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Birth: October 3, 1957

Disappearance Location: Pueblo County, Colorado

Disappearance Date: May 30, 1976

Age at time of disappearance: 18

Hair: Brown

Eyes: Brown

Height: 5'9"

Weight: 150 pounds

Sex: Male

Race: White

Andy 'Joe' Lepley was last seen on Sunday, May 30, 1976 at his part-time job at the Texaco station at Interstate 25 and Colorado 165 in Crow Junction, Pueblo County, Colorado. He was wearing a green Texaco t-shirt, a coat with the name 'Joe' on it, blue jeans and lace-up hiking boots. Joe's right hand is scarred and deformed. He goes by his middle name 'Joe', and his nickname is 'Taco'.

On the day of his disappearance, Joe picked up his work keys from his manager and began his shift at 6:15PM. He was supposed to meet with his brother, Jim, when he got off work to ride motorcycles. Joe took a newspaper to a restaurant adjoining the gas station where he joked with a waitress. Joe was last spotted under the gas station canopy near the gas pumps around 6:45AM. Sometime later, customers who came to buy gas noticed that the store was unattended and called police.

Shortly afterwards, Joe's manager and authorities found Joe's 1967 pickup truck parked in the parking lot with the keys in the ignition. Inside the store, they noticed the manager's citizen band (CB) radio had its microphone ripped out, and the cash register, which only had about $50-$100 in it, was empty. Joe has never been seen or heard from again.

An extensive search began of surrounding areas, including volunteers, the Pueblo County Sheriff's Office, and the FBI conducted a widespread search both on foot, horseback, on four-wheelers, and via helicopter. No evidence was found.

Local psychics were tapped and even hypnotized two witnesses from the restaurant adjoining the Texaco station and they described the following suspect: a middle-aged White male, with graying sandy-colored hair and blue eyes, about 5'11" take and 175 pounds, was seen at the Texaco station between 6:30-7:30AM, on the day of Joe's disappearance. The unknown male was seen leaving the gas station around 7AM and is said to have been driving a "flashy" two door, late model car, possibly a Pontiac Grand Prix, silver or white in color with maroon trim and maroon top. He was towing what appeared to be a handmade plywood trailer, 4-5 feet long and covered with a tarp. He told the two women at the restaurant that he was en route to Wyoming and was waiting for the gas station to open. It is unclear if this man was involved, but investigators would like to question him.

At the time of his disappearance, Joe was a senior and honor student at Rye High School. He studied motorcycle mechanics in a vocational program, and went missing just days before graduation. He was a pole-vaulter, a football player and basketball player, and once had been president of his class. Joe planned to spend the summer working for his father as a plumbing apprentice, then enlist in the Air Force and attend Adams State College.

Authorities have named Charles Humphrey as a suspect in Joe's case. He was a college English professor at the time. He is also the prime suspect in the murders of his two wives: Lucila, who disappeared just days before Joe and whose body was found in 1981, and Bonnie, who was murdered in December 1979, several months after her divorce from Charles. Before police could arrest Charles, he killed himself. It is unclear what evidence they had against Charles.

Joe's mother, Betty Lepley, believes he was abducted after he surprised someone robbing the store. She stated Joe was a happy-go-lucky boy who loved to be in the middle of action. His case remains active and unsolved.

If you have any information on the disappearance or whereabouts of Andy Joe Lepley, please contact the Pueblo County Sheriff's Office at 719-583-6400 or your local FBI office. ** I do all the research myself and the information on the case is from online sources and may or may not be correct.

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Sources:https://namus.nij.ojp.gov/case/MP22979https://charleyproject.org/case/andy-joe-lepleyhttps://int-missing.fandom.com/wiki/Andy_Lepleyhttps://cohere.rssing.com/chan-1094054/article51.html