On a summer day in 2007, 50-year-old Paul Elliott left the duplex he shared with family in Alliance and rode away on his bicycle.
According to his brother-in-law, Paul left after learning that police had been called about tools stolen from the property. There's no indication that Paul had taken the tools. In fact, his brother-in-law reportedly believed someone else was responsible. But those close to Paul say he was deeply uncomfortable around law enforcement because of something that had happened years earlier, so when he heard police were coming, he left before they arrived.
Paul had a remote trailer outside of town where he sometimes went to be alone and clear his head. Everyone assumed he headed there and would be back within a few days, but Paul never came home.
As time passed, a strange story began to spread. People said Paul had gone to Alaska. No one seemed to know exactly where that story came from, but somehow it took hold. At first, it gave his loved ones hope that Paul had simply walked away to start over somewhere else. However, the explanation that Paul went to Alaska didn't seem to hold up under closer scrutiny. Paul had left behind his wallet, phone, identification, and everything he would've needed to build a new life. He was also excited for his son’s upcoming wedding, a day those closest to him insist he never would have missed.
Then, several years later, Paul’s son made a discovery that changed everything. Hidden inside a locked building he found Paul’s bicycle, the very bicycle he was said to have ridden away the day he vanished. It had been tucked out of sight, almost as though someone wanted to make sure it wouldn't be found.
More than 18 years later, Paul Elliott is still missing, and the questions surrounding what happened to him remain unanswered.
If you have any information about the disappearance of Paul Elliott, please contact the Alliance Police Department at 330-821-9140.