CO CO - Elizabeth 'Beth' Miller, 14, Idaho Springs, 16 Aug 1983

SadieJane

New Member
Joined
Jul 11, 2005
Messages
77
Reaction score
26
Elizabeth Miller

Missing Since: August 16, 1983 from Idaho Springs, Colorado
Classification: Non-Family Abduction
Date Of Birth: July 27, 1969
Age: 14 years old
Height and Weight: 5'3 - 5'4, 105 pounds
Distinguishing Characteristics: Blonde hair, blue eyes. Some agencies give Miller's eye color as green or hazel. She has a mole over her right eyebrow. Her nickname is Beth.
Clothing Description: White jogging shorts, a faded blue t-shirt and running shoes.

http://www.charleyproject.org/cases/m/miller_elizabeth.html

There is a thread for her in another forum, but I wanted to start one here as well. Her family has been looking for her for 23 years-- now there is a chance to find the answers: "A grand jury may be seated this year in the decades-old vanishing and presumed murder of Beth Miller." The chief suspect died in 1990, but his girlfriend supposedly knows where the body is. I hope her family's searching may finally be over soon, and Beth will get justice.
http://www.rockymountainnews.com/drmn/local/article/0,1299,DRMN_15_4790358,00.html
 
Thanks for posting this here SadieJane. I've been following this case recently. I hope the grand jury uncovers the truth about Beth Miller and her killer(s) are brought to justice. Prayers go out to her family.
 
I found this in the Charley Project summary. The man was driving a small red pickup truck with a white camper shell and out-of-state license plates.


This made me think of the Morgan Nick case.
The witness also saw a red Ford pickup with a white camper parked nearby that disappeared at about the same time as the girl. The camper is possibly damaged at the right rear, and was described as four or five inches too short for the truck, which has a short wheel base and paint dulled by age. The truck is believed to have Arkansas license plates.


I realize these cases occured 12 years apart but anything is possible. I just wanted to share this. I always felt Morgan was taken by someone who liked to travel and has victims in mutiple states.
 
Wow, that's really interesting. I've also thought that Morgan's kidnapper was from out of town.
The suspect I referred to in the first post was Edward Apodaca-- he died in 1990. But there is another suspect in Beth's suspected murder who is still living. I wonder if he has any connection to Arkansas?
 
SadieJane, Do you happen to have a description of the other supect that you mentioned in your last post?

Here is a link to the sketch of the man seen at the ballpark right before Morgan was taken. There has been some debate over its accuracy.


http://www.morgannick.com/composite.html
 
I don't, sorry. All I know is what the first article says-- a detective on Beth's case, Sherriff Jim Alderden believes Apodaca abducted & killed Beth. Apodaca's girlfriend, who is still living, supposedly helped him bury Beth's remains and they are hoping they can force her to talk to the grand jury.
Apodaca was murdered by his wife & mother-in-law in 1990, according to the article, but I can't find any more information about that.
 
"But there is another suspect in Beth's suspected murder who is still living. I wonder if he has any connection to Arkansas?"

Do you know anything about the possible suspect that is still living?

I am going to try and do some research on this and APodaca. I wonder if APodaca owned a red truck with camper or had access to one.
 
Today Clear Creek County District Attorney Mark Hurlbert filed a petition seeking a grand jury investigation into the 1983 disappearance of a 14-year-old believed kidnapped while jogging near Idaho Springs.

"Our investigation is kind of stalled at this point and this seems to be the best route to take," Hurlbert said "Whether there's an indictment or not I think we should find the truth in this case." Beth Miller disappeared on Aug. 16, 1983. While her body was never found, she was declared legally dead 11 years later.

http://www.denverpost.com/news/ci_4094299

Sounds like the sister suspects somebody. I hope the truth comes out during the grand jury proceedings.
 
The victim's sister, Lynn Granger, welcomed the possibility of a grand jury.

"It is so long overdue," she said. "I'm so relieved, it's hard to put what I'm feeling into words."

Granger, a former sheriff's deputy in Clear Creek, has worked with state investigators for more than 10 years. She said she is certain there will be an indictment.

Granger said the lead suspect confessed to witnessing and taking part in the murder to two different police departments in the mid-1980s.

The suspect, who Granger would not name, recanted her statement, Granger said. There are two other suspects who the grand jury would investigate, Granger said.

http://www.denverpost.com/news/ci_4094804
 
docwho3 said:
http://www.charleyproject.org/cases/m/miller_elizabeth.html

So I guess the evidence was not linked to the case? I wonder what results the tests did show?
Nearly 21 years after teenager Beth Miller disappeared, investigators hope that relatively new technology will help them find out what happened to her.

