Case Details

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This person was missing Missing Since 03/31/1981

Missing Since:

Missing Since 03/31/1981

Missing From:

Missing From Abilene, Texas

Classification:

Classification Endangered Missing

Gender:

Male

Race:

Race White

Date of Birth:

Date of Birth 09/26/1959 (65)

Age:

Age 21 years old

Height and Weight:

Height and Weight 5’10, 150 pounds

Clothing/Jewelry Description:

Distinguishing Characteristics:

Distinguishing Characteristics Caucasian male. Brown hair, brown or blue eyes. Goettsch may have a mustache, beard or a goatee. Some agencies may spell his middle name “Alan.”

Details of Disappearance:

David Goettsch vanished in Abilene, Texas on March 31, 1981. He was last seen in front of his home.

He’d recently received a large worker’s compensation check ($3,000) and was setting up a new apartment. Strangely, he disappeared the day he was supposed to move, leaving behind all his belongings, his truck, and over $1,000 in his bank account.

Because Goettsch lived a somewhat unsettled life, his family didn’t report him missing for two months. He also had a girlfriend in Australia whom he stopped contacting. He had a history of drug use.

Years later, in 1993, a man named Roney Harper confessed to killing Goettsch while drunk. Harper claimed he thought Goettsch was an undercover police officer. He said he shot and beat Goettsch and left the body in a field. Police searched the area but found nothing.

Harper later took back his confession. There wasn’t enough evidence to convict him, so he was released. However, police still suspect Harper was responsible for Goettsch’s death. Goettsch’s disappearance remains a mystery, and foul play is suspected.

Agency:

Abilene Police Department 325-673-8331

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