Name: Stanley Louis Chism, Jr.
Case Classification: Missing
Missing Since: February 5, 1988
Location Last Seen: Orlando, Orange County, Florida
Date of Birth: July 14, 1964
Age: 23 years old
Race: White
Gender: Male
Height: 5'2"
Weight: 145 lbs.
Hair Color: Red/Auburn
Eye Color: Blue
Nickname/Alias: J.R.
Distinguishing Marks/Features: Wears glasses.
Dentals: Not Available
Fingerprints: Not Available
DNA: Not Available
Clothing: Purple plaid button shirt and newLevi'sblue jeans.
Jewelry: Unknown
Additional Personal Items: Unknown
Chism, a gospel singer, vanished after leaving his mobile home on February 5, 1988. That night, Chism told his roommate that, as was his custom, he was going to a mall to call his parents in Ohio and his girlfriend in Kentucky. At about 7:15 p.m., he called his girlfriend from a phone near a store on the upper level of the Altamonte Mall in Altamonte Springs and they talked for about ten minutes. His parents don't know if he tried calling them because they weren't at home. Chism's parents said they last saw their son during the Christmas and New Year's holiday when he visited them in Ohio. He told them he planned to leave Orlando in March and work with his father in a ministry. They last talked to him in January, and they said he seemed excited about coming home. Chism's girlfriend said that when he called her from the mall, they talked about his move to Ohio. He told her that if the gospel group could find a replacement, he might leave Orlando sooner and stop in Kentucky to give her a Christmas present.
About 3:00 p.m. the next day, Harold Suggs showed up at the home of a friend living between Hapton and Starke, about 130 miles northwest of Orlando. The woman told investigators he was driving a car matching the description of Chism's and wearing a jacket like one that belonged to the singer.
On February 8th, Chism's friends in a gospel group known as Loretta Carter and the Sounds of Praise became concerned when he failed to show up for a singing session. They called Chism's parents to see if they had heard from him, but they hadn't.
On February 23rd, Orange County deputy sheriffs found his 1977 Pontiac Grand Prix at Kensington and Elmo drives in Pine Hills after somebody saw a newspaper advertisement that the parents placed to try and find the car. Suggs was sitting in the car and when he saw a deputy sheriff walking toward him he tried to run away but was caught. Deputies found blood on the back seat and Chism's glasses and boots in the car. A radio, radio-cassette player, citizens' band radio and radar detector were missing, and the car had been driven about 2,000 miles since Chism had left his home. A blood-stained shirt, other clothes and a crowbar covered with blood were found in a dumping bin in Pine Hills. His girlfriend's phone number and a bank deposit slip were in the shirt pocket.
Suggs said Chism had let him use the car. Suggs also said he was residing with Chism but couldn't show deputies where they supposedly lived. Suggs then changed his story telling the detectives that he met Chism at a bar in Orlando and they agreed to get an apartment together. Prosecutors dropped the auto theft charge against Suggs because a key witness was sick and could not testify. Chism has not been seen nor heard from since.
Agency Name: Orange County Sheriff's Office
Agency Contact Person: Investigative Analyst Kari Roderick
Agency Phone Number: (407)-254-7012
Agency E-Mail: Carolyne.Roderick@ocfl.net
Agency Case Number: 88027200
NamUs Case Number: 3197
NCIC Case Number: Unknown
NamUs
FDLE
Orlando Sentinel -
4/25/1988
,
6/28/1988
Charley Project
Added: Prior to 2011; Last Updated: 11-13-2021 - By: Htmlcnvtr
Questions or comments? Please contact appropriate member of the Area Team
** Listed information is from the time of disappearance.
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