Decade · 1970–1979

Cases from the 1970s

171case filesUpdated Jul 18, 2026

Casepin holds 171 case files from the 1970s. By legal status, 43 marked unsolved, 11 marked cold, 2 marked ongoing, 108 marked solved and 7 marked overturned.

43unsolved 11cold 7overturned 2ongoing 108solved

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Files: 171
Unsolved: 43
Cold: 11
Ongoing: 2
Solved: 108
Overturned: 7
With coverage: 43

Map of the 171 case files on this page, pinned by legal status — 171 files mappedPins coloured by legal statusExplore live

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The files to open first

Credit: English WikipediaEditorial useSourceSOLVEDListen
Westdale Mall parking lot, Cedar Rapids, Iowa · 1979
Murder of Michelle Martinko
Michelle Martinko, an 18-year-old Cedar Rapids, Iowa high school senior, was stabbed to death in her family's car in a mall parking lot on December 19, 1979. The case went cold for nearly 39 years until familial DNA analysis and genealogy database matching identified Jerry Lynn Burns, who was arrested in 2018 and convicted of first-degree murder in 2020.
3 to watch & hear
Credit: AP Wirephoto (1978) via dyatlovpass.comEditorial useSourceUNSOLVEDListen
Marysville, Yuba County, California · 1978
Yuba County Five
Four members of a Yuba County, California basketball team for people with disabilities were found dead in the Sierra Nevada mountains months after a February 1978 disappearance, and the fifth, Gary Mathias, has never been found.
3 to watch & hear
Credit: Gerald EnglandCC BY-SA 2.0SourceSOLVEDListen
Hyde, Greater Manchester, England · 1970s
Murder of Kathleen Grundy and Other Patients by Harold Shipman
Harold Shipman, a GP in Hyde, Greater Manchester, was convicted in January 2000 of murdering 15 patients, including former mayoress Kathleen Grundy, using lethal doses of diamorphine. A subsequent public inquiry concluded he had killed at least 218 patients over roughly 27 years, making him one of the most prolific serial killers in modern history.
2 to watch & hear
Credit: AqwisCC BY-SA 3.0SourceCOLDListen
Isdalen (Ice Valley), Bergen, Norway · 1970s
Death of the Isdal Woman
An unidentified woman was found dead and severely burned in Isdalen ("Ice Valley") near Bergen, Norway, on 29 November 1970. Despite an extensive investigation revealing multiple false identities, her identity and the circumstances of her death remain unresolved more than fifty years later.
1 thing to watch or hear
Credit: Handout (family/police), via STV NewsEditorial useSourceSOLVEDListen
Allan Street, Aberdeen, Scotland · 1978
Murder of Brenda Page
Dr Brenda Page, a geneticist, was beaten to death in her Aberdeen flat in July 1978. The case went unsolved for nearly 45 years until her former husband, Christopher Harrisson, was convicted of her murder in March 2023.
1 thing to watch or hear
Credit: Federal Bureau of InvestigationPublic domainSourceUNSOLVEDListen
Apache-Sitgreaves National Forest near Heber, Arizona · 1975
Travis Walton incident
In November 1975, forestry worker Travis Walton disappeared for five days near Heber, Arizona; his crew said he had been struck by a light from an unidentified flying object. Walton later said he had been abducted by aliens. No criminal charges resulted; researchers and skeptics have since disputed whether the incident was genuine or a hoax.
1 thing to watch or hear
Credit: Australian Department of TransportationPublic domainSourceUNSOLVEDListen
Bass Strait, near Cape Otway and King Island · 1978
Disappearance of Frederick Valentich
On 21 October 1978, 20-year-old pilot Frederick Valentich vanished over Bass Strait during a night flight to King Island after radioing air traffic control about an unidentified aircraft near his plane and reporting engine trouble. Neither he nor his Cessna 182L were ever found.
1 thing to watch or hear
SOLVEDListen
Pickton family farm, 953 Dominion Avenue, Port Coquitlam, British Columbia · 1978
Robert Pickton Murders
Robert Pickton, a pig farmer from Port Coquitlam, British Columbia, was convicted in December 2007 of second-degree murder in the deaths of six women from Vancouver's Downtown Eastside. Investigators linked him to the deaths of at least 26 women in total, and 20 further first-degree murder charges against him were stayed in 2010.
1 thing to watch or hear
SOLVEDListen
Ledyard, Connecticut · 1970
Murder of Linda Childers
Linda Sue Childers, a Louisville, Kentucky woman using the alias Lorraine Stahl, was shot to death in Connecticut in December 1970 along with her boyfriend, an escaped bank robber; her skeletal remains were found in 1974 but she was not identified until DNA analysis in February 2024.
1 thing to watch or hear
Credit: Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI)Public domainSourceSOLVEDListen
Foxstone Park, Vienna, Virginia · 1979
Robert Hanssen espionage
FBI agent Robert Hanssen spied for Soviet and later Russian intelligence services intermittently from 1979 to 2001, selling thousands of classified documents and betraying U.S. intelligence assets before his 2001 arrest.
1 thing to watch or hear

