Account
Mar 23, 2012
Jun 19, 2023
David
Sampson
69
21
72 inches
140 lbs
White / Caucasian
Male
In the late winter of 1977, a young man named David Robert Sampson, a 21-year-old student at the University of Washington, vanished from Seattle. His disappearance on March 1, 1977, was marked by an abrupt departure from his life as a student, a life that had recently been influenced by a significant personality change. Friends and family had noted this shift, which they associated with a recent and intense religious conversion. When he left, David was not empty-handed; he carried a packboard with a green pack, a light blue sleeping bag, extensive survival gear, a Bible, and other religious materials. He was dressed for the outdoors in a dark blue or green ski jacket, blue jeans, and hiking boots, but notably, he left behind any form of identification or money. David's interests before he disappeared included botany, "alpine survival hiking," and environmental concerns, suggesting a deep appreciation for the wilderness. It is this love for the outdoors, coupled with his recent religious fervor, that paints a picture of a young man perhaps seeking solace or a different path in the vast landscapes of the Pacific Northwest. He was described as a white male, standing at 6 feet tall and weighing around 140 pounds, with brown hair and brown eyes. He had small moles on his upper lip and chin. The circumstances of his departure, leaving without a trace or any communication with his family, have left those who knew him with decades of unanswered questions. The case of David Robert Sampson has remained unsolved for many years, a quiet and lingering mystery among Washington's cold cases. Despite the passage of time, the official investigation by the King County Sheriff's Office has not yielded any definitive answers as to his whereabouts or what became of him. His family, originally from the Bakersfield, California area, has been left to wonder about the fate of their son. The lack of any substantial leads or new evidence has meant that David's story has largely remained out of the public eye, only occasionally resurfacing in discussions of long-term missing persons. The overview of this case is one of a sudden departure driven by personal transformation, a young man equipped for survival in the wild yet seemingly unprepared for a return to his old life, leaving a void of information and a family waiting for answers.
Mar 01, 1977
Seattle
Washington
King County
98177
No
11554
King County Sheriff's Office
Seattle
Washington
King County
98104
Thomas Jensen
Analyst
516 3rd Avenue Room W-150, Washington
2062964155
County
Law Enforcement
84-195323
2012-03-23
King County Sheriff's Office
Brown
Brown
Brown
06/19/2026
