The story of Leigh Occhi has haunted north Mississippians for decades.
While some friends and family have never given up hope, her father Donald Occhi said early on that he felt she had been killed in the home that she shared with her mother. She was declared dead by her mother in October of last year. Tupelo police, however, did not close the case.
Leigh was last accounted for on August 27, 1992 at her home in the 100 block of Honey Locust Drive in Tupelo. She had a school event to attend and was waiting for her grandmother to pick her up, but her mother, Vikki Felton, said she had to leave for work.
For the first time ever, Vikki allegedly left Leigh home alone. She was the last person to see her before she evaporated.
A little later, at 8:30 a.m., Vikki called Leigh multiple times with no answer, then leaving work to check on her daughter. When she got home, she told police that the garage door was open and the activation light was on, which meant that it had been recently opened. She called the police to report her daughter missing at 9 a.m.
Police found bloodstains throughout the house, on the walls, carpet, and bathroom counter, leading from the hallway to the living room and to the back door. There was blood and hair stuck to a doorframe, and police surmised the 13-year-old could have hit her head while being dragged.
Leigh’s bloody bra and nightgown were found in her bedroom, which is what Vikki said she had been wearing that morning. Her glasses, shoes, some underwear, and a sleeping bag were also missing. Because Hurricane Andrew had come through that day, even bloodhounds couldn’t find her scent as they searched for her.
In a chilling turn of events, Leigh’s glasses were mailed to her stepfather about a month after she disappeared. He and Vikki had separated just before Leigh’s disappearance. The package had come from Booneville, roughly 30 miles north of Tupelo. It was never determined who sent the package, but Donald Occhi said he felt like it was sent to throw law enforcement off track. He said at the time that he believes it’s someone close to the child who is responsible for her presumed death.
Through the years, there has been very little evidence in Leigh’s disappearance, but the investigation is ongoing. In late January, agents from the FBI and the Mississippi Bureau of Investigation searched the area of Honey Locust Drive, where Leigh lived before she disappeared. They were using dogs and digging implements, and were seen in the drainage ditch near the home.
Officials released the following statement: “On January 29, 2025, the Mississippi Bureau of Investigation’s Cold Case Unit, in collaboration with the Tupelo Police Department and the Federal Bureau of Investigation, conducted a search near Honey Locust Drive in Tupelo, Mississippi, as part of the ongoing investigation into the 1992 disappearance of Leigh Occhi. While findings from the search cannot be disclosed at this time, investigators remain committed to following all leads and gathering information related to the case. No further comments will be made at this time.”
Leigh Occhi was wearing a nightshirt with green and yellow boxer shorts when she disappeared. She had a strawberry birthmark at the base of her skull and bumps on her knees. There were small scratch scars on her right leg and her ears were pierced. She was also described as having a “lazy eye.”
