March 14th 1998, started as an ordinary day in Strong City, Oklahoma. On the edge of Cheyenne, Northwest of Strong City, the Dirickson farmland stretched across 800 acres, according to a 2017 CrimeBlogger1983 post. Inside the house, 16-year-old Jared Dirickson was having breakfast with his father, Leonard Dirickson.
Leonard “Lenny” Dirickson walked out into the driveway after a white pickup truck with an extended cab pulled up at around 9:00 AM. Jared got up to follow his father, but was instructed to stay inside. Through the window, he saw a tall man in his forties, with a reddish-brown beard and a head covered with a cap. The man lowered his window and began talking to Leonard. Upon returning, Leonard told Jared that the man was interested in buying a stud horse. Leonard also mentioned that they would be driving to Mobeetie, Texas and to Elk City, Oklahoma, to look at the horse. He assured Jared that he would be back by noon, but he never returned.
“So he told me that he was gonna go with him. He said to stay here and … get some feed and go feed the cows, and he’d be back that afternoon,” Jared Dirickson recalled, in an on-camera interview.
Jared spent the entire night waiting for his father. With no signs of his return the next day, he reached out to his grandparents – Donald and Norma Dirickson. Later that morning, they filed a missing person’s report at the Roger Mills County Sheriff’s Department.
Donald Dirickson, Leonard Dirickson’s father, told reporters, “What could have possibly happened? Where could he possibly be? You could imagine 1,000 different things. You just don’t know.”
When asked in detail about the incident, Jared mentioned the vehicle was a white 1994 Ford F-150 extended cab pickup truck, according to NamUs. He remembered the man as a white male with a reddish-brown beard, around 6 ft 2 in (188 cm) tall and 210 lbs (95 kg). Since the man did not step out of his vehicle, Jared was not able to get a clear look. However, he described what he had seen of the man behind the windshield and mentioned that Leonard did not feel threatened when he left.
Jared also brought up a suspicious yellow tag on the car. Investigators debated whether it was an out-of-state tag from New Mexico or just a customised tag, but this detail yielded no definite conclusions.
Authorities launched the investigation immediately under Sheriff Joe Hay, along with the Oklahoma State Bureau of Investigation. Hay remarked that this was unusual for a man like Lenny to simply vanish one afternoon.
“Occasionally, you have a guy who twists off and goes away for a while, but that’s not this guy,” Sheriff Joe Hay said. “He’s not a drinker and not a druggie. He’s a hardworking guy.”
Leonard Dirickson was a 39-year-old dairy farmer in Strong City, Roger Mills County, rural Oklahoma. Leonard had married young and had separated from his wife, Kathy, just 2 years back in 1996. The couple had 2 children – Connie and Jared. Young Connie chose to move with her mother to Hammond, Oklahoma, while Jared stayed on the farm with his father.
In the late 1990s, local farmers were competing with large-scale producers and low milk prices and high feeding costs. The divorce, combined with the cost of running his dairy farm, put him into severe debt. Relatives claimed he had less than 150 Dollars on him.
With his credit card maxed out and his last paycheque still uncashed, investigators had even fewer leads. No further financial transactions were processed from his accounts.
“Leonard was having a lot of financial troubles. I don’t even think his family realised how bad it was,” Sheriff Hay noted.
Despite his financial condition, Leonard was seen as a dependable man by those who knew him. Around 70 people were interviewed by investigators regarding his disappearance, and not one offered a negative remark. No one could recall him making enemies.
Sheriff Joe Hay added, “We’ve talked to anyone and everyone he had dealings with, and everyone thought the world of him. I’m sure there are a few out there who weren’t his friend; we just haven’t found them yet.”
In fact, Lenny had recently begun piecing his life together. He had started working at the local metal company. He mentioned how much he liked his job, so much so that his father considered buying it. Between his new job, his commitment to his son, and the absence of any complaints from his friends or neighbours, investigators struggled to explain why he would disappear.
“He’s a super nice man who has worked hard all his life. He’s a dependable, capable guy. It just doesn’t add up why he would leave with just clothes on his back,” Gilworth, Leonard Dirickson’s aunt, explained.
Leonard was last seen at the Kettle Diner, a local restaurant in Elk City. It was a waitress who had spotted him there, along with the man, at around 11:00 AM. This was particularly odd as he just had breakfast with his son at 9:00 AM. When asked about the man’s description, she mentioned a man with a reddish-brown beard, around 6ft tall and 210 lbs. This description corresponded accurately with the one Jared provided.
Apart from this, she recalled him wearing a western-style striped shirt, blue jeans, a blue jacket, and a black baseball cap with “No Fear” in red letters. The waitress had observed that the unknown man did most of the talking while Leonard barely spoke, a detail Sheriff Joe Hay also highlighted in an episode of Unsolved Mysteries. The details provided by the waitress helped the Oklahoma State Bureau of Investigation develop a rough sketch of the man.
“They were sitting there in the restaurant. And the unknown man that we’re trying to identify was doing most of the talking, and Leonard was just drinking coffee and listening to the… man talk,” Clif Gann, an inspector with the Oklahoma State Bureau of Investigation, reported.
Heavy rain may have washed away valuable evidence; when the driveway was thoroughly checked, investigators found a lone Marlboro Light Cigarette butt on the ground. It likely belonged to the unknown man since Leonard did not use that brand. Beyond this, neither the unknown man nor Leonard left any trace to follow.
The aspect of the case that puzzled investigators the most was that of the horse. Leonard had never mentioned having a horse for sale, let alone a stud horse. He never even reached the stable where he kept his horse in Elk City. And yet this was the only reason he gave before he left with the man.
Authorities scoured the roads leading to Mobeetie and Elk City. Detectives spread fliers around the city and questioned residents along key routes, yet no new leads emerged. They asked truck dealerships in 3 states. This had ruled out the possibilities of a road accident. Disappearances this sudden were unheard of in Strong City.
To Inspector Clif Gann, the isolation of the ranch meant that no one could reach it randomly. And that the driver must have known the address beforehand.
The Oklahoma State Bureau of Investigation received a call at night sometime in September 1998. It had been almost 6 months since the disappearance of Leonard Dirickson. From the side, a man spoke.
Sheriff Joe Hay recounted, “The individual on call stated; I know Leonard Dirickson. I am from Elk City. I can’t give you my name, but he’s in this bar. I’m watching him. He’s wearing a blue check shirt, and he’s drunk.”
Then the call terminated.
Local police arrived at the location mentioned on the call – The Highway Bar in Amarillo. Inside, they searched for both the caller and Leonard. But they found neither. The bartender did see the man making the call.
“By the time authorities could check on it, no one could be found. Not even the guy who made the call,” Sheriff Joe Hay remembered. “We’ve been there … sat there all night long. But nothing.” With each passing day, progress grew slower, but his family firmly believed that Leonard would return. That he could not have just left.
“Now every time I read in the paper or hear on the news that a body was found, I have to check to see if it’s Leonard. I’ve even walked all the canyons around here to see if I might find him. In my heart, I know something bad has happened. He wouldn’t have left Jared. They were just too close,” Norma Dirickson said.
Jared Dirickson said, “I love him a lot. I wish I could see him again. I pray to God he will let me see him again. Me and my dad, we was together every day. Every morning, we’d go work, do the chores, and I’d go to school. I don’t think he would’ve ever left me and not ever come back to see me or nothing, ’cause…we was close, and I don’t think he’d have ever done that to me.”
Leonard Neal Dirickson disappeared in March 1998 and has never been found. Despite years of searching, investigators remain without answers, and the identity of the man who left with him is still unknown.
Condolences. Hope he is found Jared.