In the late summer of 1986, Dagmar Louise Linton, a 59-year-old retired finance department head from Stockton, California, and her husband, Robert, embarked on their first major retirement trip. They had planned to travel for three months, making their way north to the World's Fair in Vancouver, British Columbia. On August 22, 1986, the couple arrived at the Naco West Campground in Brinnon, Washington, situated on the scenic Hood Canal.
After unhitching their travel trailer, they set out in their gray and white 1982 Dodge Ram pickup truck for what was intended to be a day of sightseeing. They were never seen or heard from again. The alarm was raised when the typically communicative couple ceased their regular calls to family.
The investigation into their disappearance took a grim turn when their Dodge pickup truck was discovered abandoned in a parking garage at the Seattle-Tacoma International Airport on the very same day they were last seen. Inside the vehicle, investigators found physical evidence, including blood and hair, indicating a violent struggle had occurred. The amount of blood found led the family to hold a memorial service for the couple just a few months later in October 1986, believing they could not have survived their injuries. Shortly after their disappearance, their credit cards began to be used across several states, though the activity stopped once the case gained media attention.
A significant breakthrough in the case came years later, connecting the Lintons' disappearance to a known serial killer. Charles Thurman Sinclair, a man suspected of robbing and murdering at least thirteen people, became the prime suspect. Handwriting on the receipts from the fraudulent credit card purchases matched Sinclair's. Further solidifying the link, items bought with the Lintons' credit cards were later discovered in a storage shed belonging to Sinclair. In August 1990, Sinclair was arrested in Alaska on unrelated charges, but he died in custody in October of that year before he could be formally charged or questioned about the Linton case. Despite the strong evidence pointing to Sinclair's involvement, the bodies of Dagmar and Robert Linton have never been found, leaving their case an unsolved, suspected homicide. The disappearance of the retired couple on a planned day of leisure remains a tragedy, with their ultimate fate and final resting place unknown.Last Seen: Aug 22, 1986
