07/26/2025
On July 6, 1983, 18‑year‑old Tammy Lynn Leppert vanished from Cocoa Beach, Florida, under deeply unsettling circumstances. Born on February 5, 1965, in Rockledge, Florida, Tammy began competing in beauty pageants at the age of four and amassed almost 300 crowns by her late teens. In 1983, she appeared in Scarface as the young woman who distracts the lookout car during the notorious chainsaw scene, and she had small roles in Spring Break and Little Darlings.
In the weeks before her disappearance, those close to Tammy said she began acting erratically expressing fear that someone was trying to poison her or kill her. She smashed a window with a baseball bat and was held for a 72‑hour psychiatric evaluation, though doctors reported no signs of drug use or mental illness on discharge. She reportedly told friends she had witnessed something horrifying tied to a possible local drug‑money laundering scheme and feared for her life.
On the morning of July 6, Tammy left home at around 11:00 a.m., wearing a light‑blue shirt with floral appliqués, a matching denim skirt, flip‑flops, and carrying a gray purse. She got into a car with a 20‑year‑old male friend identified later as Keith Roberts—to drive to Cocoa Beach. En route, the two argued, and Roberts says he dropped her off at a parking lot near the old Glass Bank on SR A1A in Cocoa Beach. He kept her purse and shoes and has never been named a formal suspect, although Tammy’s mother claimed her daughter was “afraid” of him.
Before fading from sight, Tammy reportedly placed several urgent calls from a public pay phone in the vicinity. She left three messages for her aunt, Ginger Kolsch, and attempted to reach a friend named Ron Abeles. Neither could be reached, and the content of Tammy’s messages, described as anxious and desperate, remain lost. After that, she vanished completely.
In the aftermath, detectives received two phone calls from a woman claiming Tammy was alive. The mysterious caller said Tammy would make contact when the time was right and that she was pursuing a career in nursing—information authorities never verified.
Law enforcement investigated two known serial offenders active in Florida at the time. Christopher Wilder, known for luring aspiring models with offers of photo shoots—and responsible for multiple murders—was sued by Tammy’s family (for $1 million), though the suit was later dropped. Investigators never linked Wilder to her disappearance. Wilder died in a police shootout in 1984. John Crutchley, a convicted kidnapper and ra**st nicknamed the “Vampire Rapist,” was also considered, but no hard evidence connected him to Leppert. Crutchley died by su***de in prison in 2002.
To date, Tammy’s body has never been found. Her dental records were reportedly lost, though her DNA profile is on file and age‑progressed images have been released by the Doe Network, NCMEC, and other organizations to assist in possible identification. Her mother, Linda Curtis, passed away in 1995 without ever learning what happened. Her sister continues to pursue leads and keep the case alive in hopes of finally uncovering the truth.
