MI Janis Kay Sanders 24 missing from Niles, Michigan 1976

[Moonwalker9]

Could not find a thread for her eventhough there's alot of info.

The National Missing and Unidentified Persons System (NamUs)
Janis Kay Sanders – The Charley Project

Janis Kay Sanders

• 

Sanders, circa 1975

• Missing Since07/20/1975
• Missing FromNiles, Michigan
• ClassificationEndangered Missing
• Date of Birth09/27/1950 (68)
• Age24 years old
• Height and Weight5'4, 115 pounds
• Clothing/Jewelry DescriptionA black jumper-type dress, a long-sleeved collared rose-colored shirt, black pantyhose, white shoes, gold earrings and a gold watch with a black leather band.
• Distinguishing CharacteristicsCaucasian female. Red hair. Sanders's right eye is blue and her left eye is brown. She has freckles and her ears are pierced. Some agencies spell her name "Janice."

Details of Disappearance
Sanders was last seen leaving her waitress job at Pete's Patio Resturant in Niles, Michigan close to midnight on July 20, 1975. Her estranged boyfriend, Gerald Casimer "Jerry" Libertowski Jr., followed her out of the restaurant.

Witnesses stated Libertowski was acting like a "mad man" at the time, and while he and Sanders were talking in the parking lot, she looked "scared." Sanders had ended their relationship the week before and moved back in with her parents in South Bend, Indiana. She has never been heard from again.

Sanders was reported missing by a family member on July 21. On August 5, her 1973 or 1974 AMC Matador was found parked at the Holiday Inn in the 900 block of south Eleventh Street in Niles. There was no sign of her at the scene.

In 1976, Libertowski was charged with Sanders's murder as well as the murder of Janeice Langs, another girlfriend of his who disappeared in 1973 and was never found.

Sanders's wallet and a pill bottle belonging to Langs were discovered hidden in the crawl space of Libertowski's house after the women's disappearances. He also allegedly told his former business partner he'd killed the women. He was later acquitted of Langs's murder, and the charges in Sanders's presumed death were dropped for lack of evidence.

Authorities continue to believe Libertowski was involved in both women's disappearances. He died in 2010, at the age of 67.

Foul play is suspected in Sanders's disappearance due to the circumstances involved. She left behind two children, and both her parents and her ex-husband said she wouldn't have left them without making sure they would be cared for. Some agencies give her date of disappearance as August 5, the day her car was found.

EDIT: 1975 NOT 1976

 

[melodyl]

Has property belonging to both women hidden in a crawl space. Confessed to someone. I hope he, Libertowski, lived a life of loneliness and misery until the day of his death. I also hope there are no other missing women that could be linked to this monster.

 

[NJEverCurious]

I'm wondering what (if any) forensic examination of the car was completed and the results of such an investigation.

The place where the car was located is about 25 miles from Lake Michigan. My first thought is that he may have dumped her in the lake, but then I wonder whether that would require an accomplice and whether Libertowski had access to a boat, had ties to Lake Michigan, etc.

 

[melodyl]

I'm wondering what (if any) forensic examination of the car was completed and the results of such an investigation.

The place where the car was located is about 25 miles from Lake Michigan. My first thought is that he may have dumped her in the lake, but then I wonder whether that would require an accomplice and whether Libertowski had access to a boat, had ties to Lake Michigan, etc.

Do the police even keep looking or investigating after a suspect dies? Is the chance of finding her now left up to random person stumbling across her remains? That's just so sad to even think, but it happens all the time. There are just so many ways to dispose of a body and nobody would ever find them except by accident.

 

[NJEverCurious]

Do the police even keep looking or investigating after a suspect dies? Is the chance of finding her now left up to random person stumbling across her remains? That's just so sad to even think, but it happens all the time. There are just so many ways to dispose of a body and nobody would ever find them except by accident.

I think the answer is they only keep investigating if new evidence shows up.

 

[Richard]

Janis Kay Sanders, 24
Family Photograph
Missing
Last seen alive: August 05, 1975 at 10:10

Circumstances:
A week prior to her disappearance, Janice left her boyfriend, Gerald Libertowski, and moved back in with her parents in Niles, MI. She went to work on July 20, 1975 (a Sunday) at Pete's Patio Restaurant. When Janis left work that evening, Libertowski (whom was also seen at Pete's that same evening) followed her out. Libertowski was described by witnesses as 'acting like a mad man'. She has never been seen again.

