David Rockey, 51, 8-26-02 Bartlesville, OK Reappears After More Than 7 Years

[annalyzer]

Missing Bartlesville man reappears after more than 7 years

http://www.kjrh.com/media/news/5/d/6/5d64e899-68de-4879-b145-9a94629c80b7/Story.jpg
David Rockey

Last Update: 7:24 pm

A man missing since 2002 has been found alive and well in South Dakota.

Bartlesville police say David Rockey disappeared in August of 2002. Police searched for him after he was reported missing.

Rockey resurfaced Thursday in Rapid City, South Dakota.

Police say he went to the Driver License Bureau and presented his expired Oklahoma driver license. When run through the system, it came up as a missing person from Oklahoma.

A Highway Patrol trooper interviewed him. Rockey called the Bartlesville Police Department on Thursday. He told them he was "under a lot of pressure" in 2002.

Police say they asked Rockey to come back to Bartlesville to see his wife, Peggy, and two sons.

http://www.kjrh.com/content/news/2viewgc/story/Missing-Bartlesville-man-reappears-after-more-than/6F0FzIw9uUmNuq7DJipTHw.cspx

[annalyzer]

Investigator Believes Missing Man Was Murdered

posted 4:54 pm Thu December 20, 2007 -

Could the case of a missing Bartlesville man actually be a murder?

David Rockey went missing in 2002, leaving behind a wife and two children. Rockey's car was discovered at Tulsa International Airport, but the trail went cold from there.

Authorities say there were no large bank withdrawals and no witnesses to interview. But, there is new life in this very cold case.

It's an unanswered question, five years old -- what happened to David Rockey? A private investigator says the answer is homicide.

Rockey's smile is now a historical marker of a time when all was well.

"For my brother and I the world just kind of flipped upside down that day," says Randy Rockey, who was just 19 years old and carefree when his father disappeared. He's now 24, and uneasy.

"I have a bad feeling in my heart that something bad happened to him."

Private investigator Marlene Rockwell says David was murdered and that she's got the documents that show why.

"Motive would probably most likely be inter-personal conflict and long term financial gain," Rockwell says.

But where's the body? Rockwell says it's close to Bartlesville, and wants police to do more.

"You would have to ask Bartlesville where they stand on this right now."

Police Chief Tom Holland says everything is being done that can be, and if Rockwell wants to do more, go for it.

"He is a missing person as far as we're concerned," Holland says. "My message to them, I'm sure she'll see this is you need to dig. If you think you know where he's at, let's dig him up and we'll get the medical examiner to do forensics and determine cause of death we hope and go from there."

Randy simply wants his dad found, and even prepared a statement addressing his perception of politics in policing.

"Failing to recognize that the most logical explanation for the disappearance of my father is an abduction or homicide, and failing to act to investigate this case is not only irresponsible but a compromise of the trust placed in law enforcement by the public."

If you have any information call the Bartlesville Police Department at 338-4001.

http://www.ktul.com/news/stories/1207/482216.html

[annalyzer]

Where is David Rockey? B’ville man’s disappearance still puzzles investigators after 5 years

http://images.townnews.com/examiner-enterprise.com/content/articles/2007/12/27/news/news014_thumb.jpg

Saturday, December 22, 2007 11:32 PM CST

In spite of a recent TV news report to the contrary, Bartlesville interim Police Chief Tom Holland said Friday that there are no new breaks in the case of David Lee Rockey, a Bartlesville man who was reported missing more than five years ago.

“We are carrying David Rockey as an open investigation of this department and the only info we have at this time is that he is missing,” Holland said.

Rocky was 51 at the time of his disappearance on Aug. 26, 2002.

A private investigator alleged in a recent news report for KTUL Channel 8 in Tulsa that Rockey was murdered and is buried in a neighboring county.

“We have had people that have surfaced, including a private investigator, that claim they know the general area as to where Mr. Rockey was placed,” said Holland in response to the television report. “It is not in Bartlesville and it is not even in Washington County. They have involved law enforcement from where they claim the body is located.”

Private investigator Marlene Rockwell told Channel 8 that Rockey was murdered and that she’s got the documents that reveal why.

“Motive would probably most likely be inter-personal conflict and long-term financial gain,” Rockwell said in the TV interview which aired last Thursday.

In the meantime, Holland said he had taken appropriate steps.

“I met with the private investigator and authorities from that jurisdiction and told them that if they felt strongly enough they should dig and attempt to find him,” Holland told the newspaper. “To date no one has done this.”

