Name: Janet Sue Kirkup
Case Classification: Endangered Missing
Missing Since: August 5, 1992
Location Last Seen: Jackson, Jackson County, Michigan
Date of Birth: August 13, 1939
Age: 52 years old
Race: White
Gender: Female
Height: 5'7"
Weight: 160 lbs
Hair Color: Gray or partially gray; long, blonde-greying hair/
Eye Color: Blue
Nickname/Alias: nee Johnson
Distinguishing Marks/Features: Known to wear her fingernails long
Dentals: Available; Crowns on #8, 9, 10, 11
Fingerprints: Not Available
DNA: Available
Clothing: Unknown
Jewelry: Known to wear lots of rings and jewelry
Additional Personal Items: Unknown
Janet and her husband, Robert, sold their home in Apple Valley, Michigan in 1992, and embarked on a cross-country RV trip. Shortly after visiting family in Michigan, Janet's whereabouts became unknown, and her husband provided little information as to her whereabouts. Janet was reported missing by her children in 1992.
An investigation into her disappearance initially was launched by the Michigan State Police because, at the time, the couple was living in Jackson, Michigan, and that was the last place they were seen together. It was long believed that Robert Kirkup killed his wife while they were near Buffalo, New York. Police reopened the investigation in 2008 and got a confession from the husband on June 17. Kirkup told two San Bernardino County, California detectives he strangled his wife on August 14, 1992, and that he buried her body in a wooded area outside Buffalo, New York. Janet is presumed buried in the wooded area of Batavia, west of Buffalo. Her body has not been recovered. Robert has been charged with second-degree murder.
Agency Name: Michigan State Police
Agency Contact Person: N/A
Agency Phone Number: 517-780-4580
Agency E-Mail: MSP-MissingPersons@michigan.gov
Agency Case Number: 17-1116-98
NCIC Case Number: M340926134
NamUs Case Number: 8747
NamUs
Press-Enterprise (Bloomsburg, PA) - Jun. 24, 2008
Buffalo News - Sept. 23, 2008
SKBW-TV News 7/ABC
Added: Prior to 2008; Last Updated: 10-18-2022 - By: hwa
Questions or comments? Please contact appropriate member of the Area Team
** Listed information is from the time of disappearance.
Return Home