Found Deceased CA - Douglas David Lakin, 52, Corona, 1 April 1981 *id'd February 2026*

[Richard]

25 Years Ago:

---------------------------------
Douglas D. Lakin
Missing since April 1981 from Corona, Riverside County, California.
Classification: Endangered Missing
Vital Statistics
Date Of Birth: November 20, 1928
Age at Time of Disappearance: 52 years old
Height and Weight at Time of Disappearance: 6'0"; 200 lbs.
Distinguishing Characteristics: White male. Brown eyes; black hair.
Marks, Scars: scar on abdomen.
Medical Conditions: Lakin may be suffering from an undetermined mental illness.

Circumstances of Disappearance
Lakin was traveling around the United States in 1980. He often called his relatives and let them know his location. Lakin was in Corona, California near the Mexican border during Easter weekend in April, 1981. He phoned his family in Michigan and asked them to wire money so he could return home. Lakin has never been seen or heard from again.

One of Lakin's daughters actively searched for her father until 2000, when she decided to initiate the process of declaring him legally deceased. There has been no activity on Lakin's Social Security number since 1981. There were no objections to the process from other relatives and Lakin was declared deceased in Nebraska in September 2001.

Lakin's daughter believes that her father suffered from an undiagnosed mental illness and that with treatment, he would have recovered and not disappeared. His daughter was diagnosed with a bipolar disorder some time ago.

Investigators
If you have any information concerning this case, please contact:
Riverside County Sheriff's Office 402-444-7998

NCIC Number: M-462521233
Please refer to this number when contacting any agency with information regarding this case.

Source Information:
The Omaha World Herald
The Doe Network: Case File 372DMCA

Link:
http://www.doenetwork.org/cases/372dmca.html

 

[Mr. E]

Possible match?

http://www.co.adams.co.us/elected_officials/coroner/unidentified/all_unidentified.html#84-165

or this man...
http://www.doenetwork.us/cases/473umnv.html

 

[Richard]

Possible match?

http://www.co.adams.co.us/elected_officials/coroner/unidentified/all_unidentified.html#84-165

or this man...
http://www.doenetwork.us/cases/473umnv.html

There is a height discrepancy of 3 inches with one and 4 inches with the other, but it is possible that one or the other could be him.

The summary stated that he often called his relatives to let them know his wherabouts, and these two possible matches are each about three years off from his last contact. My gut feeling is that he crossed into Tijuana, Mexico and met with foul play south of the US border.

 

[Richard]

This year marks 30 years since Douglas Lakin went missing.

 

[Lilachaze]

It must have been such a hard decision for his daughter in 2000 to have him declared legally deceased. I wonder if he did have a bipolar disorder since his daughter was later diagnosed.

 

[Tulessa]

Vital Statistics

Date Of Birth: November 20, 1928
Age at Time of Disappearance: 52 years old
Height and Weight at Time of Disappearance: 6'0"; 200 lbs.
Distinguishing Characteristics: White male. Brown eyes; black hair.
Marks, Scars: scar on abdomen.
Medical Conditions: Lakin may be suffering from an undetermined mental illness.
Dentals: Not available.




http://www.charleyproject.org/cases/l/lakin_douglas.html

http://doenetwork.org/cases/372dmca.html

 

[Elainera]

Circumstances of Disappearance

Lakin was traveling around the United States in 1980. He often called his relatives and let them know his location.

Lakin was in Corona, California near the Mexican border during Easter weekend in April, 1981. He phoned his family in Michigan and asked them to wire money so he could return home. Lakin has never been seen or heard from again.

One of Lakin's daughters actively searched for her father until 2000, when she decided to initiate the process of declaring him legally deceased. There has been no activity on Lakin's Social Security number since 1981. Lakin was declared deceased in Nebraska in September 2001.

http://doenetwork.org/cases/372dmca.html

 

[Gardener1850]

NAMUS: The National Missing and Unidentified Persons System (NamUs)

Circumstances of Disappearance
Lakin was traveling around the United States. He often called his relatives and let them know his location. He was in Corona, California near during Easter weekend in April, 1981 when he phoned his family in Michigan and asked them to wire money so he could return home. He has never been seen or heard from again.

 

[Bohemianbotanist]

Doug was my great uncle. I’ve heard many stories about him. He used to like to work with migrant workers on farms. He also had a geiger counter that he would take out into the deserts or mountains in search for uranium. When he went missing in 1981 I wonder if he was found by cartel members or even tried to start a new life with the people he loved to spend time with in Mexico. His daughter would be correct in saying that he most likely had an undiagnosed mental health condition. He was Treated with electroshock therapy by the Catholic Church. He would oftenbe found in Portland Michigan at the Catholic Church sleeping in a pew. At one point he had a footlocker that he carried from his home and his dog and was found sleeping in the church. I would love to find out what happened to him on behalf of my grandfather who was very close to Doug and I’m sure still wonders whatever happened to him. Though I don’t believe him to be still alive if he were to be my guess would be he was living in Mexico.

