The Doe Network:
Case File 78DMNY
Samuel Arthur Todd
Missing since January 1, 1984 from Manhattan, New York City, New York County, New York
Classification: Endangered Missing
Vital Statistics
- Date Of Birth: June 12, 1959
- Age at Time of Disappearance: 24 years old
- Height and Weight at Time of Disappearance: 5'11; 135 pounds
- Distinguishing Characteristics: White male. Light brown hair; blue eyes. Todd wears eyeglasses.
- Medical Conditions: Todd may be suffering from amnesia and may not know who he is.
- Marks, Scars: Two small scars on cheek near left eye.
- Clothing: Last seen wearing a dark blue sweatshirt with a circular emblem of Ecolint Geneve
stitched across the front; blue jeans; blue running shoes; and dark-framed eyeglasses.
Circumstances of Disappearance
Todd vanished after stepping out of a New Year's party for fresh air. He was last seen walking near Mulberry and Houston Streets in Manhattan, NY on New Year's Day 1984.
Sam left his wallet and jacket at the party. He had no cash and no identification on him.
Investigators believes Sam is suffering amnesia from a hit on the head. Several persons, including one at the city-operated Men's Shelter in the Bowery, claim they saw Sam wandering in the area after his disappearance. A worker at the Men's Shelter told police he saw Sam, lean and hungry, eating soup. A day later, someone spotted a a thin man with blond hair washing car windows on a street in Greenwich Village.
Todd was a clergy student at the time of his disappearance.
Todd attended an international school in Geneva, Switzerland and is a 1981 graduate of Vassar College, where he ran cross-country. He was a clergy student at Yale Divinity School at the time of his disappearance, and had passed the first round of qualifying exams for Presbyterian ordination. There were, however, some problems in Todd's life which may have caused him distress.
He had pre-registered for five courses for the spring semester, but he wasn't performing well academically; he had gotten incompletes in two courses he'd taken in the fall of 1983, and these incompletes would automatically become failures if his coursework wasn't completed by February 1984. Even if Todd was able to complete the classes, he still wasn't on track to graduate from Yale on time.
He was also suffering financial problems and had accepted financial assistance from relatives, and he was struggling to pay his tuition and his rent. He had ended his relationship with his girlfriend in the autumn of 1983. He had stated he planned to avoid his ex during the New Year celebrations, but she was at the party he attended that night.
Todd was interested in jazz music and in peace and justice issues in 1984, and he volunteered for several charities. He was born in New York City and lived all over the United States and in several foreign countries during his life.
In spite of Todd's difficulties, his family stated he was happy at the time of his disappearance, and they don't believe he would have ever left on his own. His case remains unsolved.
