Overview

Full name: Chandice Rebecca Cochran (also listed as Chandace Cochran)

Age at disappearance: 28 years old

Date last seen: August 20, 2019, with reported sightings continuing into the early hours of August 21

Last known locations: Sutton, Braxton County, and the Birch River area of Nicholas County, West Virginia

Case classification: Endangered missing person; possible foul play under investigation

Current status: Missing and unresolved as of October 20, 2026

Investigating agency: West Virginia State Police, Sutton Detachment

Physical description: Approximately 5 feet 2 inches to 5 feet 4 inches tall, 105–115 pounds, brown hair, blue eyes

Distinguishing feature: Tattoo on her right thigh depicting three skulls with the phrase “See no evil, hear no evil, speak no evil.”

NamUs reference: MP87116, reported by the case database Uncovered

Main circumstances: Chandice left home with an acquaintance, traveled to the Birch River area, and disappeared after reportedly being seen walking near Widen Dille Road. Her identification was later found in a change purse in nearby woods. Investigators have not publicly established what happened to her.

Detailed Case Breakdown

Chandice Rebecca Cochran: The Unsolved 2019 Disappearance from Sutton, West Virginia

On August 20, 2019, 28-year-old Chandice Rebecca Cochran left her mother’s home in Sutton, West Virginia, expecting to return shortly. She left behind a reassuring handwritten note, but she never came home.

Investigators later traced her movements to the Birch River area of Nicholas County, where she was reportedly last seen walking with a male acquaintance during the night of August 20 into August 21. Her disappearance eventually led investigators to search a property in neighboring Clay County in May 2024, after developing information that raised concerns about possible foul play.

More than seven years after Chandice vanished, her whereabouts remain unknown. Her case continues to appear in the West Virginia State Police missing-person database, and the circumstances surrounding her disappearance remain unresolved.

Sources: West Virginia State Police, The Charley Project, and WSAZ’s May 2024 investigation report.

Case Summary

Full name: Chandice Rebecca Cochran (also listed as Chandace Cochran)

Age at disappearance: 28 years old

Date last seen: August 20, 2019, with reported sightings continuing into the early hours of August 21

Last known locations: Sutton, Braxton County, and the Birch River area of Nicholas County, West Virginia

Case classification: Endangered missing person; possible foul play under investigation

Current status: Missing and unresolved as of October 20, 2026

Investigating agency: West Virginia State Police, Sutton Detachment

Physical description: Approximately 5 feet 2 inches to 5 feet 4 inches tall, 105–115 pounds, brown hair, blue eyes

Distinguishing feature: Tattoo on her right thigh depicting three skulls with the phrase “See no evil, hear no evil, speak no evil.”

NamUs reference: MP87116, reported by the case database Uncovered

Main circumstances: Chandice left home with an acquaintance, traveled to the Birch River area, and disappeared after reportedly being seen walking near Widen Dille Road. Her identification was later found in a change purse in nearby woods. Investigators have not publicly established what happened to her.

The official State Police listing, The Charley Project, and the Uncovered case database provide the principal identifying information.

Background: Who Was Chandice Rebecca Cochran?

Chandice Rebecca Cochran was born on April 27, 1991. At the time she disappeared, she was living with her mother in Sutton, a small community in Braxton County in central West Virginia.

Publicly available accounts provide limited details about her education, employment, and earlier life. However, reporting and missing-person profiles describe a young woman whose mother remained deeply concerned about her safety and continued searching for answers after her disappearance.

The Charley Project reports that Chandice was struggling with heroin addiction and was attempting to become sober. This is part of the publicly documented background of her case, but it does not establish why she disappeared or what happened to her. Substance use should not be treated as evidence that someone voluntarily abandoned their family or that a crime occurred.

Chandice was known to change her hair color, an important detail for anyone attempting to identify her from photographs. Her distinctive thigh tattoo may also help distinguish her from other missing individuals.

Source: The Charley Project – Chandice Rebecca Cochran.

August 20, 2019: The Day Chandice Disappeared

On August 20, Chandice’s mother went to work while Chandice remained at their home in Sutton. When her mother returned, Chandice was gone.

According to the West Virginia State Police, Chandice had left her belongings at home. The Charley Project provides additional details, including a handwritten note in which Chandice told her mother she had gone out temporarily, was in good hands, and intended to return shortly.

