Missing for a decade, search continues

CENTER CITY - September 24, 2009 (WPVI) -- It's been a decade since the disappearance of Maria Procopio and police are still looking for answers.

35-year-old Maria Procopio was last seen 10 years ago today on surveillance video leaving her job at QVC in West Chester.

"It's very hard missing her. Each holiday's the same, each birthday's the same. We still feel the same way, it doesn't go away and it doesn't get any easier," Maria's sister Teresa Camino said.

Police found her car in Bridgeport. Her cell phone has been silent and her credit cards unused.

Early on, police sought the man seen in a video getting a videotape with Procopio's Blockbuster card the night before she disappeared.

Her sister contends he is the fiancé that Procopio planned to celebrate her October 1 birthday with in the Poconos.

"We still wonder, what does he know? What isn't he sharing with us? Why isn't he forthcoming to help us find her?" Camino said.

Lt. Frank Vanore of the Philadelphia Police helped investigate the case as the sergeant in the Missing Persons Unit. He says the leads quickly went cold in Maria Procopio's case, but it's still featured on the police website with other long term missing persons cases.

"It's definitely disturbing. It's something where we think she came upon some foul play. We haven't found any proof of that," Vanore said.

Vanore says there's always hope. With evolving technology, police say a tiny detail could lead to answers.

Maria's sister says that would help soothe the ache left by the disappearance of her only sibling.

"In my heart, I still feel as though she might not be here, but because of our faith we always feel like she's always going to be around us, always going to be embracing us, looking out for us, and I know she wants to come home to her family," Camino said.

The family says knowing what happened would bring them some peace and closure. They are still offering a $10,000 reward for information leading to the discovery of their loved one.

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