“28 years, 11 months, and 23 days. That is how long the family of Trudy Appleby has waited for a resolution to her disappearance,” Moline Police Chief Darren Gault said at a press conference on August 14.“That’s 10,584 days. That is the time it has taken to stand before you and say what we long had hoped we could say: We have made an arrest in the murder of Trudy Appleby.”
Last week, authorities made an arrest in connection to the Illinois 11-year-old’s disappearance. Dateline first featured her case in 2016, on the 20-year anniversary of her disappearance.
Authorities believe that the last known sighting of Trudy Appleby was in Moline on August 21, 1996, by a neighbor who told police she believed she saw Trudy getting into a gray vehicle with a man in his early 20s with brown, curly hair.
In last Thursday’s press conference, Chief Gault said that on that day, “Trudy had asked to go swimming with a friend on Campbell’s Island but her father had said no.” However, phone records indicate she had gone ahead with those plans. “And then she vanished.”
Despite many years of investigating, the case grew cold. But the investigators, and Trudy’s loved ones, never stopped searching for answers.
At the press conference, Chief Gault said the case is one that has haunted Moline for years. “Nearly three decades, this case has haunted not only Trudy’s family — but every investigator who touched it, and our community,” he said. “Today I can confirm that on August 13, 2025, Jamison Fisher was indicted by a grand jury in Henry County, Illinois for the murder of Trudy Appleby.”
In 2020, the chief named Fisher a person of interest in this case. “Fisher was a family friend and associate of another suspect who died back in 2014,” Gault stated last week. Fisher was already in custody in an Iowa jail on unrelated drug and parole violation charges when the Moline Police Department served the arrest warrant. According to Cathy Runty, the Henry County State’s Attorney, Fisher was “indicted with three counts of first-degree murder and one count of concealment of a homicidal death.” She also stressed that “anyone charged with a crime is innocent until proven guilty.”
Chief Gault said Fisher will remain in custody in Iowa pending further court proceedings. According to local NBC affiliate KWQC, earlier this week, “Fisher’s public defender filed a motion to withdraw from his drug case citing a conflict of interest.” It is unclear if he has found new representation yet.
During the press conference, Chief Gault thanked all who have worked on Trudy’s case over the years. “This development is a result of tireless work by generations of investigators, unwavering support from our community, and new pieces of information that helped complete a long unfinished puzzle, but we never gave up,” the chief said. “I want to take this moment to recognize the dedication of our detectives.” He specifically mentioned Detective Mike Griffin, who has worked the case since 2016. “Detective Griffin has relentlessly pursued answers, relentlessly pursued leads. His dedication has been remarkable.”
Gault also said that Detective Griffin has a saying: “We are the voice for the voiceless.”
“It is his mantra. Now, just one week shy of the 29th anniversary of Trudy’s disappearance, we can be her voice,” Gault said. He also thanked Trudy’s family. “For their strength, for their resilience, and their trust in us,” he said. “They never stopped hoping — and neither did we.”
“This arrest does not erase the pain, but it does bring us one step closer to closure,” Chief Gault said.
Trudy’s body has not been located. “At this time, we have not recovered the remains of Trudy and due to that ongoing investigation, I’m unable to discuss — in any more detail — this part of the case,” Chief Gault noted at the press conference. Then, during the Q&A section of the press conference, a journalist asked if authorities would continue to try and find Trudy.
“We will continue to pursue anything that comes up,” Gault said. “And we hope that at some point, we’ll be back in front of you to give you better answers, but this is the current phase we’re in and the investigation does not stop today.”
If you have information about the Trudy Appleby case or where her remains might be, please contact the Moline Police Department at 309-797-0401.
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