First Name: Janis
Middle Name: Kay
Last Name: Sanders
Details
Age When Last Known Alive: 25
Race: White
Sex: Female
Height: 64.0
Weight: 115.0
Location
City: Niles
State: Michigan
Zip: 49120
County: Berrien
Appearance
Hair: Red/Auburn
Head Hair: Bushy hair style
Eye: Blue
Scars And Marks: Freckles
Tattoos: None
Piercings: Ears only
Clothing and Accessories
Clothing: Collared long sleeve rose-colored shirt, with a black 'jumper' style dress. Also had on black panty hose.
Footwear: White shoes
Jewelry: Gold earrings
Accessories: Gold watch with a black leather band.
Transportation: 1973 or 1974 AMC Matador (found)

LINK:

Janis Kay Sanders - Michigan Missing Person Directory

 

[Privy]

I'm glad he can't hurt anyone else. Sad he got away with it.

 

[BlackCloud]

I fear 9 times out of 10 criminals get away with it.
But maybe things are gonna change in the future with the new DNA tests...who knows?!?

 

[PayrollNerd]

Michigan Lost and Missing Facebook post dated 10/21/2014 is below.

Based on the detail below from the investigation (bold and italics by me) I'm going to go with he buried her. I don't think she is in water. Criminals are lazy, what would be a nearby but remote area that he would have buried her?

Diane Stevens Mayers

NamUs MP # 8530
#Missing Janis Kay Sanders
Date last seen August 05, 1975
Niles, Michigan/County Berrien

Sanders was just 25 years old when she disappeared.

A week prior to her disappearance, Janice left her boyfriend, Gerald Libertowski, and moved back in with her parents in Niles, MI.

She went to work on July 20, 1975 (a Sunday) at Pete's Patio Restaurant. When Janis left work that evening, Libertowski (whom was also seen at Pete's that same evening) followed her out.

Libertowski was described by witnesses as "acting like a mad man". She has never been seen again.

On August 5, 1975, a vehicle registered to her was located in the parking lot of the Holiday Inn located at 930 S. Eleventh Street, Niles.

Additional information that surfaced about Liebertowski who had been charged with the murder of another woman, 24-year-old Janeice Langs of Elkhart, who disappeared in November 1973.

A lack of evidence led to his acquittal in Langs’ death after he claimed to have been too afraid to come forward to police and admit he’d seen another woman bury Langs alive.

According to The Charley Project, which collects information on missing persons, Liebertowski was subsequently charged with the murder of Sanders as well. Her wallet was reportedly found hidden in the foundation of his home, along with a pill bottle belonging to Langs.

But again, lack of evidence kept Liebertowski from being prosecuted in Sanders’ death, though he’s suspected in her disappearance.

Foul play is suspected.

Date entered 10/28/2010
Age last seen 25 to 25 years old
Age now 64 years old
Race White
Sex Female
Height (inches) 64.0
Weight (pounds) 115.0

Hair color Red/Auburn
Bushy hair style
Left eye color Blue
Right eye color Brown

Scars and marks
Freckles

Piercings
Ears only

Clothing
Collared long sleeve rose-colored shirt, with a black "jumper" style dress. Also had on black panty hose.
Footwear
White shoes
Jewelry
Gold earrings
Accessories
Gold watch with a black leather band.

Dental
Status: Dental information / charting is available and entered
DNA
Status: Initial inquiry underway

Investigating Agency
Title Detective Sergeant
First name Fabian
Last name Suraez
Phone 269-683-4411
Case number 53-2024-75

Jurisdiction State
Agency Michigan State Police
Address 1 1600 Silverbrook Ave.
City Niles
State Michigan
Zip code 49120

https://www.findthemissing.org/…/cases/case_report_html/8530

http://doenetwork.org/cases/1341dfmi.html

http://www.leaderpub.com/…/cold-cases-still-eluding-niles-…/

__________________________
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Website: http://lostnmissing.org/

FB Page: LostNMissing Inc.
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FB Page Michigan LostNMissing
https://www.facebook.com/MichiganLostnmissing

 

[NJEverCurious]

I looked in Google Earth at the location of Pete's Patio and the location where her car was found. There is a large, wooded area (80+ acres as of 1998, maybe a bit smaller now) just to the east of the fastest route between the two locations. I wonder what types of searches were conducted in that area when she went missing or since then. If you were looking to get rid of a body, it seems like you'd do it as quickly as possible. If there was a single perpetrator, he or she would probably want to dump the car within walking distance of someplace familiar. And if he or she wanted to dump the car quickly (as I assume he/she would), it makes sense that the body would be somewhere between Pete's Patio and where the car was found.