 

[spartanx]

Douglas David Lakin – The Charley Project

Lakin, date unknown

• Missing Since04/01/1981
• Missing FromCorona, California
• ClassificationEndangered Missing
• SexMale
• RaceWhite
• Date of Birth11/20/1928 (95)
• Age52 years old
• Height and Weight6'0, 200 pounds
• Medical ConditionsLakin may be suffering from an undetermined mental illness.
• Distinguishing CharacteristicsCaucasian male. Black hair, brown eyes. Lakin has a scar on his abdomen.

Details of Disappearance​

Lakin was born in Portland, Michigan and graduated from Michigan Technical University in Houghton with a degree in mining engineering. He served with the United States Marines during the Korean War as a Mandarin Chinese translator.

Lakin married his wife after his discharge from the Marines. The couple worked together for the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers in South Dakota. They had seven children together and relocated to the Omaha, Nebraska area in 1964. Their youngest son died during that time period and they divorced.

Lakin moved to Michigan to be near his family sometime after his son's death. He was employed part-time in property surveying and construction. Lakin began traveling around the United States in 1980. He often called his relatives and let them know his location.

Lakin was in Corona, California near the Mexican border during Easter weekend in April, 1981. He called his family in Michigan and asked them to wire money so he could return home. He has never been heard from again.

One of Lakin's daughters actively searched for her father until 2000, when she decided to initiate the process of declaring him legally deceased. There has been no activity on Lakin's Social Security number since 1981.

There were no objections to the process from other relatives and Lakin was declared deceased in Nebraska in September 2001. His family held a memorial service for him in November 2001.

Lakin's daughter believes that her father suffered from an undiagnosed mental illness and that with treatment, he would have recovered and not disappeared. His daughter was diagnosed with a bipolar disorder some time ago.

 

[John/Jane Doe]

372DMCA - Douglas David Lakin

 

[beavt]

Could this “Douglas Larkin” possibly be him? Only about 50 miles from Corona. Date of last contact was Easter weekend (April 19, 1981):

The National Missing and Unidentified Persons System (NamUs)

By bringing people, information, forensic science and technology together, NamUs helps resolve cases.

www.namus.gov

 

[Caring1]

Could this “Douglas Larkin” possibly be him? Only about 50 miles from Corona. Date of last contact was Easter weekend (April 19, 1981):

The National Missing and Unidentified Persons System (NamUs)

By bringing people, information, forensic science and technology together, NamUs helps resolve cases.

www.namus.gov

I would say this is a possibility, yes.

 

[beavt]

“Talkington said part of the mystery of her father's disappearance is that he probably suffered from mental illness for most of his adult life, but was never properly diagnosed.”

Omaha Man Declared Dead After 20 Years

OMAHA, Neb. (AP) — A man missing for 20 years has been declared dead even though he has never been found.

www.yankton.net

 

[beavt]

I would say this is a possibility, yes.

Submitted today.

 

[iulia]

Edited as I posted in the wrong thread.

Douglas Lakin's NamUs page is still up, but it was modified a few days ago. The NamUs page for the UID suggested upthread as a potential match (UP4342) was removed yesterday. Fingers crossed it’s a match.

 

[Mary Lakin]

Edited as I posted in the wrong thread.

Douglas Lakin's NamUs page is still up, but it was modified a few days ago. The NamUs page for the UID suggested upthread as a potential match (UP4342) was removed yesterday. Fingers crossed it’s a match.

Hello, On Monday, February 16, 2026, the FBI confirmed the identification of my father, Douglas D. Lakin, whose remains were recovered on April 25, 1981. I am deeply grateful for this group's assistance in locating my father after nearly a 45-year search. I never stopped searching . . . I never gave up hope . . . I owe it all to this group.

Our family now has closure. Thank you and God Bless!

Mary

 

[iulia]

His NamUs page has been removed.

 

[Claroon]

Hello, On Monday, February 16, 2026, the FBI confirmed the identification of my father, Douglas D. Lakin, whose remains were recovered on April 25, 1981. I am deeply grateful for this group's assistance in locating my father after nearly a 45-year search. I never stopped searching . . . I never gave up hope . . . I owe it all to this group.

Our family now has closure. Thank you and God Bless!

Mary

That is such a blessing to hear. As I submitted names recently a little voice said, it is for the family. I hope my submissions help a family as you have experienced.