1979 murder of Yellow Pages heiress near Hoover Dam still unsolved
LAS VEGAS (KSNV) — Authorities are asking for the public's help to solve a cold case murder near Hoover Dam from 1979.
The Mohave County Sheriff's Office in Arizona put out the call for assistance in the killing of 25-year-old Marion Berry Ouma, the granddaughter of Yellow Pages pioneer Loren Berry.
On Jan. 3, 1979, Hoover Dam security officers found Ouma's body down an embankment on Highway 93 at mile marker 7. She had a gunshot wound to her lower right abdomen, and she appeared to have been dead for less than 12 hours. An autopsy ruled that she died from a gunshot wound to the head and abdomen from a .38 caliber weapon.
The next day, someone told detectives that he and his wife were driving on Highway 93 in the area where the victim was found. The couple saw a vehicle backed up to the guardrail and believed it was a powder blue 1976-77 Chevrolet Blazer or Ford Bronco, with a removable hard top.
The vehicle also had front-end chrome push bars, all-terrain tires and a tall CB antenna on the right rear. The man told detectives the license plate was covered with a rag, all doors were closed, and no people were seen nearby.
Detectives tried to identify the victim but were unsuccessful until 1981, when a private detective from Ohio reached out saying she matched Ouma, who was married in Africa and worked as a physical education teacher there for several years.
Ouma's parents identified the victim as their daughter. The identification was confirmed through dental records and fingerprinting.
Detectives learned that Ouma's grandfather was Loren Berry, who died in 1980 and left $40 million to his granddaughter.
The sheriff's office learned Ouma twice visited a Downtown Las Vegas bank at 4th Street and Carson Avenue, on Nov. 28 and Dec. 13, 1978, to withdraw money from her savings account. Detectives found she was living in an apartment in Las Vegas as well until she was asked to vacate in December 1978 for failure to pay rent.
Authorities are seeking any information on Ouma's whereabouts between the time she was last seen leaving the bank on Dec. 13, 1978, and when her body was found on Jan. 3, 1979. They're also looking for any potential leads on the possible Chevrolet or Ford seen in the area on the evening of Ouma's murder.
She was 5 feet 5 inches tall and weighed about 106 pounds. She had hazel eyes and brown hair often worn in a ponytail. At the time of her death, she was wearing green sweatpants and a dark-blue short-sleeve blouse.
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