Overview

• Full name: Sharon Anne Harrer
• Nickname: Shara
• Date of birth: August 20, 1959
• Age at disappearance: 20
• Official missing date: November 26, 1979
• Last reported contact: November 28, 1979, by telephone, according to a friend’s account
• Last confirmed sighting location: DJ’s Pioneer Club, Madeira Beach Causeway
• City and county: Madeira Beach area, Pinellas County, Florida; listed as missing from St. Petersburg
• Case classification: Endangered missing; suspicious circumstances
• Current status: Unsolved missing-person investigation
• Investigating agency: St. Petersburg Police Department
• Police case number: 1979-116061, as reported by the Doe Network
• NamUs reference: 17770, as reported by the Doe Network

Main circumstances: Sharon was reportedly seen leaving an after-hours club with a man in a Cadillac. A friend later reported receiving a telephone call from her requesting transportation from Tampa. Sharon has not been publicly confirmed located, and no reliable source reviewed establishes that her death has been confirmed.

Detailed Case Breakdown

Sharon Anne Harrer: The Unsolved 1979 Disappearance of a 20-Year-Old Woman in Madeira Beach, Florida

On November 26, 1979, 20-year-old Sharon Anne Harrer disappeared after visiting an after-hours club near Madeira Beach, Florida. Witness information indicated that she left in a Cadillac with a man who reportedly called himself Robert Crawford. Two days later, a friend said Sharon telephoned from an unknown location in Tampa and asked for a ride.

That reported telephone call became the last known contact with Sharon. Decades later, her disappearance remains unresolved, leaving unanswered questions about the man she accompanied, what happened after she left the club, and whether the reported call from Tampa holds the key to her whereabouts.

Case Summary

• Full name: Sharon Anne Harrer
• Nickname: Shara
• Date of birth: August 20, 1959
• Age at disappearance: 20
• Official missing date: November 26, 1979
• Last reported contact: November 28, 1979, by telephone, according to a friend’s account
• Last confirmed sighting location: DJ’s Pioneer Club, Madeira Beach Causeway
• City and county: Madeira Beach area, Pinellas County, Florida; listed as missing from St. Petersburg
• Case classification: Endangered missing; suspicious circumstances
• Current status: Unsolved missing-person investigation
• Investigating agency: St. Petersburg Police Department
• Police case number: 1979-116061, as reported by the Doe Network
• NamUs reference: 17770, as reported by the Doe Network

Main circumstances: Sharon was reportedly seen leaving an after-hours club with a man in a Cadillac. A friend later reported receiving a telephone call from her requesting transportation from Tampa. Sharon has not been publicly confirmed located, and no reliable source reviewed establishes that her death has been confirmed.

Sharon Anne Harrer’s Background and Life Before Her Disappearance

Sharon Anne Harrer was born on August 20, 1959, and was originally from Buffalo, New York. By November 1979, she was living with her parents in the 1000 block of Warwick Drive in the St. Petersburg area of Florida.

At the time of her disappearance, Sharon worked as a waitress at the Fantasm Club in St. Petersburg. According to The Charley Project, she had worked there for only five nights before she vanished.

Her mother described Sharon as someone who regularly kept her parents informed about where she was. This family account is important because her prolonged absence and lack of communication were inconsistent with the behavior her mother expected.

The family also experienced another loss when Sharon’s father died approximately eight months after she disappeared. He died without receiving answers about what had happened to his daughter.

Physical Description and Identifying Characteristics

At the time she went missing, Sharon was described as approximately 5 feet 4 inches tall and weighing 98 pounds. She had blonde or strawberry-blonde hair and blue eyes.

One particularly distinctive feature was a tattoo depicting the Rolling Stones tongue emblem on one buttock. She also reportedly had another tattoo on the opposite buttock, although its design was not documented in the available descriptions.

Sharon was reportedly wearing a blouse and tight-fitting black satin pants when she disappeared. Her nickname was Shara, and some records have listed her surname as Harper.

These details remain relevant when comparing historical missing-person reports with unidentified-person records.

