Robinson's boyfriend, Christopher Michael Phillips, told authorities that she left their residence in Homestead, Florida to walk to work on May 10, 1993 at approximately 3:30 p.m. The couple resided on southwest 308th Street with several roommates. They had been living in the Miami, Florida area for three months on May 10, but had only been residing in their current home for two days by the time Robinson disappeared. Robinson was employed at Todd's Restaurant at 197th Street and South Dixie Highway. Phillips stated that she was carrying her work uniform at the time she went missing. The manager at Todd's Restaurant told authorities that Robinson never arrived at work. She left two paychecks and mail unclaimed at the business. Phillips reported her as a missing person on May 11, one day after Robinson's disappearance.

Robinson moved to Florida in 1992 with Phillips and other friends from her hometown of Burlington, North Carolina. Phillips allegedly abused Robinson at the time. Robinson's mother stated that Phillips promised her daughter they could make a substantial amount of money in the Miami area. He apparently planned to find employment in the roofing industry. Robinson's mother said that the couple often had problems and her daughter returned to North Carolina twice; once in December 1992 and again in May 1993 shortly before her disappearance. Robinson's mother said that Phillips drove to North Carolina to bring her daughter back to Florida the final time she returned to her family's home. Robinson told her mother she was in love with Phillips and always reconciled with him after the allegedly abusive incidents.

Robinson's father, who resided in Oklahoma in 1993, told investigators that his daughter attempted to call him collect at approximately 1:30 a.m. on May 11, which was the time her restaurant shift would have ended for the night. Her father stated that he did not accept the charges and never spoke to Robinson, saying they had a phone conversation several days earlier. Her father also said that other family members ran up a large long distance phone bill at the time, preventing him from accepting his daughter's call. Authorities said that Robinson's father never heard his daughter's voice during the call and it is not known if she actually placed the call to Oklahoma.

Robinson's mother said that her daughter called and said she was coming two or three days before her May 10 disappearance. Robinson asked her attorney in North Carolina to forward an insurance settlement check worth more than $7,000 to Todd's Restaurant in Homestead. Robinson's roommates in Florida reportedly told law enforcement officials that she said she planned to return to North Carolina after the check arrived.

Authorities reopened Robinson's case in 2000. Her mother provided a DNA sample to be compared with an unidentified female victim located in Florida after Robinson's disappearance, but the results did not match. Authorities located Phillips in North Carolina. He married and had three children with his wife by 2000. Phillips's wife told investigators that he abused her and he had mentioned abusing Robinson in the early 1990s. Phillips's wife requested admittance to a women's shelter the day after she initially spoke to authorities. Phillips was arrested on charges of domestic violence shortly thereafter. He maintained his innocence in the case filed by his wife and also told authorities that he was not involved in Robinson's 1993 disappearance.

Investigators noted that Phillips had access to a vehicle while living in Florida with Robinson, but he allowed her to walk to work the day she vanished. Phillips claimed that he often picked Robinson up after her shift ended at Todd's Restaurant, saying the business was located in a dangerous section of Homestead. Other witnesses told authorities that Robinson often called for a ride from a pay phone located outside a nearby convenience store while residing in Florida.

Phillips married after Robinson disappeared and had several children. In July 2006, Phillips was arrested in North Carolina and charged with murder in connection with Robinson's case. Authorities have not detailed the evidence against him. He is awaiting trial. In media interviews, Phillips stated he never abused Robinson and did not murder her. He said he believed she may have been murdered by a serial killer.

Robinson was previously employed in the housekeeping industry prior to her disappearance. She is a graduate of Southern Middle School and Graham High School, and she enjoys modern dance. Police initially believed she left of her own accord, but now foul play is suspected in Robinson's disappearance.