John Antheney Mowery was 19 and from Chicago when he disappeared on the evening of September 25, 1977 after telling his family he was going out for the night. He had returned to Chicago earlier that year after 18 months of Marine Corps service. His girlfriend later said he phoned saying something about an accident, but he never returned to his apartment.

Remains later recovered beneath the crawl space of John Wayne Gacy’s residence were identified as Body 20 and matched to Mowery by dental records on January 27, 1979. Mowery is counted among the victims of Gacy, who raped, tortured and murdered dozens of young men and boys between 1962 and 1977. Gacy was convicted of 33 murders and sentenced to death.

The circumstances of Mowery’s last evening remain a key part of the case; anyone who knew him or was in the area on September 25, 1977 is asked to come forward with information.