List of people who disappeared mysteriously (1980s)

This is a list of people who disappeared mysteriously: 1980s or whose deaths or exact circumstances thereof are not substantiated. Many people who disappear end up declared presumed dead and some of these people were possibly subjected to forced disappearance.

This list is a general catch-all; for specialty lists, see Lists of people who disappeared.

1980 DatePerson(s)Age when disappearedMissing fromCircumstances 11 April 1980 65Andhra Pradesh, IndiaVeeravanallur Vedantam Sadagopan who went by "V. V. Sadagopan" was an Indian composer, performer, music teacher, film actor, Indian Civil Service aspirant, and university rank-holder who disappeared in Andhra Pradesh on 11 April 1980 and was never seen again.26 April 1980 43St Kilda, AustraliaLouise Faulkner and her daughter Charmian went missing in April 1980 after Louise told a friend she was visiting her boyfriend in Gippsland. They were last seen getting into a white ute. Both were declared legally dead in 2006 at an inquest. No trace of them has been found. 226 April 1980 14Manchester, New Hampshire, U.S.Fourteen-year-old Rahn disappeared from her apartment after spending an evening with two friends. Upon returning home in the early morning, her mother noticed the lightbulbs in the hallways of each floor in the apartment building had been unscrewed, leaving the halls dark. Upon entering the apartment, she saw the figure of a young girl in Rahn's bed, and assumed the figure was Rahn. However, several hours later, she discovered that she was in fact Rahn's friend, who had fallen asleep in the bed. Her friend claimed to have last seen Rahn during the night when she got up to go to sleep on the couch. In the years after Rahn's disappearance, her mother received various anonymous phone calls, several of which were traced to motels in Southern California.27 April 1980Nicolas Jaeger34Lhotse Shar, NepalJaeger, a French physician and alpinist, disappeared on 27 April 1980 while attempting to climb the Lhotse Shar in Nepal and is presumed dead, his body having never been found.May or June 1980Kaoru Matsuki25–26Madrid, SpainMatsuki was an exchange student who was starting his studies in Madrid while Ishioka was a traveler who were abducted to North Korea by Japanese North Korean sympathizers, both of which have since been issued arrest warrants by the Japanese Government. North Korea has claimed that both individuals have since died, but their claim has not been substantiated.Tohru Ishioka22–23June 1980Tadaaki Hara43Miyazaki Prefecture, JapanHara was kidnapped by North Korean agent Sin Gwang-Su and South Korean Kim Kil Uk, who had lured him from Osaka to Miyazaki with a job offer in June 1980. Hara has not been seen since, and Sin has used Hara's identity to obtain a Japanese passport.17 June 1980 55Lop Nur, ChinaChinese biochemist and explorer Peng, who led an expedition to Lop Nur, disappeared after leaving a note saying he had gone to find water. He is presumed dead; a number of attempts have been made to find his remains, but nothing has ever been found.28 July 1980 51New York City, New York, U.S.John Favara was the backyard neighbor of Gambino crime boss John Gotti, in Howard Beach, New York, who disappeared on 28 July 1980, over four months after he struck and killed Gotti's 12-year-old son, Frank, with his car on 4 March, as the boy darted into the street on a motorized minibike. After the killing, Favara's wife and two sons moved out of Howard Beach; John was declared legally dead in 1983.8 August 1980 Alan Addis19North Arm, Falkland IslandsAlan Addis, a British Royal Marine stationed in the Falkland Islands, was part of a three-man team that had journeyed to the remote settlement of North Arm in Lafonia on East Falkland to pick up three other Royal Marines and equipment. On the evening of 8 August, Addis and the other marines attended a function in the village hall along with forty locals. The marines left the event at different times to various local homes, and Addis's colleagues reported last seeing him at around 1:30 am. Authorities initially believed Addis had possibly drowned, but several local men were later arrested for his murder, but subsequently released.16 August 1980 Randy Sellers17Visalia, Kentucky, U.S.Randy Sellers disappeared on 16 August 1980 after police dropped him a mile from his house, following an incident at a county fair. In the early 1990s, incarcerated serial killer Donald Leroy Evans made a string of confessions to murders, including Sellers's, but Evans' confession has not been substantiated. Attention has also focused on the two officers who last saw Sellers.6 October 1980 49Mount Nun, IndiaThe American geologist and planetary scientist disappeared on 6 October 1980 during a descent from Mount Nun in the Kashmir Himalayas and is believed to be dead.16 October 1980Irma Flaquer42GuatemalaFlaquer, a Guatemalan psychologist and reporter, was abducted and presumably executed by government agents for perceived anti-government activities.7 November 1980 11Sundsvall, SwedenAsplund disappeared from his home in Sundsvall during the morning of 7 November 1980 and has not been seen since.9 or 19 December 1980 66Guatemala City, GuatemalaGuatemalan poet and educator Foppa was detained and disappeared on 19 December 1980 and is believed to have been murdered.

