It was 43 years ago that three girls disappeared while shopping for Christmas gifts.
It was one of the most notable missing persons case in Fort Worth’s history.
Their families still do not know what happened.
“It’s a sad time for me,” said Terry Moseley. “I still like Christmas but really, if it just went past and I didn’t have to deal with it I’d be fine.”
Christmas doesn’t shine as bright for Moseley because of what he and three families have endured for 43 years.
“You can’t have the same Christmas that everybody else does because everybody else doesn’t have family members that are missing right at Christmas,” he said.
Moseley was 15 years old when his 9-year-old sister Julie, his 14-year-old girlfriend Renee Wilson and her 17-year-old friend Rachel Arnold Trlicia disappeared in 1974.
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The trio had been shopping at what was the Seminary South Shopping Center in Fort Worth.
Police found Arnold’s car in the parking lot.
Investigators retrieved DNA from a letter purportedly signed by Rachel Arnold, but as of 2016 there had been no DNA match.
“In the beginning everybody said ‘They ran away! They ran away! They ran away! They ran away!’ and I said they didn’t run away,” said Moseley.
He said the girls wanted him to go shopping with them.
Decades have past and the case remains unsolved.
“My dad’s gone, my mom’s gone. A lot of the people that were concerned on it aren’t here anymore. We’re all dying off without finding out anything,” said Moseley.
“Christmas to me is one of the hardest times of the year,” said Rusty Arnold.
For Arnold, this day only increases his determination of finding his sister Rachel Arnold Trlicia.
“I spend maybe four to eight hours a day on this case, digging, searching,” said Arnold. “I’m not going to stop ever, until we find out what happened.”
He wants closure for his family, including his aging mother.
“She’s 79 now and it’s still really hard on her every year,” said Arnold.
The years also took a toll on Moseley’s late mother.
She never managed to forgive herself for allowing her little girl to go shopping.
“I know she regretted it,” said Moseley. “She tried to blame herself. ‘If I’d just said no.’”
The brothers have found solace in each other and hope the new year brings clarity.
Anyone with information is asked to call Fort Worth police.
