OR OR - David Alden Jones, 30, Southeast Portland, 26 Oct 1980

[Romulus]

Missing Person/NamUs #MP25668
David Alden Jones, Male, White/Caucasian
Date of Last Contact: October 26, 1980
Missing From: Southeast Portland, Oregon
Missing Age: 30 Years

Physical Description​

Hair Color: Blond/Strawberry
Head Hair Description: Light blonde hair
Body Hair Description--
Facial Hair Description: Beard and mustache
Left Eye Color: Blue
Right Eye Color: Blue
Eye Description--

Clothing and Accessories​

Item
Description
Clothing: Worn blue jeans, button shirt

The National Missing and Unidentified Persons System (NamUs)

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

www.namus.gov

Circumstances of Disappearance: Jones' roommate reported him missing when he never came back from doing laundry and never reported to work.

 

[cheemsg]

David is from Ohio.

Obituary for Albert W. Jones (Aged 85) - Newspapers.com™
His father Albert W. Jone died in 2009.
"They were preceded in death by their son, David Alden Jones, whose tragic disappearance has never been solved"

1973_06_24 David Alden Jones Wedding - Newspapers.com™
David got married in June 1973.

1968_05_26 David Alden Jones Senior Photo - Times Recorder Archive
Here's a picture of him from his senior yearbook (middle center row)

 

[Pennysmom1]

David Alden Jones - Oregon Missing Person Directory

Details and Pictures of David Alden Jones, Missing since October 1980

www.missingin.org

 

[Romulus]

David Alden Jones​

 

[victoriarobinson642]

David Alden Jones​

View attachment 522151

Higher quality photo

 

[victoriarobinson642]

Photo added to NAMUS today (01/07/2026)

 

[HopeRains]

A dozen or so articles in various Oregon newspapers in 1980/1981 also provide the following:

• He had returned from California (where he attended a conference) on the day of his disappearance
• He was a mental health researcher and recently assigned as the Director of Research where he worked
• He had a fiancée (who was active in the search for him)
• He left his home around 6 pm to do laundry, grab some groceries, then return home to watch a basketball game
• He was seen at the laundry and cashed a check at the grocery store, then disappeared (note: some articles do not indicate he was seen at either place)
• His locked car was found on Nov 3 at Tri-Met park-and-ride lot on Oregon 99 and I-205 (around/between Gladstone and Oregon City) - my note: this would appear on maps to be about 20 miles south of last seen location
• Per one article, river sand was found in the floorboard of the car (my note: Willamette River runs through the area); per another article a somewhat threatening note was found which per the article the family stated that LE disregarded because they believed it was a diversionary tactic to "throw any investigation off the trail"
• Family, friends, private investigators and others (including at least one psychic) were involved in seeking answers; a reward was offered by his family

None of the articles detailed whether (1) laundry was found in the vehicle, or (2) groceries were found in the vehicle.

Publicly listed exclusions in Namus as of today:

 

[Dee-El-See]

Hi all. Complete and utter newbie here so please let me know if this is not allowed.

Playing the devil's advocate, I've been thinking about the "lead" provided by the psychic the family hired to assist with the case (as mentioned in several news articles). An article in The Oregonian from Monday, November 03, 1980 said:

"The psychic called in by the family said she 'saw' the young Jones being approached by three scruffy-looking men as he left the Southeast Belmont Street laundry. His father said the psychic 'saw' the men ask him for help. The young Jones drove off with them, was overcome and then tied up in a basement somewhere. He was not killed, only left in the basement, the psychic said, adding that the vehicle was used on a drug run to Canada and now is back in Portland."

In 1997, a human cranium was found in a private residence in Thurston County, Washington during a drug raid. It was determined to belong to a white male aged 20-70 who died between 1976 and 1996:

The National Missing and Unidentified Persons System (NamUs)

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

www.namus.gov

Thurston County is about 110 miles north of Portland and a straight shot along the I5, which is also the main road people would use to drive into Canada from that part of the USA. If we do use the psychic's visions as potential leads to follow then the estimated race and age, the fact that the cranium was found in a private residence (though unsure where precisely in the residence it was found) during a drug raid and that the estimated date of death all seem to align quite well.

Hopefully this helps in some way.