MYSTERY IN THE DESERT: The 1994 Disappearance of a Couple Ends in a Grisly Discovery 13 Years Later

In March 1994, a seemingly ordinary trip to the Mexican Chihuahua Desert ended in mystery and tragedy for a couple from Arizona, Ethan Morrison (54) and Alice Patterson (46). What began as a celebration of life—Alice’s long-awaited pregnancy—would become one of the region’s most chilling cold cases.

The couple, full of joy and hope, had planned a three-day getaway through the vast desert, with Ethan mapping their route and Alice dreaming about motherhood. Their last known contact was a phone call to Ethan’s brother on March 15, during which Ethan mentioned they were enjoying the scenery. The call abruptly ended, and all attempts to reach them afterward failed. The desert swallowed them whole—no clues, no car, no bodies.

For 13 years, their fate remained unknown. But in 2007, tourists hiking through the barren terrain made a disturbing discovery: a human skeleton bound to a cactus with thick cables, its body pierced by thorns. A bloodstained pink blouse lay nearby, partially buried by sand and time.