NM NM - Harvey 'Gene' Whitacre, 20, Albuquerque, 30 June 1947

[Archangel85]

I was thinking about this case today. His body should've turned up by now

 

[Laughing]

I was thinking about this case today. His body should've turned up by now

Have you been to New Mexico? Plenty of undeveloped land, still.

 

[Archangel85]

Have you been to New Mexico? Plenty of undeveloped land, still.

Never been there. The police will not wanna search such an old case so I don't think this will ever be solved

 

[carbuff]

Updated link: Missing Person Case

 

[Richard]

Harvey Eugene Whitacre
JUNE 30, 1947

Harvey Eugene Whitacre is a Corporal in the U.S. Army who was last seen at a bowling alley in Albuquerque, New Mexico on the night of June 30, 1947. Harvey Eugene Whitacre was treasurer of his bowling league and was carrying about $400 in cash on him at the time he went missing. Harvey Eugene Whitacre did not return to the Sandia Base as of rollcall the next day, July 1, 1947.

The FBI and the Department of Defense spent much time and effort questioning family members, wire tapping their phones, and intercepting mail in the hopes that Gene would contact one of them. Nothing was ever found. He was possibly privy to some sensitive information due to his job in the army at the base. His rank was corporal. The army denied he had access to any information that would endanger national security. but, they spent a lot of time and effort looking for someone that supposedly didn’t know anything.

Harvey Eugene Whitacre’s broken glasses, necktie, army cap, and shirt with slash marks were found in a side street near the bowling alley. Harvey Eugene Whitacre has never been found. Harvey Eugene Whitacre was 20 to 21 years old at the time he went missing in 1947. Harvey Eugene Whitacre is 5 feet 8 inches tall to 5 feet 10 inches tall and weighed approximately 145 to 165 pounds. Harvey Eugene Whitacre has brown hair which was cut in a military style haircut at the time he went missing. Harvey Eugene Whitacre has brown eyes which are described in official reports as “kind of asian looking”. He wore very strong prescription glasses. At the time he went missing, Harvey Eugene Whitacre was wearing Army issued casual dress (pants, shirt, tie and cap) with Army issued shoes

If you have any information about the whereabouts of Harvey Eugene Whitacre, contact the Albuquerque New Mexico Police Department at 505-242-2677 reference case # 14-0074395. (NamUs MP#23362) Share

Read more: Harvey Eugene Whitacre

 

[Richard]

Corporal Harvey Eugene Whitacre, US Army
Missing since 30 June 1947

 

[Quoththeraven]

T-5 Harvey Whitacre was carrying $400 on him and had $2,000 in the bank (see article). I was in the Army in 1972 and my pay was $300 a month as E-2. A corporal in 1947 made about $160 a month. That's a lot of money for a corporal to be carrying around with him in a bowling alley, though it could be attributed to him being the treasurer of a bowling team and maybe he was collecting the dues.

"Armed Forces Special Weapons Project. The Armed Forces Special Weapons Project (AFSWP) was a United States military agency responsible for those aspects of nuclear weapons remaining under military control after the Manhattan Project was succeeded by the Atomic Energy Commission on 1 January 1947."

 

[Richard]

The amount of money he was said to be possibly carrying - $400 - was a LOT of money in 1947, especially a lot for an E-4 Corporal to be carrying around. It would be roughly equal (in spending power) of $4.000 today.

The story of his glasses and blood spattered shirt being found in an alley would lend credence to the investigators' conclusion that he met with foul play.

It would seem that New Mexico authorities, as well as the FBI, and the Army Office of Criminal Investigation would be interested in any new information about this old cold case.

 

[Quoththeraven]

The amount of money he was said to be possibly carrying - $400 - was a LOT of money in 1947, especially a lot for an E-4 Corporal to be carrying around. It would be roughly equal (in spending power) of $4.000 today.

The story of his glasses and blood spattered shirt being found in an alley would lend credence to the investigators' conclusion that he met with foul play.

It would seem that New Mexico authorities, as well as the FBI, and the Army Office of Criminal Investigation would be interested in any new information about this old cold case.

Either it was a very large bowling team with many members (the average is four people per team) or the fees were quite high to equal $400.00.

The consensus of investigators was that the crime scene was staged. If it was only a robbery it wouldn't make any sense to stage the crime scene.

Though Whitacre enlisted in the Army 19 Oct 1945 in the Quartermaster Corps, the above July 8, 1947 Kokomo Tribune newspaper article stated he "now held the rank of corporal" (Tech 5) in the Engineer Corps.

The Armed Forces Special Weapons Project (AFSWP) was a United States military agency responsible for those aspects of nuclear weapons remaining under military control after the Manhattan Project was succeeded by the Atomic Energy Commission on 1 January 1947.

