Missing
William Donald Leach
Leach, approximately 1976
Date and time person was reported missing : 03/17/1976
Missing location (approx) :
Laytonville, California
Missing classification : Endangered Missing
Gender : Male
Ethnicity :
White
DOB : 02/06/1926 (95)
Age at the time of disappearance: 50 years old
Height / Weight : 5'8, 165 pounds
Distinguishing characteristics, birthmarks, tattoos
: Caucasian male. Gray hair, blue eyes. Leach's nickname is Bill. He has a dog bite scar on his face. He also uses the name Frederick Donald Leach and some Age at the time of disappearance: ncies refer to him by that name.
Information on the case from local sources, may or may not be correct : Leach was last seen in Laytonville, California on March 17, 1976. He lived approximately one mile south of the city at the time of his disappearance.
After he went missing, his house was found ransacked with dinner laid out on the table. Many items had been stolen, including several vehicles: a 1960s Ford Falcon, two Willy's PU Jeeps, a Suzuki motorcycle and a Harley Davidson motorcycle. Leach worked as a mechanic and had an extensive collection of cars and motorcycles. He has never been heard from again.
According to Leach's daughter, blood spatters were found on his property after his disappearance. She stated one wall was stained with blood and, in a bus parked on the property, there was an armchair covered with a sheet, saturated in fresh blood. Leach's daughter also stated in a second house on his land, she found a picture of a goat's head with a cross on a grave and words, including Leach's name.
Not long before his disappearance, one of Leach's friends noticed him limping and asked why, and Leach stated he'd been beaten. He was allegedly in a dispute with some people who were angry because he refused to sell them items they wanted.
It's unclear whether any of this has anything to do with Leach's disappearance, but he is missing under suspicious circumstances. His property had nearly been paid off before his disappearance and he was looking forward to his upcoming retirement. Few details are available in his case.
Other information and links : ncy
Mendocino County Sheriff's Office
707-463-4095
September 2021 updates and sources
California Attorney General's Office
Mendocino County Sheriff's Office
Missing in California
The Criminal Report Daily
October 12, 2004. February 22, 2010; Information on the case from local sources, may or may not be correct : updated.
Interactive Missing Person Search Map
