GA GA - Joseph Albert Criner Sr., 57, Marietta, 1 June 1992

[TheArtfulDetective]

Joseph Albert Criner, Sr.



Case Classification: Endangered Missing
Missing Since: June 1992 - exact date unknown***
Missing From: Marietta, Cobb County, Georgia

Description:​

• Date of Birth: December 20, 1934
• Age: 57 years old
• Race: White/Caucasian
• Gender: Male
• Height: 6' 7" (79 inches)
• Weight: 245 lbs.
• Hair Color: White/Gray
• Eye Color: Blue
• Nickname/Alias: Nickname: Joe Overstreet
• Distinguishing Marks/Features: Unknown
• Clothing & Personal Items: Unknown, but usually wears expensive clothing and jewelry.
• Identifiers: Dental records available.

Circumstances of Disappearance:
Criner went missing while en route from Marietta, Georgia to Augusta, Georgia in June of 1992.*** He spoke to his daughter by telephone and promised to meet her on Father's Day for dinner together. He left his residence in Marietta but never arrived in Augusta and has never been heard from again. Both Criner and his vehicle have never been located. Few details are available regarding his disappearance and his whereabouts remain unknown.

***Criner's missing date on Find a Grave is listed as June of 1990.

Investigators:

• Marietta Police Department: (770) 794-5300
  Reference Case#: 91016753

NCIC Case Number: Not available
NamUs Case Number: MP718

The National Missing and Unidentified Persons System (NamUs)
Joseph Albert Criner Sr. – The Charley Project
1693DMGA - Joseph Albert Criner

 

[Nancy Drew RN]

I can't believe that there seems to be no description anywhere of the missing car!

I did find this personal ad in the Atlanta Constitution from 1968, looking for one Joseph Albert Criner, who fathered a son, Joey, in 1967. This Joseph A. Criner would certainly have been the right age to father a child that year, but unclear if this is him or why exactly he was being sought.

4/24/1968 Joseph Albert Criner

Clipping found in The Atlanta Constitution published in Atlanta, Georgia on 4/24/1968. 4/24/1968 Joseph Albert Criner

www.newspapers.com

Info from Doe Network: "Joseph Albert Criner was born in Kissimmee, Florida to Joseph A. Overstreet and Eileen Criner-Milar, and subsequently adopted by his maternal grandparents, Albert B.L. and Iva Mae Criner. In his youth, he was an accomplished athlete, and he served in the U.S. Air Force. He has been married four times and has children and grandchildren who are still looking for answers to his mysterious disappearance."

Timeline based on various records:

• The earliest marriage I found was to Wanda, in 1955, with him being 20, and the bride, 18. He is listed as living in Kissimmee at that time.
• In 1956, an obituary for Albert Criner in Kissimmee mentions a brother Joe, who is in the US Army in Ft Jackson, SC--I believe this to be him based on the name of the parents and the sister, who is a Mrs. Milar.
• There is a notice in 1964 from Guam (consistent w/military service and age), where he is on probation for passing bad checks.
• In 2/16/65, he applied for a marriage license in Orlando with Carol, listing his residence again as Kissimmee.
• He filed for divorce from Shirley in April of 1969, which involved a suit for non-support. This was in Orlando.
• In 1970, a daughter Linda's wedding notice describes him as being in Kissimmee, with no spouse. This was in CA.
• On 11/29/1990, a plaintiff in Fulton County brought suit against a Joseph Criner with an Augusta address for an abandoned vehicle. I got very excited, thinking I had found this missing vehicle, but this is supposedly two years before he disappeared. The address for the plaintiff is 281 Manford Rd SW, Atlanta, which is sketchy/nothing, but this may not actually be where the vehicle was abandoned.

10/9/55 Joseph Albert Criner Marriage License

Clipping found in The Tampa Tribune published in Tampa, Florida on 10/9/1955. 10/9/55 Joseph Albert Criner Marriage License

www.newspapers.com

4/4/69 Joseph Albert Criner Divorce

Clipping found in The Orlando Sentinel published in Orlando, Florida on 4/4/1969. 4/4/69 Joseph Albert Criner Divorce

www.newspapers.com

2/16/65 Joseph A. Criner Marriage

Clipping found in The Orlando Sentinel published in Orlando, Florida on 2/16/1965. 2/16/65 Joseph A. Criner Marriage

www.newspapers.com

 

[JSolt1210]

Father's Day in 1992 was on June 21, so that's the latest he could've disappeared if he went missing that month and his plans were to meet with his daughter on that day for dinner.

Also whenever someone goes missing with their vehicle, my immediate thought is to look for bodies of water along the route. The 3-hour drive from Marietta to Augusta passes right through Lake Oconee (just before Greensboro). Could he have had an accident or fallen asleep at the wheel and fallen into the lake?

