FL FL - Ellen Akers, 15, Ormond Beach, 18 April 1981

[Odyssey]

I found something interesting/bizarre. About a year after Ellen went missing, someone tried to abduct her mother from (most likely) the same 7-11. This was in May 1982.

Heenan Rucker Holmes, 30, Atlanta, pleaded no contest before Blount Monday to the robbery of an Ormond Beach 7-11 store on May 25. Holmes was accused of robbing the store of $37 and of trying to take the store clerk, Linda Riester, with him. According to police, the woman struggled and grabbed the handle of a freezer door, until the man released her and fled from the store.

https://news.google.com/newspapers?...AIBAJ&sjid=9d8FAAAAIBAJ&pg=3030,2180228&hl=en

It would be interesting to see what else he was convicted of. I can't help but think that he might have been involved in Ellen's disappearance and then tried to abduct the mother to keep her from searching for Ellen. Although it certainly could have been a random robbery.

 

[Alleykins]

Was the mother's bf every questioned other than when he reported her missing? Did her mother actually give her money for a movie? It only states that Ellen asked for it. FWIW, it still sounds like, to me, that Ellen had plenty of time to go to the movies, come home, and then disappear, all while her mother was at work. It doesn't say if the boyfriend was home during that time, that I can find. I clicked on some of the old news links provided here to try to find out but the no longer work. If anyone knows the answers, please feel free to clue me in.

 

[Ozoner]

I wonder why they think she left on her own if her purse and glasses were left behind?

The local police often say that so that they don't have to bother investigating. That's why ALL missing-person cases should be handled by the FBI.

 

[Gardener1850]

Human bones found in a wooded area near Broadway Ave and Atlantic Rd: http://www.newsdaytonabeach.com/wnd...man-remains-found-in-woods-near-ormond-beach/

This is VERY close to where Ellen was last seen: https://www.google.com/maps/dir/29....b910593641!2m2!1d-81.1243652!2d29.3322795!3e2

 

[Ozoner]

Human bones found in a wooded area near Broadway Ave and Atlantic Rd: http://www.newsdaytonabeach.com/wnd...man-remains-found-in-woods-near-ormond-beach/

This is VERY close to where Ellen was last seen: https://www.google.com/maps/dir/29....b910593641!2m2!1d-81.1243652!2d29.3322795!3e2

I would like to know what sort of an alibi the stepfather has. It's uncanny how many teen girls who have turned up missing had stepfathers or had moms with live-in boyfriends.

 

[Alleykins]

I would like to know what sort of an alibi the stepfather has. It's uncanny how many teen girls who have turned up missing had stepfathers or had moms with live-in boyfriends.

(RBBM)
I would also like to know this, too, it goes along with my post from September (#22).

 

[Alleykins]

Human bones found in a wooded area near Broadway Ave and Atlantic Rd: http://www.newsdaytonabeach.com/wnd...man-remains-found-in-woods-near-ormond-beach/

This is VERY close to where Ellen was last seen: https://www.google.com/maps/dir/29....b910593641!2m2!1d-81.1243652!2d29.3322795!3e2

Thank you for posting this. I wonder how long the remains have been there and if they are Ellen's.

 

[Gardener1850]

Thank you for posting this. I wonder how long the remains have been there and if they are Ellen's.

I would like to know too. I was not familiar with Ellen's case before seeing the report of remains found. I searched the board for cases in Ormond Beach. There are 2 other more recent missing people from Ormond Beach, but Ellen went missing the closest to these remains. Remains are skeletal. I don't know if it is a long shot for this to be her after all this time or not but if she was buried in a shallow grave in those woods it's possible it took this many years for the ground to erode and a hunter to stumble upon them. Not many details yet on condition and age of the person they found.. Whoever it is, I hope they can ID them quickly. Someone's family may soon have answers.

 

[Gardener1850]

"When Akers' mother came home from work the next morning" - It sounds like to me that Ellen might have come home after the movies but vanished before her mother's shift was over. That could be why her glasses and purse were there.

I think this is a good theory. Do we know what street she lived on? Would be interesting to have a map of the movies, 7-11 where her mother worked and the general location of their home.

