Anthony Ross Allen

Russell Jones Reports
Missing person cold case in Fort Smith re-opened

April 11, 2007 01:16 PM EDT


Tony in 1978 at age 16.



Tony in a composite photo as he would look today.


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Tony's Missing Person Profile












FORT SMITH - Police are investigating a 28-year-old missing person case involving a Fort Smith man. Anthony Ross Allen disappeared in October of 1978 when he was 16, and police are using new technology to shed new light on this cold case.

Allen's family asked police to re-open the investigation in 2004. Sgt. Adam Holland says right away, they hit a snag.

"The records storage facility was destroyed in the 1996 tornado. So a lot of the old archives or records where we'd be able to search and find tidbits of information were lost," he says.

Those records included interviews with friends of Anthony's who may have seen him or knew where he was going in 1978. So investigators are making the best with what they have: photographs, DNA, and the Internet. Allen's information was entered into the National Crime Information Center, along with a sample of a family member's DNA, which would match Anthony's if he was ever found. Fort Smith Police also contacted the Center for Missing and Exploited Children to create a composite photo of what Anthony would look like today at age 43.

"I was kind of afraid to look at it," says Laura Hood, Anthony's sister. "But when I did, my first reaction was surprise at the family resemblance, how much he looked like my dad."

Police are asking anyone with information about Anthony Ross Allen, or Tony as we was called, to call them at (479) 709-5129, or call 1-800-THE-LOST. Callers can remain anonymous, and may be elligible for a $10,000 reward if their information leads to his whereabouts.