Russell Bovit

• Missing Since 05/06/1986
• Missing From Walden, Vermont
• Classification Endangered Missing
• Sex Male
• Race White
• Date of Birth 09/24/1955 (69)
• Age 30 years old
• Height and Weight 5'11 - 6'1, 155 - 165 pounds
• Clothing/Jewelry Description Possibly jeans or work clothes.
• Associated Vehicle(s) Light blue 1974 Renault (accounted for)
• Distinguishing Characteristics Caucasian male. Brown hair, blue eyes. Bovit may have a mustache. He had bleeding warts on both of his hands at the time of his disappearance. Bovit has a surgical scar at the base of his spine as the result of a polytoid cyst removal. His nickname is Russ and some agencies refer to him by that name.

Details of Disappearance

Bovit was last seen on his dairy farm, Last Resort Farm, in Walden, Vermont. Two acquaintances saw him watching television in his house at approximately 9:00 p.m. on May 6, 1986. It is not believed that he was carrying any identification or jewelry with him at the time.

Bovit has never been heard from again. He was missed when he did not show up for an 8:00 a.m. appointment the next day; he was supposed to talk to a real estate agent about purchashing a condominium in Stowe, Vermont. His disappearance was reported to police on May 11, five days after he was last seen.

The day after Bovit vanished, his light blue 1974 Renault was found stuck in the mud on a dirt road approximately four miles from his residence. An acquaintance of Bovit found the car and stated it did not appear as if anyone had made a serious effort to get it free from the mud. There was no sign of Bovit anywhere near the vehicle and none of his personal belongings were inside.

Blood was found in the trunk of the car and in its passenger side. Blood was also found on Bovit's mattress; it had been turned over to hide the stains. Testing proved that the blood on the mattress and the blood in the car came from the same person.

Bovit left behind a large sum of money, as well as all of his clothing, his wallet, his credit cards, and all his other personal belongings when he vanished. He disappeared just twelve days before he was supposed to move away from his farm. He sold the farm to his ex-girlfriend, who was its original owner; she had sold it to him in 1979.

Garth Drew was convicted of murdering a man who was killed a few months before Bovit disappeared. While he was in prison, Drew told investigators Bovit's body had been placed in a U-Haul trailer and dumped in Lake Willoughby. Investigators searched the lake using a two-man submersible, but found no evidence and Drew was never charged in connection with Bovit's disappearance. He was released from prison in 2001.

Authorities believe Bovit was murdered, but they do not think robbery was the motive. His parents hired private detectives after his disappearance; the detectives believe Bovit was killed by a man who died three months later and that drugs were involved. Bovit did not use drugs or drink alcohol at the time of his disappearance. He is described as an excellent mountain climber and skier. He was a part-time student at Lyndon State College when he disappeared. His case remains unsolved.