Elizabeth Ann Allen

Allen, circa 1980; 1971 Ford Thunderbird

  • Missing Since 01/20/1980
  • Missing From El Paso, Texas
  • Classification Endangered Missing
  • Sex Female
  • Race White
  • Date of Birth 10/13/1924 (100)
  • Age 55 years old
  • Height and Weight 5'3 - 5'4, 105 - 125 pounds
  • Clothing/Jewelry Description A gold and opal ring and a silver watch.
  • Distinguishing Characteristics Caucasian female. Red hair, green eyes. Allen's nickname is Beth. Her maiden name is McDonald. Allen's ears are pierced and she has a smallpox vaccination scar on her upper left arm. She wears eyeglasses for reading.

Details of Disappearance

Allen was last seen at her home in El Paso, Texas on January 20, 1980. She lived in a second-floor apartment at Fountain Plaza on the west side of the city; she was an assistant manager there and also managed three other apartment complexes.

Between 10:30 and 11:00 a.m., she spoke to her sister on the phone. She may have also had breakfast that day with an unidentified man who had been her date to an awards dinner a few nights before. She has never been heard from again. She left no note behind at home, and hadn't told her loved ones of any travel plans.

On January 24, Allen's white 1971 Ford Thunderbird with suicide doors and the Texas license plate number MNL-431 was found near San Bernardino, California. Photographs of a similar vehicle are posted with this case summary.

Some receipts were inside the vehicle, all of them for charges made to Allen's husband's credit card. He had died two years before. Whoever made the charges forged Allen's husband's signature. The receipts were for gas stations in New Mexico and northern Arizona.

Allen was born in Cleburne, Texas and had four sons. Three of her sons have died in the years following her disappearance; the surviving one lives in California. Her sister is also still alive and looking for her. Investigators believe Allen was abducted, but little evidence is available in her case.

Investigating Agency

  • El Paso Police Department 915-564-7010

Source Information

Updated 3 times since October 12, 2004. Last updated December 13, 2019; clothing/jewelry description added.