AZ AZ - Laurie 'Allison' Smith, 22, Tucson, 8 Feb 1977

[CarlK90245]

Karas sent me two more photos of Laurie, so I am posting them here:

 

[Karas]

This is probably not Allison, but she was the first unidentified female to come to mind when I saw her photo and the 1977 Date LKA.

She was found in Washington State a few months after Allison was last seen.

She looks alot like Allison, but Allison was a little shorter than this woman, and there is no reason to believe that she would end up in Snohomish County WA. Also, the authorities know who killed this girl. They just don't know who she was.

http://doenetwork.org/cases/516ufwa.html

Definitely not her. She had a tattoo of a pegasus on her shoulder, weighed about 120 lbs was 5'4".

 

[marycarney]

Lovely young lady...........

 

[Karas]

Can you try for a unicorn? I might have got it wrong.

it was a pegasus tattoo

 

[Karas]

Do you know where was the "route she was to have taken"?

yeah. She left from her home on Blacklidge in a rented blue maverick. She drove out west to her friend's house who lived way out of town. If I look at a map, I might remember the road, Ajo maybe? She left there with 200 lbs in the trunk. She likely took Speedway as the car was found in an apt complex on Country Club,near the the ex-landlord's house, which was in the 2200 block of Camilla. Whether she actually went to his house and drove the car to the complex herself, there's no way of knowing. Supposedly they found a hairbrush in the driveway of his home, but no one knows what happened to it, and no DNA in those days.

 

[Karas]

How updated is NamUs? I mean - I understand AZ has neglected to update the national database with the records of people who medically should not own guns. In the news Az seemed particularly unwilling to share that information nationally. Are they better at UID's?

@Carl never mind the unicorn, I'm sure it was a butterfly. The unicorn was probably a poster on the wall.

Not a butterfly or a unicorn, it was a pegasus. She also had a ring on her toe and a diamond and sapphire ring I had just given her as she was pulling out the driveway, wearing her glasses which was proof that she intended on coming home very soon. She wore contacts and didn't like being seen in glasses.

 

[CarlK90245]

Okay so I got a handful. I wish they had her dental charts or some sort of dental information on her page. I'd do anything to know if she had her wisdom teeth removed or not, that'd help me narrow it down quite a bit.

The only one I could find on namus that fit the circumstances that was also in Arizona was this one:
https://identifyus.org/en/cases/1979
The chances that this is her are ridiculously low.

So I instead thought about the Boise possibility, there are no UIDs matching her circumstances in Idaho, so maybe he dropped her off somewhere? So I then started checking UIDs on the way to Boise and found several who actually appeared to be dumped there. So here are those:

https://identifyus.org/en/cases/391
This one seems the most promising in my mind, she was found on the side of the road on I-15 (Which, on the drive to Boise, he would have been on).
Reasons why it might not be her:
It does say that her estimated year of death is 1979 (She was found in October 1979), AND it says that her estimated height is 5'4 and her weight was 127, BUT she was a "Partial skeletal parts only," I'm interested on how accurate all that information would be.

https://identifyus.org/en/cases/234
Here's another one found in Las Vegas. She was found in 2001 and there's no real evidence pointing that this is not Laurie.

I got some info on Laurie's dentals.

All four of Laurie's first bicuspids (5, 12, 21, and 28) were removed in preparation for braces that she wore when she was younger. She had fillings in three upper molars (3, 14, and 15), and fillings in two lower molars (19 and 30). All four wisdom teeth were present and impacted.

I put this together. This is how Laurie Smith's NamUs dental chart would look:

So based on that info, we can rule her out on all 3 of EmmaliLucia's possibles:

* UP1979 had an unrestored #15 (irreconcilable to the filling in Laurie's #15)

* UP391 had all four first biscupids, and no fillings in any upper molars.

* UP234 still had her upper first bicuspids #5 and #12. (the mandible of UP234 was not recovered)​

 

[Ricochet]

Hi Karas and welcome to the forum! I'm sorry for the loss of your sister...

I was actually going to post to this thread today, because I spoke with the Tucson Police Department yesterday.

