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Case Description

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Cheryl Lynn Valenti, age 33, was last seen on November 23, 1997, in Vancouver, Washington. She left her home driving her live-in boyfriend's 1973 Ford pickup truck, intending to attend a child custody hearing in the Tri-Cities area the following day. Cheryl never arrived at the hearing, and her boyfriend reported her missing on November 26.

On December 2, 1997, the truck she had been driving was found abandoned on a remote, snow-covered Forest Service road in Skamania County. Insid ...Read More
Last Seen: Nov 23, 1997

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Victim Details

Sep 12, 2013

Jan 12, 2024

Cheryl

Valenti

59

33

69 inches

130 lbs

White / Caucasian

Female

In the late autumn of 1997, a troubling mystery began to unfold in Vancouver, Washington, with the disappearance of 33-year-old Cheryl Lynn Valenti. On November 23rd, the day she was last seen, Cheryl, a mother with brown hair and hazel eyes, left her home behind the wheel of her boyfriend's 1973 Ford pickup truck. A significant court appearance loomed the following day; she was scheduled for a child custody hearing in the Tri-Cities area. However, Cheryl never arrived at the courthouse, and as the hours turned into days, a growing sense of unease settled over her loved ones. The journey she embarked on that day remains shrouded in uncertainty, marking the last time she was ever heard from. A few days later, on November 26th, her boyfriend officially reported her as a missing person to the Vancouver Police Department, initiating an investigation into her sudden and uncharacteristic absence. The first tangible clue in the case would not surface until more than a week after she was last seen. On December 2nd, law enforcement located the Ford pickup truck she had been driving. It was found abandoned in a remote and desolate area of Skamania County, on a snow-covered stretch of Forest Service Road #30. The discovery of the truck, while a significant development, only deepened the mystery. Inside the vehicle, investigators found Cheryl's purse and her identification, personal items a person would not typically leave behind. The scene offered no immediate answers, only more questions about what could have happened to her in this isolated location. The circumstances surrounding Cheryl Valenti's disappearance have left a void in the lives of those who knew her, and her case has remained unsolved for decades. The investigation, now a cold case, is a poignant reminder of a life interrupted. The discovery of her personal effects in the abandoned truck suggests that she may have met with foul play, yet without further evidence, this remains speculation. The fact that she was on her way to a child custody hearing adds a layer of complexity to the case, leaving investigators and her family to wonder if this played a role in her vanishing. The overview of this case is one of a young mother who disappeared under perplexing circumstances, leaving behind a trail of unanswered questions. The remote and wintry landscape where her truck was found serves as a stark and silent witness to the enduring mystery of what happened to Cheryl Lynn Valenti.

Nov 23, 1997

Vancouver

Washington

Clark County

No

22783

Vancouver Police Department

Vancouver

Washington

Clark County

98661

Wally Stefan

Det.

605 East Evergreen Boulevard, Washington

3604877400

Local

Law Enforcement

V97-14873

Vancouver Police Department

Brown

Hazel

Hazel

No

06/12/2026


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