A burnt car, a body in a field, and a case split between three counties: Who killed Lois Ann Lloyd?

Yahoo

24-04-2025

ODESSA, Texas (KMID/KPEJ)- In early April of 1985, 27-year-old Lois Ann Lloyd was last seen at her home in north Ector County. Just a few hours later, her car was found engulfed in flames off Interstate 20 near Midland.
For ten long days, her family held on to hope. But that hope was shattered when her body was discovered in a rural field north of Andrews, 70 miles away.
Forty years have passed, but Lois' case remains unsolved.
Who Was Lois Ann Lloyd?
Lois Ann Lloyd was born in Raton, New Mexico, in 1957. She was quiet but athletic, once setting a state record in the softball throw. After moving to Odessa in her early twenties, she worked for C.E. Vetco Services, a pipe inspection company off Interstate 20. She was known for being shy, thoughtful, and full of potential. Her friends describe someone who was trying, someone who still had dreams. But in April of 1985, those dreams were cut short.
Lois was last seen alive on April 12. Later that night, her light blue 1976 Pontiac LeMans was spotted in Midland. The next morning, around 5 a.m., sheriff's deputies responded to a vehicle fire on Interstate 20.
The vehicle, later discovered to belong to Lois, was fully engulfed. Midland County Sheriff Gary Painter later confirmed that a flammable liquid had been used to start the fire.
And inside the trunk, investigators found blood, hair, and skull fragments. That DNA was confirmed to be from Lois.
Investigators believed Lois had been killed at a remote Shell oilfield site in western Ector County. Her bracelet was found near the pumping unit, and the scene showed signs of violence. Authorities brought in a helicopter and heat-sensing equipment to search a 100-square-mile area for her body, but despite intense efforts, they came up empty.
'We presume the body is buried because we can't find it,' Ector County Sheriff's Capt. Gene Kloss said at the time. 'We've run out of places to check.'
Eventually, a body was discovered in a field in Andrews County, 10 days after the vehicle fire. Investigators said she was likely beaten and then run over with her own vehicle. That site, just north of I-20 and east of FM 866, was soaked in blood and fragments of human remains. Due to decomposition, fingerprints weren't an option, dental records had to be used to confirm the remains were Lois.
The fire, the field, and the final moments, all split between Ector, Midland, and Andrews counties. That jurisdictional maze has only added to the confusion and delay in finding answers.
'Someone moved her body after the murder,' said Susan Rogers, CEO of Odessa Crime Stoppers. 'It's believed she was killed in Ector County. Her car went one direction, her body the other. Three counties. Three crime scenes. One victim.'
WATCH: In the video player below, Rogers shares insight into the emotions that surface as she and the Crime Stoppers team work closely with long-unsolved cases.
Over 400 people were interviewed during the initial investigation. At one point, composite sketches of two persons of interest were released: a man and a woman who may have been with Lois around the time she disappeared.
To this day, those individuals have not been identified.
'There's still a thick case file on this,' Rogers said. 'We don't know if those people are witnesses or suspects, but someone out there knows who they are.'
Investigators from the Ector County Sheriff's Office, the Texas Department of Public Safety, and law enforcement in both Midland and Andrews were all involved in the original case. But despite their efforts, the case has gone cold.
'It's a case that never left us,' Rogers said. 'There was so much work done. Files inches thick. Detectives went place to place, trying to piece it all together.'
Lois had ties to Ector County, and although we don't know if she had children or close family still in the area, investigators say they'd love to speak with anyone who knew her or her husband at the time.
Lois was laid to rest in Fairmont Cemetery in her hometown of Raton, New Mexico. She was just 27 years old.
Today, the case remains open with the Ector County Sheriff's Office. Rogers says new information could reignite the investigation, especially from someone who may have been too afraid to speak up back then.
'People change,' she said. 'Someone who was scared then may feel safer now. Maybe someone saw Lois with someone that day. Maybe someone heard about a burning car. Maybe someone knows who those people in the sketches were.'
If you know anything about the murder of Lois Ann Lloyd, no matter how small, you're encouraged to contact Odessa Crime Stoppers at 432-333-TIPS or submit a tip anonymously at 333tips.org.
Tips can also be submitted through the P3 Tips app, and a cash reward is available for information leading to an arrest.
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