The note suggested that Chandice expected her absence to be brief. It did not explain where she was going or why she would ultimately fail to return.

Investigators later learned that a man named Kristopher Speas had picked Chandice up that afternoon. According to reporting by WV MetroNews, investigators believed the pair traveled toward Birch River in Nicholas County, possibly in connection with drug activity. That suspected purpose of travel was an investigative belief, not an established explanation for her disappearance.

Their movements reportedly took them to the residence of Sam Kelly in the Birch River area.

According to The Charley Project, Kelly said he saw Chandice and Speas leave his residence on foot around midnight, heading toward the nearby fire department. Other case accounts describe their direction of travel as toward Widen Dille Road.

This reported sighting became one of the most important points in reconstructing Chandice’s final known movements.

Sources: The Charley Project and WV MetroNews.

August 21, 2019: A Companion Returns Without Chandice

The community-maintained Solve the Case profile describes another important development the following morning.

According to that account, Kelly encountered Speas walking alone along Widen Dille Road and gave him a ride. Chandice was not with him.

The profile places this encounter at approximately 7 a.m. on August 21, although the time is described as approximate rather than independently verified by a public police report.

The Charley Project reports that Chandice’s cellular phone had been turned off around midnight and that she was never heard from again.

A change purse containing her identification was subsequently discovered in woods near Birch River. Public sources do not establish the exact discovery date, who recovered it, or whether forensic examination produced useful results.

The reported location of the purse raised questions about what happened after Chandice was last seen, but the discovery alone does not establish whether she was injured, lost, abducted, or harmed by another person.

Sources: Solve the Case and The Charley Project.

Investigation History and Evidence

West Virginia State Police Investigation

The West Virginia State Police became the principal investigating agency in Chandice’s disappearance.

Investigators worked to reconstruct her movements from Sutton to Birch River and identify individuals who may have interacted with her during the hours before she vanished.

The investigation has focused publicly on her last known companion, the residence she visited, her final reported movements, and the surrounding rural areas.

Speas has been interviewed multiple times in connection with the disappearance. According to The Charley Project, he has said he was under the influence of drugs and cannot clearly remember the events of that night.

Speas has maintained his innocence in Chandice’s disappearance. He was arrested and convicted in connection with unrelated offenses, including sex-offender registration violations. Those criminal matters should not be confused with charges relating to Chandice’s case.

As of the latest verified case information, no charge against Speas in connection with Chandice’s disappearance was identified.

Sources: The Charley Project and WV MetroNews.

Physical Evidence and the Missing Phone

Several details remain important to the investigation:

• The handwritten note: Chandice indicated that she expected to return home shortly.
• Her belongings: State Police reported that her belongings were left at home.
• Her cellular phone: The Charley Project reports that it was turned off around midnight. The Solve the Case profile states that the phone has not been recovered.
• Her change purse: A purse containing her identification was reportedly found in woods near Birch River.
• Her final reported sighting: Witness information placed her walking with Speas near the Birch River area shortly before she disappeared.

These details provide a partial reconstruction of her movements, but significant gaps remain.

Publicly accessible reporting does not establish whether usable fingerprints, DNA, phone-location records, or other forensic evidence were recovered from the original disappearance scene.

Source: Solve the Case – Chandice Rebecca Cochran.

May 7, 2024: Search Warrant Executed in Clay County

A significant publicly reported investigative development occurred on May 7, 2024.

West Virginia State Police executed a search warrant at a property along Widen Dille Road in Clay County, near the area associated with Chandice’s disappearance.

WSAZ reported on May 8 that investigators had developed information during the preceding year that led to the search. The station also reported that investigators believed foul play was involved.

Members of the State Police Crime Scene Unit participated in the operation.

According to WSAZ, items recovered during the search were being sent to the West Virginia State Police forensic laboratory for examination.

WV MetroNews identified the search location as being in the 9100 block of Widen-Dille Road. Sgt. Douglas Gordon, described as one of the lead investigators, did not confirm what had been discovered at the property when interviewed.

MetroNews reported that the property belonged to Jonas Shafer, who was not residing there. Ownership of a searched property does not establish involvement in a disappearance, and the report did not identify Shafer as a suspect.

The search demonstrated that investigators were actively pursuing information nearly five years after Chandice vanished.

However, the published reports did not establish that the search had located Chandice, identified human remains, or produced conclusive evidence of a homicide.