About these files

Cases from the 1970s, in brief

1975 is the year with the most files in the decade, 26 of them. 165 files carry an exact date; the rest are dated to the decade by the record.

They are spread across 40 countries; the most are in United States (68), United Kingdom (22) and Australia (18). By type, the largest groups are murder and homicide cases (117), kidnapping and abduction cases (55) and disappearance cases (21).

43 files of the 171 have coverage attached: 92 videos, podcasts and documentaries from 21 creators. The most covered is Lufthansa Flight 181, with 4 items to watch or hear. Bailey Sarian, Georgia Marie and That Chapter have covered the most of them.

Every file is written from cited sources and pinned where it happened, and every person named carries the legal status the record gives them. If you hold information about an unsolved case, contact the investigating agency named in its file rather than posting it publicly. Families and anyone involved can request a correction from any file.

Every file

Every file from the 1970s

126 files

Joseph James DeAngelo — Credit: Santa Barbara County Sheriff’s OfficePublic domainSource
SOLVED AudioCalifornia serial murders, sexual assaults, and burglaries (1974–1986)Sacramento, California (crimes spanned multiple California counties) · 1970s · 13 to watch & hear
Dennis Rader, convicted of the BTK murders — 1966 U.S. Air Force portrait — Credit: United States Air ForcePublic domainSource
SOLVED AudioWichita serial murders (1974–1991)Wichita and Park City, Kansas · 1974 · 7 to watch & hear
Chowchilla kidnapping trailer — Credit: Rick Meyer, Los Angeles TimesCC BY 4.0 Source
SOLVED Audio1976 Chowchilla kidnappingBerenda Slough / Chowchilla, California (abduction site); victims later held at a quarry in Livermore, California · 1976 · 5 to watch & hear
Jonestown Houses — Credit: Fielding McGehee and Rebecca MooreCC BY-SA 3.0 Source
SOLVED AudioJonestown, 1978Jonestown, Guyana · 1978 · 4 to watch & hear
Michelle Martinko — Credit: English WikipediaEditorial useSource
SOLVED AudioMurder of Michelle MartinkoWestdale Mall parking lot, Cedar Rapids, Iowa · 1979 · 3 to watch & hear
Cheryl Grimmer and her father — Credit: Unknown, personal family picture. Likely a relative or family friend.Editorial useSource
COLD AudioDisappearance of Cheryl GrimmerFairy Meadow Beach, Wollongong, New South Wales, Australia · 1970 · 3 to watch & hear
Etan Patz, the missing/murdered boyCC BY 3.0 Source
SOLVED AudioDisappearance of Etan PatzSoHo, Lower Manhattan (near Prince Street and West Broadway) · 1979 · 3 to watch & hear
Garden of Tranquility - geograph.org.uk - 1005040 — Credit: Gerald EnglandCC BY-SA 2.0 Source
SOLVED AudioMurder of Kathleen Grundy and Other Patients by Harold ShipmanHyde, Greater Manchester, England · 1970s · 2 to watch & hear
Jack Huett, Bill Sterling, Jack Madruga, Ted Weiher and Gary Mathias (AP Wirephoto, 1978) — Credit: AP Wirephoto (1978) via dyatlovpass.comEditorial useSource
UNSOLVED AudioYuba County FiveMarysville, Yuba County, California · 1978 · 3 to watch & hear
SvartediketUlrikenIsdalen23Juni1 — Credit: AqwisCC BY-SA 3.0 Source
COLD AudioDeath of the Isdal WomanIsdalen (Ice Valley), Bergen, Norway · 1970s · 1 thing to watch or hear
Mendocino Crime Scene 2 — Credit: Mendocino County Police DepartmentPublic domainSource
UNSOLVED AudioKillings of Kerry Graham and Francine TrimbleHighway 20 near Willits, Mendocino County, California (remains recovery site) · 1970 · 1 thing to watch or hear
