Ann Mineko Racz, Missing, March 1991 CA.
Ann Mineko Racz Vital Statistics at Time of Disappearance Missing Since: March 22, 1991 from Newhall, California Classification: Endangered Missing Date Of Birth: January 17, 1949 Age: 42 years old Height and Weight: 5'3, 113 pounds Distinguishing Characteristics: Graying black hair, brown eyes. Ann is of Japanese descent. She has a scar extending from her navel to her pubic area. Ann may use the last name Yoshiyama. Details of Disappearance Ann was last seen in Newhall, California on March 22, 1991. She dropped off her three children at the residence of her estranged husband, John Racz, near Valencia, California during the day. Ann planned to purchase food nearby afterwards, but she never returned to pick up her children and has not been heard from again. Ann's vehicle was discovered abandoned near the Los Angeles City Department Of Airports flyaway on April 26, 1991, more than one month after her disappearance. There was no sign of her at the scene. John claimed that Ann departed on a trip and left of her own accord. Authorities never believed that Ann left her home voluntarily and have suspected that she was the victim of foul play. An extensive search of a ten square-mile area of Pico Canyon in mid-1991 produced no evidence related to Ann's case. The location was selected due to its proximity to her last known location. Authorities also utilized the services of psychics several years after Ann disappeared. The psychics' visions directed the search towards the Spring Canyon area of California, but excavations were unsuccessful. There have not been any arrests in connection with Ann's case, which remains unsolved. Investigators continue to believe that she was murdered by person(s) unknown. Some agencies may list "April 24, 1991" as the date of Ann's disappearance. Investigating Agency If you have any information concerning this case, please contact: Los Angeles County Sheriff's Department 323-890-5500 http://www.charleyproject.org/cases/r/racz_ann.html

Reward Announced For Woman Missing...15 Years Jun 15, 2006 (CBS) NEWHALL, Calif. Sheriff's homicide detectives announced a $10,000 reward Thursday for information leading to the whereabouts of Ann Mineko Racz, who disappeared under suspicious circumstances in 1991. On April 18, 1991, Racz separated from her husband and moved into a condominium in the Newhall area with her three young children. Four days later, she dropped two of her children off at the family residence to visit their father from whom she had separated and was never seen again. Detectives will release a 1991 photo of Racz and a drawing of her as she might appear now at a news conference tomorrow. http://cbs2.com/topstories/local_story_166203407.html

