The Abduction & Murder of Kathleen Emilia "Kathy" Neff, October 1980
At 8:45am on Thursday, October 16, 1980, Kathleen Neff, 21, who also went by "Kathy," dropped her vehicle off at a Mazda dealership on Florin Rd near Franklin Blvd in Sacramento for service. She planned to pick the vehicle up later that same day.
Contemporary sources differ as to how Kathy left the dealership. One states that she reportedly left the dealership on foot, "possibly to walk to her home on D Parkway." Another indicates that she "reportedly rode off in another vehicle with an unidentified person."
Kathy was never seen alive again. She was last seen wearing a white knit top and blue jeans. She didn't reach her home and never returned for her car. She was reported missing by family and friends the next day. The Sacramento Bee published postings about her as part of their Secret Witness program, asking for information regarding her disappearance and whereabouts. She was described as a white female, 5'6 and 118 lbs, with brown hair and blue eyes.
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| Kathy Neff. Photo from FindAGrave. |
At about 4:30pm on Saturday, November 8, 1980, pheasant hunters discovered Kathy's nearly-nude body near the end of a gravel road near the Valley Hi Country Club. The body was found lying face-up in a drainage ditch off of Elliott Ranch Road. She was wearing only a pair of socks. The body was identified the following day as Kathy Neff. Cause of death could not be determined due to decomposition, though investigators believe she was murdered.
In 2018 it was reported by the Sacramento Bee that at one point Kathy was the girlfriend of Joseph James Deangelo, the Golden State Killer/EARONS. However, sheriff's officials believe that Kathy's death is not connected to EARONS, as the circumstances are quite different from any of his crimes.
Kathy's case was in the Sac Bee's Secret Witness program for quite some time, starting with her disappearance and then continuing once her remains were found. Her murder is still unsolved and listed on the Sacramento County cold case page. No arrests have ever been made in her case.
Top orange icon: Kathy's last known whereabouts. Bottom: Location of body. Created by me using Google Maps.
Further Thoughts
While I found this case while doing my own research (hence the My Research tag), in my opinion it also fits the MO of the Bad Samaritan Murders, so I have tagged it as such as well. However, it should be noted that Kathy's murder is not mentioned among the original/most "official" list of Bad Samaritan victims.
Kathy's case has also been mentioned in a post from another amateur sleuth-run site that I use to find related cases: the Murder Incorp. blog, which compiles contemporary sources about crimes in CA from the 1960s and 70s that either have been recently confirmed to still be, or the blogger suspects to be, unsolved. Special focus is put on cases that bear resemblance and/or occurred somewhat in proximity to confirmed and possible EARONS and Zodiac crimes.
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