On August 6, 1956, 12-year-old Donald Lee Baker was last seen in Los Angeles County, California. He was with a friend, Brenda Jo Howell, and the two had ridden their bicycles into the San Gabriel Canyon area near Glendora Mountain Road. At the time of his disappearance, Donald was described as being 5'1" tall and weighing 100 pounds, with brown hair and brown eyes. He was wearing a white t-shirt, blue jeans, and a burgundy jacket with stripes on the sleeves.
Initial searches for the missing children yielded few clues. A few days after they were last seen, Donald's jacket and Brenda's bicycle were discovered near Morris Dam, about a quarter of a mile south of their last known location. A month later, Donald's bicycle was also found. For years, the case remained cold, with authorities initially considering the possibility that the children had run away from home.
A significant break in the case came in 1970 when a man named Mack Ray Edwards, a convicted serial killer, confessed to the murders of Donald Lee Baker and Brenda Jo Howell. Edwards, who was a neighbor of Donald's and Brenda's brother-in-law, provided investigators with a location where he claimed to have buried their bodies. However, a search of the area did not uncover any remains. Due to the lack of evidence, Edwards was never charged in connection with the disappearances of Donald and Brenda. He had been sentenced to death for the murders of three other children and later died by suicide on death row in 1971. The case of Donald Lee Baker is officially considered a non-family abduction, and foul play is suspected.
Last Seen: Aug 06, 1956
