Simon Owen Disappearance: The Missing Hawaii Hiker Who Vanished at Manoa Falls

Simon Owen was 21 when he vanished near the Manoa Falls Trail on Oahu in June 1994. He had survived a broken neck, rebuilt his future, traveled through the Amazon and Europe, and come to Hawaii for a summer of work and adventure. Then his bicycle was found locked near the trail entrance, but Simon was nowhere to be found. This episode of Beneath the Palms follows the disappearance of Simon Owen, the young Texas Wesleyan University student who worked at Chili's in Waikiki and spent his free time exploring the island. Coworkers noticed when he missed work. His room was undisturbed, his money and personal belongings were left behind, and everything suggested he expected to return. Police officers, firefighters, volunteers, Army soldiers, Marines, climbers, helicopter crews, and dozens of Simon's coworkers searched Manoa Valley. His mother, Mitzi Lockett, flew from Texas, moved into his rented room, and helped lead searches for months. On the birthday she shared with her son, she carried two leis to the base of the falls. One was for her. The other was for Simon. Police have long believed Simon may have left the maintained trail and fallen into steep terrain hidden beneath the valley's dense canopy. No physical evidence has ever proven that theory. More than three decades later, he remains missing. This is not only the story of a missing Hawaii hiker. It is the story of a son, student, traveler, coworker, friend, and survivor whose family and classmates have never allowed the mystery to become his entire identity. If you have information about Simon Owen or remember seeing him around Waikiki or Manoa in late June 1994, contact the Honolulu Police Department. Sources Lack of Evidence Makes Solving Cases Difficult https://the.honoluluadvertiser.com/article/2003/Apr/14/ln/ln12a.html Simon Owen https://charleyproject.org/case/simon-owen Missing: Simon Owen | Honolulu, HI https://uncovered.com/cases/simon-owen Police Recognize Top Officers of Year https://archives.starbulletin.com/2005/05/19/news/index8.html Simon Owen Memorial Scholarship https://www.gofundme.com/f/simon-owen-memorial-scholarship Remote Viewing Newsletter: Simon Owen https://hrvg.org/newsletter/2002-09/feature.html Contemporary Newspaper Archive: Simon Owen Coverage, 1994 to 1996 https://www.newspapers.com/ Research, writing, and production by Aku Bone Media. Narration by Jubilee Lum. Closing music, "Broken Wings," courtesy of Yoza. #SimonOwen #MissingPerson #ManoaFalls #HawaiiTrueCrime #BeneathThePalms