On June 30, 1994, six-year-old Crystal Ann Tymich disappeared from the Hyde Park area of South Los Angeles, California
Crystal was spending the day near her father’s home with her three older brothers.
More than a decade later, Crystal’s older brother Jeffrey recalled what he remembered about that afternoon.
The children were playing behind a nearby house where there was a peach tree. They began throwing peaches over the roof, competing to see who could throw one the farthest.
Then their grandmother called the children home.
Jeffrey and his brothers ran back toward the house.
When they looked behind them, Crystal was no longer following.
The family had been planning to watch The Lion King that day.
Instead, their six-year-old daughter and sister had disappeared.
THE SEARCH
Crystal was last known to be in the area of the 6000 block of Brynhurst Avenue.
Contemporary reporting said her brothers realized she was missing at approximately 2 p.m. Police described her as having disappeared while playing near her home.
Her family and neighbors immediately began looking for her.
The Los Angeles Police Department launched a massive search of the neighborhood. More than 100 officers searched the area around Brynhurst Avenue.
A localized tactical alert was issued, keeping officers on duty after their shifts ended to assist with the search.
The alert was canceled at approximately 4:30 a.m. on July 1, although officers who were regularly scheduled to work continued searching for Crystal.
The City Council offered a $10,000 reward for information leading to Crystal’s return.
Her photograph was widely distributed, appearing on milk cartons, billboards and trucks. Her case also received national attention when it was featured on America’s Most Wanted. Investigators even considered using a psychic to help locate her.
Police received reports from people who believed they had seen Crystal after her disappearance, including reported sightings in Downey, Santa Fe Springs and Bell Gardens.
None of those sightings was confirmed.
Despite the extensive search and publicity, Crystal was never found.
YEARS PASSED
Crystal’s photograph continued to be circulated long after her disappearance.
In 1997, a Southern California plumbing company worked with the California Department of Justice to place large photographs of missing children on company trucks.
Crystal was one of the children featured.
The company spent approximately $2,000 putting the photographs on the road in an effort to help locate missing children.
But Crystal remained missing.
THE 2005 SEARCH
More than 11 years after Crystal disappeared, her case was suddenly brought back into the spotlight.
In August 2005, more than 100 LAPD detectives, FBI agents and Los Angeles County coroner’s personnel searched the crawl space of a house directly across the street from Crystal’s family home.
The search followed a tip given to the FBI concerning the reported suspicious burial of an animal around the time Crystal disappeared.
Investigators searched the property and discovered bones.
But authorities determined that the remains belonged to fish, cows and dogs.
Crystal was not found.
Authorities also did not publicly establish a connection between the property and Crystal’s disappearance.
During that search, Jeffrey spoke publicly about the day his little sister vanished.
He remembered being only nine years old.
He remembered the peach tree.
He remembered throwing peaches with his brothers.
He remembered running home when their grandmother called.
And he remembered looking back and realizing Crystal was no longer behind them.
He said the memory would remain with him for the rest of his life.
CRYSTAL ANN TYMICH
Height: 4’0″
Weight: 60 pounds
Hair: Blonde
Eyes: Hazel
At the time she disappeared, Crystal was wearing a pink T-shirt, flower-print shorts, pink socks and white tennis shoes with a picture of a mermaid on them.
Crystal would be 38 years old today.
More than 32 years have passed since the afternoon she disappeared.
There has never been a confirmed explanation for what happened to Crystal.
Her family has spent decades living with the same unanswered question:
Where is Crystal Ann Tymich?
If you have information about Crystal’s disappearance, contact the Los Angeles Police Department.
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