Latest Airing:

• Web Exclusive

Related Links:

Missing Teen First In Small Town's Multiple Disappearances

Jeffrey Ben missed his family, so he decided to return to his small hometown of Clayton, Oklahoma late in January 2001. He had spent the previous two months laying fiber-optic cable in Detroit, but decided in January to go back home and start college.

Jeffrey stopped by his uncle's house around 1 a.m. after Super Bowl Sunday--January 29, 2001. According to his sister, Jeffrey hugged his uncle and cousin good-bye and got behind the wheel of his father's truck. About 15 minutes later, neighbors heard a crash and voices near a bridge on the Kiamichi River.

Police say that shortly after leaving his uncle's house, Jeffrey missed a turn on Nine Pine Road and his truck collided with a tree. Upon investigation, police found minor damage to the truck, but no blood and no trace of Jeffrey.

A Family Left Wondering

With a population of less than a thousand, Clayton, Okla. is a tight-knit community where nearly everyone knows each other. Perhaps that's why Jeffrey's family finds it hard to believe that virtually no one in Clayton has any clues or information about what happened to the teenager.

In the years since Jeffrey's disappearance his family can only speculate about what happened to the young man. Jeffrey's mother, Linda Miller,  told "America's Most Wanted" that her son's disappearance has left a void in their family.

"It's just been horrible," Miller said. "It haunts you."

Miller also believes there may be a link between Clayton's significant drug culture and her son's disappearance.

"When drugs are involved, you just don't know," she said.

More Disappearances, Fewer Clues

Within a year of Jeffrey's disappearance, two other young men--Joe Keys and Darrell Hammons--vanished near Clayton.

Like Jeffrey's case, little, if any, information is available about the disappearances of these men.

In February 2001, The Daily Oklahoman reported that the river near where Jeffrey crashed his father's truck may hold some answers about what happened to him. Around the time of Jeffrey's disappearance, there had been heavy rains in the area, increasing the volume and the current of the river. The paper also reported that the subsequent rise and fall of the river, caused by more rain, prevented police from dragging it immediately.

Oklahoma State Bureau of Investigations spokeswoman Jessica Brown confirmed that there are no new leads or clues in the case.

Mar 30, 2006
Remains Of Missing Oklahoma Teenager Found