Do you know who murdered Marilyn? On the evening of April 9, 1987, 22-year-old Marilyn Joi Base left her Tulsa, Oklahoma, apartment to do laundry at the complex's facility. This seemingly mundane task would tragically be her last. When she didn't return after a reasonable amount of time, her boyfriend went to check on her. He discovered a chilling scene: Marilyn's car was parked outside the laundry room with the keys still in the ignition, and her laundry basket sat untouched in the front seat.
Her clothes were reportedly still in the machines. It appeared that Marilyn, a woman known for her trusting nature, never made it inside.
Ten days later, on April 19, 1987, a grim discovery was made in Muskogee County. Following an anonymous tip, authorities located Marilyn's body off Highway 10 on Braggs Mountain. She was found in a ravine, about 55 feet from the road, hidden from the view of passing traffic. The state of her body indicated she had been deceased for some time; she was found naked and badly decomposed. The cause of her death was determined to be strangulation by a ligature. Some reports also indicated she had been raped.
In the years that have followed, Marilyn Joi Base's murder has remained unsolved, becoming a cold case. No arrests have ever been made in connection with her abduction and killing. The investigation did receive a peculiar tip from an unidentified woman who claimed to have witnessed Marilyn's abduction from the parking lot. This anonymous caller even described the suspect's car and mentioned leaving a sketch of the suspect in a nearby phone booth, though police have stated the sketch was not helpful to the investigation. Authorities at the time believed that the person responsible for Marilyn's death might have killed before and could kill again. Despite the passage of time, the case remains open, a painful and unresolved chapter for a family and community still seeking justice for a young life cut short.
