Mary’s Hammond’s family is holding onto hope they will one day get answers. The 25-year-old was newly married when, early on the morning on Sept. 8, 1983, she vanished while walking to work. No one has heard from Mary since that day. The Brantford Police Service revealed in 2022 that investigators had identified a suspect in her disappearance. Despite that big development in the case, Mary’s remains were never found. Disappearance in 1983 On Sept. 8, 1983, Hammond left her Elgin Street townhouse around 3:30 a.m. for her shift at the Buns Master Bakery on Morton Avenue. When she didn’t show up, a coworker called her husband around 4 a.m. Police followed Mary’s footprints to a field, near the back of the bakery, which she would cut across to get to work. It was there that officers lost track of her movements. Some of the items from her lunch, including a cup, dish and half-eaten apple were left nearby. One of Mary’s white socks and a small quantity of blood were also found. Days later, on Sept. 11, 1983, officers carried out a search warrant at a home on Memorial Drive. All the evidence collected remained in police custody for the next four decades. “Mary’s disappearance left our communities shaken with more questions than answers,” Rob Davis, the former Brantford Police chief, said at a press conference on June 8, 2022. Suspect identified through DNA The Brantford Police Service also announced in 2022 that Steven Mudko had been identified as a suspect in Hammond’s abduction and presumed murder. “Through the historical evidence and advancements in mitochondrial DNA analysis, we were able to forensically link Mary Hammond to a man believed to be responsible,” Staff Sgt. Keith Tollar explained at the press conference. Mudko, who was 36 years old at the time of Mary’s disappearance, lived in a home on Memorial Drive. Investigators believed he acted alone. “We’re releasing a historical photograph of Steven Mudko in hopes it may trigger someone’s memory to provide additional information,” Tollar said in 2022. Mudko died in 2010. Police said, if he were alive today, he would have been charged with both abduction and first-degree murder. “We think he may have known the family loosely, but there was no intimate connection,” Tollar explained. Family still seeking closure Mary’s family is haunted by her disappearance. “I fear we will never know what happened to Mary,” said her husband Larry in 2022. “Her absence leaves a deep wound.” Those who knew her, he added, “lost a little sunshine.” While the identification of a suspect brought some relief to her family, they are still seeking full closure. “We have searched and hoped for answers,” Larry said. A tree was planted and plaque installed in Brantford’s Mohawk Park as a tribute to Mary’s memory. “She was an amazing aunt to have when we were growing up,” niece Brenda Wilson told CTV News in late 2025. “I had two sisters with me, and she used to come over and play with us all the time.” Wilson described her aunt as fun-loving, creative and determined. “She was really tough and a really confident, strong person and just beautiful inside and out.” Wilson said the day she disappeared changed everything for the family. “I remember being really upset at how close she was to work. She was so close, like it was just within a block.” For decades, they held out hope while also grappling with uncertainty. “I just remember telling my friends, and all of them seeing it on the news and I said, ‘Did you see the news last night? That was my aunt that disappeared,’” Wilson recalled. “It was very surreal.” The family’s greatest wish, she added, was to recover Mary’s remains and lay her to rest. “All that time of not having any closure, that’s the big thing, is that she hasn’t been found,” Wilson said. “That’s what we want to happen through keeping her memory alive.” She refuses to give up. “I actually wrote a song about it two years ago on International Women’s Day,” Wilson explained. “I just took out a piece of paper, and I started writing, and it just came right out of me. I called it, ‘Never Walk Alone.’ I still am working on it. It would definitely be good to get it out there.” Investigation remains open Detectives believe there are still people out there who have information related to the disappearance of Mary Hammond. They said it’s never too late to reach out. A dedicated tip line has been set for the Mary Hammond investigation at 519-756-7050, ext. 2592, or email HammondDisappearance@police.brantford.on.ca. This is part of an ongoing series dedicated to cold and unsolved cases in southwestern Ontario. More stories can be found at Unsolved 519.
