A 35-year-old woman who vanished more than a year ago has resurfaced in Arkansas—only to be arrested moments later after walking into a gas station and asking staff to call the police.
Tori Milsak, who was reported missing in June 2024, showed up at a convenience store in Little Rock around 3 p.m. last Thursday. According to ABC affiliate KATV, she told employees she had a warrant out for her arrest and asked them to contact authorities.
Police arrived shortly after and took her into custody. She is now being held at the Garland County Detention Center. While the specific reason for her arrest hasn’t been officially confirmed, court records reviewed by The U.S. Sun reveal Milsak faced charges of breaking or entering and first-degree criminal mischief prior to her disappearance.
On Friday, Milsak’s attorney appeared in court on her behalf.
Her brother, Jason Hamel, expressed shock and relief upon learning that she was still alive. “I’d been told multiple times she might have been murdered,” he said. “Hope was lost. You hold onto that 1% chance, and she’s that 1%.”
Hamel explained that Tori distanced herself from family in 2023 following the death of their sister in a motorcycle accident. The emotional toll was severe. Suffering from PTSD, Milsak reportedly struggled to cope after Hamel and their father made the decision to remove their sister from life support.
Their final conversation still haunts him. “She sounded upset,” Hamel recalled. “I told her I didn’t have time for her crap. She said, ‘I’m sorry. I love you. I’ll call in a week.’ And I never heard from her again.”
Milsak was last seen in Hot Springs, about an hour from Little Rock. Her sudden reappearance has raised even more questions. Hamel said he’s anxious to understand what really happened during the past year. “Was she held against her will? I want to see her and make sure she’s OK.”
A friend of Milsak has since launched a GoFundMe to help cover legal expenses and potential treatment costs, noting that her charges date back to before she went missing. The fundraiser aims to support both her legal defense and efforts to place her in a mental health or substance abuse program.
“There’s still a lot of unanswered questions,” Hamel wrote online. “This isn’t over, and Tori will need all the support she can get to tell her story.”
