Update: I called the Ventura County Cold Case Unit once again today, 9/17/26. A kind lady Officer answered! I was so thankful, as no one had been able to answer before. Basically, they have many, many specimens of UHRs - Unidentified Human Remains - that have been sent to labs. They are expecting to receive traceable DNA to make identifications. I gather that some of the specimens have been held for quite a while.

Perhaps more funding came in, and methods have improved; for what sounded like a massive project, they are working very hard to complete! When identifications are positive, then they will be able to let the public know about particular cases.

As for the case of Kathy Silveri, if her specimen were found in the ocean, then it may lend credence to the drowning possibility, and hopefully some identifiable remains were found and kept stable after all this time? Wouldn't that be something.

I asked if Neal was questioned in the case, and the Officer was not at liberty to say. So fair enough; they can only release forensic proof. But I did say that if Neal was in fact questioned, then she must have known him somehow. The Officer wondered if it was through volleyball at the beach. One of my former pro sand volleyball friends did state that Silveri would be at the volleyball courts a lot, though she never mentioned Neal being there.

The Officer did say to check back on the Silveri case in the next six months or so. Or check for any updates on the Ventura County Cold Case site.

Thank you if you care about this or any other unsolved case. Perhaps what is written here will ring a bell for someone else to make a correlation? This case has weighed on my mind terribly. I feel for the families and the loved ones of the missing and thanked the Officer for doing what is a very difficult job. Hopefully, many cases are solved sometime soon. And if there is any update, I will surely post it.

yeah, that sounds promising , Ventura County has gotten sizeable DNA testing grants and has recently used advanced genetic genealogy to ID long-unidentified remains, pls keep us posted.

Neal told my brother, "You know that missing person everyone's looking for? Well, I took her out on the boat, and she wouldn't have sex with me, so I pushed her off!"

I doubt my brother was sure about this at the time? He must have brushed it aside, thinking maybe Neal was blustering, as he was a big guy with a braggadocious manner, full of steroids and occasional alcohol. And if Ray did provide this statement, maybe it wouldn't amount to anything and get Neal coming after him? I found out more recently that a couple of friends from the Silver Strand beach community said Neal was questioned by the police, that he was perhaps the number one suspect. So he must have had a known connection to Kathy Silveri. And there were rumors. Lots of rumors. Plus, he had exhibited incidents of erratic behavior. But he didn't own a boat, and Kathy Silveri had told friends she had a date to go sailing...

My brother passed in February of 2010 of illness and had undergone chemo. He was feeling so weak. Shortly before his passing, we got to talking about Neal, wondering what happened to that guy? " Oh, he moved to Woodland Hills and became a mechanic or something", Ray stated. I think Ray wanted to forget about Neal even though he knew him very well. Neal was a huge guy and mainly talked about his bodybuilding. And then, as a distant memory, Ray said, " You know what Neal told me? He said, You know that missing person everyone's looking for? Well, I took her out on the boat, and she wouldn't have sex with me, so I pushed her off!" And then Ray admitted, "Please don't say anything; Neal would come back and beat me so bad." That stopped me cold, sadly, because I was caring for Ray and didn't want to upset him in any way, so I shut down. Ray passed a short time later.

Neal was twice his size, and Ray had no defense. Certainly, if I could go back in time, I would have asked questions. I had been living far away in Hawaii and was not familiar with the incident, but what amounted to a deathbed confession during this very emotional time stuck in my mind, but I could not make any connection...

I ran across an old group photo Ray had of them together and decided to investigate Neal. This has haunted me a long time. I first met Neal the summer of '96 when my uncle had rented a beach vacation home, so that era stuck in my mind when he came around. We had lots of friends visiting to escape the heat of the San Fernando Valley. Neal was there too, but oddly Ray never mentioned him sailing or having access to a boat; otherwise, he may have suggested taking my uncle and see it. That would have been more in character. It was a frenetic and full-of-energy fun time, though distracting. Neal would have told Ray earlier that year in '96. Ray was an electrician and a surfer with many friends and just wanted to keep life copacetic in a drama-packed community. Many people came to him as their friend at the beach. He was always doing favors for others and responding to emergencies.

This is the crux of it - after investigating this year, 2026, I found out Neal did indeed have a boat! Not his, but his dad's. From his dad's obituary - 2008:

"Carl had a passion for sailing, especially with his son Neal, and enjoyed many races in his Catalina 27 sailboat named Mirage. He was an active member of the Anacapa Isle Yacht Club for many years, and his home holds many trophies and memories." So there it was...

And not only that, his good dad was a respected Pharmacist in the community. Kathy may have known the dad, as she worked at a medical clinic and would have trusted Neal's family background and sailing ability. It would have been dark after work in February, and perhaps it seemed like a romantic notion for a Friday night. Not to be left sobbing in the cold dark ocean with shock of hypothermia setting in. He didn't turn out to be the romantic gentleman. And the 'Sailor' would have known it was their 'little secret' that no one knew exactly who Kathy was with that night. No social scrutiny, no cameras, in those days, no cell phones. Nothing to trace him immediately and search the boat for DNA. And most of all, no corpus, no body. I doubt he meant to murder this woman. It was an emotional outburst on a whim, a punishment for offending his spoiled, immature manhood, on steroid-fueled behavior. As though it were his right. Maybe he thought she could swim back? But my guess is they had cocktails, which didn't help her swimming abilities in the cold, dark night. 

Now, in case you are wonder

Do you know whether anyone has ever told detectives about Neal’s family boat specifically? I dug up Neal’s father’s 2008 obituary, which says Neal crewed and raced with his dad on a Catalina 27 named Mirage, so the family did have access to a sailboat , that makes Ray’s memory about Neal and a boat more plausible and worth pushing investigators to re-check any interview notes or vessel logs from that time.

Thank you for this dialogue. It opens up more possibilities to what happened. I hope they find a resolution soon. Everyone involved deserves that.

Kathy Marie Silveri, 43, was last seen on January 12, 1996, in Oxnard, California. She worked as an x-ray technician and left Las Islas Family Medical Center about 5 p.m., bicycling to her home at Silver Strand Beach. After arriving she spoke with neighbors while collecting petition signatures, then went inside — that was the last confirmed sighting.

When Kathy failed to appear for work over the next few days, coworkers eventually contacted her estranged husband. On his visit to the house there were no signs of struggle; her bike, car, identification and other personal belongings remained, and her cat was inside, hungry and unattended. Kathy was known as a community activist who kept a structured, reliable routine, so her sudden disappearance was out of character. Investigators have never ruled out foul play, and the case remains unsolved.

If anyone knew Kathy, saw her on January 12, 1996, or has information about her whereabouts, please come forward.