Holland said that conversation took place in September.

“They seem to feel strongly about it, but no one has done anything,” said Holland. “There are ways to go about this in that jurisdiction, but no one has done that.”

He said that some peripheral information as to motive had been given to the BPD.

The investigation has now expanded to included the Oklahoma State Bureau of Investigation.

“They are claiming that there is a financial motive for Mr. Rockey’s disappearance,” said Holland. “They gave me some names and because one of the names has done some volunteer work for our department, we immediately involved OSBI in that aspect of the investigation.”

Rockey, a former geologist for Phillips Petroleum Co., reportedly left his home in the 2400 block of Kensington Way in Bartlesville around 9 a.m. on Aug. 26, 2002 to go to a job interview in Skiatook. Although reports indicate he may have last been seen on U.S. Highway 75 south of Bartlesville, he never arrived for the interview and has not been heard from since.

Rockey’s dark blue, two-door 2000 Ford Explorer was found in the Tulsa International Airport parking lot the day after he disappeared. The vehicle was reported to be in good condition, but yielded no clues to his whereabouts, police say.

There is no record that Rockey boarded a plane at the airport and a search of photos and airport videos turned up nothing.

According to broadcast reports six months after his disappearance, photos taken from outside a Bartlesville credit union reportedly showed Rockey withdrawing $100 from an ATM on the day he disappeared.

Married for 26 years at the time of his disappearance, the father of two was often described as “very stable,” quiet and compassionate.

At the time of his disappearance, Rockey was described as 6 feet - 2 inches tall with brown and graying hair and brown eyes.

He wore gold rim glasses, had a receding hairline and two “strawberry” scars on his left wrist.

“The day that he disappeared, he was seen in Washington County and there was a strong indication, though unconfirmed, that he was seen in the Skiatook area,” said Holland. “His vehicle was found at the Tulsa airport and Bartlesville police processed the vehicle, but found no evidence of foul play or as to where he was. There was no letter indicating his whereabouts. There was no sign of struggle.”

Holland, who took over the reigns of the BPD earlier this year, said he is not of aware of any definitive new information.

“To this day we have not received any information to confirm if he is alive or dead,” said Holland. “The only thing we can confirm is that he is missing.”

Anyone with information regarding Rockey may contact the Bartlesville Police Department at (918) 338-4001.



http://www.examiner-enterprise.com/articles/2007/12/27/news/news014.txt

[annalyzer]

Missing Bartlesville man found in South Dakota

http://www.tulsaworld.com/articleimages/2009/Thumbs/20090507_rockey5_package.jpg
File photo of David Lee Rockey who disappeared in 2002 after telling his family he was going to a job interview.

By LAURA SUMMERS World Correspondent
Published: 5/7/2009 5:40 PM
Last Modified: 5/7/2009 6:58 PM

BARTLESVILLE — A Bartlesville man for whom authorities have searched since August 2002 contacted police Thursday, proving rumors of his death had been greatly exaggerated as he actually has been living out-of-state.

Psychics have repeatedly sworn that David Lee Rockey, 58, was murdered — with his remains buried in various locations — but those theories were put to rest when the former Bartlesville resident notified authorities he is alive. Rockey told police there were many reasons he chose to disappear one summer day, leaving a community to search and grieve.

“(Rockey) said a combination of problems at home and at work — you know he had just been laid off — led him to leave,” Bartlesville Police Chief Tom Holland said. “He said he just decided to take off.”

It was Aug. 26, 2002 when Rockey bid his family farewell, saying he was leaving for a job interview in Skiatook — some 25 minutes down U.S. 75 from Bartlesville. Known in the community as a stable family man who often volunteered his time with local organizations, Rockey did not seem a likely person to pull a disappearing act.

Friends who combed the area and followed any possible lead in his disappearance repeatedly described him as “stable” and a “loving family man.”

He had worked many years as a geologist for Phillips Petroleum Company, but his position had been eliminated. Holland, who was head of security for Phillips in Bartlesville at the time, worked the case from the company side.

Married for 26 years to his wife Peggy, Rockey has two sons. He was well-known for participating in their activities. In fact, the Washington County Soccer Club and Cherokee Area Council of Boy Scouts were among groups posting a missing persons notice on their web pages.

On the morning of his disappearance, Rockey had been seen last at a Skiatook convenience store. His vehicle had been found parked at the Tulsa International Airport, but there had been no sign that he boarded a plane and no sign of foul play.

