When individuals go missing, investigators often find it difficult to collect evidence, especially since there is no body. But the first 48 hours are essential to solving a crime. Unfortunately, police are not always given this window of time, and this can result in cases that remain open for months, years, and even decades.

Tiffini Murphy has been missing since Labor Day weekend 2018 but she wasn’t reported missing until roughly four months later. So, where is Tiffini Murphy?

The 38-year-old mother was last seen at a gas station around 3 or 4 AM, located in Lacon, Illinois. She was dropped off by an unnamed male friend, and has been missing ever since.

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On an episode of Dateline, Terry Hattan, Marshall County Sheriff’s Department Chief Deputy, said, “We didn’t even receive a report that she missing until January 10.” Due to Murphy’s disappearance going unreported, police were unable to use surveillance videos. “Nobody reported her missing for an extensive period of time, so any videotape was recorded over. They don’t keep [the footage for] that long,” he revealed.

Hattan also mentioned they didn’t conduct ground searches since they didn’t know where to start looking. “My feeling right now is the only way to do searches would be to pull up a map and throw a dart and look where it lands. But we’ve talked to the last person that reported seeing her and other individuals who had seen her shortly before that last time. And we’re still talking to some people,” he said.

Was foul play involved? Did Tiffini leave willingly, or was she taken against her will? While Hattan said he “honestly [does] not know right now” is foul play had anything to do with her disappearance, her friends and family are positive that she was unwillingly taken.

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But why did nobody report Tiffini missing? According to her longtime friend, Stephanie Sievert, friends and family did, in fact, try to report her missing, but were “not taken seriously.” “We’ve put fliers up all over [town]. We have multiple fliers out there with her picture. We’ve done not public searches, but some family and friends searches. We have not found a thing,” she said.

Hattan also added that Tiffini’s social media and bank accounts have been inactive since she went missing. And for Sievert, that’s just not like her. “It’s unusual for her to not be a social media. She’s not a picture person, but she did post.”

In February, Tiffini’s daughter, Abigail, took to Facebook to ask for help in finding her mother.

Hopefully, someone out there has information on Tiffini Murphy and can provide her friends and family with closure.

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Samantha Maffucci is an editor for YourTango who focuses on writing trending news and entertainment pieces. In her free time, you can find her obsessing about cats, wine, and all things Vanderpump Rules.