Sonya Alice Langan:1982? 1983? Bullhead City, Arizona

   


  Sonya Alice Langan was born on October 18th, 1964 in Los Angeles. A California birth listing says her Mother’s maiden name was Hirsch but does not provide more information than that. 


  You may see her name spelled Sonia Langan. She attended Kingman High School in Kingman, Arizona in 1979. She appears in that 1979 yearbook in the Freshman Class. Did you go to school with her? Did you know her? 



  Kingman is not far from Bullhead City. Both of those Arizona towns are south of Las Vegas, Nevada. Those towns are north of Lake Havasu City with its famous London Bridge. (An old stone bridge from London was being dismantled and a developer from the U.S. purchased it and installed it in Lake Havasu City as a publicity stunt for his new development.) 



   Sonya Langan disappeared sometime in 1982 or 1983 but her family did not report her missing because she had taken off for a while without informing them before they said. 

Red dot shows Castleberry Lane. 


  Castleberry Lane is a short street in a residential neighborhood. It runs parallel to the Colorado River but is one street away from being a riverside street.


  When construction workers were digging in May 1989 to begin building homes in the area, they came across the buried remains of a female victim. This victim had been shot in the head. She was found with a multicolored owl shaped earring, women’s clothing and a handbag. The wording of that is interesting.  The official statement says “found with” those items. It doesn’t say she was dressed.  


 The remains that were found there had extensive dental work including a partial plate to replace missing teeth. Did the teeth get knocked out or was there a situation of tooth decay? I’m just guessing but I would imagine her teeth had been knocked out either in an accident or by an act of violence. I base that guess on the only people that I have ever known to have a partial plate before they were twenty who were all victims of serious accidents. Maybe she had an accident. But, traffickers and men who are frequenting sex workers can be extremely violent. 


 I wonder who did the dental work? 


Sonya Alice Langan's grave in Kingman, AZ

  Did investigators clip and save her fingernails? DNA from her killer could be under her nails. Sonya Langan was later buried as an unknown person in Mountain View Cemetery in Kingman, Arizona. Perhaps some DNA of her killer is still under her fingernails. Perhaps there is some DNA on her clothing. The desert is dry, as we know, and perhaps the arid environment preserved some evidence. It is possible. 


  I would imagine that Sonya was probably being trafficked around the time she disappeared and when she was killed. Young and vulnerable girls can often get lured into sex work and/or dancing for money in adult night clubs. This area of the desert has plenty of places for that. There’s plenty of men around that area who would be trafficking girls and women. That would explain the periods of time where she disappeared for a while and then came back for a while. 


  Who victimized her and shot her? 


  For decades Sonya’s remains were known as “Castleberry Kate”. She has only recently been identified.


  Rest In Peace, Sonya


  If you have any information about Sonya Langan please contact the Bullhead City Police Department at 928-763-9200. 


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