Suzanne Rene Richerson
Richerson, circa 1988
- Missing Since 10/07/1988
- Missing From Galveston, Texas
- Classification Endangered Missing
- Sex Female
- Race White
- Date of Birth 10/08/1965 (55)
- Age 22 years old
- Height and Weight 5'8, 140 pounds
- Clothing/Jewelry Description A blue blouse, a denim skirt and tan shoes.
- Distinguishing Characteristics Caucasian female. Brown hair, blue eyes. Richerson has a scar above her right eyelid. She wears contact lenses. She goes by her middle name, Rene.
Details of Disappearance
Richerson was a student at Texas A&M University in Galveston, Texas in 1988. She was employed as a night clerk at Casa Del Mar Condominiums on Seawall Boulevard in the resort community at the time. Richerson was last seen at work at approximately 6:00 a.m. on October 7, 1988 by resort security guards.
Another employee who was sleeping in a room above Richerson's office heard a female scream shortly after the guards left the vicinity. A car door slammed shut, accompanied by another scream and the sound of a car speeding away from the parking lot shortly thereafter.
A guest arrived at Richerson's office to check out at approximately 6:30 a.m. and discovered the desk was abandoned. There was no sign of a struggle and Richerson's purse, books and car were left at the resort. One of Richerson's shoes was located in the parking lot later in the morning, but she has never been seen again.
Foul play is suspected in Richerson's case. Her disappearance may be connected to a string of over 20 women who have been abducted and/or murdered in the Galveston, Texas area since the 1970's. A task force comprised of local law enforcement officials and FBI agents, called Operation HALT (Homicide/Abduction Liaison Team), has been formed to investigate the incidents.
The disappearances of three other young women from Galveston County may also be connected to Operation HALT's caseload.
Sondra Ramber vanished in 1983 and
Michelle Thomas disappeared in 1985. It should be emphasized that law enforcement has not determined if these cases are related to one another.
Gabriel Soto was a suspect in Richerson's case. He died as the result of an apparent drug overdose in late July 2002. Authorities stated that they believed Soto was involved in Richerson's abduction, but he was never charged in connection with her disappearance.
Soto was arrested sometime before his death after allegedly attempting to run his vehicle over another individual. Investigators said that the victim told him to avoid another person who allegedly witnessed Soto and Richerson speaking on the night of her abduction.
Authorities reportedly questioned two cousins about Richerson's case in May 2001. Media sources claimed that officials had located circumstantial evidence that connected the men to her disappearance. The cousins resided in Galveston in 2001 and allegedly denied any involvement in her case.
In 2004, a witness claimed she saw two men digging up Richerson's remains in 1992 and moving them to another place. Police investigated the sites the woman specified and found fragments of bone, but they turned out to be from an animal.
Richerson is described as a good student. She spent her first two years of college at the Galveston campus of Texas A&M, moved to the College Station campus for her junior year, and then back to Galveston to complete her senior year.
She majored in maritime administration and planned to get a job in seaport management and possibly a degree in maritime law. She had moved to her own apartment in Galveston three weeks before she disappeared, sharing it with her brother. Her case remains unsolved.
Investigating Agency
- Galveston County Sheriff's Department 409-766-2300
Source Information