I thought that I had posted newspaper links regarding the landlord and wife, but apparently no so here they are. It was a bizarre case as there were 2 hung jury's and one mistrial. The mistrial involved his lawyer chartering a plane to Mexico right before the trial which caused the mistrial. It appears after that they never pursued trying him again.. His wife that he allegedly killed was fearful for her life, and afraid that he might try and kill her.

https://bulk.resource.org/courts.gov/c/F2/435/435.F2d.1038.23502.23570.html


http://news.google.com/newspapers?i...AIBAJ&pg=2908,1982904&dq=elizabeth+mast&hl=en



http://news.google.com/newspapers?i...AIBAJ&pg=3060,2120568&dq=elizabeth+mast&hl=en



http://news.google.com/newspapers?i...AIBAJ&pg=3822,2047302&dq=elizabeth+mast&hl=en


http://news.google.com/newspapers?i...AIBAJ&pg=5582,2260435&dq=elizabeth+mast&hl=en

On May 14, 1965, she did execute a formal typewritten will in which her signature was attested and in which her husband received all income for life with the right to invade the principal.

7
Four days later on May 18, 1965, Mrs. Mast executed a Second Codicil to her holographic will. In this codicil she very positively revoked the formal attested will of May 14, 1965, and reaffirmed and republished the provisions of her original holographic will.3

8
She also, in this will, referred to the insurance policy in question in these words:

9
"During the past week I have also signed at the insistence of my husband a Power of Attorney and an application for an insurance policy with the Franklin Life Insurance Company whose local agent is Mr. Tracy Prater. "At my death, I assume the Power of Attorney will be null and void, which is my wish.

10
"The beneficiary of the insurance policy is listed as my husband, Chancey Lee Mast or C. Lee Mast. Since I was induced to sign this policy because of concern for the welfare and educational needs of the children, I would like to direct — and do so direct if at all legally possible — that the proceeds of this policy be distributed as follows: $5000 to my husband Chancey Lee Mast; the remainder to be considered a part of my estate to be used for payment of just expenses after which the remainder shall go into the body of the trust or trusts to be used for the benefit of my designated heirs."

11
On July 1, 1965, she executed a Third Codicil in which she republished her holographic will with the two prior codicils.4

12
In all of these handwritten instruments she had expressed fear for her own safety, her concern that she might die a death which had been made to look accidental, her fear of her husband, and her concern to provide for her children with a minimum of regard for her husband's participation in her estate. She died in an automobile accident on November 19, 1965. Her husband was indicted for murder but the charges were subsequently dismissed.

I do know that John, had contacted his daughter in regards to Allison. She was willing to speak with him, but could only give an opinion as she did not have much to do with him. I do feel bad for, the children, of this family, because it appears his implications into the death of their mother tore this family apart. I believe his son died years ago, and I don't think the sisters have much to do with one another either, and neither had contact with the dad.

On the phone the other day I could tell that she believed it to be
> possible, She didn't skip a beat when I told her about Allison's
> disappearance and I was quite sure she believed he killed her mother.
> She confirmed that she had heard "stories" about his getting involved
> with pot.

In regards to the insurance money he needed money because of debt/business had failed or was failing.

 

[Ricochet]

Karas, if you don't mind could you answer...

1.. Did you live in Tucson, too?

2.. Did you know about the bf John that was living with her at the time (poster jobrien above) ?

3.. Do you know who Greg Chandler is?

4.. Do you know how Allison came to be involved in transporting drugs for him?

 

[Karas]

With Ricochet's help, we found out two key bits of info. (1) Her middle name (and the name that she went by), was Allison. And (2), she was originally from Las Cruces, NM.

With that info, I was able to find her sophomore and junior year photos from the 1970 and 1971 Las Cruces High School yearbooks.

Here is another photo of her from the drama club (i.e., The "LCHS Thespians"). She looks quite different with glasses, but this appears to be the same person who appears in the portraits.

I am pretty sure that I have the right Laurie Smith (despite that it is a common name). The following article comes from the 11-Apr-1968 edition of the Las Cruces Sun News, and tells of the first place award she received from her Girl Scout group for her artwork. She is named using her full name (Laurie Allison Smith), and this corroborates that she lived near Las Cruces (in the city of Chapparal) at that time.

