Missing
Richard William Miller Jr.
Miller, approximately 1983; Charles Almond
Date and time person was reported missing : 11/17/1983
Missing location (approx) :
Staunton, Virginia
Missing classification : Endangered Missing
Gender : Male
Ethnicity :
White
Age at the time of disappearance: 18 years old
Height / Weight : 5'7, 120 pounds
Description, clothing, jewerly and more : A blue jacket, a red shirt, dark blue work pants and brown dress boots.
Distinguishing characteristics, birthmarks, tattoos
: Caucasian male. Brown hair, brown eyes. Miller's nicknames are Pete and Petey.
Information on the case from local sources, may or may not be correct : Miller was last seen on November 17, 1983. He and his father were driving on the same road in separate cars on Route 254, en route to Staunton, Virginia. Miller was on his way to work.
His father noticed Miller's truck was no longer behind him, and turned back to find him. He saw Miller parked on the roadside behind another pickup truck with a cap. The second truck's tailgate was propped up with a stick. Miller's father assumed he was assisting a stranded motorist and continued on his way. Miller has never been heard from again.
Miller was supposed to get married the weekend after his disappearance. It was his fiancee's stepfather, Charles Lindberg Almond, who reported him missing. It turned out to be his truck that Miller parked behind on the day of his disappearance. Shortly before he disappeared, Miller had accused Almond of Gender : ually abusing his fiancee, and the two men got into an argument.
On December 14, 1983, Miller's gold 1968 Chevrolet pickup truck with the Virginia license plate number FD22849 was found abandoned in Richmond, Virginia. It had been parked there for three or four weeks and had been wiped clean.
A couple of months later, his family got an anonymous typed letter stating Miller was fine, was working and had decided to sever ties with his family. His loved ones didn't believe he would have really done that.
In May 2015, Almond was charged with Miller's murder. He lived a few miles from where Miller was last seen on Route 254. A photo of Almond is posted with this case summary.
He was 84 years old when the charges were filed and has a criminal history. Several months before he was charged with Miller's murder, he was charged with attempted murder for allegedly trying to poison a woman with antifreeze-laced iced tea. The grand jury declined to indict him in that case, however.
At Almond's trial in March 2016, eleven witnesses testified that Almond had told them he had shot Miller, dismembered his body and dissolved it in acid. Almond's son and his stepdaughter, Miller's fiancee, both testified against him. The defense presented no witnesses and asked the judge to dismiss the case for lack of evidence, calling the prosecution witnesses liars, but the judge refused. Almond was found guilty of first-degree murder and sentenced to life in prison. In 2020, he died in custody, at the Age at the time of disappearance: of 89.
Foul play is suspected in Miller's disappearance due to the circumstances involved.
Other information and links : ncy
Augusta County Sheriff's Office
540-245-5333
September 2021 updates and sources
WHS 3
The Staunton News Leader
A missing person is a person who has disappeared and whose status as alive or dead cannot be confirmed as their location and condition are not known. A person may go missing through a voluntary disappearance, or else due to an accident, crime, death in a location where they cannot be found (such as at sea), or many other reasons. In most parts of the world, a missing person will usually be found quickly. While criminal abductions are some of the most widely reported missing person cases, these account for only 2�5% of missing children in Europe.
By contrast, some missing person cases remain unresolved for many years. Laws related to these cases are often complex since, in many jurisdictions, relatives and third parties may not deal with a person's assets until their death is considered proven by law and a formal death certificate issued. The situation, uncertainties, and lack of closure or a funeral resulting when a person goes missing may be extremely painful with long-lasting effects on family and friends.
Several organizations seek to connect, share best practices, and disseminate information and imAge at the time of disappearance: s of missing children to improve the effectiveness of missing children investigations, including the International Commission on Missing Persons, the International Centre for Missing & Exploited Children (ICMEC), as well as national organizations, including the National Center for Missing & Exploited Children in the US, Missing People in the UK, Child Focus in Belgium, and The Smile of the Child in Greece.
WVIR-TV
6 October 12, 2004. June 9, 2020; Information on the case from local sources, may or may not be correct : updated.
Interactive Missing Person Search Map
