The Mystery Of The Only Cadet To Go Missing From West Point

According to LIFE, one week before Richard Colvin Cox disappeared without a trace, a man telephoned his barracks, asked for “Dick Cox,” and left his name as George. He stated that they knew each other from Germany, where Cox had served in the United States Constabulary a few years before. The Washington Post reports that Cox met with George, but offered a negative impression of the man to his roommates, telling them that George was taking up too much of his time and was unpleasant to be around. He made a few shocking comments about George, saying that he boasted about how many men he’d killed, and that he’d murdered a girlfriend when she’d become pregnant.

A week later, Cox once again met a civilian friend and sign himself out for dinner. Although it seems very likely it was the same man, there were differences in how the civilian was described by a different set of witnesses — blond instead of dark-haired, shorter and lighter overall. When Cox returned to his room, however, he indicated it was George again, and that they had made plans to have dinner together again.

George was never identified, despite an intense search for him after Cox’s disappearance. A soldier with the last name “George” had served with Cox, but when he was investigated, it was quickly determined he was elsewhere in the country at the time. Other possible men were investigated, but all had rock-solid alibis.

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