The Bizarre Disappearance of Anthonette Cayedito

Anthonette Christine Cayedito, affectionately known as Squirrel, was born Christmas Day 1976, in Gallup, New Mexico, to Larry Estrada and Theresa “Penny” Cayedito. Anthonette, the oldest of three, was the biological half-sister of 7-year-old Sendia “Sadie” and 5-year-old Wendy. At the time of her disappearance, she lived with her mother and two sisters in a four-bedroom home off Route 66.

On April 5, 1986, Penny met up with friends at a local bar called Talk of the Town, leaving her three daughters with a babysitter. Penny arrived home around 1 a.m. and allowed the younger girls to play while she and Anthonette sat up talking.

Shortly after Penny and Wendy fell asleep, Anthonette and Sadie heard a knock at the front door. Sadie recalled hearing a male and woman say “Hurry, we’re cold out here, open the door.” Not recognizing the voices, they went back to sleep. A few hours later, Anthonette and Sadie were awoken by a second knock at the door. This time, Anthonette got out of bed and checked, while Sadie fell back to sleep.

When Penny woke up at 7:00 a.m. to get the girls ready for Bible school, she found Anthonette’s bed empty. This was far from unusual, as Anthonette was known to wake up early. However, Penny soon realized that Anthonette was nowhere in the house. Penny immediately grew concerned and began searching the neighborhood, sadly no one had seen her.

After hours of searching for Anthonette, Penny called the police to report her missing. To her horror, police informed her that she must wait eight more hours before filling a missing person’s report. After contacting police, Penny called Larry, who came over to aid in the search.

The following morning, police arrived on the scene and began questioning neighbors, as well as Anthonette’s family. While speaking with a few neighborhood kids, investigators learned about a 62-year-old service technician and local resident, Wes Daniels, who took them on a picnic and sexually abused them. At the time of his arrest, police believed that he may have been involved in Anthonette’s disappearance, however, the boys stated she was never present during these occurrences.

Unbeknownst to Sadie, Wendy heard the knock at the front door and followed Anthonette. When Anthonette asked who was there, a male voice identified himself as “Uncle Joe.” Anthonette proceeded to open the door, at which time, two unidentified males grabbed her and forced her into a brown van. “I remember the police asking me what happened, and I had thought then that it was one of our uncles at the door.” Police immediately questioned Uncle Joe and were able to rule him out.

A neighbor reported seeing an older model brown truck with a New Mexico license plate outside the Cayedito home between 6:30 and 7:00 on the morning of Anthonette’s disappearance. The neighbor witnessed a male exit the vehicle and walk towards the home. At the time this was not concerning as people were often seen coming and going from the home. The family was unable to identify the vehicle.

Two days later the search was called off due to a lack of leads.

A year later, Gallup police received a call from a young girl claiming to be Anthonette. She told police that she was in Albuquerque but before dispatch could get any more information a male voice could be heard saying “who said you could use the phone?” They heard a scuffle and a scream before the line went dead. The call lasted 40 seconds and was unable to be traced.

After listening to the recording, Penny said “[i]t was her voice…I would know my baby’s voice anywhere. I don’t think they mean to harm her, I think they just don’t know how to give her back without getting in trouble.” That being said, police never received a second call nor any ransom demands.

Another lead emerged years later from Carson City, Nevada. A waitress told authorities that a young girl was sitting with an “unkempt” couple and looked to be in distress. The teenage girl repeatedly knocked her utensils to the floor, perhaps an attempt to get the waitress’s attention. After the group left, the waitress found a note under the girl’s plate. “Help me! Call the police.” It was unclear whether or not the girl was in fact Anthonette.

Shortly after the last sighting of Anthonette, Penny turned to a Navajo medicine woman for answers. The medicine woman told Penny that Anthonette was still alive and may have had a child. She was being held against her will somewhere in the Southwest. “Going to the medicine lady gives me a lot of strength and it helps me to just know that she is alive. No matter who she’s with, they’ve got to have some compassion not to hurt another human being as small as she is,” Penny said.

On May 2, 1996, a Jane Doe was discovered in Albuquerque. The Jane Doe was between the ages of 14 and 18, with native, Hispanic,F or white heritage. She was between 5’2” and 5’4”. As of today, it has never been confirmed whether or not the remains were a match to Anthonette.

Local police and the FBI looked into hundreds of reported sightings, many of which were quickly discounted as the description did not match Anthonette. Gallup Police Detective Amos Hinshaw has always found his case puzzling and confusing since police have been unable to rule out anyone as a suspect including family. “My gut feeling is that some family members may not be telling us all they know,” Hinshaw said.

Shortly before her death on April 18, 1999, police stated they believed Penny knew more about Anthonette’s disappearance then she told police, citing a failed polygraph exam. Penny reportedly made several expensive purchases following Anthonette’s disappearance and there were rumors that Penny was involved in selling drugs.

Bizarrely, three years after Anthonette disappeared, her 25-year-old aunt, Louisa Estrada, disappeared from Gallup. A month later, she was found alive in Juarez, New Mexico, and returned safely. Over the years there have been questions over potential connections between the two cases.

In June 2022, Sadie made a public message to Anthonette. “She’s safe. She has a family that loves her. She has sisters. We haven’t given up. We all wonder often about Anthonette and what’s she doing? Does she have kids? What kind of life is she living?”

Whether by homicide or human trafficking, Anthonette’s case remains unsolved.