EPISODE 533: Junaliza Maturan Oroc Chappell Part 4: Intertwined

Over the last several weeks, we’ve been untangling the disappearance of Junaliza Chappell, a young mother who was trying to leave her husband, Timothy Chappell, and start over in California with her 3-year-old daughter, Ashley.

Juna had a plan. Ashley was already in California with people Juna trusted. Juna had completed job training in Florida and was supposed to return to Atlanta, get her car, and drive west. But Juna never made it back to her daughter.

After Juna vanished, Timothy disappeared with Ashley. U.S. Marshals eventually found him driving Juna’s car with Ashley in the backseat. Many of Juna’s personal belongings were still inside the vehicle. Timothy was arrested that day, but not for anything connected to Juna’s disappearance.

In Part 3, we looked more closely at Timothy’s history, the records Ashley later found, and the pattern that began to emerge, including his 2010 arrest for exploiting a 15-year-old girl, a case that eventually sent him to federal prison for 20 years.

Part 4 is different. This episode centers on Ashley and the way her story is intertwined with her mother’s disappearance. Ashley was only 3 years old when Juna vanished. For most of her life, she carried memories from that time, some painful, some confusing, and some so fragmented that she questioned whether she could trust them at all. But as Ashley began searching for answers, some of those memories began to connect to records, conversations, and details she had never fully understood before.

Ashley is not only trying to understand what happened to her mother. She is also trying to understand what happened to her and what Juna may have been trying to protect her from.

If you have any information about the disappearance of Junaliza Chappell, please contact the Atlanta Police Department Missing Persons Unit at 404-546-4235. Tips can also be sent anonymously to: bringjunalizahome@gmail.com.

Episode 532: Junaliza Maturan Oroc Chappell Part 3 - The Man Behind the Mask

In Parts 1 and 2 of Junaliza Chappell’s story, we followed the days leading up to her disappearance and the chaotic search that followed.

By February of 2007, Juna had decided to leave her husband, Timothy, and start over in California with her 3-year-old daughter, Ashley. Ashley was already there with Juna’s friends, and after Juna finished job training in Florida, the plan was for her to fly back to Atlanta, get her car, and drive west. But Juna never made it, and she's never been seen or heard from again.

Timothy claimed he picked Juna up from the Atlanta airport and took her to Walmart, where he said she went inside and never came back out. That story never sat right with the people who knew Juna.

After Juna disappeared, Timothy took Ashley from Juna’s friends in California. U.S. Marshals later found Timothy with Ashley in Juna’s car. Inside the vehicle were many of Juna’s personal belongings, including her purse. Timothy was arrested, and Ashley was eventually adopted by Juna’s younger sister, Kareen. But Timothy wasn't arrested for anything connected to Juna’s disappearance. He was arrested because he was a sex offender who had failed to register, and authorities had found him alone with Ashley.

In Part 3, Timothy finally faces consequences, just not for what so many people believe he did to Juna.

For Ashley, Timothy existed mostly in the background of her childhood. He was her biological father, but he was absent from her life. He wasn't discussed much when she was young, but as Ashley got older, Kareen began sharing more about his past. Eventually, Ashley started searching on her own. She requested records, connected with relatives she had not been in contact with, and began learning the truth about the man at the center of her mother’s disappearance.

This episode focuses on Timothy Chappell: the version of himself he showed to the world, the history that eventually came to light, and the patterns Ashley began to recognize as she dug through records and family stories.

Ashley wasn't only learning about the man who had been arrested when she was a little girl; she was learning about the man her family believes stole Juna from them, and whose past would reshape the way Ashley understood her mother, her childhood, and herself.

If you have any information about the disappearance of Junaliza Chappell, please contact the Atlanta Police Department Missing Persons Unit at 404-546-4235.

Ashley has also created an email address for tips. If you have information but do not feel comfortable contacting law enforcement directly, you can email bringjunalizahome@gmail.com. Tips can be sent anonymously.

Episode 531: Junaliza Maturan Oroc Chappell Part 2 - The Women Who Refused to Let Go

Last week, we shared Part 1 of Junaliza Chappell’s story. By February of 2007, Juna was preparing to leave her husband, Timothy, and start over in California with her 3-year-old daughter, Ashley.

Juna had carefully crafted her exit plan. Ashley was already in California, staying with Juna’s trusted friends, Frank and Grace. Juna had moved some of her belongings into a storage unit there. She had a new job waiting for her, but first she needed to attend job training in Florida. From there, the plan was for Juna to fly back to Atlanta, get her car, and drive west. But Juna never made it to California.

Timothy later claimed that he picked Juna up from the Atlanta airport and took her to Walmart to pick up a prescription. He said Juna went inside and never came back out. From the beginning, there were problems with that story, and by the time investigators tried to verify it, potential surveillance footage was already gone.

Then the situation became even more alarming. Juna’s coworker and friend, Faye, began learning more about Timothy’s past. Around that same time, Timothy seemed to disappear, too, and Ashley was with him. When Timothy was eventually found, he was driving Juna’s car, and Ashley was in the backseat. Inside the vehicle were belongings Juna likely would have taken with her if she had been the one driving to California, including her purse.

Timothy was arrested that day, but not for anything connected to Juna’s disappearance. He was arrested because he was a sex offender who had failed to register, and authorities had found Ashley in his care.

In Part 2, we shift the focus to the women who kept pushing after Juna vanished. Faye kept digging. She searched for more information about Timothy’s past, followed the details that did not add up, and tried to gather anything that might help keep him incarcerated. Now-retired U.S. Marshal Katrina stayed focused on Timothy from a different angle. She had already been searching for him before Juna disappeared. As new information surfaced, the case became darker, more complicated, and increasingly tied to the man Juna had been trying to leave.

If you have any information about the disappearance of Junaliza Chappell, please contact the Atlanta Police Department Missing Persons Unit at 404-546-4235.

Ashley has also created an email address for tips. If you have information but do not feel comfortable contacting law enforcement directly, you can email bringjunalizahome@gmail.com. Tips can be sent anonymously.