The Disappearance of Joniah Walker
15 year old Joniah Walker was last seen in Milwaukee, Wisconsin on June 23, 2022. She was last seen in the area of 400 East Brown Street around 2:30 pm.
Background
Joniah Walker was born to father Jonathan and mother Tanesha Howard on May 15, 2007. She was a sophomore at Riverside High School at the time of her disappearance.
She is described as introverted and intelligent by loved ones. Joniah suffers from post traumatic stress disorder and depression.
Disappearance
Around 2:30 pm on June 23, 2025, Joniah Walker was last seen leaving home in her brother’s clothes. She was last seen on a neighbor’s Ring camera carrying a large backpack in the area of 400 East Brown Street.
She was supposed to meet her father outside the apartment complex around 3:30 pm so they could go get her a work permit for a summer job, but she was nowhere to be found.
At 3:27 pm she attempted to call her therapist, then texted them that evening to say she was running away from home. Joniah hasn’t been seen or heard from since.
When her family tried to contact her their calls went straight to voicemail.
Investigation
Joniah has no history of running away, and her family says it’s uncharacteristic of her to be away from home without contacting anyone. Her mother, Tenesha Howard, believes she was groomed by an older man online and lured away from home.
About a year prior to her disappearance, Joniah showed her mother a picture of a white man, saying “isn’t he cute?” Howard’s other children told her she was just being paranoid when she raised concerns about it.
Howard says her daughter wasn’t the type to just trust anyone, so she believes the grooming had been going on for quite some time before she left.
Her family says she deleted most of her data usage before leaving, and that the FBI wasn’t able to trace who she had been talking to.
Walker’s family attempted to contact a few individuals they found in her iCloud information, including a white male named Zach in Pennsylvania with red hair and a beard, though they have not publicly named any persons of interest.
Joniah’s facebook activity shows she logged out of the mobile app on the day she went missing, and appear to indicate she deactivated the “Find my” app on her iPad and iPhone.
Her father kept Joniah’s cell phone service activated for a year after she went missing, but it was never used again.
Appearance
Black female born on May 15, 2007. Joniah has black hair, brown eyes, stands 5’1 tall, and weighs 100 pounds. She had long braids at the time of her disappearance.
Clothing & Accessories:
Joniah was last seen wearing a green Adidas t-shirt with the word “Original” printed on it, blue jeans, white/blue shoes, and a large backpack.
Investigating Agency
If you have any information regarding the disappearance of Joniah Walker please contact the Milwaukee Police Department Sensitive Crimes Division at (414) 935-7405, or the Wisconsin Clearinghouse For Missing & Exploited Children & Adults at (800) THE-HOPE.
22-1740136.