1981 DatePerson(s)Age when disappearedMissing fromCircumstances 5 November 1981Kathryn Gregory24Spokane, Washington, U.S.Gregory, a 24-year-old nurse, disappeared on 5 November 1981 from a parking lot in Spokane's South Hills. Her car was found parked two blocks away from where she was last seen; foul play is suspected.c. 26 November 1981 Denise Beaudin22Manchester, New Hampshire, U.S.Suspected victim of Terry Peder Rasmussen, whom Beaudin had previously dated. Beaudin is believed to have been killed somewhere in California, although her body has never been found.28 November 1981 2Schloß Neuhaus, West GermanyLee was a British girl who disappeared from a NAAFI shopping complex on 28 November 1981, her second birthday.December 1981 81–85Florida, U.S.George Washington "Bo" Hughes was a carver of hobo nickels until he disappeared from a hobo camp.

1982 DatePerson(s)Age when disappearedMissing fromCircumstances 5 July 1982Raquel Lipsky Prada3Cali, ColombiaLipsky Prada disappeared from the Centro Administrativo Municipal (CAM) in Cali on 5 July 1982. She was visiting the municipal complex with her parents and older sister when an unidentified woman approached the children and asked the older sister to ask their mother whether she wanted chontaduro, a local fruit. When the family returned moments later, Raquel and the woman were gone. Raquel has never been located5 July 1982 29Near Beirut, LebanonThese four Iranian diplomats disappeared in Lebanon on 5 July 1982. On that date, when the vehicle carrying the diplomats was passing through a checkpoint on its way to Beirut, it was intercepted by Phalange Party members. Three decades after the incident, the fate of the missing diplomats remains a mystery, and the search for the Iranian diplomats continues. Seyed Mohsen Mousavi Unknown Kazem Akhavan Unknown Taghi Rastegar Moghadam Unknown5 September 1982 12Des Moines, Iowa, U.S.Gosch was reported missing by his parents after he disappeared on 5 September 1982, while delivering newspapers.John D Gosch Iowa Division of Criminal Investigation, Iowa Department of Public Safety, State of Iowa. At that time, the custom was a three-day waiting period before police responded to missing-persons reports. Gosch was not heard from again, but his case prompted new laws for Iowa and other states resulting in missing-persons reports involving children being given immediate attention.Johnny Gosch, Missing Since 1982 ID : Investigation Discovery.12 September 1982 35Lewiston, Idaho, U.S.On the night of 12 September 1982, Pearsall, an employee of the Lewiston Civic Theater, entered the building to use the laundry facilities and has not been seen since. His disappearance occurred on the same night as that of two women he was acquainted with, Kristina Diane Nelson and Jacqueline Ann "Brandy" Miller. Nelson and Miller were later found dead. Police believe Pearsall may have been a victim of the same killer.3 November 1982 20North Queensland, AustraliaTony Jones disappeared while backpacking on 3 November 1982, and is believed to have been murdered.24 November 1982 23Kansas City, Missouri, U.S.Clemons disappeared from Kansas City on 24 November 1982 along with her daughter and an unnamed man, apparently to "start a new life" in Florida. On 3 December 1982, Clemons was seen walking on a bridge above the Escatawpa River on Interstate 10, near the Alabama/Mississippi border with her daughter, appearing distressed. When passing motorists tried to assist her, she refused any help. A motorist reported seeing the body of a woman, floating in the river on 5 December, however, when authorities responded, they found the body of her daughter instead. Subsequent searches did not find Clemons, however did uncover the body of another unidentified man, who was most likely unrelated to the case. Authorities still consider Clemons a missing person, but believe she is deceased. 1982 43IndiaAmerican numismatist and historian Don Taxay was last seen in 1982.DON TAXAY WHERE ARE YOU?, from The E-Sylum newsletter - Volume 9, Number 1, January 1, 2006, Article 9, by Wayne Homren; archived at coinbooks.org; retrieved April 11, 2012

1983