Key facts
- Name: Jie Zhao Li (also rendered Ji Zhao Li / Jiezhao Li in some records)
- Born: April 10, 1975
- Age at disappearance: 12
- Last seen: February 11, 1988
- Location: Near the 7-Eleven in the Nu’uanu area of Honolulu, Oahu, Hawaii
- Height / build: 4’11”, 75 lbs; black hair, brown eyes (per the 411GINA missing-child flyer); slightly crooked teeth, eye teeth half grown
- Status: Still missing — Honolulu Police Department, open investigation
- Investigating agency: Honolulu Police Department
The fundraiser tickets
On February 11, 1988, 12-year-old Jie Zhao Li was selling fundraiser tickets for a school activity near the 7-Eleven in the Nu’uanu area of Honolulu. It was the kind of thing kids did — a school fundraiser, a neighborhood corner, a stack of tickets and a reason to be out in the late afternoon.
She never came home.
Jie Zhao Li — her name also rendered Ji Zhao Li or Jiezhao Li in some records — was never seen again. She is one of Hawaii’s longest-unresolved missing-child cases, her name appearing in the Honolulu Star-Bulletin‘s rolls of the missing in 2007 and 2008, and in the files of Hawaii’s Missing Child Center, year after year, as the decades passed and the other names changed.
She would be 51 years old today — she turned 51 in April 2026.
The thinnest file
There is no way to write honestly about Jie Zhao Li’s case without acknowledging how little the public record holds. Beyond the 411GINA missing-child flyer — 4’11”, 75 pounds, black hair, brown eyes, crooked teeth — little detail survives in the accessible sources. No account of the last sighting beyond the Nu’uanu corner and the fundraiser tickets. No suspects named, no theories tested in public, no anniversary news specials with new details.
What survives is the fact itself, repeated in the state’s own accounting of its missing children: on February 11, 1988, a 12-year-old girl selling school fundraiser tickets near the 7-Eleven in Nu’uanu did not come home, and in the 38 years since, no one has found her or explained what happened.
That thinness is itself a kind of testimony — about which cases get the documentaries and which get a line in the bulletin. Jie Zhao Li’s case has no podcast, no book chapter, no luminol or grand jury. It has a date, a corner, a stack of fundraiser tickets, and a family that has waited 38 years.
The Honolulu Police Department case remains open.
Theories: what might have happened
Abduction. The default theory in every case of a 12-year-old who vanishes from a public corner in daylight and never contacts anyone again: a child selling fundraiser tickets is approachable, trusting, and visible — and then gone. There is no evidence for or against any specific perpetrator; the classification as a missing child rests on the circumstances.
She ran away. Nothing in the record supports this — no history, no contact in 38 years, no trace. It remains listed here only because thoroughness requires it, not because the evidence suggests it.
Have information?
Contact the Honolulu Police Department at (808) 529-3111. In an emergency, dial 911.
Timeline
- April 10, 1975 — Jie Zhao Li is born.
- February 11, 1988 — Last seen selling fundraiser tickets for a school activity near the 7-Eleven in the Nu’uanu area, Honolulu. Never seen again.
- 2007–2008 — Listed among Hawaii’s long-unresolved missing children (Honolulu Star-Bulletin; Hawaii Missing Child Center).
- Today — Still missing. Case open with Honolulu Police Department.
FAQ
Is Jie Zhao Li still missing?
Yes. As of October 2026, Jie Zhao Li has been missing for 38 years. Her case remains open with the Honolulu Police Department.
Was Jie Zhao Li ever found?
No. Jie has never been found, and no suspects have ever been publicly named.
How old would Jie Zhao Li be today?
Jie was 12 when she vanished in February 1988 (born April 10, 1975). She turned 51 in April 2026.
Why is there so little information about Jie Zhao Li’s case?
Unlike other Hawaii cases of the era, Jie’s disappearance received limited press coverage and has not been the subject of documentaries or podcasts. The accessible public record preserves the core facts — the date, the location, the fundraiser tickets — but little more. Her case remains in the files of the Honolulu Police Department and Hawaii’s missing-children listings.
How can I help?
Share this case file. If you have any information, contact the Honolulu Police Department at (808) 529-3111.
Sources
- Official / law enforcement: Honolulu Police Department (808-529-3111); Hawaii Missing Child Center listings.
- News: Honolulu Star-Bulletin, “Hawaii’s long-unresolved missing children” rolls (2007, 2008; via archives.starbulletin.com); Honolulu Advertiser archival coverage.
- Reference: 411GINA missing-child flyer for Jie Zhao Li (411gina.org; case B49038); The Charley Project; NamUs.
Corrections (October 2026 fact-check): This file previously described Jie as a boy; corrected to girl per the 411GINA flyer (“Gender: Female”) and case records. DOB corrected from “circa 1975–1976″ to April 10, 1975 (flyer). Physical description (4’11”, 75 lbs, black hair, brown eyes, crooked teeth) added from the flyer. Age today corrected from ~50 to 51. Headline and pronouns corrected throughout.
Found an error? Tell us via the About page and we will fix it promptly and note the change here. Last verified October 2026.