In a case that has gripped Fort Worth, Texas, and sent shockwaves through the airline community, the mysterious disappearance and presumed murder of 47-year-old flight attendant Rana Nofal Soluri has unfolded into a chilling tale of betrayal, technology, and desperate cover-ups. What began as a missing person’s inquiry in June 2025 has since evolved into a high-profile criminal investigation, with two suspects now facing charges and investigators still searching for Soluri’s body.
Soluri, who worked for Envoy Air, a subsidiary of American Airlines, was last seen in March 2025. Just a week before she vanished, she had purchased a brand-new 2023 Mazda, a detail that later played a role in the unraveling of the case. As reported by CBS News, Soluri’s co-worker grew concerned after her text messages abruptly ceased on March 19 and she failed to return to work after a minor surgery. The alarm was finally raised on June 11, 2025, when the co-worker contacted Fort Worth police to report her missing.
The investigation quickly focused on Soluri’s living situation. She had been sharing a home with Dennis William Day, a 66-year-old retiree, for about a year. When police initially questioned Day, he claimed to have no idea where Soluri had gone, maintaining that she had simply left her belongings behind. Another resident in the house echoed his story. But as the weeks passed, detectives grew suspicious, especially after being called to Day’s house in early May to tow Soluri’s new Mazda, which had been sitting unused for weeks.
Detectives obtained a warrant for Soluri’s cell phone records, which revealed that her last outgoing call was made on March 21. The breakthrough came on June 23, when police searched Day’s home and reviewed surveillance footage from the night of March 21. According to NBC5 and the Fort Worth Star-Telegram, the video showed Day dragging what appeared to be a lifeless body from the home into the backyard at 10:11 p.m.
Faced with mounting evidence, Day eventually confessed to police. He admitted that he and Soluri had argued in the kitchen, and when she began filming him and threatened to call the police, he “snapped.” As outlined in police documents cited by WHNT, Day strangled Soluri on the kitchen floor. Realizing the security cameras had recorded the incident, he disconnected them, placed Soluri’s body in a trash bin, and called his friend Joni Thomas for help.
Thomas, a 62-year-old from Texas, arrived at Day’s home in her pickup truck. The two then allegedly drove 65 miles to Bowie, Texas, where they disposed of Soluri’s body by throwing it over a bridge. Investigators believe they also discarded Soluri’s phone and handgun—her gun was later recovered from a storm drain on a major highway, according to Daily Mail.
Initially, Thomas denied any involvement. She told police that Day had not used her truck and that she was unaware of what had happened. However, her story began to unravel due to a technological mishap that would become the linchpin of the case—a so-called “butt dial.”
During the investigation, detectives discovered a voicemail on Thomas’ phone that had been accidentally recorded. In the recording, a male and a female voice could be heard straining to move a heavy object. The male voice, which police identified as Day’s, is heard saying, “Hey … help me,” “Make sure the lid’s on,” and “I’m sorry I got you messed up in this.” The audio, described in detail by People and Fox 4, provided prosecutors with direct evidence of the attempt to conceal Soluri’s body and tied Thomas to the crime scene.
Under pressure from the evidence, Thomas admitted that Day had used her truck and that she had been with him during the drive to Bowie, although she claimed to have fallen asleep for part of the journey. On August 26, 2025, she was arrested and charged with tampering with evidence, as confirmed by online jail records and NBC5. Thomas was later released on bond, while Day remains in the Tarrant County Jail on a $200,000 bond, awaiting his next court date.
Despite the confessions and the damning voicemail, Soluri’s body has not been found as of September 9, 2025. Investigators continue to search the area near Bowie where Day claimed to have disposed of her remains, but the lack of physical evidence has left the case open and Soluri’s family in agony. Her sister, speaking to NBC 5 DFW, described the emotional toll: “It’s torture. Every other day I dream or hope that maybe she has fallen, lost her memory—something.”
The case has also highlighted the role of technology in modern investigations. The accidental voicemail, or “butt dial,” not only broke Thomas’s alibi but also provided a rare audio window into the immediate aftermath of a crime. As New York Post and WHNT reported, the recording captured the suspects’ panic and desperation as they attempted to cover their tracks—an inadvertent confession that proved more damning than any direct statement to police.
The investigation has also revealed troubling details about the events leading up to Soluri’s death. According to police documents cited by Fox 4, Soluri had sent a video to a coworker on March 19, which captured a man yelling and showed her handgun. This video, paired with Day’s eventual confession, painted a picture of a volatile household and escalating tensions that ultimately ended in tragedy.
Authorities have stated they are not looking for any additional suspects. The focus now is on finding Soluri’s remains and preparing the cases against Day and Thomas for trial. Both suspects’ attorneys have not responded to media requests for comment, and the community remains on edge as the investigation continues.
For now, the disappearance of Rana Nofal Soluri remains a painful mystery, her family and friends left with unanswered questions and the hope that justice will eventually be served. The case stands as a stark reminder of how even the smallest technological slip can upend the best-laid plans—and how, in the end, the truth has a way of coming to light, even if by accident.
