Richard Paul Boissonneau was a 49-year-old man from Manchester, Connecticut, whose case is recorded in NamUs as missing person case MP3271. Public case listings identify him as missing from Manchester on September 25, 1984, and Uncovered likewise lists the date missing as September 25, 1984, his age at the time as 49, and the NamUs number as MP3271.
He was described as a White/Caucasian man, about 5 feet 8 inches tall and approximately 170 pounds, with blue eyes and mostly gray hair that was nearly white. He wore prescription glasses with dark frames and thick lenses, had a full set of dentures, and had physical conditions that would have made him recognizable, including severe curvature of the spine and shoe lifts related to back problems.
On the morning of September 25, 1984, Richard reportedly left his home in Manchester around 11:00 a.m. The circumstances described in public case summaries suggest that his departure carried details that later became important to investigators: he had reportedly filled the gas tank of his vehicle shortly before leaving, and he left an unusual amount of food for his dog. Investigators also noted that he had previously been known to travel through Pennsylvania while heading toward his parents’ home in Tennessee, a detail that became significant when his vehicle was later located outside Connecticut. Richard had been diagnosed with schizophrenia, was apprehensive around strangers, and was known to become lost easily, details that deepen the concern for his safety and help explain why the search for him was especially urgent.
Three days after he was last seen, Richard’s black 1967 Chevrolet Impala was found abandoned on a rural road in Tobyhanna Township, Pennsylvania. Public case summaries describe the vehicle as unlocked, with no sign of Richard found nearby. The listed vehicle information identifies it as a Connecticut-registered 1967 Chevrolet Impala sedan, and the same summary states that the car was later retrieved by Richard’s son. The distance between Manchester and the Pocono region of Pennsylvania left investigators and family with a painful gap: Richard had apparently traveled far from home, but the available public information does not establish what happened after the vehicle was abandoned or where he may have gone from there.
Richard’s medical and physical vulnerabilities made his disappearance particularly troubling. Public descriptions note that he had severe curvature of the spine, wore lifts in his shoes, had a scar from back surgery, and had a circular scar on his forehead about the size of a quarter. He was also described as a heavy smoker with yellowed fingers. At the time he vanished, he was reportedly wearing a tan jacket, prescription glasses, footwear with lifts, a wristwatch, a wedding band, and an oversized belt buckle. Investigators also reported that there was no financial-account activity after September 25, 1984, and that Richard had less than five dollars when he left home, making it difficult to understand how he could have continued traveling or supporting himself for long without being noticed.
The case remains a stark story of a man who left home in Manchester, crossed into uncertainty, and left behind more questions than answers. NamUs, the national system used by law enforcement, families, medical examiners, coroners, and others to share and compare missing-person and unidentified-remains information across jurisdictions, lists Richard’s case in the national missing-person system, while other public case pages continue to preserve his name and basic case facts. In overview, Richard Boissonneau’s disappearance began with his departure from his Manchester home on September 25, 1984, continued with the discovery of his unlocked car in rural Tobyhanna Township, Pennsylvania, on September 28, 1984, and remains defined by the absence of any confirmed public account of what happened to him after that point.Last Seen: Sep 25, 1984
