A woman’s sister disappeared from her home in Phoenix, Arizona, back in 2001, at the age of 17, and was never seen alive again. Police thought she was a runaway, but Sarah Turney suspected her sister was murdered, especially after no answers came with the passing years. Now, Alissa Turney, is finally getting justice thanks to her sister, who shined a spotlight on an unexpected suspect in the case.
Sarah implicated her father in the crime and, beginning in 2020, used TikTok videos to share her suspicions. A trial for Michael Turney, who pleaded guilty to second-degree murder in the death of his 17-year-old stepdaughter, began last week, HuffPost reported.
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Alissa disappeared in 2001 and Sarah’s been urging police to investigate her father ever since.
The last time Sarah saw her sister was in May 2001, the last day of Alissa’s junior year at Paradise Valley High School, per HuffPost. Sarah at the time was 12 and came home from a field trip and her sister was gone, but a note was in Alissa’s room claiming she’d gone to California, the outlet reported.
But evidence left behind did not support this story. Alissa’s personal items were left behind, such as her makeup, her phone, and keys, as well as money in her bank account that wasn’t touched after she disappeared, the outlet reported.
The authorities “became aware of additional information” in 2008, resulting in the case being reopened and led to the discovery of “26 pipe bombs and three incendiary devices” at Michael Turney’s residence, per the New York Times. He pleaded guilty to the unlawful possession of the explosive devices in 2010, and served seven years in prison. Sarah’s social media work to capture her sister’s killer began shortly after, the outlet reported.
She said her sister took over the role of 'mother' after their mother died.
Sarah and Alissa lost their mother to cancer when they were young, and were raised by Michael, who is Sarah’s biological father, and Alissa’s stepfather, per The New York Times. Sarah described her sister as “extremely sweet — strong and sweet,” and said Alissa took over the role of being a mother after their mom died.
When she took the witness stand, Sarah told jurors how her sister took care of her after their mother passed, per HuffPost. She said, “She got me dressed in the morning when she was there and picked out my clothes and taught me how to do makeup and did my nails and cooked dinner and cleaned my room.”
Sarah also shared that her father treated her and Alissa differently — that he was very easygoing with her but very strict with Alissa — even going so far as to record phone calls and put cameras inside the house, the outlet reported.
Sarah launched a podcast and started posting on TikTok in 2020, and later that year, her father was indicted in her sister’s death.
Sarah launched the Voices for Justice podcast to help shine a light on her sister’s case, but it was ultimately her TikTok videos that ended up raising awareness and going viral. She currently has over 1 million followers. All of Sarah’s efforts and advocacy work for her sister paid off. The Maricopa County attorney announced on August 20, 2020, that their father Michael Turney, age 72, was indicted in her sister Alissa’s death, per HuffPost. Alissa’s body has still not been found.
Throughout this journey of seeking justice for her sister, Sarah has thanked her TikTok followers for supporting her, as seen in an update video posted in April 2023.
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Officials thanked her for not giving up.
In a blog post last year, Sarah wrote, “What I’m going to do is scream to the whole world until Alissa has justice. I’m going to abandon all fear of police retaliation, all fear of this destroying my career, and all fear of this consuming and destroying my life. I’m going to do it because it’s the right thing to do and Alissa would have done it for me,” per HuffPost.
Maricopa County Prosecutor Allister Adel thanked Sarah for not giving up and for continuing to shine a spotlight on her sister’s case. He said, “Your perseverance and commitment to finding justice for your sister Alissa is a testament to the love of a sister. Because of that love, Alissa’s light has never gone out,” the outlet reported.
