On the evening of July 4, 1986, Joyce Welch, 39, was with friends at a bar in Old Town Lenexa near Santa Fe Trail Drive and Pflumm Road. She was last seen leaving the bar alone at approximately 10:30 p.m. and walking east toward Santa Fe Trail Drive.
Early on July 5, a passerby discovered Joyce’s purse a few blocks from where she was last seen. When Joyce failed to return home or contact friends, a concerned friend reported her missing on July 7, 1986.
Nearly two years later, on April 9, 1988, Joyce’s remains were found in a field near 271st Street and Block Road in Miami County, Kansas. Her death is being investigated as a homicide.
Investigators continue to seek information that may help identify those responsible for Joyce’s disappearance and death. Anyone with information about this case is encouraged to contact the Lenexa Police Department at 913.825.8169 or the Greater Kansas City Crime Stoppers TIPS Hotline at 816.474.TIPS (8477).