Star Michelle Palumbo, 25, of Reno, Nevada, was last seen in the early morning hours of April 26, 2000. Palumbo had lived in Tucson, Arizona, until 1999, when she moved to Reno to live with her grandmother. Shortly after midnight, an airport police officer at Reno-Tahoe International Airport found Palumbo in a restricted area of the airport, disoriented, and told him she was searching for a younger sister she said had run onto the tarmac; she does not have a younger sister. The officer did not believe her account but did not consider her a danger. At approximately 1:30 a.m., he dropped her off at the entrance of the Reno Hilton Hotel and Casino (now the Grand Sierra Resort) at her request. Palumbo was last seen walking from the valet parking area toward the hotel entrance. She never checked in and has not been seen or heard from since. On April 27, 2000, her vehicle was found illegally parked and abandoned at Reno-Tahoe International Airport near the baggage claim area, containing most of her personal belongings, including her cell phone and a purse holding $600 in cash. Palumbo was wearing a black leather jacket, a tank top, jeans, and boots.
Investigators recovered from Palumbo's vehicle three emails she had written to the White House stating a belief that the federal government was trying to kill her, a drawing depicting a bound and gagged woman resembling Palumbo, and two books on changing one's identity. Palumbo had reportedly developed a methamphetamine addiction in the months before her disappearance and, according to police, may have engaged in sex work. On the evening of April 25, 2000, she called her mother and said she believed she was being followed and that her phone was tapped; she also said she was considering moving back to Arizona. In December 2000, the owner of the Silver Dollar Casino in Elko, Nevada — roughly 250 miles from Reno — reported to police that a woman identifying herself as "Star" and appearing frightened had been in the casino and left with an unknown woman after becoming nervous when a man looked in through a window; police have not been able to confirm this woman was Palumbo. The case was profiled on Unsolved Mysteries. Palumbo remains classified as an endangered missing person (Foul play suspected).