This week, police finally found out what happened next.

“He took a taxi from the airport to the bus station and took off,” Holland said. “He said he had been living various places, and working odd jobs. He had done some manual labor. He said that he had been living on the streets part of the time, he had experience with that.”

Over the past six years, the search for David Rockey prompted some close to him to hire Private Investigator Marlene Rockwell, who insisted the missing Bartlesville man had been murdered. The case took more twists and turns as a psychic got involved insisting Rockey’s body was buried in Osage County.

It was not an astrological reading, but a trip to the South Dakota Department of Public Safety that finally brought Rockey back to life for Bartlesville authorities.

Rockey visited a Rapid City, S.D. agency to get a new driver’s license and showed authorities there his expired Oklahoma license.

The authorities checked Rockey’s record in Oklahoma and discovered he had been reported missing. They called Bartlesville police Thursday morning. Bartlesville investigators in turn asked them to have Rockey call his former hometown police department as soon as possible.

“The reason he tried to get his license renewed is because he wanted to go see his mother for Mother’s Day,” Holland said.

Police had not spoken with Rockey’s wife as of Thursday afternoon, though her attorney had promised authorities he would get word of her husband’s re-appearance to her.

Holland said some family members had presumed Rockey had been the victim of a homicide.

From the police standpoint, the case on David Rockey’s disappearance now closes as he is no longer a missing person.

Holland is speculating one private investigator who was writing a book on the matter might be disappointed in the ending. But for his department, a case of six-plus years has been resolved “as we thought.”

“There is no law broken here,” Holland said. “He was a missing person and now he has been found and we are pretty much closing out our books.”

http://www.tulsaworld.com/news/article.aspx?subjectid=12&articleid=20090507_12_0_BARTLE829452&allcom=1

[sarahhod]

Missing 7 years, Bartlesville man turns up
Bartlesville police defend not following advice of psychic, private investigator

BY MATT DINGER
Published: May 8, 2009



BARTLESVILLE (http://newsok.com/keysearch/?er=1&CANONICAL=Bartlesville&CATEGORY=CITY) — A Bartlesville man missing for seven years contacted police Thursday after officials were alerted when he tried to renew a driver’s license in South Dakota.

http://photos.newsok.com/2/showimage/566242/w280/ (http://newsok.com/multimedia/gallery/3367653/1/566242/?KeepThis=true&TB_iframe=true&height=610&width=820)

http://ad.doubleclick.net/activity;src=2293554;met=1;v=1;pid=26428022;aid=21 4709489;ko=0;cid=31352334;rid=31370210;rv=1;&timestamp=5884403;eid1=9;ecn1=1;etm1=0; http://www.helpfindthemissing.org/forum/ http://www.helpfindthemissing.org/forum/
David Lee (http://newsok.com/keysearch/?er=1&CANONICAL=David+Lee&CATEGORY=PERSON) "Dave” Rockey, 58, called the police about 11 a.m. at the request of state troopers, Bartlesville Police Chief Tom Holland (http://newsok.com/keysearch/?er=1&CANONICAL=Tom+Holland&CATEGORY=PERSON) said.
"He called and spoke to my detective and captain and just said that he had come under a lot of pressure seven years ago. I think he had some pressures at home, he was unemployed and just decided to leave,” Holland (http://newsok.com/keysearch/?er=1&CANONICAL=Netherlands&CATEGORY=COUNTRY) said.
Rockey had been laid off as a geologist for Phillips Petroleum (http://newsok.com/keysearch/?er=1&CANONICAL=Phillips+Petroleum+Company&CATEGORY=COMPANY) when he left on Aug. 26, 2002, for a job interview in Skiatook (http://newsok.com/keysearch/?er=1&CANONICAL=Skiatook&CATEGORY=CITY), about 25 minutes from Bartlesville. He wasn’t heard from again until Thursday.
His vehicle was found parked at the Tulsa International Airport (http://newsok.com/keysearch/?er=1&CANONICAL=Tulsa+International+Airport&CATEGORY=ATTRACTION), but there was no sign he boarded a plane or of foul play.
"He took a taxi from the airport to the bus station and took off,” Holland said. "He said he had been living in various places and working odd jobs.”
Friends repeatedly described him as "stable” and a "loving family man.”
Rockey did not seem a likely person to pull a disappearing act. Married for 26 years to his wife, Peggy, who could not be reached for comment, Rockey has two sons and was well-known for participating in their activities.
Holland said some family members had presumed he was a homicide victim.
"We’ve been under some criticism and some scrutiny because they assumed he’d met foul play, and said we weren’t doing enough,” he said.
Efforts to find Rockey included hiring a private investigator who said Rockey had been murdered and a psychic who recommended several dig sites in Osage County (http://newsok.com/keysearch/?er=1&CANONICAL=Osage+County&CATEGORY=COUNTY), including one beneath a dam, Holland said.
Why did Rockey decide to get a driver’s license?
"He wanted to go see his mother for Mother’s Day,” Holland said.

