IL IL - Jerry Wolking, 52, Moline, 18 October 1990

It's been 26 years since Jerry Wolking was last seen. Significant progress has been made but investigators still need additional information to help solve the case.

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Charley Project



Vital Statistics at Time of Disappearance
• Missing Since: October 18, 1990 from Moline, Illinois
• Classification: Endangered Missing
• Date of Birth: June 25, 1938
• Age: 52 years old
• Height and Weight: 5'10, 160 - 180 pounds
• Distinguishing Characteristics: Caucasian male. Gray hair, hazel eyes. Wolking may wear eyeglasses.
• Clothing/Jewelry Description: A plaid shirt, a gold satin Quad City Car Club jacket, jeans and sneakers.
• Medical Conditions: Wolking has heart problems.

Details of Disappearance
Wolking was last seen leaving a friend's house at 11:00 p.m. on October 18, 1990. His silver and blue 1988 Chevrolet Suburban was later found abandoned in the long-term parking lot of the Quad City International Airport. The vehicle had front-end damage, newspapers and other items were strewn around in the interior and the trailer hitch was packed with mud; Wolking's loved ones said it would be uncharacteristic of him to leave his car in such a dirty condition. There were drops of his blood on all four sides of the car, inside and out.

Wolking's family noticed before his disappearance that he had been behaving oddly. A few days before his disappearance, at a family birthday party, he paced up and down and seemed preoccupied. He also did not want to stay to deliver the gift. This behavior is uncharacteristic of Wolking. He was being followed at the time of his disappearance by a private detective who came forward later. The detective had been hired by a former boyfriend of Wolking's girlfriend.

Wolking has never been heard from again. Authorities could find no evidence that he took a plane or bus out of the Quad City area. His case remains unsolved. His family believes he was murdered.

Moline PD: Last few pieces missing in 26-year disappearance of Jerry Wolking

Foul play had always been suspected in the case, according to previous reports. Back in June of 2013 detectives and crime scene investigators converged on a wooded area off of John Deere Road as part of a renewed search for the Moline man’s remains. Even earlier, in April of that year, police excavated a site in rural Milan, taking soil samples. The land was once owned by the parents of a longtime person of interest in the case, who has since died.

In their Facebook post, they wrote that “significant progress,” using biological and fingerprint evidence, had been made on the case over the last few years. Police said witnesses have come forward and little by little the pieces have come together.

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Students helps police with cold case - December 2013

Police search for Moline man missing more than 20 years - June 2013

Excavation starts in 1990 disappearance of Moline man - April 2013

JusticeWillBeServed said:

It's been 26 years since Jerry Wolking was last seen. Significant progress has been made but investigators still need additional information to help solve the case.

NamUs

Doe Network

Charley Project

Vital Statistics at Time of Disappearance
• Missing Since: October 18, 1990 from Moline, Illinois
• Classification: Endangered Missing
• Date of Birth: June 25, 1938
• Age: 52 years old
• Height and Weight: 5'10, 160 - 180 pounds
• Distinguishing Characteristics: Caucasian male. Gray hair, hazel eyes. Wolking may wear eyeglasses.
• Clothing/Jewelry Description: A plaid shirt, a gold satin Quad City Car Club jacket, jeans and sneakers.
• Medical Conditions: Wolking has heart problems.

Details of Disappearance
Wolking was last seen leaving a friend's house at 11:00 p.m. on October 18, 1990. His silver and blue 1988 Chevrolet Suburban was later found abandoned in the long-term parking lot of the Quad City International Airport. The vehicle had front-end damage, newspapers and other items were strewn around in the interior and the trailer hitch was packed with mud; Wolking's loved ones said it would be uncharacteristic of him to leave his car in such a dirty condition. There were drops of his blood on all four sides of the car, inside and out.

Wolking's family noticed before his disappearance that he had been behaving oddly. A few days before his disappearance, at a family birthday party, he paced up and down and seemed preoccupied. He also did not want to stay to deliver the gift. This behavior is uncharacteristic of Wolking. He was being followed at the time of his disappearance by a private detective who came forward later. The detective had been hired by a former boyfriend of Wolking's girlfriend.

Wolking has never been heard from again. Authorities could find no evidence that he took a plane or bus out of the Quad City area. His case remains unsolved. His family believes he was murdered.

Moline PD: Last few pieces missing in 26-year disappearance of Jerry Wolking



Students helps police with cold case - December 2013

Police search for Moline man missing more than 20 years - June 2013

Excavation starts in 1990 disappearance of Moline man - April 2013

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Now this concerns me!

