Missing
Gordon Vessels
Vessels, approximately 1993
Date and time person was reported missing : 03/17/1993
Missing location (approx) :
Manzano, New Mexico
Missing classification : Endangered Missing
Gender : Male
Ethnicity :
White
Age at the time of disappearance: 39 years old
Height / Weight : 6'0 - 6'1, 175 pounds
Distinguishing characteristics, birthmarks, tattoos
: Caucasian male. Brown hair. Vessels wears eyeglasses. His hair was long at the time of his disappearance and he normally wore it in a ponytail.
Information on the case from local sources, may or may not be correct : Vessels was last seen in Manzano, New Mexico on March 17, 1993. He was seen driving through town with a passenger, identified as a local man. He had left for a fishing trip at Manzano Lake on March 16 and failed to return.
Police found Vessels's unlocked vehicle parked among some trees off a forest road a day after he was reported missing, three days after he was last seen. His car keys, wallet and sleeping bag were inside it. County officials towed the car, because they didn't realize it belonged to a missing person. An extensive search turned up no indication of his whereabouts. He has never been heard from again.
At the time of his disappearance, Vessels was the lead guitarist for a band called Blues Kings; he also played in several other local bands. He lived south of Tijeras, New Mexico with his girlfriend of eight years.
Several days before he left for the fishing trip, he and his girlfriend argued and he left the house. His friends saw him later and he told them he was going fishing, but didn't notify his girlfriend.
It's uncharacteristic of Vessels to leave without warning. Foul play is suspected in his case, which remains unsolved. Authorities in Bernalillo County, his county of residence, are investigating.
Other information and links : ncy
Bernalillo County Sheriff's Department
505-468-7454
505-468-7225
September 2021 updates and sources
Bernalillo County Sheriff's Department
The Albuquerque Journal
October 12, 2004. August 12, 2016; .
Interactive Missing Person Search Map