 

[mrseeker]

I think this is a good theory. Do we know what street she lived on? Would be interesting to have a map of the movies, 7-11 where her mother worked and the general location of their home.

I live in the area for over a decade and have never known there was an atlantic Rd and Atlantic ave there. I would have thought this would have been totally undeveloped area in 1981. When i first read this story i was thinking they were talking about A1A which is called Atlantic Ave (north and south) when you get to Daytona to ormond by the sea i think. I live in ormond and have always just called it A1A. I can't get the link to the original story to work. Does anyone have a link to the 1980's newspaper stories or know if they mentioned crossroads with Atlantic Ave?

I just looked and there is a 7-11 at 520 S Atlantic Ave Ormond which is at the beach. its the main coast road with all the hotels, condos etc. So it would have been built up in the 80's. Not sure if this 7-11 would have been there. It is not uncommon for them to find remains in the Ormond area and they usually turn out to be a homeless person who died of natural causes. They found another set of bones just to the north of ormond on flagler county line just a few days ago. They are near these latest remains on Atlantic Rd
http://www.wftv.com/news/local/human-remains-found-in-wooded-area-of-flagler-county/469987275

looking at A1A its a little goofy. S Atlantic runs south in Ormond, but it runs into N Atlantic when it gets to Daytona. I have never paid attention to that until now.

 

[Gardener1850]

I live in the area for over a decade and have never known there was an atlantic Rd and Atlantic ave there. I would have thought this would have been totally undeveloped area in 1981. When i first read this story i was thinking they were talking about A1A which is called Atlantic Ave (north and south) when you get to Daytona to ormond by the sea i think. I live in ormond and have always just called it A1A. I can't get the link to the original story to work. Does anyone have a link to the 1980's newspaper stories or know if they mentioned crossroads with Atlantic Ave?

I searched an archived newspaper database I have access to and did not find any old articles. It seems they thought she was a runaway and there may not have been any articles

I did find this: http://findagrave.com/cgi-bin/fg.cgi?page=gr&GRid=95957681

Which is interesting because it says that the step-father reported her missing at 4 PM.

 

[Alleykins]

I live in the area for over a decade and have never known there was an atlantic Rd and Atlantic ave there. I would have thought this would have been totally undeveloped area in 1981. When i first read this story i was thinking they were talking about A1A which is called Atlantic Ave (north and south) when you get to Daytona to ormond by the sea i think. I live in ormond and have always just called it A1A. I can't get the link to the original story to work. Does anyone have a link to the 1980's newspaper stories or know if they mentioned crossroads with Atlantic Ave?

I just looked and there is a 7-11 at 520 S Atlantic Ave Ormond which is at the beach. its the main coast road with all the hotels, condos etc. So it would have been built up in the 80's. Not sure if this 7-11 would have been there. It is not uncommon for them to find remains in the Ormond area and they usually turn out to be a homeless person who died of natural causes. They found another set of bones just to the north of ormond on flagler county line just a few days ago. They are near these latest remains on Atlantic Rd
http://www.wftv.com/news/local/human-remains-found-in-wooded-area-of-flagler-county/469987275

looking at A1A its a little goofy. S Atlantic runs south in Ormond, but it runs into N Atlantic when it gets to Daytona. I have never paid attention to that until now.

Here's a link to an archived article that I found in a previous post in this thread:
https://news.google.com/newspapers?...AAIBAJ&sjid=nuAFAAAAIBAJ&pg=4791,133671&hl=en

 

[Gardener1850]

Here's a link to an archived article that I found in a previous post in this thread:
https://news.google.com/newspapers?...AAIBAJ&sjid=nuAFAAAAIBAJ&pg=4791,133671&hl=en

Thank you! That article has her address. That article also says she had her purse with her and makes it sound like her purse was missing. So we know she had her purse at the 7-11 but had to go home to leave it there. I wonder if it took a while to find her purse that was left at home?

 

[Gardener1850]

Here's a google map of her address and the present day location of 7-11: https://www.google.com/maps/dir/14+...297319d96e51!2m2!1d-81.033812!2d29.278686!3e2

I think it is possible that 7-11 has been there since 1981. Anyone know where the movie theater was location?

