Crimestopper88888
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Raleigh/Fayette Counties in November, 1973: There was no hint that tragedy was to befall Patricia Richmond on the day that her parents last saw her as the petite, pretty, 20 year-old resident of Shady Spring left their home at approximately 10:30 in the morning on November 8, 1973, after loading her orange Volkswagon with Amway products that she intended to distribute to customers on Old Crow Road before taking her grandmother to the store. Patricia Sue was wearing a blue sweater, white skirt and red scarf.
When Patricia failed to return home that evening, her parents filed a missing person report with the WV State Police. A trail for Patricia was soon established, indicating that she had stopped at Ransom`s Market and the Amoco Gas Station in Beaver. As evidence turned up, the investigation would soon move into Fayette County.
Patricia`s burned Volkswagen was found over a hill near the Concho Trash Dump in Minden. There was one unusual clue found in the car, being a partially scorched gold wedding band with the brand name of Gold Circle. The owner of that wedding band remains a mystery. The most valuable information at that time came from a resident who said that he saw the Volkswagen burning and he did not see anyone around the car, but he did see two Black men walking up the road away from the car. He asked them if anyone was hurt and they replied, "No, that they were the only ones in the car." He had offered the two young men a ride but they refused. Both men were described as young Black males, perhaps 19 or 20. One was wearing army pants and carrying an army jacket and was wearing a square-faced diver`s watch with a wide band. The witness noticed that he was wearing shiny black boots and that the sole of the right boot appeared to be about three to four inches thick but the left boot did not have a built-up sole. He was about 6` tall and slender, medium complexion and stuttered a little when he spoke. The second Black male was described to be only about 5`6" in height and more stocky. He was wearing a black leather cap which appeared to have ear muffs on it and his hair was bushy and stuck out from beneath the cap.
The police now had a burned car and description of the men involved, but no trace of the victim. It was not until November 23rd that the WV State Police received a late night call from the superintendent of Plum Orchard Lake who informed that a body had been found by two raccoon hunters in a wooded area near the lake, approximately fifty yards from the road at the base of an overturned tree. An autopsy revealed that Patricia Sue Richmond had died as a result of two stab wounds to the left chest wall. Several items were found at the scene where the body was discovered: (1) A gold colored button chain with a button attached which bore the imprint of a sailing ship (2) a partial tooth plate, and (3) a long black wig.
On the same morning that the body was discovered, two men reported that they may have seen the victim at the Beckley Shopping Plaza on the day of her disappearance. These two salesmen reported that they had been sitting in a car outside of Murphy`s about 1:30 Thursday afternoon on November 8th when they observed a Black man get into a red colored Volkswagen parked nearby. Inside the car was a young white woman sitting on the passenger side. Although they had seen no use of force of any weapon, something about the scene struck the two men as strange and they continued to watch with interest as the Black man started the car to drive away. He speared to be unfamiliar with the gears on the car and had trouble backing it out of the parking space. One of the salesman thought the girl looked familiar as someone that he had seen around Oak Hill. On impulse, he wrote down the license plate number of the Volkswagen as it passed by and headed north on US 21 toward Mount Hope. They thought little of the incident until hearing about the body of Patricia Sue Richmond being found. They turned the scrap paper with the license plate number over to the police and it turned out to be the license of Richmond`s orange Volkswagen which she had been driving the day she disappeared.
Three men who had been hauling coal on Beury Mountain toward Thurmond on the day of November 8th all told identical stories about seeing an orange Volkswagen coming up the narrow road at a rapid pace. The windows were down in the Volkswagen and all three men noted that there were three people in the vehicle: A Black man was driving, a petite Caucasian woman sat in the middle and a second Black man was in the passenger seat. The description of the female matched that of Patricia Richmond exactly, right down to the long black hair and blue sweater with a red scarf around her hair. The description of the Black males in the vehicle matched exactly the description given by the Minden resident who had seen and talked to two Black males walking away from the burning Volkswagen. More specifically, the driver being a dark-complexioned Black male with a large, long face and bushy/kinky hair, wearing a green jacket that resembled an army jacket. The Black male passenger had a broad face and was wearing a black hat with fur around it and no bill. The search for clues began to concentrate on the Beury Mountain area. Police were searching for any clue that Patricia Richmond had been there, especially looking for a pair of white boots which she had been wearing when last seen, but which were not found with the body.
The case was complicated by the fact that the victim had disappeared from her home in Raleigh County but her body had been found in Fayette County. On November 8th, police could place her on Route 19-21 in the morning, at the Beckley Shopping Mall around 1:30 and on Buery Mountain around 2:00. But from that point, her whereabouts were a mystery until her body was found over two weeks later. There the trail ended and the mystery began. The murderer(s) of Patricia Sue Richmond remain unknown and unpunished.