The Night Sharon Harrer Disappeared

November 26, 1979: DJ’s Pioneer Club

On Monday, November 26, 1979, Sharon was last reported seen at DJ’s Pioneer Club, an after-hours establishment on Madeira Beach Causeway in Pinellas County.

According to the St. Petersburg Police Department’s missing-person listing, Sharon was seen getting into a Cadillac and leaving the club with a man. Police describe the man as identified, while other public case summaries report that he called himself Robert Crawford.

The publicly available descriptions do not establish whether Robert Crawford was his verified legal name, an alias, or simply the name he provided. They also do not establish his involvement in a crime.

The circumstances of Sharon’s departure became central to the investigation because they represented the last publicly documented in-person sighting of her.

November 28, 1979: The Reported Telephone Call From Tampa

Two days after Sharon was seen leaving the club, a friend reported speaking with her by telephone.

During that conversation, Sharon reportedly requested a ride from an unspecified location in Tampa, Florida.

This detail introduces an important distinction in the chronology: although November 26 remains the official missing date, the reported November 28 telephone call suggests possible contact with Sharon after the last sighting at the club.

The publicly available police summary does not provide the friend’s identity, the telephone number involved, the exact time of the call, or the precise Tampa location from which Sharon allegedly called.

Nor does the available account explain whether the friend was able to arrange transportation or whether investigators independently verified the call.

No further confirmed communication from Sharon has been publicly documented in the reviewed case profiles.

Investigation History and Available Evidence

St. Petersburg Police Department Investigation

The St. Petersburg Police Department is the agency associated with Sharon’s disappearance.

Its public missing-person listing preserves several essential details: the November 26 disappearance date, the location of DJ’s Pioneer Club, Sharon’s departure in a Cadillac with a man, and the reported telephone contact two days later.

The department continues to include Sharon in its public missing-person records.

The Doe Network lists police case number 1979-116061 and identifies the St. Petersburg Police Department as the investigating agency. That number is reproduced here as a secondary-source reference rather than a number independently confirmed from a current police case document.

Witness Information and the Cadillac

The reported Cadillac is one of the most specific publicly documented details surrounding Sharon’s disappearance.

The available sources do not establish the vehicle’s color, registration, license plate, ownership, or subsequent whereabouts.

Likewise, although the man reportedly used the name Robert Crawford, the reviewed public case summaries do not document his verified identity, any charges against him, or an official finding that he harmed Sharon.

His reported presence with Sharon is a potential investigative lead, not proof of criminal responsibility.

Physical Evidence, DNA, and Forensic Testing

The Doe Network’s case profile lists dental records, fingerprints, and DNA as unavailable in its published identifiers section.

This does not necessarily establish that investigators possess no such evidence today. It establishes only what that public database reports.

No publicly confirmed DNA match, genetic-genealogy identification, recovered remains belonging to Sharon, or forensic breakthrough was identified in the reviewed sources.

Similarly, no verified public record was located describing a recovered Cadillac, physical evidence definitively connecting an individual to Sharon’s disappearance, or an arrest specifically for her case.

Theories, Family Concerns, and Unresolved Questions

The Reported Connection to Convicted Killer Billy Mansfield Jr.

One of the more widely discussed possibilities emerged publicly in October 2020, when Sharon’s niece, Melissa, expressed concern that convicted serial killer Billy Mansfield Jr. might have been responsible for her aunt’s disappearance.

A WFLA report, preserved in discussion on Websleuths, described Melissa’s reaction to investigative activity at property associated with the Mansfield family in Hernando County.

Mansfield had been convicted of killing five women, with crimes occurring during the period from 1975 to 1980. The overlap between that period and Sharon’s 1979 disappearance contributed to her niece’s concern.

In October 2020, investigators searched property in Spring Hill associated with the Mansfield family. Public reporting described suspicious items discovered during the investigation and submitted for laboratory examination.

However, there is no verified public evidence in the sources reviewed establishing that Mansfield was responsible for Sharon’s disappearance. Her niece’s concern is a family belief, not an official finding.