Then again, all sources agree that he usually wore expensive clothes and jewelry. Maybe someone noticed that (after he left a rest stop?), robbed him, and then disposed of him and the car. That's pretty daring, though, considering Joseph stood at 6'7" and weighed 245 lbs. But with a weapon, anything is possible unfortunately.

 

[Piknik]

This case doesn't get enough attention. A bump for Mr. Criner.

 

[Nancy Drew RN]

He dressed in the latest men's fashions, wore expensive jewelry and his cars were never more than 11 months old.

Joseph Albert Criner Sr. (1934-1990) - Find a...

Joseph Albert Criner Sr [Overstreet] was last seen alive in June of 1990. There has been no activity on his bank account, credit cards or his social security record since the day he disappeared. Joe is the firstborn son of Joseph Edward Overstreet. He is the only son of Eileen Juanita...

www.findagrave.com

 

[Piknik]

With the vehicle missing this is likely a case that will result in a water recovery.

 

[sjcriner]

Just ran across this while looking up some information about my grandfather. Figured i would drop a comment in case anyone runs across it in the future. Joe criner did have a son named Joey in 1967 (who is my father). I've never been able to find anything out other than the things that have been said here already. I'd just like to know what happened to him and sadly my father (joey) doesn't really care to ever find out.

 

[JSolt1210]

Just ran across this while looking up some information about my grandfather. Figured i would drop a comment in case anyone runs across it in the future. Joe criner did have a son named Joey in 1967 (who is my father). I've never been able to find anything out other than the things that have been said here already. I'd just like to know what happened to him and sadly my father (joey) doesn't really care to ever find out.

Welcome to Websleuths!

First off, I'm so sorry about your grandfather. It's been over 30 years and your family deserve answers. If you're interested and willing, I would encourage you to become a Verified Insider. This way, anything you post about your grandfather would not need to be backed up by links to mainstream media since you'd be confirmed as a family member.

In the meantime, however, maybe you can help us clarify a few things:

Do you know the date of your grandfather's disappearance? It seems there's some uncertainty regarding the year (1990 or 1992?) and even when in June he disappeared—like how close to Father's Day?

Do you know what type of car he drove at the time?

I'm sorry that your dad doesn't seem to be interested in learning what happened. Any idea why that might be? Did they just not have a good relationship? Or maybe it's understandably hard for him to revisit this difficult time and he's had to make peace with it?

Anything you remember and feel comfortable sharing might get us all closer to the truth.

 

[sjcriner]

Welcome to Websleuths!

First off, I'm so sorry about your grandfather. It's been over 30 years and your family deserve answers. If you're interested and willing, I would encourage you to become a Verified Insider. This way, anything you post about your grandfather would not need to be backed up by links to mainstream media since you'd be confirmed as a family member.

In the meantime, however, maybe you can help us clarify a few things:

Do you know the date of your grandfather's disappearance? It seems there's some uncertainty regarding the year (1990 or 1992?) and even when in June he disappeared—like how close to Father's Day?

Do you know what type of car he drove at the time?

I'm sorry that your dad doesn't seem to be interested in learning what happened. Any idea why that might be? Did they just not have a good relationship? Or maybe it's understandably hard for him to revisit this difficult time and he's had to make peace with it?

Anything you remember and feel comfortable sharing might get us all closer to the truth.

Thanks for the information for becoming verified. I have just sent the email in regards to that.

I also just got off the phone with my mother.. bare with my as this might be confusing to some. So Joseph Criner met a woman named Shirley that he had joey with. Joey is my father but in a situation matching Joseph Criner i was adopted by my grandmother (Shirley) when i was very little so Shirley has always been my mother. I talk to her almost daily and despite me being nearly half way through my 30s she still calls me her baby. My whole family situation is kind of wack thanks to being adopted by a grandparent so in the future i will try to be as clear as possible and even sometimes rambly about how i am related to who and what i call them.

I just asked Shirley on the phone less than 10 minutes ago what year Joseph Criner was last seen and she says shes fairly certain that it was not 1990 or 1992 and instead it was 1991. I am waiting on an email from her with evidence for this and several other things.

She cannot remember what car he was driving as the last time she saw him in person was 1968.

My father (Joey) doesn't care to be involved in the situation because when he was born Joseph Criner only showed up two times and both of those were in 1968. He showed up once and Shirley's brother Stanley took a photo of him which is the photo you can see in the first post and to my knowledge one of the only photos of him. The second time he showed up in 1968 Shirley tells me that he picked her and Joey up and took them to hospital. Joseph Criner handed Joey to someone and Shirley says that she has no memory of what happened after that. The next thing she remembers is being back in the car. After this he left and she heard from him again when Joey was 16. She says he called and said he wanted to come get Joey and keep him. He never did. The last time she spoke to him to her memory was in 1988 when he called and said he wanted to come see Joey. Again he never showed.

