Overview

Last Seen: April 25, 2013, at approximately 10:00 p.m.

Location: Her residence at 5118 Kunesh Road, Town of Pittsfield, Brown County, Wisconsin.

Age When Missing: 59

Date of Birth: September 10, 1953

Case Status: James Prokopovitz was convicted of first-degree intentional homicide in Victoria’s death in February 2021. Victoria’s remains have never been recovered, and she remains listed by the Wisconsin Department of Justice as a missing person.

Main Circumstances: Victoria disappeared during the overnight hours from her rural home. Her purse, identification, money, cell phone and other belongings were left behind. She did not have a vehicle and was physically limited following serious health problems. Years of searches failed to locate her. Investigators eventually focused on her husband, James Prokopovitz, whose statements, conduct, concealed relationship with another woman and false testimony became important parts of the prosecution’s case.

Detailed Case Breakdown

Victoria Lynn Prokopovitz: The 2013 Wisconsin Disappearance, Murder Conviction, and Continuing Search for Her Remains

Victoria Lynn “Vicki” Prokopovitz was 59 years old when she disappeared from her rural home in the Town of Pittsfield, Brown County, Wisconsin, on April 25, 2013. What began as an endangered missing-person investigation eventually became a homicide case, even though Victoria’s remains were never recovered.

Eight years after her disappearance, a Brown County jury convicted her husband, James Prokopovitz, of first-degree intentional homicide and other charges. He was later sentenced to life in prison without the possibility of parole.

More than a decade after Victoria vanished, authorities and her family still want one critical question answered: where is Victoria?

Very Brief Case Summary

Last Seen: April 25, 2013, at approximately 10:00 p.m.

Location: Her residence at 5118 Kunesh Road, Town of Pittsfield, Brown County, Wisconsin.

Age When Missing: 59

Date of Birth: September 10, 1953

Case Status: James Prokopovitz was convicted of first-degree intentional homicide in Victoria’s death in February 2021. Victoria’s remains have never been recovered, and she remains listed by the Wisconsin Department of Justice as a missing person.

Main Circumstances: Victoria disappeared during the overnight hours from her rural home. Her purse, identification, money, cell phone and other belongings were left behind. She did not have a vehicle and was physically limited following serious health problems. Years of searches failed to locate her. Investigators eventually focused on her husband, James Prokopovitz, whose statements, conduct, concealed relationship with another woman and false testimony became important parts of the prosecution’s case.

Victoria Prokopovitz Disappears from Pittsfield, Wisconsin

Victoria was last seen at her home at 5118 Kunesh Road at approximately 10:00 p.m. on Thursday, April 25, 2013.

According to the account James Prokopovitz gave investigators, Victoria was still awake when he went to bed. At approximately 4:00 a.m. the following morning, he discovered that she was gone.

Victoria apparently left without many belongings a person voluntarily leaving home would ordinarily be expected to take. Her purse remained at the residence along with identification, money and her cell phone. Sources also report that she left her cigarettes behind. Her medication, however, could not be located.

Victoria did not have a vehicle and had not driven for years. She had also experienced significant health problems. She was a colon-cancer survivor, had undergone major medical treatment and was physically weak enough that she sometimes needed a cane.

The Initial Search for Victoria

Victoria’s disappearance generated extensive searches of the rural area surrounding the Prokopovitz property.

Search-and-rescue personnel, law enforcement officers, K9 teams, volunteers and family members searched for evidence of where Victoria might have gone. Thousands of acres were reportedly searched, but no confirmed trace of her was discovered.

Investigators also checked hospitals and shelters. Victoria’s DNA profile was developed and entered into a national database, allowing investigators to compare unidentified remains with her profile.

Authorities received potential leads involving unidentified remains over the years, but none proved to be Victoria.

Questions About What Happened That Night

Victoria had a documented history of depression and previous suicide attempts. That history initially provided investigators with a possible explanation for her disappearance and later became an important part of the defense case at James Prokopovitz’s trial.

But investigators also encountered circumstances that increasingly raised questions about whether Victoria had left the property voluntarily.

She had limited mobility, no vehicle and left important personal belongings behind. Investigators found no subsequent indication that she had started a new life elsewhere. According to evidence presented during the criminal case, there was no later prescription activity, international travel, hospital or mental-health admission, or bank activity that established Victoria was alive after her disappearance.

Family members also disputed the idea that Victoria would simply abandon her family.

Investigators Turn Their Attention to James Prokopovitz

Over time, investigators examined statements James made about his wife’s disappearance and his behavior afterward.

