Missing
William Dale Cunningham
Cunningham, approximately 1981
Date and time person was reported missing : 09/21/1981
Missing location (approx) :
Bloomington, Indiana
Missing classification : Endangered Missing
Gender : Male
Ethnicity :
White
DOB : 04/06/1954 (67)
Age at the time of disappearance: 27 years old
Height / Weight : 5'9 - 6'0, 240 pounds
Distinguishing characteristics, birthmarks, tattoos
: Caucasian male. Sandy brown hair, gray eyes. Cunningham had a beard at the time of his disappearance.
Information on the case from local sources, may or may not be correct : Cunningham left Bloomington, Indiana alone on September 18, 1981, to visit friends in South Bend, Indiana. He was carrying between $30,000 and $40,000 in cash at the time. He was last heard from when he made a phone call from Pierceton, Indiana on September 21. He has never been heard from again.
Several weeks later, his black and silver 1978 Lincoln Continental with the Indiana license plate number 53A5926 was found unlocked and abandoned in a grocery store parking lot in Fort Wayne, Indiana. It sat in the parking lot for a month before it was towed. The citizens band radio and radar detector had been taken from it. Investigators believe the vehicle had been stolen and the thieves left it where it was found.
Police believe Cunningham was a dealer of marijuana, hashish and cocaine in the South Bend area, which is why he had so much cash when he disappeared. He and another man owned a drive-in restaurant, the Bloomington A&W Drive-In in the 600 block of north College Avenue.
Cunningham's business partner dropped out of sight after Cunningham's disappearance. Police were seeking him for questioning, but they were unable to locate him. It's unknown whether he ever resurfaced.
Investigators believe Cunningham may have been the victim of a homicide. His disappearance remains unsolved.
Other information and links : ncy
Indiana State Police
574-546-4900
September 2021 updates and sources
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.
The Indianapolis Star
The Muncie Star Press
Indiana Missing Persons Bulletin
October 12, 2004. April 17, 2018; DOB : added.
Interactive Missing Person Search Map
