LITTLE ROCK, Ark. — Ten years after 18-year-old Ebby Steppach vanished, her family says they finally have answers to one of the case’s biggest mysteries — where she spent the final hours before her disappearance.
Michael Mazzella, the family’s executive producer and spokesperson, says the new information was approved for public release by the Arkansas Attorney General’s Cold Case Unit, which began helping the Little Rock Police Department with the investigation last year.
“This information was one of the biggest mysteries to the family since the very beginning of this case,” Mazzella said. “What we were always confused about was where did Ebby go on the evening of October 24th, 2015, when she left her grandparents’ house.”
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Investigators now confirm that between 7 p.m. on Saturday, Oct. 24, 2015, and 3 a.m. the following morning, Ebby was in the area of 53rd Street and University Avenue in Little Rock, just hours before she made her final phone call to her brother, Trevor, around 5:30 p.m. on Sunday.
Nearly three days later, on Oct. 29, her car was found abandoned at Chalamont Park, in west Little Rock. Inside the vehicle were her phone, makeup bag, and other personal items, signs that her family always believed pointed to foul play rather than a runaway situation.
Two and a half years later, in May 2018, police discovered Ebby’s skeletal remains inside a drainage pipe at that same park. The discovery confirmed what her mother, Laurie Jernigan, had feared all along, that her daughter had been nearby the entire time.
Mazzella says the newly released timeline is a breakthrough but leaves critical questions unanswered.
“It’s still a mystery what happened after 3 a.m.,” he said. “We don’t know who she was with or what she was doing during that time frame.”
Mother of Ebby Steppach hopes for development in case nine years after her disappearance
According to Mazzella, one reason her movements that night were unclear was a text message she sent to her stepfather, Michael Jernigan, on Saturday evening. In it, she claimed she had been assaulted at a friend’s house and wanted him to meet her at the police station to file a report. But Ebby never showed up, a turning point that has haunted her family for years.
Mazzella says the family hopes the release of this information, combined with the Attorney General’s involvement, will prompt new leads and refocus public attention.
“At this point, we believe someone out there probably knows something — and they may not even realize that they know it,” he said.
In recent months, the Steppach family launched a new set of social media pages under the name Justice for Ebby Jane. The pages — on Facebook, Instagram, TikTok, and X — have already generated thousands of tips, many of which have been forwarded to investigators.
Mazzella said one tip circulating is about a security guard at the park.
“We know that the security guard has been cooperative with the current investigation, and it does not appear that he participated in the death or disappearance of Ebby,” he said.
He added that the family’s goal in releasing verified information is to “help people focus on new possibilities and fresh leads.”
“Our hope by giving you this information — releasing it to the public — is that people can start focusing on other thoughts, other people, and other ideas,” Mazzella said.
The Attorney General’s Office and Little Rock Police Department continue to investigate.
Anyone with information is encouraged to contact the Attorney General’s Cold Case Unit or submit tips via email or through the Justice for Ebby Jane social media pages.
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Little Rock Police Department, Ebby Steppach, Michael Mazzella, biggest mysteries, Mazzella
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