Laurie grew up in Las Cruces, never lived in Chapparal. She attended Alameda Elementary, Alameda Junior High for one year before we moved and then she went to Zia Junior High and Las Cruces High School, graduated in 1972. She moved to Tucson to go to U of A where our dad was a professor. She transferred to Pima County Community College where she was attending when she disappeared.

 

[Karas]

Ricochet
1. Yes I did at the time, I do not any longer
2. No I did not know about John and I lived next door to her when she disappeared. We shared a driveway, she was leaving in a rental car as I was pulling in and said she would be back later. It was the last time I saw her.
3. Yes I know who Greg Chandler is and what role he played in her disappearance. I have been in recent communication with him.
4. Yes, she transported marijuana for him to make money. She was to get $50 for the transactions. She knew buyers and he was a seller, except for the very last deal, in which he was the buyer. That was a red flag she didn't see.

 

[vermontaigne]

Ricochet
1. Yes I did at the time, I do not any longer
2. No I did not know about John and I lived next door to her when she disappeared. We shared a driveway, she was leaving in a rental car as I was pulling in and said she would be back later. It was the last time I saw her.
3. Yes I know who Greg Chandler is and what role he played in her disappearance. I have been in recent communication with him.
4. Yes, she transported marijuana for him to make money. She was to get $50 for the transactions. She knew buyers and he was a seller, except for the very last deal, in which he was the buyer. That was a red flag she didn't see.

This is certainly one of the most fascinating threads I've read here, because of John and Karas and Ricochet, and I hate to see it go cold. I've still got some questions. I'm unclear on the "undercover officer" sting. As I understand it, in that case she was delivering 200 lbs with the car of the designated buyer driving out front. When she disappears, she's off to purchase a similar amount, and the tire in the back seat suggests that it was moved to fill the trunk at the friend's way out west of Tucson. The car returns to the area to be discovered 10 months later with a seed in the trunk, but she's been missing this whole time. Is that correct, or have I misunderstood?

I find it odd, considering Karas shared a driveway, that she was unaware John was more or less living with her sister. John certainly seems to know something about Allison, recalling the tattoo (I can see how a pegasus might be recalled as butterly+unicorn), for example, and that he and Karas tried to get the police interested and get the info they developed to them.

It seems to me that it might be interesting to see the false summons. I wonder whether anyone recalls any other such episode from that area at that time. At any rate, it seems likely that the lead car driver might have been part of that sting. I agree with Karl that as far as motive goes, revenge is likely enough, but Mast might have been more utilitarian than just that. Is it possible that he tried to set up a repeat meeting with the people involved the prior time, representing to them that he thought Allison was to blame? Might he have been arranging some 'justice' for those people, to which Allison was a witness who had to be eliminated? Did he get his 200 lbs back, settle the score, use her as bait to do it?

I know that Pima County morgue is famous for being overwhelmed by all the remains of undocumenteds who've perished trying to pass into the US, and I imagine that any skeletal remains might get buried in there. It seems to me that, as Ricochet suggests, it's very unlikely she ever left Arizona. And if, as Karas recalls, Mast pulled up his stakes and moved to the Pacific Northwest soon after Allison went missing (I'm assuming that means before the rental Maverick was recovered), that suggests to me that he wasn't completely comfortable that his tracks were entirely covered, whether with regards to physical remains or possible witnesses. He might not have been particularly concerned about the police, either; he might have calculated in retrospect that whatever happened that day might have pissed off other drug dealers and decided to leave before they figured it out.

Very tantalizing that Ricochet has the name Greg Chandler, and Karas knows what it means in the context of this case. Will respect their choice not to share more than that, but it's good to have that included in this thread, in case someone at some time, recollecting and wondering, would search for those names together. It seems that Karas gave Allison a ring at the time she was departing, by coincidence. There's an oblong silver ring on her right hand in one of the pics that she supplied Karl, which could probably use some description, if she recalls.

It's good, too, that Karl has shared some of her dental info here, because NamUs is bugger-all, at least for public eyes, in this case.

 

[EmiLove832]

I find it odd, considering Karas shared a driveway, that she was unaware John was more or less living with her sister. John certainly seems to know something about Allison, recalling the tattoo (I can see how a pegasus might be recalled as butterly+unicorn), for example, and that he and Karas tried to get the police interested and get the info they developed to them.

