This is a list of people who disappeared mysteriously: 1970s 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.
1970
DatePerson(s)Age when disappearedMissing fromCircumstances Early 1970UnknownLagos, NigeriaAkpan Utuk was a colonel in the Biafran Army. He was last seen at a party in Lagos in early 1970 and is thought to be dead.12 January 19703Wollongong, AustraliaGrimmer went missing from a beachside shower block. Initially, she had refused to leave the shower block, causing one of her brothers to go collect their mother to persuade Cheryl to come out. In the moments between his leaving the shower block and returning with his mother, Cheryl disappeared. Witnesses claim they saw a man in an orange swimsuit carrying a blonde-haired child wrapped up in a towel. On 23 March 2017, a man was arrested and charged with Grimmer's abduction and murder. However, the judge at the Supreme Court of New South Wales declared some of the evidence inadmissible in the case, and the charges against the suspect were dropped in February 2019.6 April 197028CambodiaSean Flynn, the son of actor Errol Flynn and Lili Damita, and his colleague Dana Stone, disappeared on 6 April 1970 while working as freelance photojournalists for Time. Neither man's remains were ever found and they are generally assumed to have been killed by Khmer Rouge guerrillas. After a decade-long search financed by his mother, Flynn was officially declared dead in 1984. In 2010, a British team uncovered the remains of a Western hostage in the Cambodian jungle, but DNA comparisons with samples from the Flynn family were negative.3015 May 197061–62Chicago, Illinois, U.S.Edward Andrews and his wife Stephania disappeared after leaving a party in the Chicago Loop on 15 May 1970. Police theorized that the couple accidentally drove into the Chicago River, but multiple searches over a period of years failed to locate them or their vehicle.61–6218 June 1970Muhammad Bassiri28El Aauin, Spanish SaharaBassiri, a Sahrawi nationalist leader and anti-colonialist activist, was detained and presumably executed by the Spanish Legion on 18 June 1970.20 August 197049–50Caprivi Strip, South West AfricaFlag Marutle Boshielo was a South African anti-apartheid activist, trade unionist, and communist who disappeared in the Caprivi Strip on 20 August 1970 during an unsuccessful MK operation after his contingent was ambushed. Boshielo had started serving as political commissar of the MK in 1969.16 September 197049Palermo, ItalyDe Mauro, an Italian investigative journalist, disappeared on 16 September 1970 and has not been seen since.13 October 197017Prince George, British Columbia, CanadaFrost was reported missing by her sister on 15 October 1970, having failed to return home from a walk in Prince George, British Columbia two days earlier. Frost has not been seen since.15 November 197018Los Angeles, California, U.S.After running out of gas on the Hollywood Freeway, Graham was last seen by California Highway Patrol officers on 15 November 1970. The officer directed her to a callbox and later saw her speaking with a man beside her car. The circumstances of her disappearance resulted in CHP policies being changed to ensure the safety of stranded female motorists.
1971 DatePerson(s)Age when disappearedMissing fromCircumstances Early 1971Sada Abe65–66Chiba Prefecture, JapanSada Abe was a former geisha and prostitute infamous for the murder of her lover in the 1930s. Abe left a note behind at the hotel she worked at stating that "I'm just a no use girl" some time in 1971 and has since been unaccounted for.5 May 1971A. B. M. Abdur Rahim35PakistanA. B. M. Abdur Rahim was a labour legal consultant, general secretary of the Pakistan Labour Federation, and manager of the Ujala Match Factory, who was abducted from the factory by Pakistani armed forces on 5 May 1971 and has been missing since.12 May 1971Rakhal Chandra Das38PakistanRakhal Chandra Das was a Bangladeshi physician who was kidnapped on 12 May 1971 by a Pakistan Army in a hospital where he was working during the Bangladesh Liberation War and was never seen again. He is believed to have been killed.23 May 1971Lew Welch44Nevada City, U.S.The poet Lew Welch, disappeared after leaving a note, and was believed to have committed suicide.14 October 197118Gitsegukla, British Columbia, CanadaSampare was last seen by her cousin on the Highway of Tears outside Gitsegukla on 14 October 1971. He left her alone when he went home to get a jacket or his bike, and she was gone when he returned.14 November 1971Eileen McCarthy23Edmonton, Alberta, CanadaMcCarthy, a 23-year-old medical laboratory scientist from Edmonton, Alberta, Canada, disappeared around 6:30 a.m. after waiting at a bus stop to go to work at the Misericordia Community Hospital, where she was last seen alive. She was never seen again, and her disappearance remains the longest disappearance in Edmonton history.6 December 1971Peter Christy33–34Near Jamnagar, IndiaChristy, a PAF bomber pilot and navigator, was tasked with destroying an air station belonging to the Indian Air Force, but was presumably shot down by a Surface-to-air missile.7 December 1971Jamie Rochelle Grissim16Vancouver, Washington, U.S.A student at the Fort Vancouver High School who went missing while walking home from school. Initially considered a runaway by authorities, foul play was suspected when her identification, purse, and other personal possessions were discovered approximately 20 miles from where she was last seen alive. She is suspected of being a victim of serial killer Warren Forrest.8 December 1971A. K. M. Miraj Uddin23Dhaka, BangladeshA. K. M. Miraj Uddin was a Bangladeshi athlete, freedom fighter, and politician who disappeared after being released from the Dhaka Central Jail and taken in a jeep on 8 December 1971, and has not been seen since.10 December 1971Lynne Schulze17Middlebury, Vermont, U.S.Schulze was a student at Middlebury College and was last seen by one of her college friends when she abruptly turned back on the way to a literature exam, claiming she had left her favorite pen in her dorm room. Her wallet, checkbook, and other belongings were found at the dorm. A subsequent report said that she was seen a short time later outside a health-food store co-owned and operated at that time by Robert Durst and his wife Kathleen, who herself disappeared a decade later. Schulze had also been seen buying prunes from the same store earlier in the day.14 December 197144Dhaka, BangladeshKaiser, a Bangladeshi writer and novelist who was awarded multiple awards during different decades, disappeared on 14 December 1971 and is believed to have been killed.