Maybe I'm oversimplifying this, but I doubt whoever did this was very sophisticated or he/she wouldn't have dumped the car in such an obvious location.

I took a screenshot of the map from Google Earth. Anyone know how to post it here?

 

[PayrollNerd]

I looked in Google Earth at the location of Pete's Patio and the location where her car was found. There is a large, wooded area (80+ acres as of 1998, maybe a bit smaller now) just to the east of the fastest route between the two locations. I wonder what types of searches were conducted in that area when she went missing or since then. If you were looking to get rid of a body, it seems like you'd do it as quickly as possible. If there was a single perpetrator, he or she would probably want to dump the car within walking distance of someplace familiar. And if he or she wanted to dump the car quickly (as I assume he/she would), it makes sense that the body would be somewhere between Pete's Patio and where the car was found.

Maybe I'm oversimplifying this, but I doubt whoever did this was very sophisticated or he/she wouldn't have dumped the car in such an obvious location.

I took a screenshot of the map from Google Earth. Anyone know how to post it here?

Save the screenshot as a photo and then use Upload a File and it should attach.

 

[PayrollNerd]

I'm glad he can't hurt anyone else. Sad he got away with it.

Welcome to Webslueths!

 

[NJEverCurious]

Map of the route from Patio Pete's to the location where her car was found. View dated 1998. Thanks, @PayrollNerd!

 

[Atombudd]

I hope he, Libertowski, lived a life of loneliness and misery until the day of his death.

Gerald Libertowski remarried in June 1977. He and his wife had two children. Gerald as we know died in 2010 and his wife died in 2019. You have to wonder if she knew about his past. Already having a missing wife and girlfriend, being arrested and charged of their murders, I guess I just wonder what she thought about it. I mean she married him and had 2 children with him. They remained married for over 30 years until his death. She is lucky she wasn't murder #3.

 

[PayrollNerd]

Gerald Libertowski remarried in June 1977. He and his wife had two children. Gerald as we know died in 2010 and his wife died in 2019. You have to wonder if she knew about his past. Already having a missing wife and girlfriend, being arrested and charged of their murders, I guess I just wonder what she thought about it. I mean she married him and had 2 children with him. They remained married for over 30 years until his death. She is lucky she wasn't murder #3.

To remarry in less than a year indicates to me, his 100% confidence in his first wife wasn’t coming home. JMO

I wonder what his grown kids think of the suspicions surrounding his past.

 

[StarrChance]

Newspaper articles mention he was a construction worker, I wonder what projects he was working on at the time of the disappearances.

 

[MichiganTrueCrimer]

I'll shoot out a foia request for this tomorrow.

I saw mentioned by someone earlier the possibility of her body being put into Lake Michigan. I find this to be very unlikely. Most bodies in Lake Michigan end up washing up, and there are no Jane Does that would fit with Sanders.

 

[imstilla.grandma]

James Sanders was just two years old when his mother disappeared. For years, both he and his older sister have been searching for answers.

“People have told me what a wonderful person she was,” Sanders said. “It’s bittersweet but it’s nice to see people alive who knew her as a person, a 20-year-old girl.”

Janis Sanders was 24 at the time she disappeared in 1975. Investigators believe the Niles woman was kidnapped and murdered, although her body has never been found.

Now living in Arizona, Sanders said he resumed his investigation in May, enlisting the help of Detective Sergeant John Moore of the Michigan State Police Special Investigation Section to look into the case. Moore was a key member of the team that was able to solve the 35-year old Roxanne Wood cold case earlier this year.

“He’s amazing,” Sanders said of Moore. “He’s making it a priority to solve it. Since it’s not an active case, we’re all volunteers. He’s doing a great job spending time on it.”

