Linda Sue Hanoian Peterson
Peterson, circa 1978
- Missing Since 09/16/1978
- Missing From Murray, Utah
- Classification Endangered Missing
- Sex Female
- Race White
- Date of Birth 03/02/1949 (76)
- Age 29 years old
- Height and Weight 5'8, 130 pounds
- Clothing/Jewelry Description An orange maternity top and blue jeans.
- Medical Conditions Peterson was approximately five to six months pregnant at the time of her disappearance.
- Associated Vehicle(s) Station wagon
- Distinguishing Characteristics Caucasian female. Brown hair, green eyes. Peterson wears eyeglasses. Her ears are pierced and she has scar tissue on the inside of her mouth. She may use the last names Gustke and/or Hanoian.
Details of Disappearance
Peterson was last seen in Murray, Utah on September 16, 1978. Her husband stated she stopped by his workplace near 2100 South and 700 East to tell him she was going to Kentucky, in order to visit friends and would be in touch within ten days. She then rode away in a station wagon with two female friends; neither has been identified, but one of them was reportedly named Sue, Susan or Suzanne.
Peterson had little clothing or money with her, but did take a credit card. She apparently never arrived in Kentucky. She never got in touch with her husband or her mother, who lives in California, and has never been heard from again. Her husband reported her missing two weeks later, on September 30. Authorities stated Peterson had lived in Kentucky before, but only for four months, and that there was no known reason for her to have gone there.
For decades after Peterson's disappearance, authorities did not have a DNA sample for her to compare against unidentified remains, because she had been adopted. In 2025, the police were able to identify two biological siblings of hers and got DNA samples from them, which they hope might help find her.
She worked as a nurse at the University of Utah Hospital at the time of her disappearance. Her case remains unsolved.
Investigating Agency
- Murray Police Department 801-264-2673
Source Information
Updated 3 times since October 12, 2004. Last updated June 14, 2025; middle name and six pictures added, details of disappearance updated.