Henry Baltimore Jr. Missing Person Case

Jan 05, 2011

Dec 26, 2019

Henry

Baltimore Jr.

74

21

73 inches

75 inches

170 lbs

180 lbs

Black / African American

Male

In the late spring of 1973, Henry Louis Baltimore Jr., a 21-year-old honors student at Michigan State University, disappeared from East Lansing, Michigan. A talented and ambitious young man, he was studying social science and music with plans to become a social worker. He held the distinction of being one of the university marching band's first known Black drum majors. His sister discovered he was missing on May 30, 1973, when she went to his off-campus apartment to pick up a school paper she had agreed to type for him. Although his 1968 Buick was found parked outside and his keys, money, and other personal belongings were left behind, Henry was nowhere to be found. He was last seen wearing a black turtleneck sweater, light grey slacks, and black and grey shoes. The circumstances leading up to Henry's disappearance are deeply unsettling. Months earlier, on March 3, 1973, two men broke into his apartment, tied him up, and pistol-whipped him before robbing him of cash and several personal items. Initially fearful, Henry waited ten days before reporting the crime to the police, urged by his father. He identified 22-year-old Roy L. Davis as one of his attackers, leading to Davis's arrest for armed robbery. The period that followed was filled with stress and fear for Henry. He told his sister that Davis had threatened to kill him, and he even failed to appear at an initial preliminary hearing, resulting in a fine. After being compelled to testify at a rescheduled hearing on May 24, 1973, an arraignment was set for June 1. Henry vanished just days before he was scheduled to testify again. Decades later, the case of Henry Baltimore Jr. remains unsolved, leaving his family with a profound and lingering sense of loss. Authorities initially considered that he might have gone into hiding to avoid testifying, but as years turned into decades, this theory became increasingly unlikely. His family never believed he left on his own, as he was in close contact with them before he vanished. Foul play is now widely suspected in his disappearance. In the absence of Henry's testimony, Roy Davis pleaded guilty to a lesser charge and received a six-month jail sentence, denying any involvement in Henry's disappearance. Over the years, investigators have revisited the case, and DNA from Henry's family members has been made available in the national database, but no definitive answers have been found. The prevailing belief among law enforcement is that Henry was likely killed to prevent his testimony, a tragic end for a promising young man whose sudden disappearance has left a void in the hearts of those who knew him.

May 31, 1973

East Lansing

Michigan

Ingham County

East Lansing

21321

East Lansing Police Department

East Lansing

Michigan

Ingham County

48823

Scott Wriggelsworth

Lt.

409 Park Lane, Michigan

5173514220

Local

Law Enforcement

https://www.cityofeastlansing.com/345/Police-Department

1241-C-73

East Lansing Police Department

Black

Brown

Brown

07/13/2026