NE NE - Janet Callies, 40, Grand Island, 15 Nov 1978

[Murkywaters]

Recent addition to NamUs.

The National Missing and Unidentified Persons System (NamUs)

Janet Callies was reported missing by her ex-husband on 11/21/1978. The last known contact was on 11/15/1978. To this date, Janet Callies has not been located.

 

[Murkywaters]

The National Missing and Unidentified Persons System (NamUs)

Demographics
Missing Age: 40 Years
Current Age: 82 Years
First Name: Janet
Last Name: Callies
Nickname/Alias: Janet Jones
Sex: Female
Height: 5' 1" - 5' 3" (61 - 63 Inches)
Weight: 115 - 130 lbs
Race / Ethnicity: White / Caucasian

Circumstances
Date of Last Contact: November 15, 1978
NamUs Case Created: June 10, 2021
Last Known Location Map
Location: Grand Island, Nebraska 68801
County: Hall County
Missing From Tribal Land: No
Primary Residence on Tribal Land--
Circumstances of Disappearance: Janet Callies was reported missing by her ex-husband on 11/21/1978. The last known contact was on 11/15/1978. To this date, Janet Callies has not been located.

Physical Description
Hair Color: Brown
Left Eye Color: Green
Right Eye Color: Green

Distinctive Physical Features
No Information Entered

Clothing and Accessories
No Information Entered

Transportation
1975 Dodge Dart
Style: Sedan
Color: Red and White
State: Nebraska
License Plate: 8C4696
Expiration Year: 1978
Comments: "White over red 1975 Dodge Dart four door." Also described as "Red/Beige."

Investigating Agencies
Grand Island Police Department
Phone: (308) 385-5400
Agency Case Number: L03112589
Date Reported: November 21, 1978

 

[Murkywaters]

Clipping from Lincoln Journal Star - Newspapers.com

Text from article:

Janet Callies, 40, of Grand Island disappeared at about 7:30 p.m. on Nov. 15, 1978, after calling her daughter from a Grand Island nightclub near Interstate 80 and making arrangements to meet her for supper. Janet Callies didn't show up, and neither she nor her red and beige Dodge Dart ever was seen again. The Callies case is one of many mysterious disappearances and unsolved slayings that have plagued criminal investigators. But the Callies case is further complicated by statements made in 1984 by convicted mass-murderer Henry Lee Lucas, who told Nebraska law enforcement officers who interviewed him in Texas that he and his co-serial killer partner, Ottis Toole, had abducted Callies and that Toole had strangled her. Lucas said he didn't remember exactly what he and Toole did with the woman's car, but he thought they might have driven it to Canada and sold it to a junk dealer. Lucas had told Texas Rangers that he and Toole were involved in hundreds of slayings as the pair traveled across the country, but he later recanted nearly all of those confessions, causing authorities in several states to reopen a multitude of homicide cases that they thought had been solved by Lucas admissions. On the other hand, the Callies case never was closed and it might never be, said Grand Island Police Chief Gene Watson. "We're reasonably certain that he (Lucas) was responsible for her disappearance and death. But until we find her body, or the remains of her body, we're not going to close it" he said. Watson also acknowledged that the odds against making such a discovery are pretty high, given the fact that Lucas told officers that he and Toole had buried Callies' body "somewhere between the north edge of Grand Island and the South Dakota border."

 

[Clawver]

Recent addition to NamUs.

The National Missing and Unidentified Persons System (NamUs)

Janet Callies was reported missing by her ex-husband on 11/21/1978. The last known contact was on 11/15/1978. To this date, Janet Callies has not been located.

 

[MadMcGoo]

Janet Callies – The Charley Project

 

[Pennysmom1]

Updated 12/7/2021

4109DFNE - Janet Lee Callies

4109DFNE - Janet Lee Callies​

Right: Age 17; Age 16

Name: Janet Lee Callies
Case Classification: Endangered Missing
Missing Since: November 15, 1978
Location Last Seen: Grand Island, Hall County, Nebraska

Physical Description​

Date of Birth: October 24, 1938
Age: 40 years old
Race: White
Gender: Female
Height: 5'1"
Weight: 115 lbs.
Hair Color: Brown, collar length
Eye Color: Green
Nickname/Alias: Unknown
Distinguishing Marks/Features: Unknown

Identifiers​

Dentals: Unknown
Fingerprints: Unknown
DNA: Unknown

Clothing & Personal Items​

Clothing: Unknown
Jewelry: Unknown
Additional Personal Items: Unknown

Circumstances of Disappearance​

On November 15, 1978, Janet was last seen at Sundowner, a local bar in Grand Island. At 8:30 p.m., Janet was planning to leave the bar and pick up her daughter at her apartment and take her to dinner. Janet never arrived at the apartment, her car, a red and beige 4-door 1975 Dodge Dart with Nebraska plates 8C4696, has never been located, and Janet has not been seen or heard from since her disappearance.

In 1984, convicted serial killer Henry Lee Lucas, confessed to Nebraska State Patrol investigators that he and his partner, Ottis Toole, abducted Janet on November 15, 1978, and Toole strangled her. Janet was later buried north of Grand Island, somewhere between the north edge of Grand Island and the South Dakota border, and her car was possibly driven to Canada and sold to a junk dealer. Lucas and Toole were never charged with Janet's murder.

Investigating Agency(s)​

Agency Name: Grand Island Police Department
Agency Contact Person: Jessica Hoback
Agency Phone Number: 308-385-5400
Agency E-Mail: JHoback(at)gipolice.org
Agency Case Number: L03112589

NamUs Case Number: MP81084

Information Source(s)​

NamUs
FBI
NE State Patrol
Fremont Tribune (Fremont, NE) - Apr. 18, 1985
Lincoln Journal Star (Lincoln, NE) - Jan. 18, 1988
Ancestry.com

Admin Notes​

Added: 12/7/21; Last Updated: 12/7/21 - By: hb