The Disappearance of Paul Leonard Baker: A 3-Year-Old Lost to Time

 

Today we’re looking at the mysterious disappearance of three-year-old Paul Leonard Baker from Beaufort, South Carolina.

Paul was born in 1983. By the mid-1980s, his parents, James Baker and Lynda Solorzano, had split up after James began an affair with the children’s babysitter, Susan. Lynda left with Paul and his older sister Nina, but when the divorce finalized, the judge awarded custody to James, saying Lynda couldn’t financially support them. James soon married Susan, and by 1987, the family had settled in Beaufort, where James was a Marine sergeant.

On March 5, 1987, Susan told police she put Paul down for a nap at 11 a.m. and then fell asleep herself after taking alcohol and muscle relaxants. She claimed she woke up to a phone call from James about an anonymous woman saying Paul was safe. But when Susan went to check on him, the little boy was gone. Despite an immediate search, Paul was never found.

Suspicion quickly turned toward his guardians. Susan took a polygraph, which came back inconclusive. James failed his own test. He told investigators that Susan was often too harsh with the children, even suggesting she may have killed Paul and dumped his body—though he later walked that back. When police searched the house, they found blood spatters, but what happened with that evidence was never clarified.

Eighteen days after Paul vanished, authorities removed Nina from the home after discovering she had untreated broken bones and sores on her back. Nina told investigators that Susan beat her with a stick, locked her in closets, and also abused Paul—forcing him to stand for hours and whipping him when he wet the bed. Susan was convicted of assault and battery against Nina and served only 80 days in jail before getting probation.

Years later, more disturbing allegations surfaced. A former cellmate claimed Susan confessed that James had beaten Paul to death and that the couple buried his body in a neighbor’s yard. Authorities reopened the case in 2000, but the grand jury declined to indict them.

Then, in 2009, Susan’s name made headlines again. This time, in Florida, she kidnapped a seven-month-old baby she had been babysitting, hiding the infant in a cedar chest for over a day. The baby was found alive, but Susan was convicted and sentenced to 25 years in prison. That case brought renewed attention to Paul, but no new evidence ever surfaced.

Today, Paul would be 42 years old. His case remains unsolved, but investigators believe foul play is the most likely explanation.

So what really happened to little Paul Baker back in 1987? Was it neglect, a cover-up, or something even darker? And why, after all these years, has no trace of him ever been found?