On October 25, 2000, 16-year-old Robert Smith left his East Chicago, Indiana home and told his mom that he was going to a friend's house. Robert's mother had a challenging relationship with her son, as many parents of teens can relate. So when he didn't attend school the next day, she thought he was simply being rebellious and that he'd be home by the weekend. But Robert wasn't home by the weekend, and more than two decades later, he's never been seen or heard from again. With few leads and a police department who told us they have no record of Robert's case, his family wonders how his case will ever be solved.If you have any information about Robert's disappearance, you can call the East Chicago Police Department at 219-391-8450 or the National Center for Missing and Exploited Children at 1-800-THE-LOST.This episode was sponsored by:Headspace- Head to Headspace.com/THEVANISHED for a free month trial.Sleep Number- Proven quality sleep is life-changing sleep. Special offers, for a limited time. Only at Sleep Number stores or sleepnumber.com/VANISH.Listen ad-free with Wondery+. Join Wondery+ for exclusives, binges, early access, and ad-free listening. Available in the Wondery App. https://wondery.app.link/thevanishedIf you have a missing loved one that you would like to have featured on the show, please fill out our case submission form: http://www.thevanishedpodcast.com/case-submission/.Follow The Vanished on social media at:FacebookInstagramTwitterPatreonSee Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.