Full Name: Cinda Leann Pallett

Alternative Name: Palette, Pallet, Cinda Leanne

Case Status: Missing

Record ID#: 3648

*The names “Jane Doe”  and “John Doe” are English names used when the person’s true name is not known. If used above, the name refers to a person of unknown identity.

Date of Birth*: May 13, 1967
Birthplace:
Age at the time of Disappearance: 13
Age Group: Teenager
Gender at Birth: Female
Hair: Brunette, Shoulder Length
Eyes: Brown
Skin Complexion:
Ethnicity: Caucasian — Some sources say she may have been part Hispanic / Latina
Nationality: United States
Languages Spoken:

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

Physical Build:

Height:

Weight

Distinguishing Marks:

• Unknown

Medical Condition: Her collarbone had previously fractured
Physical Abnormality:
Dental Condition: Dental retainer behind her lower front teeth.
Scars & Other Marks: Small scar below the corner of her left eyebrow
Piercings: Unknown
Tattoos: Unknown

Other Descriptors: Unknown

Clothing

• White T-Shirt Jersey with Dark Blue Sleeves, the logo from the band ‘ZZ Top” on the front, and the number 81 on the back.
• Size 12 Slim Blue Jeans.
• Rope belt made of braided orange or rust-colored nylon with a leather buckle that has ‘Cinda’ engraved.
• Two-tone blue Nike sneakers with black waffle soles

Possessions:

• Unknown

Date of the Disappearance*: September 25, 1981 (Friday)

*Some sources say they disappeared on September 26, 1981 (Saturday)

Description: Royal Russell Long, who worked at local fairs and carnivals in the Rawlins area in 1974, is considered a possible suspect in the disappearance of Christy Gross, Carlene Brown, Jayleen Banker, and Deborah Meyer. All four girls disappeared from Rawlins over the period of a few weeks. Hie is described as a Caucasian male with dark hair, a beard, and a mustache. Long had a history of violent crimes against young women and was later convicted of kidnapping another young woman, Sharon Baldeagle. He also pled guilty to murdering Cinda Pallett and Charlotte Kinsey; however those charges were all dropped. He died in prison in 1993 without ever being charged in connection with the Rawlins disappearances.

Charlotte & Cinda

A chilling disappearance took place when two 13-year-old girls, Charlotte June Kinsey and Cinda Leann Pallett, vanished after spending the day together at the Oklahoma State Fairgrounds. The girls were last seen with a man who had hired them to help unload plush toys from a truck.

The girls had spent the afternoon hanging out at the fairgrounds when an unidentified man offered them work unloading stuffed toys from the back of his truck. Excited at the opportunity to make some spending money, Charlotte called her family at around 5:00pm (17:00) to let them know. Their plan was to be work at the fairgrounds before spending the night at Cinda’s house. Charlotte’s mother agreed as long as the girls called her back by 9:00PM (21:00) to reassure her they were back safely. Cinda made similar plans with her mother as well.

According to reports, the worker that hired the girls had also hired to teenage boys to assist with the project. The worker drove the four children to a truck stop off of Interstate 40; however, when they arrived there was no truck present. The worker then left the boys in the parking lot with $10 in cash and told them to wait while he went to see what was wrong with the truck. He then drove away with Charlotte and Cinda in the back of his car. This would have been around 5:40pm (17:40).

The worker was described as a middle-aged man between 35–50, standing between 6’1 to 6’3 and weighing 200–250 pounds. He had dark hair but his mustache and beard had grew streaks. The witnesses noted that he had muscular arms and wore silver wire-rimmed glasses. He was dressed in a brown-striped or plaid cowboy shirt, cowboy boots, a leather belt tooled with the name ‘Joseph’, a straw cowboy hat, and a yellow badge. He also had on a digital watch on his left wrist.

He drove a tan 2-door 1980 or 1981 Pontiac Grand Prix with a half-vinyl roof and South Dakota plates. The vehicle was later found to have been rented by a man fitting the same description as that the boys had described.

According to other testimony, the same worker had spoken with several children throughout the day, offering them odd jobs for $5 per hour. Investigations later found the yellow badge on the fair’s midway, revealing the name and photo of another carnival employee named Donald Corey. Mr. Corey was later to have an alibi placing him in Dallas, Texas when the girls disappeared. All other staff and employees were also cleared. It is now believed the worker was using a false identity to reassure the children he approached.

There were also several alleged sightings — California, Maryland, New Jersey — but none were ever confirmed.

After Mr. Corey was ruled out, authorities turned their attention to Royal ‘Roy’ Russell Long, a carnival worker and part-time trucker whose appearance closely matched the suspect’s description.

