Unsolved mysteries: Sheriff's detectives seek aid in solving five disappearances
Cases have no links, other than lack of resolution
Deschutes County Sheriff's Office
Sheriff's detectives investigate disappearances of (top, L to R), Angela Lynn Chann, Ron Louis Nordstrom, Gary Alan Larsen; (bottom) Corwin Charles Osborn and Brenda Kay Middlekauff.
By Barney Lerten, bend.com (barney@bend.com)
Posted: Wednesday, January 15, 2003 6:13 PM
Deschutes County sheriffs detectives are shining a spotlight on five mysteries, full of unresolved heartache and pain for friends and family, full of headaches and frustration for police who vow not to give up trying to figure out what happened to five people who disappeared over the past 13 years.
Theres really no connection seen between the cases, other than that they are all unsolved. And while its not that high a count of such cases, compared to other areas, the five remain open, active missing person cases, said sheriffs Capt. Randy Wight. He released a summary of the five cases Wednesday, prompted by recent media questions about unsolved cases.

We thought wed take the public opportunity to shake the tree a little bit, see if something comes out, said Wight, who joined the sheriffs office two years ago, having retired from the Eugene Police Department in 1997.

Urban areas like Portland typically have a lot of these, Wight said. My guess is, when I worked in Eugene, we had more than (the number in Deschutes County). I imagine most counties have something similar.

They remain high-priority cases, each currently assigned to investigators and being actively worked. Wight said the sheriffs office is seeking help from anyone who believes they might have information on any of the cases. You can contact the sheriffs office detectives division at 383-4396; information can be provided anonymously, if so desired, he said.

The oldest unsolved case dates back to March 29, 1989, when Redmond-area resident Angela Lynn Chan, then 19 years old, was reported missing by family members. Wight said Chan's husband, Bruce Chan, was in the military, and had dropped her off at their home, at 1565 SW Lava Ave., the morning of March 27 before returning to his station.

Two days later, her car was found along Highway 126 near Cline Falls Highway, west of Redmond. No one has seen her since. If shes still alive, Chan would be 33 today. Shes described as 5-foot-2 and 120 pounds, with blonde hair and blue eyes.

In the next-oldest case, Ron Louis Nordstrom last was seen on the afternoon of June 9, 1999, leaving his residence at 904 NE Yucca Ave., just outside of Redmond, on his blue mountain bike. Theres been no confirmed sighting or contact since. He was reported missing by family members on June 14 of that year what would have been Nordstroms 47th birthday. Hes 5-foot-11 and 150 pounds, with brown hair and brown eyes.

The most publicized recent unsolved missing-person case was that of Corwin Charles Osborn of Bellevue, Wash., who was 45 when he disappeared in June 2001 while hiking from the Devils Lake Trailhead, with plans to solo climb one or perhaps all of the Three Sisters.

The athletic, experienced climber was dropped off on the morning of June 17 by his father, planning to meet him at the Lava Camp
We thought wed take the public opportunity to shake the tree a little bit, see if something comes out.
Capt. Randy Wight
Deschutes County Sheriff's Office
Trailhead on state Highway 242 later that day. He never turned up, and a massive air and ground search turned up no sign of Osborn, described as 5-foot-11 and 165 pounds, with black hair and blue eyes.

La Pine man, woman most recent disappearances

Gary Alan Larsen of La Pine was 28 years old back on Sept. 16, 2001, when he last was seen with friends at a Sharis Restaurant in Redmond, where he had breakfast that morning. Wight said he left there and the next morning, supposedly checked out of a hotel. Family members reported him missing 11 days later.

Larsen last was seen driving a white 1995 Dodge pickup with Oregon license XTN945, Wight said. His last known address was 15677 Woodgreen Ct. in La Pine. Hes described as 6-foot-3 and 210 pounds, with brown hair and brown eyes.

Last July 31, coworkers at Fred Meyer in Bend reported that Brenda Kay Middlekauff, 40, of 17300 Lodgepole Lane in La Pine was missing. They told authorities they last saw her the evening of July 18. Family members who were contacted said they had last seen her two days later, on July 20.

Middlekauff left $700 worth of paychecks with her employer, took no belongings and hasnt used any of her credit cards, The Bulletin reported Tuesday, quoting court documents. Her husband, Darrell Middlekauff, was the last known person to see her, and provided different accounts of what happened to her, telling Fred Meyer supervisors she had a family emergency, but later telling detectives his wife left him for a female truck driver.

Last September, a local SWAT team, the Central Oregon Emergency Response Team, was called out and shut down Boyd Acres Road while Bend police and sheriffs deputies contacted the womans husband, who walked out and surrendered without incident. He was arrested on a parole violation charge, was sentenced last month to more than two years in prison on methamphetamine delivery charges. Police suspect his involvement in her disappearance, Wight confirmed Wednesday.

In the last year, weve spent a lot of time on Middlekauff, a fair amount of time on Gary Larsen, Wight said. The two oldest ones, they have been missing for a good long while. Weve done extensive work around the country, to try to see if they might have surfaced someplace else. Its pretty hard not to suspect foul play in those cases.

If, in fact, any of these people were murdered, we sure want to figure it out and prosecute somebody, the captain said. The agency has five detectives and a sixth who works as a crime analyst, Wight said.