June 8, 2022
HOMICIDE
A Cold Case
Firefighters with the Memphis Fire Department responded to a grass fire on what was then YMV Road, north of Fields Road and near Hicky Street in southwest Memphis. It was about 8 p.m. on October 16, 1974 — 47 years ago. As they worked to put out the fire they discovered a human body beneath a pile of burning debris.
The Memphis Police Department responded to a call from the Fire Department at 8:40 that night. The body later was identified as that of Gloria P. Johnson. The 19-year-old woman had been reported missing 10 days earlier. Cause of death was by multiple stab wounds, the Shelby County Medical Examiner ruled. She may have been killed and her body dumped in the field.
The Memphis Police Department’s Cold Case Unit is actively investigating this unsolved homicide case and is asking for the public’s help. The family has posted a new $10,000 extra award with CrimeStoppers in the case, making a total of $12,000 the amount available to someone who provides information that helps police make an arrest.
Anyone with information — it might be a witness from 1974 or someone who has heard information on this crime since then — is urged to contact CrimeStoppers at (901) 528-CASH. A call is always anonymous and callers will be given a secret code.