CA CA - Dale Eugene Kelley, 22, Carmichael, 20 May 1981

[MadMcGoo]

Missing Person / NamUs #MP5667
Dale Eugene Kelley, Male, White / Caucasian
​

Name: Dale Eugene Kelley
Case Classification: Endangered Missing
Missing Since: May 20, 1981
Location Last Seen: Carmichael, Sacramento County, California

Physical Description
Date of Birth: February 15, 1960
Age: 21 years old
Race: White
Gender: Male
Height: 5'10"
Weight: 165 lbs.
Hair Color: Brown
Eye Color: Green
Nickname/Alias: Unknown
Distinguishing Marks/Features: 1 inch scar on his left knee, Had perfect teeth (father was a dentist)

Identifiers
Dentals: Available
Fingerprints: Not Available
DNA: Available

Clothing & Personal Items
Clothing: He was wearing a yellow tank top, a medium-sized shirt, Brittania jeans and white high-top Converse tennis shoes at the time of his disappearance.

Circumstances of Disappearance
Kelley was last seen in Sacramento County, California on May 20, 1981. Kelley was going to drive to Los Angeles, CA to visit his girlfriend. He last spoke with her at 8am that morning. His orange Toyota Celica with California license plate #598TIH was discovered abandoned in New Orleans, Louisiana shortly after he vanished. Foul play is suspected.

Investigating Agency(s)
Agency Name: Sacramento County Sheriff's Department
Agency Contact Person: Deputy Paige Kneeland
Agency Phone Number: 916-874-1751
Agency E-Mail: missingpersons@sacsheriff.com
Agency Case Number: 81-041416
NCIC Case Number: M018778968
NamUs Case Number: 5667

Transportation:
Year: 1976
Make: Toyota
Model: Celica
Color: Orange
State: California
License Plate: 598TIH

Sources:
NamUs
The Charley Project
The Doe Network
National Missing Person Directory

(44 unidentified decedents have been ruled out as being Dale)

 

[skybluesea]

Bump

 

[JSolt1210]

It's so frustrating that there seems to be little to no information related to this case. But I believe we can make some reasonable conjectures nonetheless.

TL;DR: Dale probably left his home around 9 a.m., was killed according to possible evidence left in the car, and was likely disposed of closer to Los Angeles.

1. Approximate time of departure. We don't know for sure when Dale left that day, but it must've been after 8 a.m., which is when he called his girlfriend.

I think he left not too long after that, at most 9 a.m. Since the drive is a little over 6 hours on I-5 S, he might've wanted to beat the 4 p.m.–7 p.m. weekday rush in LA, as May 20, 1981 was a Wednesday, along with any other additional traffic for the upcoming Memorial Day weekend.

2. Location of foul play. Although his car was later found over 2,200 miles away in New Orleans, I agree that whatever happened to him happened on the way to Los Angeles.

I-5 S passes by Los Padres National Forest, which looks like an ideally secluded spot for someone up to no good. As Dale's friend suggests:

"[Dale] likely would respond to someone asking for help. I believe he was carjacked when stopped somewhere or pulled over to help someone who was broken down, abducted, and later killed."

If this is true, then this would've occurred around 2 p.m. Could he have stopped somewhere for lunch and been followed?

3. Location of Dale. From the National Forest, the person(s) involved could've continued along this easy, direct route all the way to New Orleans, via I-10 E, a 33-hour drive. That's about 2-3 days, including rest stops and places to spend the night. I doubt Dale was kept alive for all that time. It would've been too risky.

I also think it would've been risky to keep his body in the trunk of his car for all that time. Of course it's possible, and his remains could be anywhere along I-5 S or I-10 E. But that route crosses five different states. What if the driver(s) got pulled over along the way? What if someone reported an odd smell from the car parked overnight at a motel? Too many risk factors.

This is why I think it's more likely that Dale's remains are close to LA, and probably near to where Dale was intercepted.

<modsnip: not an approved source>

 

[theshadow45]

Dale has been missing for 39 years today.