“The case was inactive for years,” Moore said. “We do have Janis Sanders still missing in (National Missing and Unidentified Persons System) as a missing person. We want to put in as much effort as we can.”

According to the police reports, Janis was last seen leaving her waitress job at Pete’s Patio Restaurant in Niles close to midnight on July 20, 1975. Her estranged boyfriend, Gerald Casimer “Jerry” Libertowski Jr., followed her out of the restaurant. She had ended their relationship the week before and moved back in with her parents in South Bend, Indiana. She has never been heard from again.

Janis Sanders was reported missing by a family member on July 21. On August 5, her AMC Matador was found parked in the parking lot of the former Holiday Inn of Niles but there was no sign of her at the scene.

In 1976, Libertowski was charged with her murder as well as the murder of Janeice Langs, another girlfriend of his who disappeared in 1973 and was never found.
More at link:

COLD CASE: Family still searching for answers in 1975 Janis Sanders disappearance - Leader Publications

NILES — James Sanders was just two years old when his mother disappeared. For years, both he and his older sister have been searching for answers. “People have told me what a wonderful person she was,” Sanders said. “It’s bittersweet but it’s nice to see people alive who knew her as a person, a...

www.leaderpub.com

 

[MichiganTrueCrimer]

James Sanders was just two years old when his mother disappeared. For years, both he and his older sister have been searching for answers.

“People have told me what a wonderful person she was,” Sanders said. “It’s bittersweet but it’s nice to see people alive who knew her as a person, a 20-year-old girl.”

Janis Sanders was 24 at the time she disappeared in 1975. Investigators believe the Niles woman was kidnapped and murdered, although her body has never been found.

Now living in Arizona, Sanders said he resumed his investigation in May, enlisting the help of Detective Sergeant John Moore of the Michigan State Police Special Investigation Section to look into the case. Moore was a key member of the team that was able to solve the 35-year old Roxanne Wood cold case earlier this year.

“He’s amazing,” Sanders said of Moore. “He’s making it a priority to solve it. Since it’s not an active case, we’re all volunteers. He’s doing a great job spending time on it.”

“The case was inactive for years,” Moore said. “We do have Janis Sanders still missing in (National Missing and Unidentified Persons System) as a missing person. We want to put in as much effort as we can.”

According to the police reports, Janis was last seen leaving her waitress job at Pete’s Patio Restaurant in Niles close to midnight on July 20, 1975. Her estranged boyfriend, Gerald Casimer “Jerry” Libertowski Jr., followed her out of the restaurant. She had ended their relationship the week before and moved back in with her parents in South Bend, Indiana. She has never been heard from again.

Janis Sanders was reported missing by a family member on July 21. On August 5, her AMC Matador was found parked in the parking lot of the former Holiday Inn of Niles but there was no sign of her at the scene.

In 1976, Libertowski was charged with her murder as well as the murder of Janeice Langs, another girlfriend of his who disappeared in 1973 and was never found.
More at link:

COLD CASE: Family still searching for answers in 1975 Janis Sanders disappearance - Leader Publications

NILES — James Sanders was just two years old when his mother disappeared. For years, both he and his older sister have been searching for answers. “People have told me what a wonderful person she was,” Sanders said. “It’s bittersweet but it’s nice to see people alive who knew her as a person, a...

www.leaderpub.com

Detective Moore really is a great guy. When digging into the Glenna West case on behalf of her surviving family, I was put into contact with him. He seems to genuinely care about not only his work, but the people affected by the cases he is working on.

 

[imstilla.grandma]

Janis was last seen leaving her job as a waitress at Pete's Patio in Niles around midnight on July 20th.

She was followed out to her car by her boyfriend Gerald Casimer Libertowski Jr., and was never seen after that.

On August 5th of 1975 her car was found parked outside of the former Holiday Inn of Niles.

The next year, Libertowski was charged with Janis' murder as well as the murder of his other former girlfriend who disappeared in 1973. All charges were dropped due to a lack of evidence.

Detective John Moore has reopened the case in hopes to get answers using new technology, that may help finding the remains.

Niles cold case file reopens decades later

An investigator is opening back up a cold case about a Jannis Sanders who went missing in Niles in 1975.

www.abc57.com