Sources: WSAZ – State Police execute search warrant in case of missing woman from 2019 and WV MetroNews – Search warrant served at Clay County property in relation to missing persons case from 2019.

Forensic Testing and DNA Evidence

The May 2024 reporting confirms that recovered items were being submitted for forensic testing.

It does not identify the items or disclose the laboratory results.

No publicly confirmed DNA match, genetic genealogy identification, forensic identification of remains, or conclusive laboratory finding was located in the sources reviewed.

It would therefore be inaccurate to claim that DNA evidence has established what happened to Chandice.

Theories and Unresolved Questions

Did Chandice Encounter Foul Play?

The possibility of foul play became an explicit focus of public reporting in May 2024, when WSAZ stated that West Virginia State Police investigators believed it was involved.

That assessment is important, but it is not equivalent to a confirmed homicide determination.

Chandice remains classified in public missing-person records as missing. No verified public record reviewed for this article establishes her death.

What Happened After the Final Reported Sighting?

One of the central unanswered questions concerns the period between Chandice reportedly leaving the Birch River residence and Speas being encountered alone the following morning.

Investigators have not publicly provided a complete, verified reconstruction of those hours.

The available information does not establish whether Chandice separated voluntarily from her companion, encountered another person, experienced an accident, or became the victim of a crime.

Each possibility would require evidence before it could be presented as fact.

What Is the Significance of the Change Purse?

The discovery of Chandice’s identification in a wooded area remains a potentially important clue.

However, the publicly available sources do not establish when it was deposited there, who handled it, or whether its location was connected to criminal activity.

Its evidentiary significance remains uncertain.

Family Concerns and Public Advocacy

A public petition titled Justice for Chandice Cochran, organized by Rachel Davis, called for additional scrutiny of Speas and described concerns about his reported account of Chandice’s final movements.

The petition contains allegations and interpretations from advocates. Those statements should not be treated as independently established police findings.

The petition illustrates the continued demand for answers, but it does not demonstrate criminal responsibility.

Source: Justice for Chandice Cochran.

Latest Publicly Available Investigative Updates — October 2026

September 25, 2026: Case Database Updated

The Solve the Case website lists September 25, 2026, as the most recent update to Chandice’s case profile.

The entry continues to classify her disappearance as an open missing-person case. It identifies Senior Trooper Caleb Harper of the West Virginia State Police Sutton Detachment as the lead investigator.

The profile also describes searches previously conducted in the Birch River area and along Widen Dille Road.

However, the website does not specify what information was changed on September 25. This date represents a case-profile update, not a verified new investigative breakthrough.

Source: Solve the Case – Chandice Rebecca Cochran.

Current Status of the Investigation

As of October 20, 2026, Chandice remains listed in the West Virginia State Police missing-person database.

The latest independently verified, substantive investigative development located during this research remains the May 2024 search warrant and the associated forensic examination.

No publicly confirmed recent developments were located establishing:

• An arrest or criminal charge directly related to her disappearance.
• The recovery or identification of Chandice’s remains.
• A conclusive forensic finding from the 2024 search.
• A confirmed DNA or genetic genealogy breakthrough.
• A formal reclassification of her disappearance as a homicide.

The absence of publicly released findings does not necessarily mean investigators have stopped working on the case. It means that further results could not be verified from the publicly available sources reviewed.

The West Virginia State Police missing-person listing remains an important official reference for her case.

Conclusion: The Search for Chandice Cochran Continues

Chandice Rebecca Cochran disappeared on August 20, 2019, after leaving her mother’s home in Sutton, West Virginia. What appeared to be a short trip became a disappearance that has left her family without definitive answers for more than seven years.

Her handwritten note, the reported sighting near Birch River, the change purse found in the woods, and the 2024 search warrant are important elements of the investigation. Yet none has publicly established what ultimately happened to her.

The possibility of foul play remains a serious investigative concern, but Chandice’s death has not been confirmed.

Anyone who remembers seeing Chandice or her companion in the Birch River area on August 20 or 21, 2019, or who has information about activities along Widen Dille Road during that period, is encouraged to contact investigators.

Information that appears minor may help authorities clarify the timeline or identify previously unknown circumstances.

Anyone with information about Chandice Rebecca Cochran’s disappearance should contact the West Virginia State Police Sutton Detachment at 304-765-2101.