Roberta Ray ’Robin’ Armtrout, 24, was murdered on September 8, 1985, and her body was found days later in Potter’s Creek just outside Linden, San Joaquin County, California. She had last been seen getting into a red truck with two men near her mother’s home in Stockton; one of the men was described as tall and thin. Her remains bore signs of a violent death—forensic testimony said she had been raped, stabbed 46 times, and disposed of face down, with obscenities carved into her lower abdomen and wrist that helped family members identify her.

Nearly 14 years after the killing, Linden resident Loren Herzog, known as Slim, told authorities that Wesley Howard Shermantine owned the red truck and was responsible for Armtrout’s murder, but Herzog’s account lacked specific corroborating details. Prosecutors characterized the killing as a hate crime and extreme overkill; however, investigators reportedly lacked independent evidence directly linking Shermantine to this murder, and Herzog was the only person charged in connection with Armtrout’s death.

The family continues to seek answers about what happened. If anyone knew Roberta, saw a red truck in Stockton in early September 1985, or has information about the two men she was seen with, please come forward.