Case Files: Elizabeth Franks disappeared without a trace in 1965

TOLEDO, Ohio (WTVG) - It was April 14, 1965. That’s the date Elizabeth Lea Franks was reported missing from Toledo.

Franks was 17-years-old when she disappeared and to this day her case is unsolved. Toledo Police say the 17-year-old was known as Beth Wilson in High School. She was married and had a child. In 1965, she was living with her husband in a duplex on Western Avenue in Toledo. Days before she was reported missing, police were called to the couple’s home and police talked with Beth and her husband.

“There was a fight that they responded to. They spoke to him, the story was that he caught her with another man and they argued over it and the police left,” says Toledo Police detective William Goodlet.

Detective Goodlet says this case is difficult because of the lack of records. There’s no report from the day police were called to the home. Police say a few days later, Beth’s mom went to her daughter’s house and no one answered. The landlord lived down below and gave the mother access to the apartment. Police say when her mother went inside the place was in disarray, clothes were strewn about and the curtains were ripped. Beth wasn’t there and neither was her child.

Detective say Beth’s husband told police the child was with his parents and claims when he came home from work, Beth was gone. She was never heard from or seen again.

A small card is the only police record linked to Beth’s disappearance. She is still listed as a missing child on the Ohio Attorney General’s website.

In 2004, investigators reexamined the case. They released an age progression photo, even teamed up with the FBI to run Beth’s social security number to see if anyone had used it over the years.

“There was nothing, nothing for all these years,” says Detective Goodlet.

Last week, the case came to light again. Members with the state crime lab, dive teams and the Ottawa County Sheriff’s department spent hours at the Genoa quarry after a potential lead the could connect Franks to the body of water.

“I know the two were from genoa but I’m not sure if that’s the link,” says Detective Goodlet.

The Toledo Police team, the lead on the case, was not investigating the quarry. Police removed some car parts during the search but it didn’t lead to anything new, according to TPD Detectives.

Today, Beth would be 74-years-old and after decades without answers, she is one of thousands who have disappeared without a trace.

If you have any information about the disappearance of Elizabeth Franks (Beth Wilson) contact the Toledo Police Department 419-255-1111.

If you have an unsolved case that needs attention, contact casefiles@13abc.com

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