I've been curious about Karas not knowing about John too. She reply in regards to John didn't indicate any concern over who he was?

Maybe Karas will come back and clarify for us?

 

[Ricochet]

I was just looking over this thread again and saw these posts and I think I can clarify a few things.

This is certainly one of the most fascinating threads I've read here, because of John and Karas and Ricochet, and I hate to see it go cold.

I don't think this case will ever be officially solved. I think all the parties involved, including the police, believe that she's dead. I think the police probably suspect the landlord is connected in her death but lack sufficient evidence to prove it.

I do know the landlord was questioned. He owned a construction company and Karas believes her sister was probably buried in a concrete foundation. Prior to his death Karas wanted the police to give him immunity in hopes that he'd disclose where her body was, but that request was denied.

I've still got some questions. I'm unclear on the "undercover officer" sting. As I understand it, in that case she was delivering 200 lbs with the car of the designated buyer driving out front.

According to Karas it didn't happen quite the way John remembered it, but it was partially true. Laurie went to meet a girl and her boyfriend (who was buying the pot), and this girl double crossed her bf by having another bf intercept the transaction. This girl was a "neighbor friend" of Karas's boyfriend at the time and she was also the one who determined the location of where the exchange was to take place. Months later they saw the disguised cop car at her house and that's how they learned it was her that did the ripoff.

They don't know if the landlord was ever told this or if he just didn't care.

When she disappears, she's off to purchase a similar amount, and the tire in the back seat suggests that it was moved to fill the trunk at the friend's way out west of Tucson. The car returns to the area to be discovered 10 months later with a seed in the trunk, but she's been missing this whole time. Is that correct, or have I misunderstood?

This is basically correct. While it's not communicated in the thread there are more people involved than just Laurie and the landlord. Apparently there had been another deal that had gone bad. I'm not sure if Laurie was part of that or not. Anyways, her job was to pickup and deliver the pot. No money was exchanged.

I find it odd, considering Karas shared a driveway, that she was unaware John was more or less living with her sister. John certainly seems to know something about Allison, recalling the tattoo (I can see how a pegasus might be recalled as butterly+unicorn), for example, and that he and Karas tried to get the police interested and get the info they developed to them.

This occurred almost 40 years ago and I think perceptions of time may have changed with the passing of time. Karas has no doubts that Laurie knew John. She thinks John may have lived with Laurie at her previous address. She also thinks it was her Mom that John met when she flew out from Las Cruces.

I agree with Karl that as far as motive goes, revenge is likely enough,

I'm not sure revenge would be the right word. The people involved, excluding Laurie, dealt large quantities of pot and two shipments had been lost.

but Mast might have been more utilitarian than just that. Is it possible that he tried to set up a repeat meeting with the people involved the prior time, representing to them that he thought Allison was to blame? Might he have been arranging some 'justice' for those people, to which Allison was a witness who had to be eliminated? Did he get his 200 lbs back, settle the score, use her as bait to do it?

I don't think it's that involved. I think it was basically retaliation for losing the pot. There were others whose lives were threatened.

Very tantalizing that Ricochet has the name Greg Chandler, and Karas knows what it means in the context of this case. Will respect their choice not to share more than that, but it's good to have that included in this thread, in case someone at some time, recollecting and wondering, would search for those names together. It seems that Karas gave Allison a ring at the time she was departing, by coincidence. There's an oblong silver ring on her right hand in one of the pics that she supplied Karl, which could probably use some description, if she recalls.

The police provided his name. He worked for Lee (landlord) in construction and had dated Laurie.

 

[Karas]

I'm happy to answer any questions. Ricochet and I are in touch and he frequents this list more often than I.
I was also in touch with John last spring. 36 years is a long time and challenging for our memories. I lived next door to my sister and although I didn't know a lot about what she did, I do know who was living with her at the time. John was a part of her life, but at a different time than when he remembers. And I do believe that he has confused meeting me with my mother. In recent years, she talked about a John O'brien, but I never knew who he was and she couldn't remember why she had his name. She is 84 and her memory is failing although she denies that. Las Cruces is a 4 hour drive east of Tucson. Mom went over sometime in the summer after I'd left Tucson to pick up my sister's belongings. Any investigating that she did with John is unknown to me. There is mention of Boise and phone calls and records. I was always under the impression that these were my sister's phone bills, not those of the landlord Lee Mast. My mother may have those at her home. Supposedly she has a box with all her records of conversations with the police and other miscellaneous paperwork from whatever investigating they did. I haven't seen it, but will check next time I go home.