1972 DatePerson(s)Age when disappearedMissing fromCircumstances 197247–48Caprivi, NamibiaBrendan Simbwaye was an anti-apartheid Namibian activist and high ranking politician, who mysteriously disappeared in Caprivi in 1972. It has been claimed that the South African security forces had murdered Simbwaye, but this has never been proven to be true.4 January 1972Belinda Hutchens22Wilton Manors, FloridaA cocktail waitress who disappeared and was never seen again.30 January 197236BangladeshZahir Raihan, a Bangladeshi novelist, writer, and filmmaker and the brother of Shahidullah Kaiser, disappeared on 30 January 1972, while looking for his brother, who had been abducted by Pakistani forces.29 February 1972Debora Sue Lowe13Broward County, FloridaA schoolgirl who disappeared and was never seen again.19 March 1972Bonnie Taylor20Wilton Manors, FloridaBonnie Taylor disappeared after a speeding violation and was never seen again.Kendrick, Patrick (2020). American Ripper: The Enigma Of America's Serial Killer Cop. Florida: BluewaterPress LLC. ISBN 978-1-604-52163-4.12 June 19725Arnprior, Ontario, CanadaMcNaughton wandered away from his family during a fishing trip on 12 June 1972 and has not been seen since.21 June 1972Boanerges de Souza Massa34Formosa, BrazilThe Brazilian physician and field surgeon for the ALN was captured, tortured and likely murdered by Brazilian authorities. His body has never been recovered.August 31, 1972Elizabeth Renée Wilt22FloridaAn Arkansas native last known to have travelled to Florida to attend the 1972 Republican National Convention. Her body has never been found.August 1972Joseph Lynskey40BelfastA veteran IRA member who disappeared amid an internal IRA feud in August 1972 and has not been seen since.29 October 197218–19LibyaOne of three surviving perpetrators of the Munich massacre, Al-Gashey was released in a prisoner exchange and given refuge in Libya. Although Al-Gashey provided an interview on condition of anonymity as to his whereabouts in 1999, his current whereabouts are unknown.Personal interview, in One Day in September. 1999.
1973 DatePerson(s)Age when disappearedMissing fromCircumstances 1973Wladimir Chávez 33ChileA Chilean primary school teacher and politician of the Communist Party. Chávez disappeared following a coup in 1973. His ultimate fate remains unknown. 1973Zazu Nova 24New York, U.S.A gay liberation activist and founding member of Gay Youth. Nova disappeared on an unknown date shortly after the disbanding of the Gay Liberation Front. The precise circumstances of Nova's disappearance are unknown. 1973UnknownGolden, Colorado, U.S.Armbrust was the wife of a man whose body was found near Grant, Colorado; he was later identified as Anthony John Armbrust III. It is believed that Armbrust and her husband had signed a suicide pact, and authorities believe her to be deceased.24 March 1973 34Porto Alegre, Rio Grande do Sul, BrazilJames Allen da Luz was a Brazilian guerrilla who disappeared on 24 March 1973 from Porto Alegre, Rio Grande do Sul, Brazil as he has not been seen since. He is believed to be dead. 25 April 1973 35South Dakota, U.S.Robinson was an African-American civil rights activist who disappeared around 25 April 1973 during the Wounded Knee Protests on the Pine Ridge Indian Reservation in South Dakota. In 2014, the FBI said it had concluded from witness statements that Robinson was killed by American Indian Movement militants and he was "buried in the hills". His body has never been located.21 May 1973 Christine Markham9Scunthorpe, EnglandChristine Markham was an English girl who was last seen walking to school. Markham's body has never been found. Several individuals, including serial child killers Robert Black and Joseph Kappen, have been questioned about potential involvement in Markham's abduction, but her disappearance remains unsolved.9 June 1973 11 monthsElizabeth West, South Australia, AustraliaAustralian baby Jason was abducted by his father Barry Shannon at his grandparents' home in Elizabeth West, Adelaide; Barry died in a vehicle collision shortly thereafter. He has not been seen since, and police believe that he was either murdered or given to a relative of Barry to be raised in secret.26 July 1973 Janice Kathryn Pockett7Tolland, Connecticut, U.S.Janice Kathryn Pockett was an American girl who disappeared after leaving her home in Tolland, Connecticut on 26 July 1973 and has not been seen since.Janice Kathryn Pockett, Charley Project, retrieved 23 March 2016.25 August 1973 11Adelaide, AustraliaRatcliffe and Gordon are two Australian girls who went missing while attending an Australian rules football match at the Adelaide Oval on 25 August 1973. 4
1974