Celina Mays

*This article includes content which may be disturbing to some readers, such as excessive violence or sexual assault/abuse. Discretion is advised.*

## Celina Mays

* Living photo
* Age progressed

### Classification

Endangered missing

**Celina Janette Mays** was a twelve-year-old girl who vanished in 1996. She was nine months pregnant at the time of her disappearance.

## Background

Celina was born on May 28, 1984, to parents C.J. Mays and Lynn Marie Vitale. The two allegedly had a tumultuous relationship, and some instances of domestic violence may have occurred between them. C.J., who was a musician at the time, admitted that he had a problem with alcohol and drug addiction. Lynn, who was an exotic dancer at the time, also struggled with drug addiction.

Celina grew up with her mother, who managed to overcome her addiction. Lynn was working as a school custodian when she died in 1994.

Two years before Celina's disappearance, Lynn died of a brain aneurysm. After this, Celina temporarily moved in with some of Lynn's friends but ultimately ended up living with her father, stepmother and other relatives. However, several of Lynn's family members fought a custody battle for Celina.

At the time of Celina's disappearance, C.J. worked as a bookkeeper and accountant for the Gospel of Christ Ministries Inc., where his sister worked as a pastor. As a result, Celina was raised as a member of the church, which had strict beliefs, and she was homeschooled.

Despite this, Celina, who was 12 years old, was nine months pregnant at the time of her disappearance. The baby's father has never been identified. If he was, he could be charged with rape due to Celina's age.

## Case

### Disappearance

Celina was last seen at around 11:00 a.m. on December 15, 1996, when she went to bed at her aunt's house on Crestview Drive in Willingboro, New Jersey. That day, Celina had attended church before returning home for dinner. At some point that evening, she allegedly told one of her cousins, "Thanks for everything", without further explaining what she meant.

Her family discovered she was missing the following day when C.J. went to her room to check on her the next morning. Pillows had been arranged under Celina's blanket to make it look like she was still sleeping and gone. She had left her prenatal vitamins, purse and other possessions behind.

Celina has not been heard from since. She was due to give birth around December 29, 1996. When her mother died, she left Celina a significant life insurance policy, which she has been eligible to collect since she turned eighteen, but she has not done so.

### Possible sightings

There have been numerous possible sightings of Celina since her disappearance. Some were weeks after she vanished, in Lacey Township and Hopewell Township, although these are unconfirmed.

A man in Midland, Texas, also believed to have seen Celina in 2000 after noticing one of his employees resembled her, but the woman was soon determined to be someone else. One of C.J.'s friends claimed to see Celina near Lions Mountain, New York, later in 2000, but this is unconfirmed.

In 2002, a woman matching Celina's description was caught on a security camera in an Egg Harbour Township, New Jersey shop in December 2002. Authorities are reviewing this sighting.

### Investigation

According to police, C.J. was uncooperative in the investigation into his daughter's disappearance. He eventually lost touch with them during the years since Celina vanished.

Police investigated the possibility that one of Celina's cousins may have been her baby's father, as rumors were suggesting this at the time. They repeatedly interviewed the cousin, who denied this and claimed not to know anything about her disappearance. The man, who fathered seven children with four women, is now an adult and married to the mother of four of his children.

Celina herself told her obstetrician, whom she last visited two days before her disappearance that her baby's father was her boyfriend, who was sixteen and not a member of the church. She never revealed his identity, though.

One of her aunts suggested that he may have been an individual she met while roller skating in Camden County, New Jersey, instead.

Despite all of this, police have said that they have no information regarding the identity of Celina's baby's father. Everything that has been suggested is speculation.

## Characteristics

* Long, wavy black hair.
* Brown eyes.
* Nine months pregnant.

## Sources

* Celina Mays at the *Charley Project*
* Celina Mays at *NamUs*
* Celina Mays at *NCMEC*
* Celina Mays at the *Doe Network*