Account
Apr 02, 2015
Mar 29, 2024
Kenneth
Cook
94
56
65 inches
124 lbs
135 lbs
White / Caucasian
Male
In the small town of Granite, Oklahoma, a 56-year-old man named Kenneth Ray Cook disappeared on November 24, 1986. Cook was an inmate at the Oklahoma State Reformatory, and his disappearance was not that of a typical missing person, but an escape from a life he was legally bound to lead behind bars. At the time he vanished, he was described as being 5'5" and weighing between 124 and 135 pounds, with blue eyes, and brown hair that was turning grey. He wore glasses and was distinguished by several scars on his right wrist, right cheek, and forehead, as well as a midline scar on his back. He also had distinct tattoos: a bird with the name "Elaine" on his left chest, another bird with the name "Rocky" on his right chest, and a heart on his upper arm. Cook's path to the Oklahoma State Reformatory was paved by a dark and tragic event that occurred four years prior to his escape. In December 1982, Cook reported to a park ranger that his wife, Wilma Mae Guerin, had drowned at Fort Supply Lake. However, the circumstances surrounding her death raised suspicion. Investigators learned that just a month earlier, on November 4, 1982, Cook had taken out a life insurance policy that would pay him $50,000 in the event of his wife's accidental death. The story of a fishing trip unraveled as evidence showed Wilma was dressed in a slacks suit and high-heeled shoes, hardly appropriate for such an outing. The most damning testimony came from Cook's own son, who stated at trial that his father confessed to killing Wilma. The motive appeared to be twofold: he suspected her of having affairs and he wanted to collect the insurance money. It was revealed that he had thrown her over a four-foot chain-link fence into the lake, and this was not his first attempt to drown her. While he was tried for first-degree murder, the jury ultimately convicted him of the lesser charge of first-degree manslaughter, handing down a 40-year prison sentence. For decades following his 1986 escape, Kenneth Ray Cook has remained a fugitive, his whereabouts an enduring mystery. He earned a spot on the Oklahoma Department of Corrections' 15 Most Wanted list, and his case gained national attention when it was featured on "America's Most Wanted." Despite the publicity, which included his face on a set of playing cards in 2003, he has never been located. Over the years, theories have emerged, with some believing he may have fled to Amarillo, Texas. A piece of information from the FBI in 1996 suggested he might have been taking medication for emphysema, a condition that could have impacted his long-term survival. The case of Kenneth Cook is a somber narrative that began with the tragic death of his wife and transitioned into the long, unresolved story of a man who slipped away from the justice he was meant to serve. Decades have passed, yet the questions surrounding what became of him after he left the prison in Granite remain unanswered, leaving a void where closure should be.
Nov 24, 1986
Granite
Oklahoma
Greer County
No
16489
Oklahoma Department of Corrections
Oklahoma City
Oklahoma
Oklahoma County
73111
Matthew Terry
Fugitive Apprehension Agent III
1
3400 Martin Luther King Avenue, Oklahoma
State
Law Enforcement
2011-34
1986-11-24
Oklahoma Department of Corrections
Brown
Blue
Blue
06/18/2026
