In the early morning hours of May 16, 1986, 33-year-old Ernestine Covington was at a restaurant in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, in the area of 49th and Baltimore Avenue. It was approximately 2:30 a.m., and she was in the company of her boyfriend at Caspar's Cafe. Ernestine, a Black female with brown eyes and black hair, stood about 5'1' tall and weighed around 130 pounds. On that particular evening, she was dressed in red slacks, a black jacket, and black shoes. She had plans to travel to New York the next morning for a weekend trip with a friend who also worked as a waitress at the cafe. Before her trip, however, Ernestine intended to drive her boyfriend to his home in Yeadon, Delaware County. After leaving the restaurant, Ernestine was never seen or heard from again.
The circumstances following Ernestine's disappearance remain shrouded in mystery, with few leads for investigators to follow.
A significant development in the case came nearly seven months after she was last seen. On December 2, 1986, her vehicle, a distinctive blue 1986 Chevrolet Cavalier with a single red stripe along its sides and Pennsylvania license plate GKD-398, was discovered abandoned. The car was located near 41st and Chestnut Street in Philadelphia, a location that offered no immediate clues as to what may have happened to its owner. The considerable amount of time that passed between her disappearance and the discovery of her car has been a point of concern and speculation for those who have followed the case over the years.
Decades have passed since Ernestine Covington vanished, and her case remains an active missing person investigation with the Philadelphia Police Department. Despite the passage of time, details about the events leading to her disappearance are scarce. The narrative of her last known moments, a planned trip to New York, and the subsequent discovery of her abandoned car paint a somber picture. The lack of resolution has left her loved ones without answers. The case is a poignant reminder of the enduring pain and uncertainty that surrounds long-term missing person cases.Last Seen: May 16, 1986
