Henry Lee Harbison

Date of Birth*: March 22, 1925
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Age at the Time: 49
Age Group: 40s
Biological Sex: Male
Hair: Brunette
Eyes: Brown
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Ethnicity: Caucasian or White
Nationality: United States
Languages Spoken: English

*If the date says January 1, this is often just a placeholder for an unknown specific date. It usually means “sometime that year”.

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• He may have had a mustache

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Date of the Disappearance*: November 10, 1974

Description: On or about November 10, 1974, a normally quiet residence in the 100 block of East Kansas Avenue became the center of one of Missouri’s most enduring mysteries. Twenty-seven-year-old Freda Loretta Denman vanished, along with her four-year-old daughter, Sheri Lynn Johnson; her 10-month-old son, Michael Lloyd Johnson; and her husband—known locally as Michael Johnson but later identified as convicted felon Henry Lee Harbison.

The family was not officially reported missing until March 1975, when their landlord contacted the Independence Police Department after months of unpaid rent. Inside the home, officers found a scene suspended in time. A TV Guide lay open to listings for Sunday, November 10, 1974, suggesting the family had disappeared abruptly that weekend. Freda’s clothing and personal belongings remained neatly arranged in the closet, while the clothing and possessions of Harbison and the children were conspicuously absent.

More troubling were signs that something had gone wrong. Bloodstains were found on a living room cushion, a chair, a shirt, and a pair of men’s socks. The FBI examined the evidence, but the five-month delay and the limits of 1970s forensic science rendered the results inconclusive; investigators could not determine the blood’s type or source.

Freda, born November 7, 1947, in Richland County, Wisconsin, was described as a white woman of slight build, standing 5’7″ and weighing approximately 130 pounds, with brown hair and brown eyes. She had scars on her abdomen and right knee and wore upper dentures. Sheri, born in 1970, had brown hair and brown eyes, while infant Michael, born in January 1974, shared similar features.

Attention soon turned to Harbison, who had married Freda in 1973 under the alias Michael Johnson. He was the biological father of Michael but the stepfather of Sheri, Freda’s child from a previous relationship. His background revealed a long criminal history: a career forger who had served time in notorious federal prisons, including Leavenworth and Alcatraz, for crimes such as interstate vehicle theft and check forgery. At the time of the family’s disappearance, Harbison was also wanted in Alabama on additional forgery charges.

In July 1975, the Independence Police Department closed the case, concluding the family had likely left voluntarily to help Harbison evade arrest. The case remained dormant for nearly 30 years until 2004, when Shelley Denman (an aunt to Sheri and Michael) contacted U.S. Senator Pat Roberts seeking assistance. As a result, the family was entered into the FBI’s National Crime Information Center database, and the children’s cases were reclassified as non-family abductions due to the suspicious circumstances.

Harbison was later linked to the Church of the New Song, a controversial religious group that originated within the prison system. Years afterward, fellow members told authorities they had heard rumors that Harbison murdered his family and buried their bodies in a barn near Concordia, Missouri. Investigators searched the property in 2004, but the excavation produced no evidence.

Multiple Victims?: Yes

Rumored or Actual Sightings:

*If the date says January 1, this is often just a placeholder for an unknown specific date. It usually means “sometime that year”.

Date the Body was Recovered:

Description: Unknown

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Suspected Homicide?: No

Multiple Victims?: Yes

DNA Tested (No Match):

*If the date says January 1, this is often just a placeholder for an unknown specific date. It usually means “sometime that year”.

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Description:

Henry Lee Harbison (going by Michael Johnson) was the prime suspect. He was born March 22, 1925 making him 49 at the time of his disappearance. Based on his photos, he was a white male with brown hair and brown eyes. He may or may not have had a mustache.

There was a warrant out for his arrest at the time of the family’s disappearance. He may have either taken the family with him on the run under assumed identities (as he himself often did) or killed them before fleeing alone. Harbison lived under a tangle of aliases, among them Henry Johnson; Henry Lee Harbison Sr.; Henry L. Harbison; Henry Lee Harbinson; Henry Harbinson; Henry Lee Johnson; Harry Lee Harbison; and Henry Lee Harrison.