http://newsok.com/missing-7-years-man-turns-up/article/3367653

[Amusedtdth]

Wow!

[sarahhod]

Missing man misses his mom

Published: May 8, 2009 at 1:26 PM


BARTLESVILLE, Okla., May 8 (UPI) -- An Oklahoma man missing for seven years was located when he applied for a South Dakota driver's license so he could visit his mother this Sunday. One-time geologist David Lee Rockey, 58, says he decided to get a new license because he wanted to see his mother on Mother's Day, The Oklahoman reports.
Rockey disappeared in August 2002, after heading for a job interview near Bartlesville, Okla.
His car was found parked at Tulsa International Airport but police determined he never boarded a plane. Police said he apparently just boarded a bus, moving from place to place and surviving by doing odd jobs.
To add to the mystery, Rockey was described by friends as "stable" and a "loving family man," someone unlikely to pull a disappearing act. He had left behind a wife of 26 years and two sons.
A private investigator hired by the family said Rockey had been murdered and a psychic came up with several spots where he was supposedly buried.
Speculation came to an end when Rockey tried to get a driver's license in South Dakota and state troopers told him to call Oklahoma police.

http://www.upi.com/Odd_News/2009/05/08/Missing-man-misses-his-mom/UPI-85121241803561/

[annalyzer]

His poor wife. :(

[sarahhod]

Missing Bartlesville Man's Wife Speaks Out

Posted: May 08, 2009 5:42 PM GDT Friday, May 8, 2009 12:42 PM EST Updated: May 08, 2009 8:00 PM GDT Friday, May 8, 2009 3:00 PM EST

http://kotv.images.worldnow.com/images/10328851_BG1.jpg (http://kotv.images.worldnow.com/images/10328851_BG1.jpg)

David Rockey told police on Thursday, he was depressed with his life and just left.

NewsOn6.com
BARTLESVILLE, OK -- A Bartlesville man who had been missing for nearly seven years has been found alive and well and living in South Dakota.
Now his wife is speaking out.
According to her attorney, Peggy Rockey says her first reaction was she was very glad he's alive, but she was also shocked.
She says she also wants to talk with her husband. She has lots of questions and things she does not understand. David Rockey disappeared in August 2002.
David Rockey told his family he was going on a job interview, but never returned.
His wife of 25 years, Peggy and his two sons had no idea what happened to him.
David Rockey told police on Thursday, he was depressed with his life and just left.
Peggy Rockey says right now she is trying to get her life back in order and is concentrating on the well being of her two sons.
The oldest son was in college at the time of the disappearance and has since graduated and become an engineer. The youngest son will be graduating college in a couple weeks.
Peggy Rockey says there has not been a day gone by that she has not thought about her husband and his disappearance.
David Rockey told Bartlesville Police he plans to return next week to meet with police and his family.
Peggy Rockey also thanked Bartlesville Police for never giving up on this case.

http://www.newson6.com/Global/story.asp?S=10328851

(http://www.addthis.com/bookmark.php)

[Nut44x4]

Woman Weighs Options After Husband Resurfaces
David Rockey Had Been Missing Since 2002
POSTED: 9:33 am CDT May 9, 2009

BARTLESVILLE, Okla. -- The attorney for a Bartlesville woman whose husband resurfaced after going missing for almost seven years said she is considering what to do next.

Attorney Alan Carlson has been advising Peggy Rockey since her husband, David Rockey, 58, disappeared in August 2002.

Carlson said that Peggy Rockey, who now works at a Bartlesville day care center, still considers herself to be married.

David Rockey was found earlier this week in Rapid City, S.D. after he tried to obtain a South Dakota driver's license. As identification, Rockey presented an expired Oklahoma license.

Rockey told authorities he wanted to re-enter society.

Carlson said Peggy Rockey is "happy that her husband is alive and well" and is trying to "put her life back together."

