For Mike Knabel, the father of Andrea Knabel, the Louisville mother of two who went missing in 2019, his daughter's whereabouts are the first and last thing he thinks about each day.
Tuesday marked the five-year anniversary since Andrea's disappearance, the latest milestone in "a very dark, draining saga" where every lead her family has followed haven't brought them any closer to closing the case of a woman who used to help find the missing herself.
"There were dozens of time I thought we had her," he said.
Investigators have searched Louisville and beyond for Knabel. Occasional sightings also have been reported in different parts of Jefferson County and Southern Indiana, but have turned up nothing or turned out to be different people.
Knabel's case has garnered national attention thanks, in part, to Facebook pages her family created after she vanished, articles about her disappearance and TV specials on the missing mother. Flyers are still posted in Audubon Park, the area around where Andrea disappeared in 2019. Though the case has long gone cold, Mike said the family still has hope she may be alive and someone has spotted her.
"We hope there is a breakthrough and if there is, we will be prepared to handle it as it may come," he said.
Andrea was last seen walking around Louisville's Audubon Park and Camp Taylor neighborhoods at approximately 1 a.m. on Aug. 13, 2019, after leaving the home of one of her sisters, Erin Knabel . Records show she made a call from her phone around 1:30 a.m. to a friend inquiring about a ride, but all received calls afterward were directed straight to voicemail.
Police later searched the area, but reportedly found no sign of her.
The day before she disappeared, Andrea was taken to a hospital to receive treatment for "injuries to her face allegedly from some type of infection ." She then took a Lyft from the hospital to her mother's house on Chickadee Road, where she was living at the time. Later that night, Andrea reportedly walked roughly a mile from her mother's house to the Fincastle Road home of her other sister, Erin, before starting to make the return trip, when she then disappeared.
Sarah Knabel and her boyfriend, Ethan Bates, who were also staying at the Chickadee Road home at the time of Andrea's disappearance, were both under investigation in connection with the incident, but both were later found not to be involved. The fathers of Knabel's children, as well as her other family members, have also been cleared of any wrongdoing.
Dig Deeper: Have you seen Andrea Knabel? What to know about the missing Louisville mom's case
Mike Knabel said his daughter had been going through difficult times in 2019 after getting laid off from her job at Humana and having her car totaled in a hit-and-run accident.
"She had some issues like all human beings do, and we didn't think any of them were something she couldn't overcome," he said in a 2021 interview with The Courier Journal.
A 2021 docu-series released by Discovery+ focused on Knabel's case, however, suggested there could be more to the woman's disappearance than has been publicly shared.
Andrea is approximately 5 feet, 7 inches tall, weighs about 190 pounds, has light brown hair and was last seen wearing a light-colored tank top, white shorts and light-colored Nike shoes.
Those with tips about Andrea's case can contact the family's tip line at 502-806-4840 or the tip line for LMPD's missing persons unit, 502-574-7120. Mike said if you see someone matching Andrea's description, you should call 911 immediately.
There is a $10,000 dollar reward for anyone who finds Andrea and helps her reunite with her family, Mike said.
Facebook users can follow the "Where is Andrea Knabel" and "Finding Andrea" for updates from her family.
Enterprise reporter Lucas Aulbach and former Courier Journal reporter Billy Kobin contributed. Reach reporter Leo Bertucci at lbertucci@gannett.com or @leober2chee on X, formerly known as Twitter
More: From concerts to deep fried food, more than 10 things to do at the Kentucky State Fair
This article originally appeared on Louisville Courier Journal: Family of missing Louisville mother Andrea Knabel remains hopeful 5 years after disappearance
Most Popular
Comments / 0