Witnesses later testified about statements attributed to James suggesting that Victoria was dead and would never be found. Prosecutors also presented evidence concerning a relationship between James and Kathryn “Kathy” Friday.

Authorities alleged James and Friday had not been truthful about when their relationship began.

The investigation eventually included a secret John Doe proceeding. James later admitted that he had lied to investigators and under oath about his relationship with Friday, while continuing to deny that he killed Victoria.

At one point during an interview, James made a statement admitting that he killed Victoria, but he immediately retracted it and subsequently maintained that the statement was made out of desperation rather than as a genuine confession.

The Sludge Ponds and the Search for Victoria’s Remains

One of the more unusual aspects of the investigation involved industrial sludge ponds associated with James Prokopovitz’s employment.

Prosecutors argued that James had access through his work to sludge ponds containing industrial waste and presented them as a possible location where Victoria’s body could have been disposed of.

Investigators searched a pit associated with his workplace on June 11 during the investigation, but no evidence of Victoria was recovered there.

The theory became part of the prosecution’s circumstantial case, but Victoria’s remains have never been recovered from the sludge ponds or anywhere else.

James Prokopovitz Charged with Victoria’s Murder

In 2019, approximately six years after Victoria disappeared, James Prokopovitz was charged in connection with her death.

The prosecution proceeded without Victoria’s body.

The case relied heavily on circumstantial evidence, including James’s statements, inconsistencies investigators identified in his accounts, evidence surrounding his relationship with Kathy Friday, testimony from relatives and acquaintances, his conduct after Victoria disappeared and evidence developed during years of investigation.

The defense emphasized the absence of a body and physical evidence establishing precisely what happened to Victoria. James’s attorney also highlighted Victoria’s history of depression and prior suicide attempts and argued that prosecutors had not proven beyond a reasonable doubt that James murdered her.

The 2021 No-Body Murder Trial

James Prokopovitz’s murder trial began in February 2021 in Brown County.

Jurors heard testimony from Victoria’s children, friends, medical professionals, investigators, James’s former co-workers and other witnesses. The prosecution called dozens of witnesses during the trial.

Evidence covered Victoria’s physical and mental health, the circumstances surrounding her disappearance, searches conducted for her, James’s relationship with Kathy Friday, statements attributed to James and inconsistencies investigators said developed during the investigation.

The defense did not call witnesses of its own. Instead, James’s attorney challenged the state’s evidence through cross-examination and argued that the circumstantial case did not establish murder beyond a reasonable doubt.

James did not testify.

James Prokopovitz Found Guilty

After lengthy deliberations, the jury returned guilty verdicts on February 27, 2021.

James Prokopovitz was convicted of first-degree intentional homicide in Victoria’s death. He was also convicted of obstructing an officer and two perjury-related counts.

The verdict established criminal responsibility for Victoria’s death even though prosecutors could not produce her body and the precise location of her remains was unknown.

On May 26, 2021, James was sentenced to life imprisonment without the possibility of parole for the homicide.

At sentencing, the court expressed hope that James might eventually provide Victoria’s children with information about where their mother could be found.

Victoria’s Family Continues Looking for Answers

A murder conviction provided a measure of legal resolution, but it did not bring Victoria home.

Her daughter Marsha Loritz has publicly continued to seek answers about the location of her mother. Loritz also became an advocate for other families with missing loved ones and founded Wisconsin Missing Persons Advocacy, Inc.

In an April 2022 interview, Loritz said she still wanted to understand why her mother was killed and, critically, where she was located.

For Victoria’s family, finding her remains would provide an answer that the criminal trial could not.

Latest Publicly Available Case Information

Victoria remains listed by the Wisconsin Department of Justice Clearinghouse for Missing & Exploited Children & Adults. The state’s current listing states that James Prokopovitz was found guilty of first-degree intentional homicide in her death and specifically notes that Victoria’s remains have never been found.

Her Wisconsin missing-person poster continues to direct anyone with information to the Brown County Sheriff’s Office Investigative Division.

Victoria was also added to the Doe Network in August 2024 as case 4867DFWI, and a Missing People in America case page was updated in April 2025. Those later listings continue to treat the location of Victoria’s remains as unresolved.

No credible public announcement located through September 20, 2026 indicates that Victoria’s remains have been recovered.

Although the question of who was criminally responsible for Victoria’s death resulted in a conviction, the search for Victoria herself has therefore never reached the same conclusion.

Anyone with information about the location of Victoria Lynn Prokopovitz’s remains should contact the Brown County Sheriff’s Office.