'Murder Mack', rear view — Credit: State of California.Public domainSource
SOLVED AudioSouthern California murders of 1979Redondo Beach, California · 1979 · 1 thing to watch or hear
Brenda Page — Credit: Handout (family/police), via STV NewsEditorial useSource
SOLVED AudioMurder of Brenda PageAllan Street, Aberdeen, Scotland · 1978 · 1 thing to watch or hear
Teresa de Simone — Credit: Hampshire Police page 3Editorial useSource
SOLVED AudioMurder of Teresa De SimoneTom Tackle public house, Commercial Road, Southampton, England · 1979 · 1 thing to watch or hear
Administration of Polygraph (cropped) — Credit: Federal Bureau of InvestigationPublic domainSource
UNSOLVED AudioTravis Walton incidentApache-Sitgreaves National Forest near Heber, Arizona · 1975 · 1 thing to watch or hear
Debra Jackson, the victimEditorial use Source
SOLVED AudioMurder of Debra JacksonInterstate 35 culvert near Georgetown, Texas · 1979 · 2 to watch & hear
Atlanta murders geographical analysis negative exponential ring 2 — Credit: MerikantoCC BY-SA 4.0 Source
SOLVED AudioAtlanta murders of 1979–1981Atlanta, Georgia, United States · 1979 · 2 to watch & hear
Marine SGT John D. McKeel Jr at Bacchus Ball New Orleans 1981 — Credit: Photographer not creditedPublic domainSource
SOLVED AudioIran Hostage CrisisU.S. Embassy, Tehran, Iran · 1979
Highley Church — Credit: GammockCC BY-SA 4.0 Source
SOLVED AudioKidnapping and Murder of Lesley WhittleBathpool Park, Kidsgrove, Staffordshire, England · 1975
Sir Peter Coats and friend (geograph 7170438) — Credit: Richard SutcliffeCC BY-SA 2.0 Source
SOLVED AudioYorkshire murders (1975–1980)West Yorkshire and Manchester, England · 1975 · 1 thing to watch or hear
Frederick Valentich — Credit: Australian Department of TransportationPublic domainSource
UNSOLVED AudioDisappearance of Frederick ValentichBass Strait, near Cape Otway and King Island · 1978 · 1 thing to watch or hear
UNSOLVED AudioKilling of Tammy AlexanderCaledonia, New York · 1979
Murder of Andrew Pea - Murder Location — Credit: Danny RopisCC BY-SA 4.0 Source
SOLVED AudioMurder of Andrew PeaCorner of Barrack and Wellington streets, Perth, Western Australia · 1978
UNSOLVED AudioOklahoma Girl Scout murdersCamp Scott, Mayes County, Oklahoma · 1977 · 2 to watch & hear

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Archive files45

These files are published and cited but are kept out of search listings for now, either because they fall outside Casepin’s true-crime scope or because they are still being deepened.

Questions

What people ask

How many cases from the 1970s are on Casepin?

171. By status: 43 unsolved, 11 cold, 2 ongoing, 108 solved and 7 overturned. The count covers published files only and changes as new files clear review.

Which case has the most coverage?

Lufthansa Flight 181, with 4 videos, podcasts and documentaries linked from its file. Open the file

Which creators have covered cases from the 1970s?

Bailey Sarian (10 cases), Georgia Marie (7 cases) and That Chapter (5 cases), among 21 creators in all.

Where are most of these cases?

United States (68), United Kingdom (22) and Australia (18).

How current is this page?

It rebuilds hourly from the published files; the newest file change here is dated Jul 18, 2026. A status changes only when the record behind it does.

Every file cited · legal status from the record · our standards · request a correction