Carlson said Peggy Rockey hasn't spoken with David Rockey since he resurfaced and that it's too early to know if the couple might reconcile.
http://www.koco.com/news/19415742/detail.html

[sarahhod]

Rockey case cleared from police logs

By E-E Staff Report
Saturday, May 9, 2009 11:37 PM CDT

http://images.townnews.com/examiner-enterprise.com/content/articles/2009/05/09/news/news795_thumb.jpg (http://javascript%3Cb%3E%3C/b%3E:thumbnailWindow%28%27/articles/2009/05/09/news/news795.img%27,%20144,%20181%29)

The case of a missing Bartlesville man has been cleared from police department logs after he was found in South Dakota earlier this week.

Bartlesville resident David Lee Rockey was 51 when he seemingly disappeared in August 2002 after telling his family he was going to Skiatook for a job interview. He was reportedly last seen at a business in south Bartlesville and never arrived for the interview. His vehicle was found the next day in the Tulsa International Airport parking lot.

The Examiner-Enterprise, along with other area media, launched an all-out effort to help locate Rockey — a billboard was even posted on South U.S. Highway 75 — in response to requests for help from friends and family members.

Rockey was described at the time as a “stable man” with a wife and two children. Prior to his disappearance, he had been employed for 28 years with Phillips Petroleum Co., before being laid off, and was active in Scouting and numerous community activities.

Bartlesville Police Department detectives initially investigated the missing persons case, putting out a bulletin nationwide in an attempt to locate him.

Nearly seven years after his disappearance, Rockey apparently attempted to obtain a driver’s license at the South Dakota Department of Public Safety, alerting authorities there to his whereabouts, Police Chief Tom Holland told the E-E earlier this week.

(http://adsys.townnews.com/c68378958/creative/examiner-enterprise.com/+instory/185502-1241641757.jpg?r=http://www.shelleykoster.com)
“That’s not a crime — we had a bulletin out (in an effort to) locate him,” which prompted South Dakota police to contact the BPD, Holland said.

At the police department’s request, Rockey spoke with BPD investigators on May 7, reportedly saying he left Bartlesville due to “personal reasons,” according to Holland.

“He didn’t elaborate,” Holland said.

Holland said Friday that Rockey told investigators he parked his car at the Tulsa Airport, taxied to the bus station and then took a bus north.

“He said he worked day jobs — always took cash, no checks,” Holland said.

Holland said police were aware that Rockey had removed money from an ATM before he left Bartlesville in 2002, but that he had no access to funds after that.

“He said he lived on the streets for a while,” Holland said. “He said, ‘That’s quite an experience.’”

Holland said Rockey did not say if he plans to return to Bartlesville, but that he had recently called his mother, who lives in Illinois, and told her that he wanted to visit her for Mother’s Day.

Holland said police officials had been unable to contact Rockey’s wife, but that her attorney had agreed to inform her of Rockey’s whereabouts.

The case has drawn attention from local media and beyond, including several media outlets in Tulsa and Oklahoma City — and a call from the CBS Morning Show, Holland said.

He said the Rockey case has been “cleared” from BPD logs, and that he expected it to be officially closed soon.

“We’d like to talk to him to clear up some loose ends, but if he chooses not to talk, we’ll go ahead and close it out,” Holland said.

http://www.examiner-enterprise.com/articles/2009/05/09/news/news795.txt

[Nut44x4]

Wife of once-missing man files for divorce

Last Update: 5/12 3:52 pm
A Bartlesville woman filed for divorce from her husband on Monday, after learning that he had been living in South Dakota for several years.
Washington County court records show that Peggy Rockey also filed for a restraining order against David Rockey.

David Rockey disappeared in 2002. His car was found at Tulsa International Airport, and many people thought he had died.

Bartlesville police learned that Rockey was alive last week when he tried to obtain a driver license in South Dakota.

Bartlesville Police Chief Tom Holland told 2NEWS that Rockey will return to Bartlesville to be interviewed by local authorities. Holland said no charges are expected to be filed against Rockey because it's not against the law to disappear.
http://www.kjrh.com/content/news/2viewgc/story/Wife-of-once-missing-man-files-for-divorce/VEZqIWkQK0uNgUN6F_AK7A.cspx

[packy]

We never know do we. Glad he is alive but it has to bring mixed emotions for his wife and children.

[annalyzer]

He should have to pay her alimony for a few years and some child support for what she has been put through.