Missing in Shanghai: The Mysterious Disappearance of Darya Bulba
In August 2016, 21-year-old Ukrainian born model Darya Bulba vanished off the streets of Shanghai, China. Nearly a decade later, her baffling disappearance remains a mystery
Background
Shanghai, China, is one of the most monitored cities on Earth. Millions of CCTV cameras observe every street, transport system, bar, home, restaurant, and public space, making violent crimes and public attacks very rare.
Yet, somehow, in a city that watches everyone, Darya Bulba, a 21-year-old Ukrainian model, vanished in Shanghai in August 2016 and has never been seen or heard from since.
Who was Darya Bulba?
Darya Bulba was born on September 25th, 1995, in Odesa, Ukraine. She was born into a tight-knit and supportive family with her parents and sister. Darya was creative and loved music so much that she sang and learned to play the guitar, but it seems her true passion was modeling, and it is modeling that she decided to pursue.
Besides being creative, Darya was also described as practical and responsible, and after high school, she studied at the Odessa College of Hotel Management whilst training to be a model, and was eventually able to turn modeling into a career.
Move to Shanghai
By her early twenties, Darya had travelled to several countries for modeling work, as opportunities were scarce at home. In 2016, she moved to China to work for a Shanghai-based modeling agency.
"Dasha went to Shanghai three times. Twice she had three-month contracts, and then she was lucky enough to sign a year-long one. She loved Shanghai, loved the exotic atmosphere. My sister even learned to speak Chinese and spoke perfect English. We talked almost every day. Dasha talked about her life and seemed pleased with everything," - Dasha's sister, Ekaterina Lishchinskaya
Although modeling was her passion, her life in Shanghai was somewhat modest; she shared living quarters with other models and lived paycheck to paycheck, but she always remained in touch with her family, frequently keeping them updated concerning her work and personal plans. Friends described Darya as warm, friendly, and sociable.
Disappearance
On Friday, August 5, 2016, a severe storm hit Shanghai, and Darya spoke with her mother, reassuring her that she was okay; Darya told her mother about her work plans, and how she would be travelling for a photoshoot over the coming weekend, and that she might be out of contact for a while due to the roaming charges.
Because of this, her family did not initially become concerned when they were unable to reach her the following day. However, when they were unable to make contact with her on Sunday, August 7, they began to worry.
When they contacted her roommates, one of them said she hadn't returned home, and, more disturbingly, it was revealed that Darya hadn’t left that weekend for work; instead, she had left to meet someone.
Hours turned into days of no contact, so her family contacted the Ukrainian consulate, which then alerted the local police.
One of the last confirmed sightings of Darya was in the early hours of August 6th. CCTV cameras recorded Darya walking near the Oriental Pearl Tower along the embankment between 5 and 6 a.m.
The cameras captured her lightly dancing as she walked, wearing a pink dress, carrying a black bag, and wearing headphones. Her demeanor seemed calm, even happy; she was then seen entering a short walkway - one of the few areas not covered by surveillance.
After that, she was never seen again.
Investigation
Darya's last online activity was on the morning of her disappearance, on her social media account, but after that, all digital traces stopped. Shanghai police confirmed that Darya had not left China, as trains and airports were checked; they also checked hospitals and even morgues, but Darya was nowhere to be found.
According to Darya’s relatives, the Shanghai police did not initially make an effort to investigate the disappearance. It was only when Darya’s father arrived in Shanghai and contacted Ukrainian diplomats, who issued a Note of Protest, that the Shanghai authorities began searching for her.
Darya’s father, after insistence from the Ukrainian diplomats, was allowed to view the CCTV footage of Darya's last movements. The CCTV apparently clearly showed Darya walking down the street and along the embankment, where she boarded a Shanghai public transport boat.
She is then seen departing the boat on the other side and walking towards her home. The next shot showed an empty street. Darya had found herself in one of the few blind spots, away from CCTV, and it was there that her trail stopped.
Theories
The authorities suggest that if Darya were alive, the millions of CCTV cameras (equipped with facial recognition technology) would have detected her, but no alerts or recognition were found. One theory was that Darya had accidentally drowned - this is mainly due to her behavior captured on CCTV before she disappeared.
Investigators theorized that Darya may have been under the influence, due to her dancing along the street, and the location, which was near a body of water. Police were aware of Darya and some substance issues, with some friends and colleagues confirming that she had struggled with these types of issues previously.
There were a few videos showing her being intoxicated, but her family rejected the idea that she was under the influence of anything that would have caused her to fall in the water and drown. Darya loved her life, and though modeling was a bit of a struggle financially, she loved her chosen career and was even awaiting payment for one of her modeling gigs.
Divers searched nearby waterways, but nothing was found, not a body, not an item of clothing, or any of her personal belongings - her sister acknowledged that if Darya did fall into the water and drown, something would have surfaced to prove this theory, but nothing ever did.
There have been several theories as to why Darya disappeared, and many people who have followed the case believe she was kidnapped; Shanghai does have a history of human trafficking, which has fueled speculation that she may have been abducted and forced into exploitation.
Darya is said to have been spotted in a nightclub a few months after her disappearance by a fellow model, according to online sources - it’s claimed that the woman (thought to be Darya) appeared disorientated before being quickly escorted away by two men, however there is no evidence that this was a confirmed sighting, and the police did not pursue or verify the claim.
Mysterious Caller
In the days leading up to her disappearance, Darya’s phone records showed regular calls from an unknown number. Friend and roommate Alexandra Morozova told police that an unknown person had repeatedly called and arranged meetings with Darya at a hotel, but never showed up.
Online speculation has named some supposed acquaintances and possible romantic partners, but none of these claims, or the people involved, have ever been confirmed by the police, nor has any specific individual been identified as a suspect.
The same online speculation references CCTV clips of Darya in a hotel lobby before she disappeared, but no mainstream news outlets or official investigators have ever confirmed that this footage exists - the only verified footage is from the cameras that show Darya walking along the embankment before entering a blind spot.
Darya, who was tall and slender with long brown hair, had many admirers, according to her family, but she didn't have a boyfriend due to her desire to be independent. According to one theory, a former boyfriend may have called her the night before her disappearance on August 5th, but the police didn’t attempt to verify the area or the phone number from which the call came.
According to one online source that cites Darya’s sister, she believed whoever was calling Darya to meet up at the hotel was actually doing so in order to see how long it would take her to arrive at a certain place, perhaps the place where no CCTV was available - but this person has never been identified, nor the theory confirmed.
Where is Darya?
The vanishing of their daughter prompted Darya’s parents to travel to Shanghai to push for answers, but despite the cooperation between Chinese authorities and the Ukrainian embassy, more questions than answers remained. A decade later, and still no one - not friends, family, or investigators knows if Darya is alive or dead.
To this day, what happened to Darya Bulba remains a mystery.
Sources:
“Where Is Daria? Ukrainian Model Vanished Without A Trace In Shanghai.” Evil Is Near, Uploaded 18 October 2023, https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=meoEeB5sZfQ
Yu, Ran. “Report of missing model investigated.” China Daily, 16 August 2016, https://covid-19.chinadaily.com.cn/china/2016-08/16/content_26488094.htm
”A Ukrainian model has disappeared under strange circumstances in Shanghai.” Info Resist, 27 December 2016, https://inforesist.org/v-shanhae-pri-strannyih-obstoyatelstvah-propala-ukrainskaya-model/
Glacheva, Galina. “Who is Daria Bulba, who disappeared in broad daylight in Shanghai?”16 June 2023, https://lady.mail.ru/article/527222-darya-bulba/