purchased a bus ticket toward Green Bay. She apparently intended to travel, perhaps eventually to Minnesota. She had little or no luggage. Her medication remained behind. Investigators later found a Minnesota map and Green Bay apartment information at her residence.

Then the documented trail ended.

Whether Carmen voluntarily left Shawano, encountered someone during her journey, suffered an accident or medical emergency, or became the victim of a crime has not been publicly established.

Until evidence answers those questions, Carmen M. Owens remains missing.

Anyone with information concerning Carmen’s disappearance or whereabouts should contact the Shawano Police Department at 715-524-4545 or the Wisconsin Clearinghouse for Missing & Exploited Children & Adults at 1-800-843-4673.

Brief Case Summary

Missing: November 2, 1998
Last Seen: Shawano Bus Station area, 1200 block of East Green Bay Street, Shawano, Wisconsin
Age When Missing: 41
Date of Birth: February 3, 1957
Status: Endangered Missing / Unresolved
NamUs: MP362

Main circumstances: Carmen purchased a Greyhound bus ticket toward Green Bay and may have planned to continue to Minnesota. It has never been publicly established where she went after leaving the Shawano bus station. She reportedly had no luggage, required medication that was left behind, and has had no known financial or Social Security activity since her disappearance. A map of Minnesota and Green Bay apartment listings were reportedly discovered at her residence.

No confirmed homicide has been established, and Carmen remains officially listed as missing.