Shirley also tells me that he was friends with and knew several famous folk such as Frank Sinatra who he would hang out with in clubs and things like that. I highly doubt this is a realistic thing that he did and as such have written this off in my mind. Just thought i would mention it on the off chance his name ever comes up in relationship to famous folk.

I will update with any information she gives me when her email comes through.

 

[JSolt1210]

Thanks for the information for becoming verified. I have just sent the email in regards to that.

I also just got off the phone with my mother.. bare with my as this might be confusing to some. So Joseph Criner met a woman named Shirley that he had joey with. Joey is my father but in a situation matching Joseph Criner i was adopted by my grandmother (Shirley) when i was very little so Shirley has always been my mother. I talk to her almost daily and despite me being nearly half way through my 30s she still calls me her baby. My whole family situation is kind of wack thanks to being adopted by a grandparent so in the future i will try to be as clear as possible and even sometimes rambly about how i am related to who and what i call them.

I just asked Shirley on the phone less than 10 minutes ago what year Joseph Criner was last seen and she says shes fairly certain that it was not 1990 or 1992 and instead it was 1991. I am waiting on an email from her with evidence for this and several other things.

She cannot remember what car he was driving as the last time she saw him in person was 1968.

My father (Joey) doesn't care to be involved in the situation because when he was born Joseph Criner only showed up two times and both of those were in 1968. He showed up once and Shirley's brother Stanley took a photo of him which is the photo you can see in the first post and to my knowledge one of the only photos of him. The second time he showed up in 1968 Shirley tells me that he picked her and Joey up and took them to hospital. Joseph Criner handed Joey to someone and Shirley says that she has no memory of what happened after that. The next thing she remembers is being back in the car. After this he left and she heard from him again when Joey was 16. She says he called and said he wanted to come get Joey and keep him. He never did. The last time she spoke to him to her memory was in 1988 when he called and said he wanted to come see Joey. Again he never showed.

Shirley also tells me that he was friends with and knew several famous folk such as Frank Sinatra who he would hang out with in clubs and things like that. I highly doubt this is a realistic thing that he did and as such have written this off in my mind. Just thought i would mention it on the off chance his name ever comes up in relationship to famous folk.

I will update with any information she gives me when her email comes through.

Thank you so much for your response and info. I think it's very helpful, as I'll go over in a bit.

First off, though, I can understand and respect your dad for not being interested. If Joseph wasn't really a part of your dad's life, then it's like he was essentially a "stranger" so it makes sense. Family dynamics can be tough!

So narrowing down the year helps because, as is posted above, someone sued Joseph for an abandoned vehicle in November 1990. Up to now, this has been considered as unrelated because Joseph reportedly disappeared two years later. But if your grandmother Shirley's right and Joseph really disappeared in (June?) 1991, then we might be correct in ruling this out as unrelated. I say "might" because is it possible that Joseph went missing in 1990, but Shirley first found out about it in 1991? After all, she said she hadn't had direct contact with Joseph since 1988. If so, then suddenly the abandoned vehicle and subsequent lawsuit could come back into play.

The info about Joseph saying he would visit your dad Joey twice, and then not showing up each time, is also helpful because it shows a pattern. According to the account above, Joseph disappeared shortly after telling his daughter (Linda?) that he'd see her for Father's Day. But if he had a habit of making plans to see his children and then not showing up, what if he never drove to see her at all? If this is the case, then maybe we shouldn't be restricting ourselves to searches only in Augusta, or along the route there from Marietta.

Looking forward to any other updates you can share.

 

[Rush4087]

I can't believe that there seems to be no description anywhere of the missing car!

I did find this personal ad in the Atlanta Constitution from 1968, looking for one Joseph Albert Criner, who fathered a son, Joey, in 1967. This Joseph A. Criner would certainly have been the right age to father a child that year, but unclear if this is him or why exactly he was being sought.

4/24/1968 Joseph Albert Criner

Clipping found in The Atlanta Constitution published in Atlanta, Georgia on 4/24/1968. 4/24/1968 Joseph Albert Criner

www.newspapers.com

Info from Doe Network: "Joseph Albert Criner was born in Kissimmee, Florida to Joseph A. Overstreet and Eileen Criner-Milar, and subsequently adopted by his maternal grandparents, Albert B.L. and Iva Mae Criner. In his youth, he was an accomplished athlete, and he served in the U.S. Air Force. He has been married four times and has children and grandchildren who are still looking for answers to his mysterious disappearance."