Mr. Long had arrived in Oklahoma City the day prior to the girls’ disappearance delivering a flatbed trailer. The two teenage boys that had also been picked up by the worker later identified Mr. Long as the mand who had hired them. Mr. Long had a long history of sexual assault accusations, including his daughter who testified that he had molested her for many years as a child. According to her, she sometimes traveled with him on long-haul trips:

“[H]e would see young girls, give her money to go play the pinball machine or buy a soda, and he would use stuffed animals to lure those girls to the truck. When she would come back, the girls would be gone” — Hearst Television.

Mr. Long confessed that the had been at the Oklahoma State Fair the same day that Charlotte and Cinda disappeared. His vehicle was later recovered in El Paso, Texas and forensic evidence placed the girls in that car.

13 strands of Cinda’s hair was found inside as well as the fur of some pets she had been playing with at the fair. Additionally, forensic experts identified blonde hair that may have belonged to Charlotte in his trailer home; however, they were unable to match it conclusively at the time. Bloodstains and a bloody boot print were found on the floor mat, and one expert testified that the bloodstains appeared to outline one larger body or two smaller ones.

Investigators later stated they believed Mr. Long was a repeat offender with potentially more than two dozen victims over the years (Hearst Television). Based on other cases in which he was a person of interest where the remains were recovered and the distance he was able to travel at the time, police suspect the victims’ remains could be relatively nearby . . . possibly within around 60 miles of Oklahoma City.

During his trial, Mr. Long would further confess that he had killed the girls, but that confession came amidst his harassment of the victims’ families. Despite the significant case against him, the judge ruled to dismiss most of the evidence and all charges were eventually dropped. Mr. Long later wrote to The Oklahoman, a local newspaper, offering to solve the case if they paid him for the story but they rejected the offer (The Oklahoman). He would also write a letter to Cinda’s mother telling her he regretted what had happened but that he never say Cinda that day.

Mr. Long would later be convicted in the attempted kidnapping and assault of two other young girls, one of who also disappeared. He died in 1993 in the Wyoming State Penitentiary.

Multiple Victims?: Yes

Rumored or Actual Sightings: California, Maryland, New Jersey — but none were ever confirmed.

*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: Unknown

Description: Unknown

Possible Signs Of . . . : Unknown

Time of Death: Unknown

Cause of Death: Unknown

Recovered Remains (if partial): Unknown

Suspected Homicide?: Unknown

Multiple Victims?: Unknown

DNA Tested (No Match): Unknown

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

Description: Tan 2-Door 1980 or 1981 Pontiac Grand Prix with a half-vinyl roof (RENTED)

License Plate: South Dakota

Description: The suspect in their disappearance is described as being 35 – 50 years old, between 6’1 and 6’3, 200 – 250 pounds with dark hair, a mustache, a beard with grey streaks, and hairy and muscular arms. He was wearing silver wire-rimmed glasses, a straw cowboy hat, a brown-striped cowboy shirt or a plaid shirt, cowboy boots, a digital watch on his left wrist, a leather belt tooled with the name ‘Joseph’, and a yellow badge. Witnesses say he drove a tan 2-door 1980 or 1981 Pontiac Grand Prix with a half-vinyl roof and South Dakota plates.

---

Royal ‘Roy’ Russell Long, a traveling carnival worker and part-time long-haul trucker would emerge as the key suspect in several unsolved disappearances and murders of young women across the south western United States in the 1970s-1980s.

Description: Caucasian, Male, 40s, Dark Hair & Beard, Mustache.​

Mr. Long had a long history of sexual assault accusations, including his daughter who testified that he had molested her for many years as a child. According to her, she sometimes traveled with him on long-haul trips:

“[H]e would see young girls, give her money to go play the pinball machine or buy a soda, and he would use stuffed animals to lure those girls to the truck. When she would come back, the girls would be gone” — Hearst Television.

Investigators have stated they believed Mr. Long was a repeat offender with potentially more than two dozen victims over the years (Hearst Television).  In addition to Sharon Baldeagle, who’s case is covered here, Mr. Long is also a possible suspect in the disappearance of:

• Four young girls from the Rawlins, Wyoming area in 1974:
  • Christy Gross
  • Carlene Brown
  • Jayleen Banker
  • Deborah Meyer
• Two young girls from the Oklahoma State Fair in 1981:
  • Christine Kinsey
  • Cinda Pallet
• Two young girls hitchhiking in Wyoming
  • S. (survived)
  • Sharon Baldeagle

Several young women disappeared together (Cinda and Christine, Christy and Carlene), suggesting that the assailant was willing to target two victims at once, similar to what happened in Sharon’s case.

Long also pled guilty to murdering Cinda Pallett and Charlotte Kinsey.  Unfortunately, the charges in the Pallett / Kinsey case were all dropped he was never formally tried in connection with the Rawlins disappearances.