Case was also covered by mysterious wv. Check him out if you haven’t he’s great.
When Patricia failed to return home that evening, her parents filed a missing person report with the WV State Police. A trail for Patricia was soon established, indicating that she had stopped at Ransom`s Market and the Amoco Gas Station in Beaver. As evidence turned up, the investigation would soon move into Fayette County.
Patricia`s burned Volkswagen was found over a hill near the Concho Trash Dump in Minden. There was one unusual clue found in the car, being a partially scorched gold wedding band with the brand name of Gold Circle. The owner of that wedding band remains a mystery. The most valuable information at that time came from a resident who said that he saw the Volkswagen burning and he did not see anyone around the car, but he did see two Black men walking up the road away from the car. He asked them if anyone was hurt and they replied, "No, that they were the only ones in the car." He had offered the two young men a ride but they refused. Both men were described as young Black males, perhaps 19 or 20. One was wearing army pants and carrying an army jacket and was wearing a square-faced diver`s watch with a wide band. The witness noticed that he was wearing shiny black boots and that the sole of the right boot appeared to be about three to four inches thick but the left boot did not have a built-up sole. He was about 6` tall and slender, medium complexion and stuttered a little when he spoke. The second Black male was described to be only about 5`6" in height and more stocky. He was wearing a black leather cap which appeared to have ear muffs on it and his hair was bushy and stuck out from beneath the cap.
The police now had a burned car and description of the men involved, but no trace of the victim. It was not until November 23rd that the WV State Police received a late night call from the superintendent of Plum Orchard Lake who informed that a body had been found by two raccoon hunters in a wooded area near the lake, approximately fifty yards from the road at the base of an overturned tree. An autopsy revealed that Patricia Sue Richmond had died as a result of two stab wounds to the left chest wall. Several items were found at the scene where the body was discovered: (1) A gold colored button chain with a button attached which bore the imprint of a sailing ship (2) a partial tooth plate, and (3) a long black wig.
On the same morning that the body was discovered, two men reported that they may have seen the victim at the Beckley Shopping Plaza on the day of her disappearance. These two salesmen reported that they had been sitting in a car outside of Murphy`s about 1:30 Thursday afternoon on November 8th when they observed a Black man get into a red colored Volkswagen parked nearby. Inside the car was a young white woman sitting on the passenger side. Although they had seen no use of force of any weapon, something about the scene struck the two men as strange and they continued to watch with interest as the Black man started the car to drive away. He speared to be unfamiliar with the gears on the car and had trouble backing it out of the parking space. One of the salesman thought the girl looked familiar as someone that he had seen around Oak Hill. On impulse, he wrote down the license plate number of the Volkswagen as it passed by and headed north on US 21 toward Mount Hope. They thought little of the incident until hearing about the body of Patricia Sue Richmond being found. They turned the scrap paper with the license plate number over to the police and it turned out to be the license of Richmond`s orange Volkswagen which she had been driving the day she disappeared.
Three men who had been hauling coal on Beury Mountain toward Thurmond on the day of November 8th all told identical stories about seeing an orange Volkswagen coming up the narrow road at a rapid pace. The windows were down in the Volkswagen and all three men noted that there were three people in the vehicle: A Black man was driving, a petite Caucasian woman sat in the middle and a second Black man was in the passenger seat. The description of the female matched that of Patricia Richmond exactly, right down to the long black hair and blue sweater with a red scarf around her hair. The description of the Black males in the vehicle matched exactly the description given by the Minden resident who had seen and talked to two Black males walking away from the burning Volkswagen. More specifically, the driver being a dark-complexioned Black male with a large, long face and bushy/kinky hair, wearing a green jacket that resembled an army jacket. The Black male passenger had a broad face and was wearing a black hat with fur around it and no bill. The search for clues began to concentrate on the Beury Mountain area. Police were searching for any clue that Patricia Richmond had been there, especially looking for a pair of white boots which she had been wearing when last seen, but which were not found with the body.
The case was complicated by the fact that the victim had disappeared from her home in Raleigh County but her body had been found in Fayette County. On November 8th, police could place her on Route 19-21 in the morning, at the Beckley Shopping Mall around 1:30 and on Buery Mountain around 2:00. But from that point, her whereabouts were a mystery until her body was found over two weeks later. There the trail ended and the mystery began. The murderer(s) of Patricia Sue Richmond remain unknown and unpunished.
Case was also covered by mysterious wv. Check him out if you haven’t he’s great.
