In the summer of 1976, the community of Lincoln, Illinois, was unsettled by the sudden disappearance of Ruth Louise Martin, a 51-year-old real estate agent. On the morning of June 2nd, her husband was the last to see her at their home before he left for work between 6:00 and 6:30 a.m. Martin was scheduled to be at her job at 9:00 a.m. but never arrived. A witness later reported seeing her car traveling northbound on U.S. 66 around 9:15 a.m., though the driver could not be identified.
This was the last known sighting of her vehicle before it was found abandoned two days later. The discovery of her car in the parking lot of a Holiday Inn in Bloomington, Illinois, with a flat tire, marked a grim turn in the investigation.
The investigation into Ruth Martin's disappearance quickly uncovered disturbing evidence suggesting foul play. Inside the trunk of her abandoned vehicle, authorities found a significant amount of Type A blood, which matched Martin's blood type. Further examination of her home revealed more unsettling clues; bloodstains, also of Type A, and a. 22 caliber bullet were discovered on the floor of her garage. There were no signs of forced entry into the residence. The circumstances took on a more sinister light as it was revealed that Martin was scheduled to testify as a minor witness in a shoplifting case against a man named Russell Smrekar. Smrekar was accused of stealing two steaks from a local grocery store.
Years would pass without answers in Ruth Martin's case. Russell Smrekar became a prime suspect not only in her disappearance but also in the disappearance of another witness against him, Michael Mansfield, and the murders of Jay and Robin Fry. Jay Fry was the store clerk who was set to testify against Smrekar in the shoplifting case. Smrekar was eventually convicted of the Fry murders and sentenced to a lengthy prison term. The mystery of Ruth Martin's fate lingered until October 2011, when Smrekar, nearing the end of his life, confessed to her murder. He claimed that on the day she disappeared, he had buried her body under Interstate 55, which was under construction at the time. Despite his confession, he could not provide a precise location. In light of this confession, investigators closed the cases of both Ruth Martin and Michael Mansfield, though their remains have never been found.Last Seen: Jun 2, 1976
