LAKEWOOD, N.Y. (WKBW) — Lori Ceci Bova vanished after an argument with her husband on June 7, 1997. Despite decades of investigation, her case remains unsolved.
"Lori would now be 55 years old; she was 26 at the time," said Paul Gustafson, who is one of the original investigators on the case.
"Somebody out there knows the information that we're looking for," said Merry Williams-Diers, who is working to keep Bova's memory alive.
I spoke with the original investigators on the case at the Lakewood Busti Police Department, who recounted the night Bova disappeared.
WATCH: 'Where is Lori Ceci Bova?': Advocates, law enforcement still searching for woman who went missing in 1997
"1997, it was a Sunday morning, I was a patrolman at the time, and I received a call to meet with family members of Lori's," Gustafson said.
Her husband, Tyrone Bova, told police they had dinner at Red Lobster before returning home, where they had an argument.
"We know there had been an argument that was involved in this," Gustafson said. "At about 2 a.m., she allegedly walked away from the apartment."
She was never seen again.
Shortly after her disappearance, Tyrone Bova stopped cooperating with investigators.
"At some point in the initial days of that, he became uncooperative with us in regards to our questioning," Gustafson said.
In 2018, Tyrone Bova and his new wife were killed in a car accident. Police previously considered him a person of interest, but he was never named a suspect.
"People know that if they do something and they don't talk about it and they get lucky and the evidence is never found -- that they get away with these kinds of things," said John Bentley, former police chief.
His son Matthew is now the chief of the department.
"It's something that's frustrating that you can't have answers for, and it's not just answers for us, but it's answers for the family," Matthew Bentley said.
On Saturday, to mark the day Lori was last seen alive, members of Western New York Missing and Unidentified Persons gathered by Lori's apartment in Lakewood.
"We want to make sure that Lori's name is remembered," Williams-Diers said.
"Anytime I post anything regarding Lori, it gets a lot more shares than the average," she added as she and other volunteers taped a flyer with Lori's image on a pole near her old home.
Among those who showed up for the commemoration was Denise Mealy, who went to school with Lori.
"She was the sweetest girl that ever lived," Mealy said. "She would have gave you the shirt off her back if you needed it."
The group held a vigil releasing white balloons with the words: "In loving memory, forever remembered, forever missed. In our hearts forever."
Lakewood Busti police are asking anyone with information about Lori Ceci Bova's whereabouts to reach out to them at 716-763-9563.
You can also email WNY Missing and Unidentified Persons at Wnymissingandunidentified@yahoo.com.
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