Miller was 14 when she disappeared after going for a jog on Aug. 16, 1983 in Idaho Springs. The only evidence discovered was found in Empire in 1994 -- a strand of hair, some bone fragments and a piece of fabric buried near Interstate 70.

The strand of hair was recently sent to the FBI for genetic testing for mitochondrial DNA, a method that has been around since the early 1990s. The Colorado Bureau of Investigation only recently received funding for these expensive tests on old cases, spokesman Pete Mang said.

Mitochondrial DNA is a mysterious strand of genetic material found outside the cell nucleus and apart from regular genes. Scientists believe each person's mitochondrial DNA is a thread passed through their maternal side of the family.

The hair found can be compared with a sample from Miller's mother, Mang said.

http://www.thedenverchannel.com/news/3592095/detail.html

I didn't realize mitochondrial DNA testing was so expensive. I guess they are saving the results for the grand jury?
 
Rle7 said:
http://www.thedenverchannel.com/news/3592095/detail.html
I didn't realize mitochondrial DNA testing was so expensive. I guess they are saving the results for the grand jury?
Its not that expensive and certianly wouldnt be out of the budget for a states FBI budget. Saying it was too expensive is a very odd thing to say. I suppose they could have meant it was too expensive until the last 5 or so years and someone misquoted them?
 
A 61-year-old Adams County grandmother is a suspect in the 1983 abduction and killing of Idaho Springs teenager Beth Miller, according to a county sheriff who worked on the case.



Viola Moya has been a target of investigators since the early years of the case - one of the most nagging mysteries in Colorado for nearly a quarter-century - said Larimer County Sheriff Jim Alderden, who was an agent with the Colorado Bureau of Investigation from 1992 to 1998.

The 14-year-old Miller disappeared Aug. 16, 1983, after leaving home for a morning jog.

Although detectives have been unable to gather enough evidence to arrest Moya and FBI investigators doubt she was involved, Moya could face new questions from a grand jury called by 5th Judicial District Attorney Mark Hurlbert.

Moya said the allegations are lies propagated by dishonest investigators.

"I have never seen that girl," she said. "I know nothing about her."

It all started, Moya said, "because someone started a rumor. A nasty rumor. A lie."

At least two investigators, however, believe Moya could have participated in Miller's kidnapping, killing and the hiding of her dismembered body west of Empire. They believe Miller was assaulted in the back of a truck by Moya's friend, Edward Apodaca, while Moya drove.

"My position has always been that there are at least three viable suspects in this case that need to be looked at," Alderden said. "I don't know if the intent (of the district attorney) is to look at all three or if he just intends to focus on one.

"But I would be surprised if the Apodaca-Moya lead was not one of the primary focuses of the grand jury. And of course, my belief is that of the three, Apodaca-Moya is probably the most compelling."

The second investigator to focus on Moya is Miller's sister, Lynn Granger.

Granger, 43, a police dispatcher in Black Hawk and a former Clear Creek County sheriff's deputy, is convinced that Moya is the key to answering the question of what happened. "To my mind, Viola Moya is the subject of the grand jury investigation, absolutely," she said.

http://www.rockymountainnews.com/drmn/local/article/0,1299,DRMN_15_4887438,00.html
 
This case is never far from my mind. In 1983, I lived about 60 miles north of where Beth was kidnapped from. I will never forget how scared I was when I heard this on the local noon news. I remember when a girl posed as Beth and had just enough information to make the authorities think she was Beth, and when she was flown into Denver, the letdown of Beth's family. I also wondered at the time if she actually knew Beth and what actually happened to her.

I wonder if that guy that has confessed to killing 48 people knows anything about this case?

There was also a kidnapping in Greeley, Colorado in December of 1983 I believe and the girl was about 14. I can't remember her name, but I never heard that she was found either.
 
Auggie, thank you! That is wonderful news! I hope Beth's family gets the closure they deserve.
 
Bumping for Beth! Any news?
 
http://www.charleyproject.org/cases/m/miller_elizabeth.html

Possible evidence relating to Miller's case was found in Empire, Colorado in 1994. Some bone fragments, a piece of fabric similar to canvas, and a single blonde hair was found buried near Interstate 70. The bone fragments have never been identified; police do not even know if they are human. The fabric was very degraded and appeared to have been buried for a long time. In 2004, the police sent the hair to the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) to test for mitochondrial DNA. They hope to conclusively link the hair to Miller's case.


I wonder what the results of the DNA test on the hair were...it's been a few years since it was sent for testing :confused:
 

Members online

Online statistics

Members online
153
Guests online
930
Total visitors
1,083

Forum statistics

Threads
589,935
Messages
17,927,866
Members
228,005
Latest member
vigilandy
Back
Top