Deceased/Not Found MI - Janet Kirkup, 53, Jackson, 14 Aug 1992 *R. Kirkup guilty*

Richard

Well-Known Member
Joined
Sep 14, 2004
Messages
11,427
Reaction score
18,785
Janet Kirkup
Missing since August 14, 1992 from Jackson, Michigan.
Classification: Endangered Missing



Vital Statistics
  • Age at Time of Disappearance: 53 years old
  • Distinguishing Characteristics: White female. Blonde hair.
Circumstances of Disappearance

Janet Kirkup and her husband sold their home in Apple Valley, MI in 1992 and embarked on a cross-country RV trip.

Shortly after visiting family in Michigan, Janet Kirkup's whereabouts became unknown, and her husband provided little information as to her whereabouts. Janet Kirkup was reported missing by her children in 1992.
An investigation into her disappearance initially was launched by the Michigan State Police because, at the time, the couple was living in Jackson, MI, and that was the last place they were seen together.


It was long believed that Robert Kirkup killed his wife while they were near Buffalo, N.Y.


Police reopened the investigation in 2008, and got a confession from the husband on June 17. Kirkup told two San Bernardino County, CA, detectives he killed his wife on August 14, 1992, and that he buried her body in New York.


Kirkup is presumed buried in the wooded area of Batavia, west of Buffalo.
Her body has not been recovered.



Investigators
If you have any information concerning this case, please contact:
Michigan State Police
OR
San Bernardino County Sheriff's Office
909-387-3690


Source Information:

Buffalo News
The Press-Enterprise
The Doe Network Case File 2627DFMI
 
http://www.rnews.com/Story_2004.cfm?ID=65165&rnews_story_type=18

Man Sentenced in 15-Year-Old Murder Case
by Scott Fairbanks
Published Sep 22, 2008

Sentencing was held Monday in a Genesee County murder case that is more than 15-years-old.

Robert Kirkup, 68, of Big River, California was sentenced to 5 to 15 years in prison for manslaughter. Police say that Kirkup confessed to killing his wife Janet. She disappeared in August of 1992 while on a road trip with Robert.


Police believe Janet was killed in the Batavia area, however her remains have not been found.
 
Normally I'd say to hold off any source of food or water until he told authorities where the body is located.

But, we're a nice country now. We don't do things like that.
 
I know this would be a little off on age, and soooo close that I can't think that this was already checked into.... but what do you think about this DOE?

http://www.michigan.gov/msp/0,1607,7-123-1589_31786_32003-5549--,00.html

A couple of points that come to mind...The Doe Network entry states that Janet was reported missing on August 14th of '92. It isn't stated if this is the last time she was seen by family members or when they actually filed the report. If this was in fact the last time she was seen alive, a lot would depend on when in August the remains were found. MSP site states the Doe was skeletonized, but had only been killed 4 to 7 days before being discovered.
The location is interesting though, as New Buffalo MI is some 155 miles west of Jackson MI. I find no reason to accept the husband's account as to where he dumped Janet, and if he were headed to CA (where he was arrested some years later) this location makes all the more sense.
 
I wonder why California authorities have jurisdiction over this case whether it occurred in Michigan or New York. I wonder if he stated that he buried her in Buffalo and the police assumed that he meant Buffalo, New York.
 
An intentional misdirection perhaps..? I'd be interested in knowing how the NY info came about in the first place, as it seems to have been a matter of speculation even before the confession.
 
I know this would be a little off on age, and soooo close that I can't think that this was already checked into.... but what do you think about this DOE?

http://www.michigan.gov/msp/0,1607,7-123-1589_31786_32003-5549--,00.html

The Buffalo/New Buffalo connection is interesting, and the faces are similar. They seem pretty clear this woman was older -- Kirkup at 51 is not exactly elderly. Plus there's no mention that she had dentures. So it seems like a long shot, but probably worth sending it in.
 
Bump

Janet has been missing 18 years today. Come home soon.
 
The 20th anniversary of Janet's disappearance is approaching. Her husband was convicted of killing her and was sentenced to prison for 5 to 15 years. He will probably be up for parole soon, if he isn't already out. Janet's body has never been recovered/identified.
 
Janet Sue Kirkup
  • kirkup_janet2.jpg
  • janet_sue_kirkup_3.jpg
  • janet_sue_kirkup_4.jpg
  • janet_sue_kirkup_5.jpg
  • janet_sue_kirkup_10.jpg
Janet, circa 1992; Robert Kirkup, circa 2008

  • Missing Since 06/01/1992
  • Missing From Jackson, Michigan
  • Classification Endangered Missing
  • Sex Female
  • Race White
  • Date of Birth 08/13/1939 (80)
  • Age 52 - 53 years old
  • Height and Weight 5'7, 160 pounds
  • Clothing/Jewelry Description Unknown, but she usually wears several rings and other jewelry.
  • Distinguishing Characteristics Caucasian female. Graying blonde hair, blue eyes. Janet may use the last name Johnson. Her four front teeth are capped and she keeps her fingernails long.
Details of Disappearance
Janet was last seen in Jackson, Michigan during the summer of 1992. That summer she and her husband, Robert Kirkup, were on a road trip in a recreational vehicle (RV) at the time.

The couple had three daughters, Shana, Sherry and Susan. Robert worked in senior management throughout much of his career, but in 1989 he decided to quit and buy a saloon. The business went under, however, and by the fall of 1991 the Kirkups' house in Apple Valley, California had been repossessed.

Janet and Robert decided to go an extended vacation in their RV. Shana and Sherry were adults by this time and had moved away; Susan was sixteen and lived with her parents. For five months, she joined her father and mother in the RV, but eventually she decided to go home and live with Shana. The Kirkups headed east, stopping at the homes of various relatives along the way. Janet kept in touch with her children by telephone and letters.

