Jeffrey D. Askren, a 30-year-old electronics engineer from Sunnyvale, California, was last seen in Calaveras County on April 23, 1984. He planned an overnight photography trip to the West Point area and had a reservation at an inn in Sutter Creek for that night but never arrived. He was reported missing on May 1, 1984 after failing to show up for work in Santa Clara.

A few days after he vanished, Askren’s late-model red Honda Accord was found abandoned on Winton Road in the West Point area; the vehicle may have been at that location as early as April 25, 1984. There was snow on the ground when the car was located but no footprints nearby. Inside the car was a camera tripod, and a lens cover was found on the ground next to the vehicle. No other camera equipment or any sign of Askren was found despite an extensive search.

Authorities have noted a possible connection between Askren’s disappearance and Leonard Lake and Charles Ng because the car was found a few miles from the Wilseyville cabin where Lake and Ng committed multiple murders and the timing overlaps. Askren’s remains were not among those recovered from that property, and the case remains unsolved. Anyone with information about Askren or his trip in late April 1984 is asked to come forward.