Case Details

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This person was missing Missing Since 12/15/1976

Missing Since:

Missing Since 12/15/1976

Missing From:

Missing From Fairfield, Maine

Classification:

Classification Endangered Missing

Gender:

Female

Race:

Race White

Date of Birth:

Age:

Age 32 years old

Height and Weight:

Height and Weight 4’11, 100 – 120 pounds

Clothing/Jewelry Description:

Distinguishing Characteristics:

Distinguishing Characteristics Caucasian female. Brown hair, blue eyes.

Details of Disappearance:

Pauline disappeared from her Maine mobile home on December 15, 1976. She lived with her distant relative, Albert Cochran, who she and her 12-year-old daughter, Honey, argued with frequently. The last time Honey saw her mother, Pauline was in bed, seemingly asleep. When Honey returned from school, Pauline was gone.

Pauline was due to talk to police about the murder of Janet Baxter. Albert, though he didn’t know Baxter, seemed strangely obsessed with the case, even taking Pauline and Honey to the crime scene. Pauline had told someone she feared Albert was involved in Baxter’s murder.

After Pauline disappeared, Albert claimed to know where her body was, but the police searches of wells he indicated were unsuccessful.

Importantly, Albert had a violent past. Twelve years earlier, his wife and three young children were murdered in Illinois. He was convicted of his wife’s murder but served only eleven years of a long sentence. It’s not known if Pauline knew about this when they became roommates.

In 1999, Albert was convicted of Janet Baxter’s murder and died in prison in 2017. He was never charged with Pauline’s disappearance, but the circumstances surrounding her vanishing strongly suggest she was murdered. Her body has never been found.

Agency:

Maine State Police 207-624-7143

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