Missing
Beth Ann Ricketts
Ricketts, approximately 1997
Date and time person was reported missing : 12/22/1997
Missing location (approx) :
Des Moines, Iowa
Missing classification : Endangered Missing
Gender : Female
Ethnicity :
White
Age at the time of disappearance: 31 years old
Height / Weight : 5'8, 120 pounds
Description, clothing, jewerly and more : A white shirt, a black leather blazer, black pants and a zebra-print belt. Carrying a medium-sized black purse.
Distinguishing characteristics, birthmarks, tattoos
: Caucasian female. Blonde hair, blue eyes.
Information on the case from local sources, may or may not be correct : Ricketts was last seen in Des Moines, Iowa at 9:30 a.m. on December 22, 1997. She left home to do some Christmas shopping, driving a gold 1994 Geo Prizm, and never returned. She has never been heard from again.
Later that day, at 2:10 p.m., a fire broke out at her duplex in the 4000 block of Dubuque Avenue and caused $7,500 worth of damAge at the time of disappearance: to a bedroom. Firefighters were unable to determine the cause of the blaze, and investigators aren't sure if it was related to her disappearance.
Ricketts's boyfriend said that on December 24, a woman claiming to be Ricketts called him on his cellular phone and said she was fine and didn't want to be found.
However, Ricketts never resurfaced, and on January 7 she was re-listed as a missing person. Her boyfriend refused to cooperate with the investigation and hired an attorney.
Ricketts is a military veteran and lived in Oklahoma City, Oklahoma prior to moving to Des Moines. She left behind two daughters and one son. Authorities believe she may have been taken against her will. Her case is classified as a possible homicide.
Other information and links : ncy
Iowa Missing Person Information Clearinghouse
800-346-5507
September 2021 updates and sources
Iowa Missing Person Information Clearinghouse
Iowa Cold Cases
The Des Moines Register
October 12, 2004. July 5, 2017; Information on the case from local sources, may or may not be correct : updated.
Interactive Missing Person Search Map