Janet disappeared sometime during the trip after she and Robert visited his relatives in Genesee County, Michigan. Her calls and letters to her children stopped, and whenever her children called Robert would tell them Janet was unavailable to talk. She has never been heard from again.

In January 1993, Robert wrote a six-page letter to his children to say that Janet had in fact been missing for months. He stated she ran away with another wealthy man who drove a big RV, and he last saw her when he dropped her off at an airport hotel in Buffalo, New York.

Robert didn't provide many details about the incident, and after Janet's disappearance he continued to travel around the country in his RV.

The Kirkups' daughters initially believed Robert's story about Janet leaving with another man, because they knew how dissatisfied she was with the situation.

Susan stated that while she was with them on the RV trip, her parents argued frequently, both of them drank and Janet was very unhappy. Susan was close to her mother, but she described Robert as an abuser who could become violent, particularly when he was drinking.

Shana remembered differently, stating Janet was volatile and occasionally hit her children, but Robert never had. She described Janet as a very materialistic person who was concerned about having a lot of money, and Shana could believe that her mother would have left her husband for someone with more money.

After all the sisters' attempts to locate Janet led to nothing, Sherry filed a missing persons report.

The police found no record or any sightings of Janet after her visit with Robert's parents in the summer of 1992, and the couldn't identify the man Robert said she had left with. They came to believe she had vanished under suspicious circumstances and might have met with foul play.

In 1999, authorities tracked Robert to Michigan, went there and interviewed him. He repeated the story about Janet's having left him, but then added, "I had nothing to do with her death." The investigators pressed him, but Robert refused to say anything further and demanded a lawyer.

Authorities got a search warrant on his RV and found a 1992 calendar in which Robert had kept a meticulous record of his RV trip, daily noting the destination, miles traveled and the gas mileage. The entries for August 16 and 17, however, had no location listed; they were the only dates on the calendar without one.

Robert confessed to Janet's murder after the police persuaded Shana to confront him. He stated he and Janet got into a fight inside the RV at a campground near Buffalo, New York on August 14, 1992. He strangled Janet after she attempted to stab him, then buried her body in a wooded area in New York, but he couldn't remember exactly where.

Robert insisted he had killed his wife only in self-defense. He was sentenced to five to fifteen years in prison for Janet's murder.

Janet's body has not been located, but foul play is suspected in her case due to the circumstances involved.
Investigating Agency
  • Michigan State Police 517-780-4580
  • San Bernardino County Sheriff's Office 909-387-3690
Source Information
 
Robert%20Kirkup.jpg

Robert Kirkup



Janet%20Kirkup.jpg

Janet Kirkup

Campground Murder

In 1992, Robert and Janet Kirkup lived in Apple Valley and owned a business. When they retired they sold their business and purchased a motorhome. Robert and Janet traveled the country in their motor home. In July 1992, their daughters stopped hearing from their mother. When they tried to contact her, Robert told them she was asleep, on a walk or at the doctor’s office. The daughters became suspicious and filed a missing persons report at the Apple Valley Sheriff’s Station.

During the investigation the homicide detail assumed the case and learned that Robert and Janet were last seen together in Michigan. The SBSD homicide detectives worked with the Michigan State Police in a joint investigation. After an extensive investigation the Michigan State Police were able to prove that Janet and Robert most likely arrived together at an RV campground in New York. The Michigan State Police then worked jointly with the New York State Police. When interviewed, Robert told the Michigan and New York detectives that Janet left him for another man while at the campground in New York. Their motorhome was processed for evidence but none was located. The Michigan and New York State Police believed Robert killed Janet, but they could not prove it at the time.

In June 2008, Janet’s daughter contacted the SBSD Cold Case Team. Detectives Robert Alexander and Greg Myler picked up the case. Later that month, Myler and Alexander interviewed Robert at his residence in Big River. After eight hours he confessed to killing Janet and described it in detail. Robert said he strangled Janet to death on her birthday while at the RV campground in New York. After the homicide, Robert buried Janet in a remote area near the campground. After Robert confessed, the New York State Police obtained a murder warrant for Robert, who was subsequently arrested and extradited to New York where he pled guilty.

Efforts were made to find Janet’s body with Robert’s assistance, but were all unsuccessful. The case was later featured on Dateline NBC.

LINK:

San Bernardino County District Attorney > Prosecuting Criminals > Prosecuting Criminals > Cold Case Unit > Cold Case Success Stories > Campground Murder
 
janet_sue_kirkup_4.jpg

Janet Sue Kirkup, age 53
Murdered in August 1992, body not found


Janet and her husband, Robert, sold their home in Apple Valley, Michigan in 1992, and embarked on a cross-country RV trip. Shortly after visiting family in Michigan, Janet's whereabouts became unknown, and her husband provided little information as to her whereabouts. Janet was reported missing by her children in 1992.

An investigation into her disappearance initially was launched by the Michigan State Police because, at the time, the couple was living in Jackson, Michigan, and that was the last place they were seen together. It was long believed that Robert Kirkup killed his wife while they were near Buffalo, New York. Police reopened the investigation in 2008 and got a confession from the husband on June 17.

Kirkup told two San Bernardino County, California detectives he strangled his wife on August 14, 1992, and that he buried her body in a wooded area outside Buffalo, New York. Janet is presumed buried in the wooded area of Batavia, west of Buffalo. Her body has not been recovered.

LINKS:

 

Members online

Online statistics

Members online
190
Guests online
1,573
Total visitors
1,763

Forum statistics

Threads
589,966
Messages
17,928,431
Members
228,022
Latest member
Jemabogado
Back
Top