Missing mom never forgotten Husband charged in 15-year-old case ALEX DOBUZINSKIS AND CAROL ROCK, Staff Writers Article Last Updated:10/24/2006 For more than 15 years, sheriff's homicide investigators refused to let the case of a missing Valencia mother of three grow cold. Certain that 43-year-old Ann Mineko Racz was dead, detectives scoured remote canyons and even met with psychics in a search for clues. In recent months, they turned to emerging scientific tools, gathering DNA swabs from relatives and using sonar to detect what they mistakenly believed were human remains in the backyard of the family home. And while they never found Racz's body, investigators said they ultimately collected enough evidence for a murder charge against the missing woman's estranged husband, John Racz, 61, a former sheriff's deputy and schoolteacher. "The sheriff is pleased that his homicide detectives never did give up, regardless of where it ultimately led them - to the arrest of a former sheriff's deputy," said Steve Whitmore, a spokesman for Los Angeles County Sheriff Lee Baca. During a brief court appearance Tuesday in downtown Los Angeles, the handcuffed suspect pleaded not guilty to a charge of premeditated murder. A grand jury had handed up an indictment Oct. 19 after hearing from 21 witnesses, including the couple's three grown children. Racz was arrested Saturday at Los Angeles International Airport as he stepped off a plane from Thailand. "The detectives haven't told us much, but we know they have a whole lot of little reasons to believe he did it - nothing solid," said daughter Joann Racz, now 29. "Nothing has happened in the last 15 years, but I knew when things started happening a few months ago, it was going to be shocking." The defendant's lawyer, Phil Israels, said Racz is prepared for battle. "He's always been confident in his innocence," Israels said. "Truth will prevail." During Racz's arraignment, Judge Steven Van Sicklen refused a defense request to reduce the defendant's $1 million bail, saying he knew too little about the case. "I'd be winging it if I decreased the bail at this point," Van Sicklen said. Israels argued that his client has long known he was under suspicion and never fled, a sign he is not a flight risk. But Deputy District Attorney Shellie Samuels countered that the grand-jury indictment changed that. "Mr. Racz may have known that this case ... was going to hang around his head for 15 years, but it's never gotten to this point where he's been ... charged," Samuels said. Katelin Racz, just 7 when her mother vanished, was teary-eyed in court. Her brother, Glenn, held out hope. "I'm not convinced that my dad is guilty of the charges," he said. But their sister, Joanne, who was not in court, said she was "convinced he was involved in some way." "We've been through hell and back," she added. "But all I really want to do is find my mom. She's my only focus." Few details were released Tuesday, with the full indictment due to be unsealed Nov. 7. However, a brief statement read: "On or about April 22, 1991, ... John Racz did unlawfully, and with malice aforethought, murder Ann Racz, a human being." Joann Racz said when she and her siblings testified before the grand jury Oct. 16, court officials warned them that things would get emotional. Joann said she had talked with her father two weeks before he left for Thailand, where he visits frequently. Ann Racz disappeared without a trace April 22, 1991, four days after filing for divorce from her husband of 19 years and taking the kids, then 14, 11 and 7. She took the children to visit their dad, left for a quick trip to McDonald's and was never seen again. The remnants of a cold pizza were found in the kitchen of her Newhall condominium, completely out of character for a homemaker known to be meticulous. At the time, her estranged husband said she had planned a trip. Her Plymouth station wagon was found three days later at the FlyAway terminal parking lot in Van Nuys. There were no goodbyes to her children, no call to a beloved sister and no explanation for the pastor at the church where she volunteered. Investigators assumed she was dead. John Racz, who retired 20 years ago from the Sheriff's Department, recently wrapped up a career as an elementary-school teacher in the Compton Unified School District. His missing wife's case was one that homicide detectives handed to others when they retired or transferred. "You become `Uncle Louis' to the family," homicide investigator Louis Danoff said in a 2001 interview that marked his retirement. He passed along information he collected in 15 notebooks. Over the years, crews went looking in remote areas of the Santa Clarita Valley for human remains. On other occasions, when bones were found scattered in rural canyons, detectives waited to see whether emerging forensic sciences would determine they were those of Ann Racz. And then last month sonar tests indicated remains might have been buried at John Racz's home. A crew arrived at his Fortuna Drive house - the same home the family had shared years ago - and, armed with a warrant and a cadaver-sniffing dog, proceeded to dig up the backyard. The effort, like so many before it, proved futile, but the investigation took on new steam. Ann Racz's sister, Emiko Ryan, said Tuesday that she was relieved that a suspect was finally in custody. "I'm glad this happened, especially for Ann," Ryan said. "It's been a long time, and I'm glad we got this far." Staff Writer Patricia Farrell Aidem contributed to this report. alex.dobuzinskis@dailynews.com (661) 257-5253 http://www.dailynews.com/santaclarita/ci_4544597

Daughter of missing wife testifies in father's trial BY JUDY O'ROURKE, Staff Writer Article Last Updated: 08/13/2007 10:09:11 PM PDT SAN FERNANDO - A reluctant Katelin Racz struggled Monday to recall her mother and the events surrounding her disappearance 16 years ago as she testified in the trial of her father, a former sheriff's deputy charged with killing his wife. Just 7 when her mother vanished, Katelin Racz, now 23, hesitated frequently and had a hard time recalling her testimony last year in grand jury hearings that led to her father's indictment. "You are very concerned about how your answers are going to affect your dad," asked assistant prosecutor John Lewin. "You don't want your dad to be convicted?" Racz answered she just wants "it" to be fair. After a two-week recess the defense opened its case in the trial of John Racz, 61, which resumed Monday in San Fernando Superior Court. So far, the only evidence has been circumstantial, based in part on John Racz's insistence his estranged wife was away on a trip. Katelin Racz, the youngest of the couple's three children, said her childhood memories are fading and offered no real evidence for either side. She has not missed a day since the trial began in June, she said. Sketchy about life with her mother, she cried as memories flooded back. She scored her mother a 99 out of 100 points, 100 being best in terms of being a loving mom. Prosecutors believe John Racz killed his wife April 22, 1991, four days after she moved with the children from the family home in Valencia to a nearby condominium. She planned to divorce John and had begun an affair with a high school sweetheart. Defense attorneys counter that no body, crime scene, murder weapon, evidence, or witnesses to a crime have surfaced. Katelin Racz said her testimony is unbiased, adding her father last provided financial support when she was 18. However, John Racz, known to be frugal, gave her $1,500 last month. "He compensated me. I quit my job so I could be here," she said. "He said if I needed help he would help me, give me however much I made at the job to be here." Also testifying Monday was Sally Fynan, a retired sheriff's homicide investigator. Defense attorney Philip Israels questioned Fynan's notes from a conversation with Joann Racz, the couple's older daughter, that suggested Ann Racz might have left voluntarily. Joann first recalled her mother saying the family would be better off without her and she should go away, but later retracted the statement, Fynan said. judy.orourke@dailynews.com (661) 257-5255 http://www.dailynews.com/ci_6616312