RICHMOND, Va. — A Virginia family hopes a new Netflix docuseries will bring renewed attention, and potentially new information, to Amy Lynn Bradley's disappearance from a cruise ship in the Caribbean 27 years ago.
Brad Bradley remembers the last conversation he had with his sister before she vanished in the early morning hours of March 24, 1998, as their cruise ship was pulling into port in Curacao.
"I said I'm going to bed... she said, I think I'm going to stay out here with all the fresh air and the wind, and I don't want to go inside a little cabin and be closed in," Brad said. "So I told her I love her. That's the last thing I ever said to her.
Just hours before she disappeared, the siblings had been discussing their plans for the day ahead.
"We really just talked about what we were potentially going to do Thursday when we got to Curacao, talking about, you know, maybe going jet skiing or doing this or that," Brad said.
Those fun excursions never happened. Amy disappeared from the ship, prompting the Netherlands Antilles Coast Guard to search the ship's path and surrounding waters for four days. While authorities speculated the Chesterfield County woman may have fallen overboard and drowned. Her brother believes otherwise.
"The door was open where it hadn't been before, about 18 inches or so. And she wasn't there," Brad said. "The shirt that she had on was laid across one of the chairs."
He also noted that "the CruiseLine key card doesn't register when you leave the room, it only registers when you use a key to come back in."
After nearly three decades of searching for Amy, the Bradley family is still riding the wave of emotions.
"Obviously losing my sister has been really tough and emotional, but watching my parents go through that was some of the hardest stuff," Brad said. "You know, even to this day, certain topics of conversation, it's a wrap with the emotions. Mom and Dad have a hard time, and I don't think that ever changes."
Over the years, investigators—both private and FBI agents—have followed numerous leads and tips about possible sightings of Amy. Several theories have circulated, including abduction and human trafficking, falling overboard, or a rendezvous with a bass player from the cruise ship's cover band.
Brad believes the band member knows something about his sister's disappearance.
"I was sitting by the pool on the top deck, exasperated and kind of in shock and realizing the reality of what was happening," Brad said. "He came up and the first thing he said to me, and keep in mind, this was before the announcements were made publicly, was, 'Sorry to hear about your sister.'"
Despite the emotional toll, the family remains committed to finding answers.
"We keep on chasing every sighting and doing everything we can do. Every time we do a news story it kind of re-dredges the emotions and the stories and the memories and that kind of thing... and it's tough, but it's necessary. We aren't going to give up looking for her," Brad said.
The Netflix docuseries "Amy Bradley is Missing" will be available to stream Wednesday, July 16.
For more information on Amy's case, visit the family's website at amybradleyismissing.com. You can also send tips to amybradleyismissing@gmail.com or 804-789-4269.
CBS 6 is committed to sharing community voices on this important topic. Email your thoughts to the CBS 6 Newsroom.
📲: CONNECT WITH US
Blue Sky | Facebook | Instagram | X | Threads | TikTok | YouTube
This story was initially reported by a journalist and has been converted to this platform with the assistance of AI. Our editorial team verifies all reporting on all platforms for fairness and accuracy. To learn more about how we use AI in our newsroom, click here.
