Sandra Louise Matott (June 27, 1942 - c. July 1979) was a woman whose remains were found in rural Millard County, Utah on August 19, 1979. Her remains were identified on August 10, 2021. Her case was the oldest missing persons cold case closed by the Salt Lake City Police Department.
Disappearance[]
Sandra Matott was reported missing on July 18, 1979 by her husband, Warren Matott. He reported that she was last seen at a bar eight days earlier in Salt Lake City, Utah. However, her family, including her children, and law enforcement believed Warren had more information about her disappearance and death.
Salt Lake detectives at the time tried to conduct follow-up interviews with Warren, but they were unsuccessful. Police conceded there was no probable cause to charge him in connection to her disappearance. Warren died in California in 1999.
Discovery[]
Sandra was found buried in a shallow grave under a juniper tree 50 meters off a dirt road near the I-15 Cove Fort exit. Few clothing items were found, and no natural teeth or dentures are available for comparison. In articles reporting Sandra's identification, the state medical examiner's office could not determine a cause of death, but the case was investigated as a homicide.
Henry Lee Lucas[]
In 1984, Henry Lee Lucas confessed to killing her after being convicted for killing Becky Powell and Kate Rich in 1983. He apparently gave details to investigators that only the perpetrator of the crime could have known. However, he also confessed to raping her and shooting her twice with a .380-caliber gun and his accomplices in the crime were Ottis Toole and Becky and Frank Powell.
While in custody, Lucas, alongside Toole, confessed to killing over hundreds of people with the Lucas Task Force, headed by the Texas Rangers, closing 213 murder cases. However, it was eventually determined Lucas falsely confessed to most of the cases, with authorities either significantly enabling him by bribing him with privileges or letting him read cold case files to confess. Lucas recanted all of his confessions, including this one. He was eventually convicted of 11 murders, suspected of more, and died on March 12, 2001. Other victims he confessed to that are on this wiki can be found here.
It should be noted that the Lucas Report states that Toole was working in Jacksonville, Florida, during July 1979; it was even verified he was working on the day of Sandra's disappearance, the day she was reported missing, and most days between those dates, making his involvement in Sandra's murder unlikely, if not impossible.
Identification[]
On February 1, 2019, Sandra's case was entered into Utah's Cold Case Database. On November 25, 2019, the Millard County Sheriff's Office contacted the Salt Lake City Police Department after a case file was located describing the two cases as possible related. In October of 2020, the Millard County Sheriff's Office submitted the bones to the University of North Texas for DNA testing.
On August 10, 2021, the remains found in Millard County were identified as Sandra Matott. Three days later, the SLCPD informed her family about the identification.
With the only two suspects, Warren and Lucas, deceased, the Millard County Sheriff's Office closed the case.
Gallery[]
Characteristics[]
- Black to brown hair.
- Hazel eyes.
- Mole on her back
- Scar running from the left side of her chest around to her back from lung surgery.
- Compound fracture of her right leg at age four.
Clothing and accessories[]
- Short sleeved pullover shirt, size M.
- Bra, size 32A.
- Texas instruments brand watch.
- Ring on the left hand with a green or turquoise stone.
Sources[]
- Oxygen
- Sandra Matott at the Charley Project
- Deseret News (archived)
- Gephardt Daily
- KJZZ
- The Lucas Report
- Henry Lee Lucas on Wikipedia