MAINE – Police are looking into a cold case after a Maine couple received an anonymous letter from someone who claims to know why the couple’s son vanished nearly 40 years ago.
On May 12, 1977, Bernard “Bunny” Ross Jr., 18, vanished after leaving his family home one morning in a state of distress, the Portland Press Herald reports.
The teen was suspected of stealing a vehicle, which was later found abandoned on a dirt road.
Ross has not been seen or heard from since.
For 39 years, his parents — 78-year-old Carol Ross and 80-year-old Bernard Ross Sr. — have worried about their son, wondering what could have happened to him.
“People had a hard time because there were no answers,” Carol told the Bangor Daily News. “It’s not like there was a death. It was the unknown … there was always the hope that he’d walk through the door one day.”
Recently, they received an unsigned letter at their home in Portland, Maine.
According to the Portland Press Herald, the author of the letter claims he or she has information about Ross’ disappearance, but authorities did not go into details about what the letter said.
“I’ve never had anything like this happen in my career,” Maine State Police Lt. Troy Gardner said. “Basically, all we’re doing is extending an olive branch, saying we want to make contact with this person. Of course, there’s no way of knowing whether the letter’s truthful or the information is accurate, but we are asking for whoever wrote the letter to please contact us.”
Police say that although the letter could be a hoax, they do not plan to release it to the public.
The Ross family is hoping that whoever wrote the letter will come forward and tell police what they know.
