Name: Stacey Lynn Balas
Nickname/Alias: Sarah Lindway; Sara Lindway; Spacey
Case Classification: Endangered Missing
Missing Since: November 26, 1996
Location Last Seen: Fairview Park, Cuyahoga County, Ohio
Date of Birth: July 12, 1971
Age: 26 years old
Race: White
Gender: Female
Height: 5'5"
Weight: 120 - 130 lbs.
Hair Color: Brown, long & curly
Eye Color: Blue/hazel
Distinguishing Marks/Features: Scar on her throat from a tracheotomy; frontal lobe damage; possible amnesia. Because of her brain damage from her accident, she sometimes forgot her real name and would go by the names Sarah Lindway or Sara Lindway. She has the mental capacity of a 15-year-old and may suffer from amnesia when she is under stress.
Dentals: Available
Fingerprints: Unknown
DNA: Unknown
Clothing: Green shirt with the Subway Sandwich logo imprinted on the front; black pants; black shoes
Jewelry: Unknown
Additional Personal Items: Unknown
Balas was last seen at 01:00 AM at Subway Shop on West 220th & Lorain Road, in Fairview Park, Ohio on November 26, 1996.
Stacey was involved in a serious automobile accident while a passenger in a Pontiac Fiero ,
in June of 1988
. A friend was backing out of a driveway and accidentally backed into a moving semi-trailer truck. Stacey was knocked unconscious at the scene and was taken to a local hospital. Once stabilized she was airlifted by Life Flight to Cleveland Metro Hospital. Her family was told that Stacey may not live through the night. She was in a coma for four weeks in intensive care, spending six weeks total in the hospital. Stacey had suffered severe physical injuries including frontal lobe damage.
When she awoke, Stacey was like an infant, and had to be retrained in every aspect of her life. Her family spent many hours working with her at home, assisting with detailed therapy, as well as time at the hospital.
In time, Stacey was able to go back to work though she struggled with the realization of how she was prior to the accident versus her present state.
Stacey's fiance' was working at a Subway Sandwich Shop and encouraged her to seek a position at another Subway Sandwich Shop nearby. She completed her training and then was transferred to the Fairview Subway Sandwich Shop in Fairview Park, Ohio. She had only worked there a few weeks until the night of November 25, 1996. Stacey was apprehensive about closing on the night shift because the Fairview Subway Shop had been broken into just a few weeks prior at a rear entrance during her shift and money had been taken.
On that night, Stacey's left work at 00:55 am, and told her supervisor that she was going home because she must return to work at 11.00 a.m. the same day. The next morning, Stacey's supervisor called her home because she did not come to work.
About 16:00 that afternoon, Fairview Park Police Department finds her Nissan Pathfinder in the parking lot of the Cleveland Motel , four blocks from her work. It was locked and the windows were rolled up. They checked throughout the motel and did not find a trace that Stacey had ever been inside. Stacey's purse was found inside the vehicle and nothing appeared to be missing. An extra set of keys and her bank book were in the glove box.
A credit card statement from British Petroleum indicated that Stacey's credit card was used three times since she was reported missing: On November 26, 1996, in Brooklyn, Ohio on Brookpark Road, on November 28 on Carnegie Avenue also in Brooklyn, Ohio, and on November 29, 1996 someone purchased gas on Fleet Avenue in Cleveland. The statement revealed the following three amounts: $10.01, $7.40, and $16.36.
In November 2005, Balas's manager at Subway, Larry Wade, confessed to her murder. He had been the prime suspect in her case from the beginning, and was convicted of raping another Ohio woman three months after Balas vanished. He was charged with aggravated murder, aggravated robbery and kidnapping in connection with Balas's disappearance. He stated he had strangled her and dumped her body in a trash bin.
Larry Wade was sentenced to 20 years to life in prison in May 2006.
Agency Name: North Ridgeville Police Department
Agency Contact Person: N/A
Agency Phone Number: 440-327-2191
Agency E-Mail: N/A
Agency Case Number: 96-5878
NamUs Case Number: 1664
NamUs
The Plain Dealer (Cleveland, OH) - Nov. 4 & Dec. 4, 2005
Added: Prior to 2011; Last Updated: 05/13/2024 - By: kc
Questions or comments? Please contact appropriate member of the Area Team
** Listed information is from the time of disappearance.
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