NASSAU COUNTY, Fla. — A decades-old mystery that spans continents is getting renewed attention after a recent arrest in Northeast Florida.
Tina Grogan and her two sons, 6-year-old Dale Jr. and 4-year-old Stephon, disappeared from a U.S. Army base in Würzburg, Germany, in November 1992. Now, more than 30 years later, new information stemming from an arrest in Nassau County has led to the reopening of their case.
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The U.S. Army Criminal Investigation Division (CID) is offering a $15,000 reward for credible information that leads to an arrest and conviction in connection with their disappearance or death.
“This is a snapshot of the cold case victims,” said Ryan Backmann, founder of Project: Cold Case. “Since then, it’s grown to over 1,800 victims, and there’s so many they can’t all fit on this banner.”
Grogan’s niece, Arielle Garcia, said the family never got answers.
“He never reported them missing. Or her running away,” Garcia said.
Grogan’s husband, Dale Grogan, was stationed in Germany at the time. He was later discharged from the military and moved to Jacksonville. Her sister, Shannon Ballenger, described Tina’s relationship with Dale - her high school sweetheart - as rocky.
“It would’ve been a blessing to have my sister, and to love her kids and for her to meet my kids and love my kids,” Ballenger said.
In January 2025, Dale Grogan was arrested by the Nassau County Sheriff’s Office for traveling to meet a minor. That arrest caught the attention of the Army CID Cold Case Unit, which then reopened the long-dormant disappearance case.
“No, he has not been arrested or charged with the disappearance,” said Ryan Backmann, with Project: Cold Case. “But he was picked up in Nassau County in January for another offense, which is what seems to have started the ball rolling. He made some statements, is my understanding, after his arrest that were enough to get the Army to reopen the investigation into Tina and the boys’ disappearance.”
For Ballenger, the pain has never faded — but neither has her determination to find the truth.
“Lord have mercy. Lord have mercy on his soul,” she said.
Project: Cold Case has helped families across nearly every state in the U.S. find answers and keep unsolved cases alive in the public eye.
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