Moline Police ask for help on 27th anniversary of Jerry Wolking's disappearance

http://www.kwqc.com/content/news/Moline-Police-ask-for-help-on-27th-anniversary-of-Jerry-Wolkings-disappearance-451444523.html

Police say evidence shows that he was likely involved in an argument near his home and then struck by his own vehicle. The suspect then placed Wolking into the rear of his Suburban and took him to an unknown location. Wolking has not been seen since that date.

During the cold case review, police say several new witnesses came forward and told them Wolking was fearful of his girlfriend’s estranged husband, confiding in family members and co-workers that he was afraid he would be harmed by him.

The Moline Police Department is asking anyone with information regarding Wolking’s disappearance to come forward and put this case to rest for his family.

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Jerry Wolking Sr., 52, of Moline, went missing on Oct. 18, 1990. He last was seen leaving the the Rock Island home of his girlfriend around 10:45 p.m., headed to his home in Moline.

Although his body never was found, police and family said in 2014 that they believe Wolking was killed. They also said they know who killed him, but do not have sufficient evidence to prove it.

Evidence gathered in 1990 showed that Wolking made it back to his residence, was likely involved in an argument, then struck by his own vehicle.

On Oct. 21, 1990, his blood-stained Chevrolet Suburban was discovered in long-term parking at the Quad-City International Airport. During a cold case review in 2013, with the assistance of the University of North Texas, the blood stains were identified as belonging to Wolking.

Also in 2013, new witnesses came forward to say they saw a vehicle like the Suburban stuck in the mud in the early morning of Oct. 19 in a wooded area east of the Green Valley softball complex. Forensic testing comparing the dirt from that area and the dirt from the Suburban showed them to be geologically similar.

The area was searched, but nothing significant to the case was discovered.

The Big Story: Some Q-C missing remain unfound, others discovered after a violent death

28 years later: Social media may crack unsolved murder of Moline man

The unsolved case is the longest running cold case at the department, but officers say they are not giving up.
They are now using social media to uncover new leads.

Click to expand...

Where is Jerry Wolking? Moline police closer to cracking the 28 year old case

Jerry Alfred Wolking Sr. – The Charley Project

Details of Disappearance
Wolking was last seen leaving a friend's house at 11:00 p.m. on October 18, 1990. His silver and blue 1988 Chevrolet Suburban was later found abandoned in the long-term parking lot of the Quad City International Airport.

The vehicle had front-end damage, newspapers and other items were strewn around in the interior and the trailer hitch and wheel wells were packed with mud; Wolking's loved ones said it would be uncharacteristic of him to leave his car in such a dirty condition.

There were drops of his blood on all four sides of the car, inside and out. Investigators believe whoever was driving the truck ran over someone with it. Geological testing of the mud on the outside of the car indicated it came from the Poplar Grove, Illinois area.

Wolking's family noticed before his disappearance that he had been behaving oddly. A few days before his disappearance, at a family birthday party, he paced up and down and seemed preoccupied. He also did not want to stay to deliver the gift. This behavior is uncharacteristic of Wolking.

He told people he was afraid his girlfriend's estranged husband was going to kill him, and said if anything happened to him, this man was probably responsible. This person is considered a suspect in Wolking's disappearance, but he was never charged in the case and is now deceased. Investigators don't believe whoever killed Wolking acted alone.

Police have a working theory of a crime: they think he arrived home and was met by one or more attackers near his residence, that a struggle took place and that Wolking was struck by his own vehicle. Investigators believe Wolking's body may be near the Poplar Grove Addition in Moline, east of the area now known as Green Valley Sports Complex.

Wolking's body has never been found despite extensive searches.

Missing and Murdered in the Midwest: Jerry Wolking, the vanished Moline family man | wqad.com

Jerry Wolking: The vanished Moline family man – Missing and Murdered in the Midwest – Podcast

Thirty-two years ago, the disappearance of a Moline man became what is now one of the most high-profile, longest-running missing-persons cases in the Quad Cities.

Jerry Wolking Sr. left his girlfriend’s house the night of Oct. 18, 1990. The John Deere Harvester Works employee remains missing and has not been seen to this day.

Investigators think Jerry was struck by his own truck – that someone used the 1988 Suburban and hit him with it, leaving him with fatal injuries.

Law enforcement thinks the suspect, whom they believe is deceased, may have placed Jerry’s body in the back of the vehicle and dumped his body. And the suspect may not have worked alone.

Photos from Fulton HS 1951-6