The 2761st Engineer Battalion (Special), which became a field unit under the Armed Forces Special Weapons Project (AFSWP) was taking over the nuclear bomb assembly function at Sandia Base. They were activated 19 August 1946. They were redesignated as the 38th Engineer Battalion (Special) on 1 May 1947.
The fabrication, assembly, and storage of nuclear weapons was also done at Sandia Base. The Operation CROSSROADS project, July 1, 1946 July 25, 1946, had ended Sept 1946.
By the end of June 1947, every officer and most of the enlisted men had participated in three or more assembly operations and a number of special projects.

Whitacre disappeared 30 June 1947.

IMO, he was kidnapped and top secret information was probably extracted from him and he was then more than likely killed. The items were staged to make investigators think it was a robbery.

Another possibility is that he was involved in espionage, was about to get caught, staged the crime scene and disappeared on his own or with help from his co-conspirators.

There's also the possibility he was involved in espionage, got caught and it was our own intelligence agencies that decided he was too much of a liability if he were kept alive.

The papers reported that $2,000 in his bank account was being investigated but nothing was ever released on the outcome of that investigation. That information should have been released to clear up any speculation on whether he might have been involved in espionage. Maybe there was a reason that they didn't and they let sleeping dogs lie?

David Greenglass, was a U.S. Army soldier stationed in Los Alamos, which was just north of Sandia Base. He and his wife, co-conspirator Ruth Greenglass, were involved in espionage of nuclear secrets at Los Alamos Laboratory which started in Nov 1944 until Feb 29, 1946.https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Los_Alamos_Laboratory

 

[Richard]

Ruth Greenglass died in 2008. She had been a critical witness in the trial of the Rosenbergs and had been living under an alias in witness protection since the 1950's
Obituary: Ruth Greenglass

Her husband, David Greenglass had been convicted and served time for espionage related to the Rosenberg case. He died in 2014.
David Greenglass, Rosenberg spy case witness, dies

It certainly is an interesting case of disappearance. I would think that if US authorities (the FBI) thought he was a spy, they would have arrested him, or would have taken credit for his demise.

It is possible that the Soviet Union may have abducted him or if he was an agent, may have extracted him.

Apparently the US Army considered him missing due to foul play rather than to desertion on his own volition. If he was considered a deserter, his name would appear (even today) on the Army's deserter list. His name, however, does not appear on the list.

LINK to Army Deserter list:
Army Most Wanted Fugitives

 

[Quoththeraven]

Other post-disappearance points of interest that may or may not be connected, though I'm certain the Sport Bowl was the bowling alley Whitacre was last seen at.

Familysearch (see photo one below) shows an H. E. Whitacre, II residing in Albuquerque 1 May 1992. Harvey Whitacre's father's name was Harvey Eugene Whitacre.

The 1959 Albuquerque city directory (see second photo below) shows Ann P. Whitacre, widow of H E Whitacre, residing on Jupiter Road.

Whether the above two Whitacre's have any relationship to Harvey Whitacre is unknown.

There were only two bowling alleys in Albuquerque in 1946-47. One went belly up before Whitacre disappeared, according to newspaper articles. The other one (see third photo below), where Whitacre disappeared from nearby, was the Sport Bowl, which was located at 3005 East Central. That ad was from August 19, 1947, nineteen days after Whitacre disappeared. The last photo shows a busy bowling season in July, 1947 which contrasts with the Sport Bowl being closed down after Whitacre's disappearance and then reopening. (I don't think there's any relationship between the two)

 

[ColyH]

I don't believe Harvey Eugene Whitacre's disappearance had anything to do with spies. A Corporal isn't going to have that much information for spies to be willing to kill for information and then leave a mess doing it. A spy is going to be more stealth in getting information picking up information here and there.

I believe that Whitacre was robbed by a couple of inexperienced robbers and when he fought back the robbers panicked and accidentally killed him. With the situation gone from bad to worse the robbers planned to put him in their car and drive out to some isolated area and bury him. To make sure no one would recognize him in their car they took off his shirt, cap, necktie, and glasses and then drove out and buried him.

I really believe that: Missing Money + Murder With Unknown Motive + Strange Crime Scene = Inexperienced Robbers Who Botched The Job And Panicked.

 

[Quoththeraven]

I don't believe Harvey Eugene Whitacre's disappearance had anything to do with spies. A Corporal isn't going to have that much information for spies to be willing to kill for information and then leave a mess doing it. A spy is going to be more stealth in getting information picking up information here and there.

I believe that Whitacre was robbed by a couple of inexperienced robbers and when he fought back the robbers panicked and accidentally killed him. With the situation gone from bad to worse the robbers planned to put him in their car and drive out to some isolated area and bury him. To make sure no one would recognize him in their car they took off his shirt, cap, necktie, and glasses and then drove out and buried him.

I really believe that: Missing Money + Murder With Unknown Motive + Strange Crime Scene = Inexperienced Robbers Who Botched The Job And Panicked.

Your theory might be plausible except that, according to the attached article, "These spectacles and a shirt, which indicated two stab wounds to the back, were reported to have been found in an alley in Albuquerque."