 

[Michelle Kelley-Wood]

Dale is my older brother and we never found out what happened to him <modsnip: inside information> Unfortunately I don’t think we will ever know what happened to him

 

[methodwriter85]

Dale is my older brother and we never found out what happened to him <modsnip> Unfortunately I don’t think we will ever know what happened to him

Hi, first of all, I'm sorry for your loss. Dale was a very handsome young man.

<modsnip: quoted post was snipped>

 

[MadMcGoo]

Circumstances of his disappearance were updated recently. Dale Eugene Kelley – The Charley Project (BBM)

Kelley was last seen at his home in Carmichael, California on May 20, 1981. That morning, he said he would drive to Los Angeles, California to visit his girlfriend. He called his girlfriend at 8:00 a.m., but it's unclear what time he actually left the house. He never arrived at his girlfriend's and has never been heard from again.

His orange 1976 Toyota Celica with the California license plate number 598TIH was discovered abandoned in New Orleans, Louisiana on June 4. Inside it was a map of Texas, a book on the state of Texas, and a postcard for Pat O'Brien's, a Louisiana restaurant.

Kelley's case remains unsolved. At the time of his disappearance, he was a student and football player at American River College in Sacramento, California. His disappearance has been ruled as suspicious and foul play is suspected.

 

[methodwriter85]

It seems pretty obvious that Dale was carjacked, killed, likely disposed of along the I-5, and his killer then drove off to Louisiana and then ditched the car once they got past Texas.

The detail that his killer got a postcard and a book on Texas is such an odd detail, like this person was just treating themselves to a nice little Texas vacation after they murdered a 20-year old guy.

I did wonder if Dale might have been a Randy Kraft victim just because his look was exactly what Randy liked (5'10", clean-cut boy next door looks with light brown/sandy hair) but the detail about driving Dale's car out to LouisIanna doesn't fit the MO.

 

[MadMcGoo]

Dale Eugene Kelley 1981 CA

Clipping found in The Sacramento Bee published in Sacramento, California on 8/8/1981. Dale Eugene Kelley 1981 CA

www.newspapers.com

1978 Stebbins HS (Dayton, Ohio) yearbook photo

 

[theshadow45]

Bumping, Dale’s birthday passed recently.

 

[spartanx]

vehicle theft is definitely a possibility, in my opinion...But this is where the lack of information is particularly frustrating, because I feel like if we knew more about the condition the car was found in, there would be a lot less "maybes." "flying around...
I wish we knew when Dale and his car got separated. I wonder if he even made it out of the Sacramento area alive. And there is a lot of empty space between Carmichael and Los Angeles, and even more between both cities and New Orleans... Without more detailed information, or even an indication that investigators were unable to identify any viable leads, many possibilities open up... .
Most likely, he picked up someone who acted violently, killed him and may have burned him, buried him, left him in the water, thrown him to wild animals, etc.
either way
rest in peace

 

[theshadow45]

Dale has been missing for 43 years today.

 

[DD Byrd]

I think it's possible he was carjacked, after stopping to help someone (or pick up a hitchhiker with ulterior motives) who wanted the car...but only to get so far. He's killed and the killer gets out of the forest, out of the county or out of the state. At that point, not flirting with a bolo on the car, it's dumped windows down, unlocked, keys visible, whatever. If that's the case, I'd suspect someone who'd done it before, or was at the very least not averse to murder. Since it was found "shortly after he disappeared," it might have been left in a sketchy area on purpose. A second party then steals it and ends up in NO. I suppose someone desperate could drive it from wherever he was killed all the way; perhaps it wouldn't have seemed as risky then with slower LE communication. Especially if it was a hitchhiker who in chatting with Dale and hearing his plans, felt he/she had enough hours to burn and travel before the cavalry was called.

A psychopathic killer could very well have gotten mementos in all of this. Or, later had unrelated and unknowing passengers. It certainly sounds like he spoke to his gf, but was that confirmed? And is there a wisp of a chance he knew he was taking off and planned this disappearance knowing foul play would be a reasonable assumption?