 

[mrseeker]

Here's a link to an archived article that I found in a previous post in this thread:
https://news.google.com/newspapers?...AAIBAJ&sjid=nuAFAAAAIBAJ&pg=4791,133671&hl=en

It does give her address as 14 Chippingwood which is "beachside" just 0.3 miles from the current 7-11at 520 S Atlantic Ave Ormond.

Ormond is not big, so its still just about 8 miles from that Atlantic Rd and Ave found on the mainland. So its not impossible the newly discovered remains are hers. If you had wanted to hide a body, it might have been an area you would seek out back then. It would have been over the bridge, and a few miles north. Just wanted to give correct geography.

 

[Gardener1850]

It does give her address as 14 Chippingwood which is "beachside" just 0.3 miles from the current 7-11at 520 S Atlantic Ave Ormond.

Ormond is not big, so its still just about 8 miles from that Atlantic Rd and Ave found on the mainland. So its not impossible the newly discovered remains are not hers. If you had wanted to hide a body, it might have been an area you would seek out back then. It would have been over the bridge, and a few miles north. Just wanted to give correct geography.

Thank you Mrseeker. I was just looking at the distances on Google maps. It's not AS close to Ellen's last known location as I originally thought it was, but still within the area and not far.

 

[mrseeker]

Thank you Mrseeker. I was just looking at the distances on Google maps. It's not AS close to Ellen's last known location as I originally thought it was, but still within the area and not far.

It was not far, but not only that, it would have been a logical place to hide a body killed on beachside Ormond back in 1981. I suspect it would have been out of town a few miles and very hidden. If she had been killed by someone near her home, If they did not drop her in the intracoastal waterway, I would think they would drive over the closest bridge. Then find a secluded area either west or north. So the best ending of this story would be she found a new life and is living and happy. If she is dead, it would be best to know. I hope they keep her in mind whenever they find remains near the county. The nature of the story, leads me to think she died back then. Who leaves their glasses?

just remember its my bet, if you ask a cab driver to take you to atlantic ave ormond, he will drive towards the beach...lol.

 

[Alleykins]

Thank you everyone for the maps. It gives a great visual.
It's interesting about the purse because the news article states she had it with her but her Charley page says she left it behind, along with her glasses. I suppose she could have had more than one, but if not, I wonder which one is correct?
http://www.charleyproject.org/cases/a/akers_ellen.html

 

[Gardener1850]

It was not far, but not only that, it would have been a logical place to hide a body killed on beachside Ormond back in 1981. I suspect it would have been out of town a few miles and very hidden. If she had been killed by someone near her home, If they did not drop her in the intracoastal waterway, I would think they would drive over the closest bridge. Then find a secluded area either west or north. So the best ending of this story would be she found a new life and is living and happy. If she is dead, it would be best to know. I hope they keep her in mind whenever they find remains near the county. The nature of the story, leads me to think she died back then. Who leaves their glasses?

just remember its my bet, if you ask a cab driver to take you to atlantic ave ormond, he will drive towards the beach...lol.

Makes sense to me. Looking at the streetview of the intersection of Atlantic Rd and Broadway Ave it looks somewhat secluded. There is only one house on one of the corners of that intersection today. It would be easy to go down one of those wooded roads a bit, pull over, go into the woods and not be seen while parked.

https://www.google.com/maps/@29.333...4!1sB61ldAZLP0cqsxuKF2INyQ!2e0!7i13312!8i6656

 

[Gardener1850]

Thank you everyone for the maps. It gives a great visual.
It's interesting about the purse because the news article states she had it with her but her Charley page says she left it behind, along with her glasses. I suppose she could have had more than one, but if not, I wonder which one is correct?
http://www.charleyproject.org/cases/a/akers_ellen.html

I think it means she had to have gone home at some point after seeing her mom at 7-11 where she had her purse. But I agree it's curious why all the missing pages make it sound like she never came home that night and why would they mentioned her having her purse in that article from 1981. I would like to see if there were follow-up interviews with her parents where they said "we later found her purse at home, hidden in a closet" or something like that.