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Case Description
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Martin Alan Gentry, 23, was last seen at his residence in Sacramento, California, on July 20, 1986, at approximately 3:00 p.m. Gentry received a phone call from a woman and left his home, telling his parents he was going to meet her at a local Circle K store to buy marijuana. He never returned. Gentry's mother reported him missing six days later, on July 26, 1986. By that time, law enforcement had already received an anonymous tip that Gentry had been shot and killed.

The investigation ...Read More
Last Seen: Jul 20, 1986
Links to Additional Sources (3)
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Victim Details

Jan 24, 2026

Jan 24, 2026

Martin

Alan Gentry

23

23

6'0 inches

170 lbs

White

Male

Gentry was last seen at his Sacramento, California residence at approximately 3:00 p.m. on July 20, 1986. He received a phone call from a woman, changed his clothes, and left the house. He planned to meet the woman at a Circle K store and go buy marijuana. He never returned. His mother reported him missing six days after his disappearance. By then, the police had already gotten an anonymous tip that he had been shot to death. In 1989, Gentry's best friend, Joseph Allen Stanley, was charged with his murder. When he was interviewed by detectives in 1986, Stanley had claimed he was forced at gunpoint to lure Gentry from his home, and he witnessed Gentry's shooting death by an unknown individual off Prairie City Road in Sacramento. Christina Rose Allen, who was his girlfriend at the time, told investigators that Stanley told her he had shot Gentry in the chest shortly after his disappearance. Allen was 17 years old at the time of Gentry's alleged murder. She had initially lied to authorities and claimed she knew nothing about Gentry's case; she says she did this because she was afraid of Stanley and was still in love with him, and because she was afraid she would also be charged in Gentry's case. Allen subsequently failed a polygraph test and stopped cooperating with the investigation until 1989, when she came forward with her information. Stanley was tried twice for Gentry's murder in 1990. Both times the jury could not reach a verdict and the judge declared a mistrial. After the second trial, authorities elected not to prosecute Stanley again. Gentry's remains had never been found.

Jul 20, 1986

Sacramento

California

Sacramento

3

Sacramento County Sheriff's Departmen

916-874-5057

01/25/2026