Danyel was last seen inside her family's residence in the 1900 block of Manzanita Way in West Sacramento, California on November 2, 1985. Her mother, Cynthia Mullennix Sparpana, was found deceased by police inside the residence on November 5; she had been dead for two or three days. Cynthia was the victim of a violent homicide. None of Danyel's belongings were missing from their home, except for her coat; she may have been wearing it when she disappeared. There were reported sightings of her wandering around the neighborhood between the time her mother was killed and the time the body was discovered. She has never been heard from again. Lionel Ernest Tholmer Jr. was named as the prime suspect in the Sparpanas' cases shortly afterwards. He had been an acquaintance of the family and sometime boyfriend of Cynthia's.