The reported property search also must not be treated as proof that Sharon’s remains were discovered. No confirmed identification linking recovered remains to Sharon was located.

Could the Tampa Telephone Call Explain What Happened?

The reported November 28 call remains one of the most consequential unanswered aspects of the case.

If the friend accurately identified Sharon’s voice, it would suggest that Sharon was alive two days after leaving DJ’s Pioneer Club. However, the available public records do not independently authenticate that conversation.

Investigators may have examined details of the call, but the reviewed sources do not establish what those efforts revealed.

Was the Man in the Cadillac the Last Person to See Sharon?

The man reportedly calling himself Robert Crawford is another significant unresolved lead.

It remains unclear from public documentation whether his identity was verified, whether investigators located and interviewed him, or whether he provided an account of where Sharon went after leaving the club.

It would be inappropriate to label him a suspect without an official basis.

Other Unresolved Questions

Several questions remain open in the publicly available record:

• Where exactly was Sharon when she reportedly called her friend from Tampa?
• Was the Cadillac driver identified and his account corroborated?
• Did Sharon leave the Tampa location voluntarily or under circumstances involving danger?
• Were telephone records, witness accounts, or physical evidence preserved?
• Have investigators compared Sharon’s identifying characteristics with unidentified remains discovered in Florida or elsewhere?

These are questions raised by gaps in the published record, not claims that investigators overlooked particular evidence.

Latest Publicly Available Investigative Updates

Research reviewed through October 19, 2026

October 2020: Renewed Public Attention

The 2020 reporting about Mansfield-related investigative activity brought renewed attention to Sharon’s disappearance and her family’s continuing search for answers.

Her niece’s public statements demonstrated that the family remained concerned about what happened to Sharon decades earlier.

However, the reporting did not establish a new arrest, identification of Sharon’s remains, or confirmed connection between her disappearance and Mansfield.

October 24, 2022: Doe Network Profile Update

The Doe Network identifies October 24, 2022, as the last update to its Sharon Harrer case profile.

That update is a database maintenance date. It should not be interpreted as a newly discovered lead or investigative breakthrough.

Current Public Case Listings

Sharon continues to appear in the St. Petersburg Police Department’s missing-person listing.

The Project: Cold Case profile also identifies her status as missing and provides contact information for people with information.

Although that advocacy profile includes a date-of-death field corresponding to November 26, 1979, it also identifies her as missing and lists the cause of death as unknown. That field is not sufficient evidence to establish a confirmed death date.

DNA, Genetic Genealogy, and Cold-Case Reviews

No publicly confirmed recent developments were located involving a DNA identification, forensic genetic genealogy, recovered remains identified as Sharon, an officially announced suspect, or criminal charges directly connected to her disappearance.

The St. Petersburg Police Department maintains investigative units responsible for missing adults and cold cases, but the existence of those units does not establish that a new review of Sharon’s specific case has been announced.

As of October 19, 2026, no publicly confirmed recent investigative breakthrough was located in the sources reviewed. This does not rule out investigative activity that law enforcement has not publicly disclosed.

Conclusion: A Florida Missing-Person Case Still Awaiting Answers

More than four decades have passed since Sharon Anne Harrer was last seen leaving DJ’s Pioneer Club near Madeira Beach.

Her disappearance remains troubling because of the combination of a reported departure with a man in a Cadillac, an alleged telephone call from Tampa two days later, and the absence of publicly confirmed information explaining what happened afterward.

Sharon was only 20 years old. She had recently started working at a St. Petersburg club, lived with her family, and, according to her mother, ordinarily kept her parents informed of her whereabouts.

Her family’s efforts to learn what happened have continued across generations.

Anyone with information about Sharon, DJ’s Pioneer Club on November 26, 1979, the Cadillac, the man reportedly using the name Robert Crawford, or the alleged November 28 telephone call should contact the St. Petersburg Police Department.

The department’s current published non-emergency number is 727-893-7780. Project: Cold Case also lists 727-893-7164 for information concerning Sharon’s disappearance.

Even a detail that seemed insignificant in 1979 may help investigators better understand Sharon’s final known movements.