Amy Bradley's brother reveals untold details of her disappearance on cruise ship 27 years ago
The decades-long mystery surrounding Amy Lynn Bradley's disappearance continues as her brother reveals some untold details about the case.
The 23-year-old woman, from Virginia, went missing during a Caribbean cruise vacation in March 1998.
Amy was last seen alive by her father on the balcony of the family's cabin, before vanishing in thin air half an hour later in a truly baffling case that has gripped true crime fans ever since.
Netflix docuseries Amy Bradley Is Missing, which landed in the summer of this year, reignited interest in the cold case, even sparking new lines of enquiry that suggest the now 51-year-old could still be alive.
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The Bradley family have never given up hope, with mom, Iva, dad, Ron, and Amy's brother, Brad, painstakingly searching for leads under the belief Amy is out there somewhere.
Now, Brad has given some insight into the untold parts of the case that didn't make it into the gripping series.
Speaking to WTVR CBS 6, he first addressed how Amy was 'not a fan of the ocean,' despite being a longtime swimmer and lifeguard.
Brad then went on to explain how the first few days of their vacation went, revealing how the pair got 'lost' in an SUV while driving around Aruba, only narrowly making it back to the cruise ship in time.
"You'll see the clip of me passed out like a zombie," Brad said of the Netflix footage. "That was right after that."
He then said that night at dinner, the family joked Amy was on the receiving end of some 'special attention' from staff.
After dining, they took professional photographs that 'disappeared mysteriously' when they went to collect them later.
After Iva and Ron retired to bed, Brad said he carried on partying with his sister into the early hours, during which he claims to have seen Amy with a bass guitarist, nicknamed Yellow, as the TV series touched on.
"I was distracted, doing my 21-year-old thing, talking to girls. So I wasn't unfortunately in a protective mode," he continued. "Amy was my big, bad sister who didn't need anybody to help her with anything."
When the club closed, he retired to the balcony from their room and records of the key card prove Amy joined him moments later through the door.
Brad said: "We're out there talking, having a normal conversation. She does mention that Yellow made an advance and touched her chest or tried to grab her boob or something like that.
"I don't remember exactly what she said but she kind of laughed it off. She didn't make a big deal of it."
Brad said he then left his sister on the balcony as she was enjoying the breeze, and both said 'I love you' to each other.
Ron later recalled seeing his daughter's legs on the balcony while he slept, but when he woke, she was gone, along with her cigarettes and lighter. Her sandals were still on the balcony while her shirt was 'draped over the chair' inside the room.
The Bradleys went into a total panic, which they claim was not taken seriously by crew, who they say failed to make a timely announcement and also let passengers disembark at Curacao.
Brad then further claims that Yellow approached him.
"He walks up and says, 'Hey man, I'm sorry to hear about your sister.' And I say, 'Yeah, thank you.' Not thinking, how the heck did he know that fast that something bad had happened?"
Brad added: "[The] captain comes to our ship later and assured us that they had done a complete search of the boat, 'anything bigger than a bread box we searched.'
"We later found not to be true. They searched restrooms and public areas and electrical closets and things like that but not all the crew's cabins or the passengers cabins to that degree."
As to the theory that Amy may have jumped in a bid to take her own life, possibly through difficulties with coming to terms with being a lesbian or following a fraught relationship with her family, Brad firmly stamped out the speculation.
He said the only way he thought she might be in the water was 'if someone threw her off'.
"She 100 percent didn't jump off the boat, not only because she wasn't a distraught person, I know some parts of the Netflix documentary and sentiments online was that she was gay and struggling with it - Amy wasn't struggling in my opinion, it was well known for years."
Brad said his sister was happy, having recently got a new apartment and her dream puppy. She was making plans and sending postcards to friends, he continued before saying Amy had 'come out' to the family in 1995, 'so it had all been water under the bridge'.
"We were one of the tightest families and closest families you will ever know. Amy and I's relationship were like best friends. All that stuff about her having any type of contentious relationship with my parents in regard to that is total BS."
Brad also isn't convinced she fell over the high railing on the balcony, nor did she climb onto a table.
"Didn't happen," he said bluntly. Plus, he said had she somehow got into the water, rescue services would have found her body as the vessel was near the island, not out in the middle of the ocean.
The Netflix show, however, did pose alternative theories, from witnesses who claim to have had encounters with Amy over the years to the belief the young woman could have been kidnapped and become a victim of human trafficking.
The show also suggested Amy might have had a child, possibly after being forced into sex work.
The FBI has reiterated that the case remains open, urging anyone with information to contact 1-800-CALL-FBI or visit tips.fbi.gov.
A $260,000 reward is still offered for information that could finally bring Amy home.
Topics: True crime, Netflix, Amy Bradley, US News
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