Johnny Gosch's house

This is Johnny Gosch's former house.

It is located at 1004 45th Street in West Des Moines, Iowa.

The 12-year-old paperboy vanished from his neighborhood on September 5th, 1982, and has been missing ever since.

On the morning of his disappearance, Gosch left this house and walked to the corner of Ashworth Road and 42nd Street, where he picked up a stack of newspapers that he was supposed to deliver.

A few hours later, a neighbor called Gosch's father and complained that he hadn't received his morning newspaper.

Thinking it was odd, he went looking for his son. As he was walking through the quiet suburban neighborhood, he came across the red pull-along wagon that Johnny used to tow his stack of newspapers.

The wagon had been abandoned on the corner of Marcourt Lane and 42nd Street, which was just one block east of the Gosch family home.

Significantly, the wagon was still full, a sign that he hadn't completed any of his deliveries.

Although Gosch's father was concerned about this discovery, his anxiety hadn't yet reached the point where he felt it was necessary to contact the police.

Instead of raising the alarm, he reasoned that he should take the wagon and complete the route himself. That way, he could visit each street and search the neighborhood.

However, as time drifted by and there was still no sign of Johnny, the knot in his stomach continued to grow. He knew that this was extremely out of character for his son, as he was a responsible young boy who always completed his work on time.

Consequently, he decided to alert the authorities.

Although the police initially assumed that Gosch had run away, that changed after witnesses reported that a stocky man in a blue car was driving around the area at the time.

During the investigation, a paperboy named Mike said that the man approached Gosch near the paper drop and asked him for directions to 86th Street. After being given directions, the man drove away. However, not long after, he returned and began asking for directions again.

While Gosch was talking to the man, a neighbor named John Rossi arrived at the corner to pick up newspapers for his two sons, who were also paperboys. When Gosch saw Rossi, he asked him to speak to the man in the blue car and give him directions to 86th Street.

Rossi agreed and walked over to the car. Meanwhile, Gosch grabbed his wagon and headed north along 42nd Street (in the direction of the red arrow).

Rossi said that the man was unshaven, with black hair and beady eyes. He also seemed high and somewhat agitated.

After being given directions, the man turned his interior lights on three times and then sped off east along Ashworth Road before turning north onto 39th Street.

A paperboy claimed that a tall man approached Gosch from behind while he was walking towards the corner of Marcourt.

Another neighbor stated that they saw a silver Ford Fairmont parked on the same corner. Although they didn't see Gosch, they reportedly heard a car door slam shut shortly afterwards.

Unfortunately, witnesses can be unreliable, especially when they are recalling events that didn't seem important to them at the time. As a result, the details can get blurred, and the timeline can become distorted.

In this case, we have two different cars and an unidentified man who reportedly followed Gosch up 42nd Street. To confuse matters even more, the paperboy who saw the "tall man" was unsure if it was the same person who was driving the blue car or not.

Only one witness reported seeing the Ford Fairmont. Furthermore, they did not see what the driver looked like.

Despite these reports, the investigation into his disappearance revealed little evidence, and no trace of the 12-year-old was ever found.

Although the authorities believe that he was kidnapped, no arrests have ever been made.