Lillian Elizabeth Richey

Richey, circa 1964

  • Missing Since 02/09/1964
  • Missing From Nampa, Idaho
  • Classification Endangered Missing
  • Sex Female
  • Race White
  • Date of Birth 03/30/1912 (112)
  • Age 51 years old
  • Height and Weight 5'2, 118 pounds
  • Clothing/Jewelry Description Possibly a black cocktail dress.
  • Distinguishing Characteristics Caucasian female. Blonde hair, blue eyes. Richey has a scar on her abdomen and a scar on her neck. Her ears are pierced. She may use her maiden name, Wohlander.

Details of Disappearance

Richey was last seen at her home in the 300 block of Sherman Avenue in Nampa, Idaho on February 9, 1964.

The night before, she had visited a nightclub in Garden City, Idaho with a man who was visiting Boise, Idaho from California. They took Richey's car home and he dropped her off sometime between 1:30 and 2:00 a.m. on February 9, then drove away in her vehicle back to where he was staying in Boise. A neighbor saw lights on in Richey's kitchen; she was a widow and lived alone.

At 11:00 a.m., Richey's friend from the previous night arrived at her home to return her car. He had brought another man with him; they had been invited to have breakfast with her. When they knocked on the door, no one answered. The door was open and the two men went inside, verified there was no one in the house, and left a note before leaving.

Richey has never been heard from again. She was reported missing at 4:00 p.m. the next day, after she failed to show up for her shift at Bullock's Jewelry at noon. An extensive search of the area turned up no indication of her whereabouts.

When they checked the house, police found the evening wrap she had worn to the nightclub hanging in her closet, but the black cocktail dress she'd worn was missing. A black evening purse, a green and brown plaid dress, a short white cloth coat, a large black purse with brass fittings and a book titled A Man Named Peter was also missing. Nothing else had been taken, not even toiletries, and nothing was out of place.

Richey had planned to visit her son, who lived in Moscow, Idaho, later that month; police found the plane tickets she'd purchased for the visit in her house.

The two men who went to Richey's house on the morning of February 9 were questioned closely by police; they cooperated fully with the investigation and were cleared as suspects. Authorities aren't sure what caused Richey to disappear. In 1967, one of her sons petitioned to have her declared legally dead.

Investigating Agency

  • Nampa Police Department 208-465-2257

Updated 2 times since October 12, 2004. Last updated February 25, 2019; picture added, details of disappearance updated.