Overview

Last Seen: November 8, 1981, at approximately 3:30 a.m.

Location: Plaza Court Apartments on Dewar Drive, Rock Springs, Sweetwater County, Wyoming.

Age: 21.

Status: Endangered missing; case remains unsolved.

Main Circumstances: Amber attended a party on November 7 and was driven home during the early morning of November 8. A friend watched her reach the door of her apartment and then drove away. She was never seen again. Her residence showed no apparent signs of forced entry or a struggle, while important personal belongings remained behind. Amber was also involved in a custody dispute concerning her young son. Police now publicly say foul play is suspected.

Detailed Case Breakdown

Amber Elizabeth Scholz: The 1981 Disappearance of a Young Mother in Rock Springs, Wyoming

Amber Elizabeth Scholz was just 21 years old when she disappeared from Rock Springs, Wyoming, during the early morning hours of November 8, 1981. More than four decades later, the young mother’s disappearance remains unsolved, and investigators continue to suspect foul play.

Amber was last seen outside the Plaza Court Apartments on Dewar Drive after a friend brought her home from a party. What investigators later found inside her apartment suggested that she had not been preparing to leave her life behind. Her purse, wallet, an uncashed paycheck and other personal possessions remained there.

Very Brief Case Summary

Last Seen: November 8, 1981, at approximately 3:30 a.m.

Location: Plaza Court Apartments on Dewar Drive, Rock Springs, Sweetwater County, Wyoming.

Age: 21.

Status: Endangered missing; case remains unsolved.

Main Circumstances: Amber attended a party on November 7 and was driven home during the early morning of November 8. A friend watched her reach the door of her apartment and then drove away. She was never seen again. Her residence showed no apparent signs of forced entry or a struggle, while important personal belongings remained behind. Amber was also involved in a custody dispute concerning her young son. Police now publicly say foul play is suspected.

Who Was Amber Elizabeth Scholz?

Amber Elizabeth Scholz was born May 7, 1960. She had brown hair and brown eyes, stood approximately 5 feet 4 inches tall and weighed about 115 pounds when she disappeared. She had freckles across her nose and cheekbones and a Cesarean-section scar on her abdomen.

Amber was originally from outside Wyoming. Her family lived in Ohio, and she moved west as a young mother. According to a detailed 2024 report by Cowboy State Daily, Amber traveled from Ohio to Wyoming with her infant son in 1979. She had followed her then-boyfriend, John Burkhardt, to Rock Springs, but their relationship eventually ended and the two became involved in a custody dispute over their son.

By 1981, Amber had her own apartment and was working for a cleaning company. People who knew her reportedly described her as responsible, hardworking and devoted to her son.

The Night Amber Scholz Disappeared

On the evening of November 7, 1981, Amber went to a party in Rock Springs with her boyfriend and another friend. During the early morning hours of November 8, she left the gathering with a friend who drove her back to the Plaza Court Apartments.

The friend reportedly watched Amber reach the door of her apartment at approximately 3:30 a.m. and then drove away.

That became the last confirmed sighting of Amber Elizabeth Scholz.

There is an important distinction in the surviving accounts: the witness saw Amber reach the apartment door, while other case summaries indicate investigators believed she apparently made it inside. There is no publicly documented witness who reported seeing what happened to Amber afterward.

What Investigators Found Inside the Apartment

Amber’s apartment did not contain obvious evidence of a violent confrontation. Police reported no signs of forced entry or a struggle.

Her purse and wallet were found in the kitchen. An uncashed paycheck from her cleaning job was also there, and her watch was found in the bathroom. Investigators believed she appeared to have been working on her monthly budget around the time she disappeared.

The circumstances raised a question that has remained central to the mystery: if Amber voluntarily intended to go somewhere for an extended period, why did she apparently leave important belongings and money behind?

Her disappearance was eventually reported to Wyoming authorities by her father. Sources differ somewhat on the precise sequence of the initial reporting, but The Charley Project states that her father formally reported her missing on November 20, 1981, 12 days after her disappearance.

The Custody Dispute

At the time Amber disappeared, she was involved in a custody dispute concerning her young son with former boyfriend John Burkhardt. The existence of that dispute is documented by both law-enforcement material and independent case summaries.

The dispute has consequently remained part of the investigative background, but its existence by itself does not establish what happened to Amber.

In a December 2024 interview, Rock Springs Police Cmdr. Amanda Salazar told Cowboy State Daily that foul play is suspected and identified Burkhardt as a primary person of interest in the investigation. Being described as a person of interest is not the same as being charged with or found responsible for a crime. No criminal charge establishing responsibility for Amber’s disappearance was reported in that article.

Renewed Investigation Into Amber Scholz’s Disappearance

The most significant publicly reported recent development came in December 2024, when Cowboy State Daily reported that Rock Springs police were again giving Amber’s case renewed attention.

Detective Jennifer Saloga had taken over the investigation from Cmdr. Amanda Salazar and was preparing to conduct a fresh review of several binders containing witness statements and other material accumulated during the investigation. The plan included reexamining the file and reinterviewing witnesses in hopes that decades of time might produce new information.

Police also disclosed details of an earlier investigative push. In 2012, Salazar and another detective traveled to Ohio, where investigators interviewed members of Amber’s family and obtained DNA samples from Amber’s mother and sisters. They also located and interviewed Amber’s son. Investigators attempted to interview Burkhardt as well; according to Salazar’s account reported by Cowboy State Daily, that interview ended after he obtained an attorney.

Police previously examined items from Amber’s apartment for fingerprints, but Salazar said nothing of investigative interest resulted. Another lead involving reported interactions with a former employer was investigated and ultimately did not develop into a viable lead.

As of the latest substantial public investigative update located for this article, police had not closed Amber’s case. Investigators were hoping that renewed witness interviews, review of the historical evidence or new information from the public could finally provide a direction in a case without a known body or confirmed crime scene.

More Than Four Decades Without Answers

Amber’s disappearance has left her family with questions spanning generations. Her parents died without learning what happened to their daughter.

Her sisters continued searching for information, and Amber’s younger sister, Roberta “Bobbie” Lenhof, told Cowboy State Daily in 2024 that she had remained in contact with investigators and reached out to missing-person organizations over the years.

For investigators, the passage of time creates obvious difficulties: memories fade, witnesses die, evidence may disappear and investigative techniques available today did not exist in 1981. At the same time, old cases can change when witnesses decide to speak after decades of silence or when investigators review old information from a new perspective.

That is why Amber Elizabeth Scholz’s disappearance remains an active question rather than simply a historical mystery.

Amber Scholz Remains Missing

Amber Elizabeth Scholz remains classified as an endangered missing person. Her NamUs identification is MP9573, and The Doe Network has historically listed her as Case File 24DFWY. Historical case information also lists Rock Springs Police Department case number 81-505-745 and NCIC number M077939184.

The fundamental facts remain hauntingly simple: a 21-year-old mother went to a party, returned to the door of her Rock Springs apartment at approximately 3:30 in the morning, and disappeared.

Her belongings remained behind. No confirmed explanation for her disappearance emerged. More than four decades later, Rock Springs police still want the information that could explain what happened after Amber reached her apartment door.

Anyone with information should contact the Rock Springs Police Department. A December 2024 appeal directed tips to 307-352-1581.