Greg was the last known person to see her alive. They had dated previously and remained friends. I never suspected Greg because I thought he was her friend. I don't know if he was involved, but I think he knows more than he let on. He and a friend of his had done business with Lee. There were many deals that had gone sour and Lee was fed up with getting ripped off. As far as he was concerned, someone was going to pay. And he threatened the lives of Greg, his friend Paul and his family. Someone out there knows what happened to her. Lee couldn't have acted alone in this and there is no proof that he ever saw her after she left Greg's.

She had a rental car because hers had a dead battery and wasn't big enough to transport that amount of weed. The rental car was found at the end of the year where it had been sitting the whole time. It was a light blue Maverick, and her own car was a maroon Karman Ghia convertible, which mom has, and should be up for sale.

The ring she was wearing was a multi-diamond and sapphire ring that she had resized at a jewelers in Las Cruces. I had just driven home and brought it with me from mom as she was getting ready to leave. I had quite a few belongings of hers that I brought with me and she wanted the ring right then, to wear and said she'd get the rest of the stuff when she came back in a couple hours. The ring in the pictures of her is not this ring.

 

[vermontaigne]

As Karas has previously mentioned C. Lee Mast's several trials for the alleged murder of his wife, here's a pretty good discussion of the circumstances surrounding Mrs. Mast's death, for which you needn't pay newspapers.com.

 

[Tom Friendly]

Charllie Project has updated their page based on your information. How does one get NamUs to do the same?

http://www.charleyproject.org/cases/s/smith_laurie.html

 

[Roselvr]

Charllie Project has updated their page based on your information. How does one get NamUs to do the same?

http://www.charleyproject.org/cases/s/smith_laurie.html

Details of Disappearance - Smith was last seen in Tucson, Arizona on February 8, 1977. She lived with her boyfriend and attended Pima Community College; her family lived in Las Cruces, New Mexico.

Smith's former landlord, Chauncey Lee Mast, was a drug trafficker in 1977. He normally sold marijuana wholesale, but Smith occasionally sold it in small quantities for him. He would also occasionally give her $50 to drive out to remote locations and deliver large amounts of marijuana to buyers. On one such trip, Smith was robbed by thieves disguised as plainclothes police officers, who "confiscated" the drugs. When Smith told Mast about this, he vowed to get even with the persons responsible.

Several months later, on the day of her disappearance, Mast sent Smith out to receive large quantities of marijuana from a supplier in a remote area. This was her first such errand; previously, she had only delivered. Although Smith was very particular about her appearance, she wasn't dressed in her usual manner the day she vanished and she wore her glasses, not her contacts. She drove a rented blue Ford Maverick off at sunset and never returned.

Smith's maroon Karmann Ghia was found left behind at her apartment in the 1400 block of east Blackridge Drive, as were all her other belongings. In December 1977, the Ford Maverick she'd been driving was located about a block from the apartment she had previously rented from Mast. It had been parked there for months. The car's spare tire was in the backseat and there was a single marijuana seed in the trunk.

Twelve years before Smith vanished, Mast was charged with the murder of his wife. He was tried three times, but the twice the jury was unable to reach a verdict and one trial ended in a mistrial. Prosecutors decided not to try him a fourth time. He died in Oregon in 2011. It's never been proven he was involved in Smith's disappearance. Her case remains unsolved.

 

[Pink Panther]

Ancestry (Nevada Marriage Index) shows that he remarried in 1976:

Name: Chancey Lee Mast
Gender: Male
Residence State: Arizona
Spouse: Beatrice Ann Silverman
Spouse residence state: Arizona
Marriage Date: 25 Sep 1976
Marriage County: Clark
Officiant Type: Civil celebrant
Recorded Date: 1 Oct 1976
Recorded County: Clark
Book: 496
Page: B060353
Instrument number: 858677

 

[Pink Panther]

I can't trace his spouse. Has anyone else been able to? Karas, did you know he was married? Had you or your sister met his wife?