Overview

The Night Inside Cabin 28

Late on the night of April 11 or early April 12, attackers entered Cabin 28 in Keddie, California.

Inside were:

Dana Wingate
John Sharp
John’s mother, Glenna Sharp
Several younger children sleeping in another room

The violence that followed was extreme. Dana, John, and Sue were bound and assaulted using multiple weapons. Investigators later described the scene as chaotic and deeply personal in nature.

Detailed Case Breakdown

This is a unique case that consisted of 4 people who tragically lost their lives in a multiple homicide that is still onging:

Other victims (and links to their pages):

Glenna “Sue” Sharp
John Sharp
Tina Sharp
Dana Wingate

The Keddie Murders: Tina Sharp and the Girl Who Vanished Into the Woods.

Among the many horrors of the 1981 Keddie murders, one detail made the case uniquely haunting: a child disappeared.

Twelve-year-old Tina Sharp was not found inside Cabin 28 with the other victims. She was gone. No signs of escape. No clear trail. Just absence.

For three years, Tina’s fate remained a question mark in one of America’s most disturbing cold cases. Her disappearance transformed a brutal homicide into a prolonged nightmare — one that stretched far beyond the cabin walls and into the forests of Northern California.

This article focuses on Tina Sharp: the youngest victim, the missing child, and the unresolved sorrow at the center of the Keddie murders.

Tina was the youngest daughter of Glenna Sharp. At 12 years old, she was described as bright, affectionate, and deeply attached to her siblings. The Sharp family had moved to rural California seeking a fresh start after years of instability, and Tina was adjusting to life in a quiet mountain town.

Cabin 28 was small, crowded, and imperfect — but it was home. For Tina, it was a place filled with siblings, laughter, and the promise of a new beginning.

She never left that cabin alive.

Late on April 11 or early April 12, 1981, attackers entered the Sharp family cabin.

Inside were Tina, her brother John Sharp, their mother Sue, and family friend Dana Wingate, along with younger boys sleeping in another bedroom.

By morning, three people were dead.

Tina was missing.

Investigators found no immediate explanation for how a 12-year-old vanished from a violent crime scene. There were no signs she escaped into the woods. No confirmed sightings. No ransom. No communication from a kidnapper.

Her disappearance introduced terrifying possibilities:

– She was abducted during the attack
– She witnessed the crime and was taken
– She fled and was later captured
– She was intentionally targeted

For years, Tina’s fate became the emotional center of the investigation. The case was no longer just murder — it was a missing child mystery layered on top of a massacre.

The Discovery Three Years Later

In April 1984, a bottle collector discovered human remains in a remote area about 60 miles from Keddie. The remains were identified as Tina Sharp.

The confirmation ended hope of rescue but opened new questions:

– Why was she taken so far away?
– Why separate her from the other victims?
– Was her murder planned in advance?

The location suggested deliberate transport. Someone moved Tina after leaving Cabin 28. That act implied time, control, and knowledge of the terrain.

Yet even with this discovery, no arrests followed.

Tina’s disappearance and recovery remain one of the most chilling aspects of the case — a child carried away into darkness, her final hours still unknown.

Latest Investigation Developments

The Keddie murders remain an active cold case.

DNA Advances

Modern forensic analysis recovered usable DNA from crime scene materials. Investigators confirmed a match to a living individual, though no suspect has been publicly charged.

Re-examined Evidence

A hammer believed linked to the murders was recovered decades after the crime and re-tested using contemporary forensic methods. Authorities continue to analyze physical evidence tied to Tina’s abduction.

Public Pressure and Media Focus

Books, documentaries, and cold case investigations have renewed attention on Tina’s disappearance. Her story — a missing child within a murder case — continues to draw national interest and generate tips.

Current Status

Plumas County officials maintain the case is open and under review. Detectives have expressed cautious optimism that forensic genealogy could eventually identify those responsible.

Why Tina Sharp’s Story Endures

Tina’s story is uniquely painful because it extends beyond violence into uncertainty.

For three years, she existed in limbo — neither alive nor laid to rest. Her family endured not only grief but prolonged hope, fear, and unanswered questions. Even after her remains were found, the mystery of her final hours remained intact.

Tina Sharp is remembered not just as a victim, but as a child who vanished in the middle of a nightmare and was never brought home.

Her case remains one of the most haunting symbols of why cold cases matter: because somewhere inside the unanswered details is a stolen childhood waiting for justice.

————————————————

Facebook Post:

In April 1981, a quiet mountain community in Northern California woke up to something it was never meant to carry.

Inside a small cabin at the Keddie Resort, three people were found deceased. A fourth child was missing.

The victims were 36-year-old Sue Sharp, her 15-year-old son John, his friend Dana Wingate, and Sue’s 12-year-old daughter Tina. Three of them were discovered inside the cabin on the morning of April 12. Tina was not there.

Two younger boys and a friend had slept through the night in a back bedroom. They were unharmed.

For three years, Tina Sharp remained missing. In 1984, her remains were found more than 60 miles away in neighboring Butte County. No clear cause of death could be determined.

From the beginning, the investigation was troubled. The scene was not fully secured. Evidence was later described by investigators as mishandled or overlooked. Important leads were not pursued at the time.

Decades later, the case was reviewed again. Investigators publicly criticized the original handling and acknowledged that key opportunities had been missed. DNA was tested. Evidence was reexamined. No arrests followed.

The cabin where the crime occurred was demolished in 2004. The resort itself faded away. But the questions never did.

How did someone enter and leave the cabin without waking the children in the back room?

Why was Tina taken from the scene when the others were left behind?

And did early investigative failures permanently prevent answers?

More than forty years later, the Keddie Cabin Murders remain officially unsolved.

If you know anything, now is the time to come forward.

The full, fact-checked case record is linked above

Sketch Drawing of Suspects