I don't know how one could be accidently stabbed in the back. Not once, but twice. And taking off someone's shirt, cap, necktie, and glasses is not going to make sure anyone would not recognize him in a dark automobile. I also doubt someone stabbed in the back would be propped up in a vehicle bleeding all over the car seats. We also don't know exactly how saturated his shirt was with blood, either. One news account says "the soldier's slashed and blood-speckled shirt and broken glasses were found two days after he disappeared." Blood-speckled doesn't sound like a lot of blood was lost. We'd almost have to see a photo or better description of the shirt.

There's a good possibility Whitacre was privy to classified material based on news accounts and the frantic scramble by military authorities to find him.

"The 2761st Engineer Battalion (Special), which became a field unit under the Armed Forces Special Weapons Project (AFSWP) was taking over the nuclear bomb assembly function at Sandia Base. They were activated 19 August 1946. They were redesignated as the 38th Engineer Battalion (Special) on 1 May 1947.
The fabrication, assembly, and storage of nuclear weapons was also done at Sandia Base. The Operation CROSSROADS project, July 1, 1946 July 25, 1946, had ended Sept 1946.
By the end of June 1947, every officer and most of the enlisted men had participated in three or more assembly operations and a number of special projects."

 

[ColyH]

I missed the part where they found Whitacre's belongings in Albuquerque. Thanks for clearing that up.

 

[Quoththeraven]

I missed the part where they found Whitacre's belongings in Albuquerque. Thanks for clearing that up.

Also, here's an article from 1957. He appears to have been a fine upstanding soldier. I sure wish we could read the statements of his fellow soldiers and his bowling team that he was out with that night. Where were they when this happened? They knew he had a lot of money on him. Did he tell them he was headed back to the base? There's lots that the Army or police aren't saying. Who last saw him alive and knew he was leaving?

 

[Quoththeraven]

Corporal Harvey Eugene Whitacre, US Army
Missing since 30 June 1947

What's the possibility that Whitacre made it back to base and was followed by one or more of his bowling teammates who knew he had a lot of dough on him? He could have been accosted there and the body secreted somewhere on the base. He/they could have taken his shirt, tie, cap and glasses off him at the base and planted them at the alleged crime scene to throw investigators off, of which the crime scene wasn't 'discovered' until two days later.

If the stabbing happened in the alley there would have been blood at the scene. There was none mentioned at the scene except some blood splattered on the shirt so I'd rule out a robbery taking place at that location. If he was stabbed twice wouldn't the shirt have been drenched with blood? He wasn't killed at the scene because who would take his things off after stabbing him and then risk transporting his body elsewhere? That would rule out a robbery at the location his clothing and glasses were found.

Even investigators speculated that the crime scene was staged. By all accounts he wasn't a drinker, smoker and had a sober and responsible reputation so it's unlikely he deserted. Since it's assumed he wasn't in any top secret job there would have been no reason to kidnap him for information so the spy angle can be ruled out.

I think another scenario is that a fellow soldier(s) knew he had a large sum of money, he/they followed him back to base, robbed and killed him and buried his body somewhere on base. They then planted the evidence in the alley in the next two days before it was discovered. I don't know how thorough interviews of witnesses were back in the day, but I'd go over them again to see if there were any discrepancies by those who were with him last. Those who knew he had a large sum of money and who were with him last are the likely suspects.

Cadaver dogs would possibly pick up traces of a dead body even after all these years?

I think his body is waiting to be discovered on the base since all the other scenarios can't be substantiated. I think under a barracks would be a great place to bury a body. You wouldn't have to go far and no one could see you digging a hole under a barracks. Most of those WWII barracks were up on stilts with a large enough crawl space underneath to drag a body and bury it.

 

[alb1on]

Whilst I do not doubt that Whitacre was most likely a victim of some sort of assault, it is wrong to dismiss the spy hypothesis because he was relatively junior in rank. George Koval, who served in the Special Engineer force (like Whitacre) was only exposed as an important spy (at Oak Ridge) in recent years. He was a soldier, not a physicist, but had access to material due to what sounds like incredibly lax security. If it happened at Oak Ridge it could happen elsewhere. But I doubt that is the case with Whitacre. See George Koval - Wikipedia

 

[carbuff]

Sometimes also a "spy" isn't directly involved in obtaining information. Sometimes lower level people do things like allow access to restricted areas or carry messages, etc. etc. etc.

It wouldn't surprise me if he had learned something significant (even if he wasn't a spy) and tried to blackmail somebody.

 

[Richard]

Unfortunately, the alley where the shirt and glasses were found was probably not gone over as thoroughly as a crime scene today might have been. And it does sound like the perpetrators/killers did plant the items where they did in order to throw the investigation off.

If Whitacre was attacked on base and/or buried there, then his attackers would want to make it seem that the attack occurred in town. If it appeared that the crime occurred off base, the jurisdiction and responsibility of investigating it would be that of the civilian authorities rather than the Army Office of Criminal Investigation.

 

[crimeblogger1983]

Missing Soldier: Corporal Harvey Eugene Whitacre