Key facts
- Name: Susan Marie Scanlan
- Born: August 24, 1952
- Age at disappearance: 54
- Last seen: November 5, 2006 (dinner sunset sail, Koloa, Kauai); last contact November 6, 2006 by phone
- Location: Residence, 2600 block of Hoonani Road, Koloa, Kauai, Hawaii
- Height / build: 5’4″, 130–140 lbs; brown hair, green eyes (the 411GINA flyer lists green eyes; one secondary source says hazel)
- Status: Still missing — Kauai Police Department, open investigation
- Case numbers: Kauai PD 2006-28998; NamUs MP12702 (state file reference)
- Investigating agency: Kauai Police Department
The iPod
On November 5, 2006, 54-year-old Susan Scanlan went on a dinner sunset sail off Koloa, on Kauai’s south shore. The next day, November 6, she spoke to someone by phone from her residence in the 2600 block of Hoonani Road. That was the last contact anyone had with her.
When she was reported missing in mid-November 2006 (the November 16 date in some records could not be independently confirmed), her home told a strange, specific story: all of her belongings were left behind — except her iPod.
Susan was 5’4″, 130 to 140 pounds, with brown hair and green eyes (one secondary source says hazel). She was 54 years old, living alone on Kauai. She would be about 74 today.
The gun and the sister who disagrees
The public record of Susan’s case contains a detail her family has fought for years. According to a comment posted by her sister Kathe in 2022, Susan had bought a gun two weeks before she disappeared — because, Kathe says, Susan feared someone was entering her apartment.
Police, Kathe says, developed a theory that Susan shot herself. Kathe disputes it outright — “Where,” she wrote, demanding the missing piece every such theory requires and never produces: the body, the weapon, the scene. A self-inflicted gunshot without a body, without a weapon recovered, without forensic evidence, is a theory with a hole in the middle of it.
What is verifiable: Susan vanished from her home in November 2006, leaving everything behind except an iPod. She was never seen again. The Kauai Police Department case (2006-28998) remains open. NamUs carries her file. And her sister has spent years publicly insisting that the official theory doesn’t hold — that a frightened woman who bought a gun because someone was coming into her home does not simply erase herself.
Theories: what might have happened
Foul play by the intruder she feared. The theory her sister holds: Susan bought a gun two weeks before vanishing because someone was entering her apartment. If the fear was real — and people rarely buy guns over nothing — then the person she feared is the first place to look. Against it as a proven fact: the intruder was never identified, and the gun itself was never recovered or accounted for in the public record.
Suicide. The theory Kathe says police developed. It has a logic — a woman in distress, a newly purchased gun — but it is missing the evidentiary core: no body, no weapon, no scene. Kathe’s one-word rebuttal — “Where” — is the entire case against it.
She left voluntarily. The iPod is the only thing missing from her home, which is either the detail that unlocks the case or a red herring. But a 54-year-old woman leaving everything — home, belongings, life — to start over with only an iPod, and then never contacting anyone in 20 years, strains belief.
Have information?
Contact the Kauai Police Department at (808) 241-1711. In an emergency, dial 911.
Timeline
- August 24, 1952 — Susan Marie Scanlan is born.
- Late October 2006 — Per her sister, Susan buys a gun; she fears someone is entering her apartment.
- November 5, 2006 — Susan goes on a dinner sunset sail off Koloa, Kauai. Last sighting.
- November 6, 2006 — Last contact: Susan speaks by phone from her Hoonani Road residence.
- November 16, 2006 — Susan is reported missing per case records (Kauai PD case 2006-28998) — the exact report date could not be independently confirmed. All belongings left behind except her iPod.
- 2022 — Sister Kathe publicly disputes the police suicide theory: “Where.”
- Today — Still missing. Case open with Kauai Police Department.
FAQ
Is Susan Scanlan still missing?
Yes. As of October 2026, Susan Scanlan has been missing for nearly 20 years. Her case remains open with the Kauai Police Department.
Was Susan Scanlan ever found?
No. Neither Susan nor her remains have ever been found.
How old would Susan Scanlan be today?
Susan was 54 when she disappeared in November 2006 (born August 24, 1952). She would be 74 years old today.
What was left behind in Susan Scanlan’s home?
All of her belongings were left behind except her iPod — the single specific detail in the public record of the scene.
Did Susan Scanlan buy a gun before she disappeared?
According to her sister Kathe, Susan bought a gun two weeks before she vanished because she feared someone was entering her apartment. Kathe disputes the police theory that Susan shot herself, noting that no body was ever found.
How can I help?
Share this case file. If you have any information, contact the Kauai Police Department at (808) 241-1711.
Sources
- Official / law enforcement: Kauai Police Department (808-241-1711; case 2006-28998); NamUs.
- Reference: The Charley Project, “Susan Marie Scanlan”; Websleuths case discussion (including family member comments, 2022).
- News: The Garden Island (Kauai) archival coverage.
Corrections (October 2026 fact-check): DOB corrected from “circa 1952” to August 24, 1952 (411GINA flyer, corroborated by NamUs-linked listings). Eye color corrected from hazel to green per the flyer, with the conflicting secondary source noted. The “reported missing November 16, 2006” date could not be independently confirmed — flagged as unverified in the text and timeline.
Found an error? Tell us via the About page and we will fix it promptly and note the change here. Last verified October 2026.