Timeline based on various records:

• The earliest marriage I found was to Wanda, in 1955, with him being 20, and the bride, 18. He is listed as living in Kissimmee at that time.
• In 1956, an obituary for Albert Criner in Kissimmee mentions a brother Joe, who is in the US Army in Ft Jackson, SC--I believe this to be him based on the name of the parents and the sister, who is a Mrs. Milar.
• There is a notice in 1964 from Guam (consistent w/military service and age), where he is on probation for passing bad checks.
• In 2/16/65, he applied for a marriage license in Orlando with Carol, listing his residence again as Kissimmee.
• He filed for divorce from Shirley in April of 1969, which involved a suit for non-support. This was in Orlando.
• In 1970, a daughter Linda's wedding notice describes him as being in Kissimmee, with no spouse. This was in CA.
• On 11/29/1990, a plaintiff in Fulton County brought suit against a Joseph Criner with an Augusta address for an abandoned vehicle. I got very excited, thinking I had found this missing vehicle, but this is supposedly two years before he disappeared. The address for the plaintiff is 281 Manford Rd SW, Atlanta, which is sketchy/nothing, but this may not actually be where the vehicle was abandoned.

10/9/55 Joseph Albert Criner Marriage License

Clipping found in The Tampa Tribune published in Tampa, Florida on 10/9/1955. 10/9/55 Joseph Albert Criner Marriage License

www.newspapers.com

4/4/69 Joseph Albert Criner Divorce

Clipping found in The Orlando Sentinel published in Orlando, Florida on 4/4/1969. 4/4/69 Joseph Albert Criner Divorce

www.newspapers.com

2/16/65 Joseph A. Criner Marriage

Clipping found in The Orlando Sentinel published in Orlando, Florida on 2/16/1965. 2/16/65 Joseph A. Criner Marriage

www.newspapers.com

@Nancy Drew RN, would it possible for you to post a link to the civil suit in Fulton County? If so, tia.

Would love to know if it listed the year, make and model of the car.

Based on Joseph’s reported preferences re: vehicles, if it was old and worthless, it probably was a second vehicle of some sort - and not the car he was using day to day. Either way, did LE ever examine the car?

On the other hand, if was a newer model car in good condition with current registration, it probably means that it was Joseph’s everyday car. This is a good place to start (was it Jospeh’s daily driver or not), as the answer to that question tells you which path to follow next.

From the civil suit documents, would also like to know the name of the individual who filed the suit (was he a friend of Joseph’s, related via business? associate?) What was that guys relationship between him Joseph? Did he have a criminal record? Did Joseph?

Was the tag on Joseph’s every day car ever renewed in 1992 or after?

Who is receiving Joseph’s military benefits?
Did he have any close siblings or friends

Were any of Joseph’s personal items found in the car: wallet, cards, checkbook, weapon?

Was Jospeph known to carry large sums of money in the car with him?

Also would like to know the address in Augusta where Joseph was supposedly living (he was living in Augusta, right?). Was it his house /aot, or was he just staying with somebody? Did he have a job in Augusta?

Who was Joseph’s love interest / wife after Shirley? Where is that woman? Have you tried contacting her?

Do you have any aunts and uncles still alive?

Was Joseph ever declared dead?

Which LE organization handked the investigation.

Tia.

All just my opinion

 

[Valiant]

281 Mansford Rd SW in Atlanta seems to have been home to a towing company in the past, though now an empty building.
So the car was probably either towed in as abandoned or was abandoned after repairs (if the shop also did repairs). The company was probably trying to recover costs be filing to get possession of the abandoned vehicle.

 

[spartanx]

Father's Day in 1992 was on June 21, so that's the latest he could've disappeared if he went missing that month and his plans were to meet with his daughter on that day for dinner.

Also whenever someone goes missing with their vehicle, my immediate thought is to look for bodies of water along the route. The 3-hour drive from Marietta to Augusta passes right through Lake Oconee (just before Greensboro). Could he have had an accident or fallen asleep at the wheel and fallen into the lake?

Then again, all sources agree that he usually wore expensive clothes and jewelry. Maybe someone noticed that (after he left a rest stop?), robbed him, and then disposed of him and the car. That's pretty daring, though, considering Joseph stood at 6'7" and weighed 245 lbs. But with a weapon, anything is possible unfortunately.

It's also my first thought... in the water

 

[hyoidbone]

Going from Marietta to Augusta would've likely meant going on I-75, then transitioning to I-20. Lake Oconee is definitely the largest body of water along those roads, but there are barriers/trees that a car would have to damage to get into the lake.

Perhaps he took a wrong turn somewhere in Augusta and ended up closer to Clarks Hill Lake. There are lots of small bodies of water on the outskirts of Augusta. IMO, water recovery is unfortunately likely in this case.