Overview

Last seen: July 5, 1973
Location: Near his studio apartment at 1211 Julie Lane, South Lake Tahoe, California
Age when missing: 26
Classification: Missing / endangered missing
NamUs: MP20178
South Lake Tahoe Police case: 73-005271

Richard Edward Strehle was a 26-year-old real estate agent who disappeared from South Lake Tahoe, California, in July 1973. He reportedly left behind his belongings, three vehicles, his apartment and a recently purchased home, circumstances that have continued to raise questions about whether he left voluntarily. More than five decades later, no confirmed explanation for his disappearance has been publicly announced.

Detailed Case Breakdown

Richard Edward Strehle Disappearance: The Unsolved 1973 South Lake Tahoe Missing Person Case

Brief Case Summary

Last seen: July 5, 1973
Location: Near his studio apartment at 1211 Julie Lane, South Lake Tahoe, California
Age when missing: 26
Classification: Missing / endangered missing
NamUs: MP20178
South Lake Tahoe Police case: 73-005271

Richard Edward Strehle was a 26-year-old real estate agent who disappeared from South Lake Tahoe, California, in July 1973. He reportedly left behind his belongings, three vehicles, his apartment and a recently purchased home, circumstances that have continued to raise questions about whether he left voluntarily. More than five decades later, no confirmed explanation for his disappearance has been publicly announced.

Who Was Richard Edward Strehle?

Richard Edward Strehle was born November 17, 1946. At the time he disappeared, he was 26 years old, approximately 6 feet 2 inches tall and weighed about 170 pounds. He had brown hair. The Charley Project lists his case as endangered missing.

In 1973, Strehle worked as a realtor with Maloney Realty in South Lake Tahoe. A coworker described him as quiet, dependable and someone who would not normally behave irresponsibly. That description became significant after Strehle apparently disappeared without taking the possessions and vehicles associated with his everyday life.

Richard Strehle Was Last Seen on July 5, 1973

According to the South Lake Tahoe Police Department’s dedicated cold-case page, Strehle was last seen during the evening of July 5, 1973, near his studio apartment at 1211 Julie Lane in South Lake Tahoe. The person who reportedly saw him was his landlady’s husband.

There is a minor inconsistency among published records. The Charley Project identifies the location as the 1200 block of Judith Lane, while South Lake Tahoe Police identify it as 1211 Julie Lane. Because the police department is the investigating agency, Julie Lane is the location used here while noting the discrepancy.

There is also a date discrepancy in the city’s own material. The dedicated Richard Strehle page says he disappeared July 5, while the South Lake Tahoe Police cold-case index displays July 11, 1973 alongside case number 73-005271. Other databases, including the Charley Project and CaseTrace’s NamUs-sourced listing, use July 5 as the date of last contact.

What Richard Strehle Left Behind

One of the most striking aspects of Strehle’s disappearance is what remained behind.

South Lake Tahoe Police report that he left all of his belongings, three motor vehicles, his studio apartment and a recently acquired fixer-upper home on Zuni Lane. The absence of an apparent effort to dispose of or take those assets has helped keep questions surrounding his disappearance alive.

Strehle had reportedly been mildly depressed because his girlfriend had left California and returned to Colorado. That information came from a coworker and remains part of the publicly available account of his circumstances before he vanished. It does not, however, establish what ultimately happened to him.

No publicly available police source reviewed for this article states that Strehle died by suicide, voluntarily disappeared, was abducted or was murdered.

Was Richard Strehle the Victim of Foul Play?

More than 50 years after Strehle vanished, there is still no publicly announced determination explaining his disappearance.

His abandoned property and vehicles have prompted speculation about foul play, but the South Lake Tahoe Police Department continues to categorize the matter as a missing-person cold case, rather than publicly identifying Strehle as a homicide victim.

Online researchers have suggested possibilities ranging from an encounter connected to his real-estate work to relationships with other unexplained disappearances in the Lake Tahoe region. Those ideas remain theories rather than established findings.

For example, a 2024 Websleuths discussion raised the possibility that Strehle might have encountered someone while showing real estate, but the suggestion was explicitly presented by a forum participant as speculation and not as information from investigators.

The Zodiac Killer Theory

Strehle’s disappearance has occasionally been discussed alongside the Zodiac Killer because other unresolved disappearances and suspected Zodiac-related cases have connections to the broader Lake Tahoe area.

Online researchers have also discussed geographical coincidences involving Strehle and missing nurse Donna Lass, including claims that both had previously lived in Santa Barbara before eventually living in the Lake Tahoe region.

There is currently no publicly documented law-enforcement finding establishing that Richard Strehle was a Zodiac Killer victim. The connections appearing on Zodiac forums and discussion boards should therefore be regarded as investigative speculation unless supported by police records or other primary evidence.

A John Doe Has Been Ruled Out

One tangible development involves an unidentified man found in Santa Cruz County, California.

Richard Strehle, NamUs MP20178, appears among the recorded exclusions for the unidentified man commonly known as the Aptos John Doe, whose remains were discovered in 1974. The public exclusion information indicates that Strehle is not considered a match for those remains.

Eliminating a potential unidentified-person match does not explain Strehle’s disappearance, but exclusions are important in decades-old cases because unidentified remains are routinely compared with long-term missing-person cases.

Latest Publicly Available Investigation Information

As of September 2026, Richard Strehle remains publicly listed by the City of South Lake Tahoe among the police department’s unresolved cold cases. The department’s dedicated page continues to request information from anyone who may know what happened to him.

The current public records reviewed for this article contain no announced arrest, identified suspect, recovery of Strehle’s remains or official declaration that he is deceased.

His NamUs-linked case information continues to identify him as missing under MP20178, while the South Lake Tahoe Police cold-case index identifies the local case as 73-005271.

There has also been continued public interest in the case. Websleuths maintains a lengthy discussion devoted specifically to Strehle, and search results show activity on that discussion as recently as June 24, 2026. Community discussion can generate leads or identify historical records, but information posted there should not be treated as an official investigative finding unless independently confirmed.

More Than Five Decades Without an Answer

Richard Edward Strehle seemingly disappeared from an ordinary life in South Lake Tahoe after being seen near his residence on July 5, 1973. His belongings remained. His vehicles remained. His apartment remained. So did a recently purchased house.

What happened afterward remains unknown.

His disappearance continues to be carried as an unresolved South Lake Tahoe Police cold case, and investigators continue to ask for information from anyone who may know something about what happened in July 1973.

Anyone with information should contact the South Lake Tahoe Police Department rather than posting potentially important investigative information publicly.