Jim Boyd

**James "Jim" Albert Boyd** was a man who vanished in 1987. A man has been charged with his murder but his body has never been found.

## Background

Jim was a businessman who travelled around the world searching for and dealing in rare objects. He often worked from home; buying and selling gold, silver, ivory, human figurines, rare coins, wines, hummel figurines and firearms. He had other previous businesses including one selling Nazi war memorabilia before this.

Jim lived in a house which has been described as fortress-like. It had no windows and an elaborate security system at the time of his disappearance. He was described as a rather reclusive man who didn't drink or smoke. He liked late model cars but otherwise lived modesty. He was convicted of second degree murder over two decades prior to his disappearance after he shot a man his first wife was having an affair with.

## Case

Jim was last seen at a local bank in St. Petersburg, Florida on February 6, 1987. He purchased $1,500 in traveler's checks for a trip he was planning to take to South Africa. He hasn't been seen or heard from since; his black and silver Chevrolet El Camino. Several days later, Tampa bank employees called police to inform them that someone posing as Jim was attempting to withdraw money from his account. Authorities were able to confirm that Jim never actually arrived in South Africa.

On February 13, 1987, police went to Jim's residence in the 1800 Block of Nebraska Avenue northeast in St. Petersburg. They found the front door was unlocked and that there were bloodstains in several room. There were also bullet holes and spent .25 caliber cartridges in a wall and a mattress. Expensive items including jewelry, firearms, objects d'art and bottles of rare wine were missing. There were no signs of Jim's whereabouts in the house.

Police eventually determined that the individual who had tampered with Jim's bank accounts and driven his car was a man named Steven Wayne White. White, who had a lengthy criminal record, initially posed as someone who wanted to buy Jim's house. Through this the men became friends then lovers. Unfortunately, investigators believe that White had been planning Jim's murder for months, ever since he'd met Jim's ex-girlfriend Janina Koziej Meylheux.

It was found that White and Meylheux had $10,000 in cash, a .25 caliber handgun, Jim's El Camino and several hundred thousand dollars of Jim's belongings in their possession. White's fingerprints were also found in Jim's bathroom.

White and Meylheux were arrested in June, 1987. White was charged with Jim's murder while Meylheux was only charged with grand theft. After pleading guilty Meylheux, who was a naturalised French citizen, returned to France. White's defense attempted to argue that Jim, who was bisexual and a transvestite, may have staged his disappearance so he could live life as a woman. White was charged with theft and murder in Jim's case.

White has also been charged with the murder of Cedric Horn, a former dentist who also vanished in 1987. These charges only came in June 2015 and White pled guilty to second degree murder in 2017. White is currently serving a life sentence for Jim's murder. Neither of the men's remains have ever been found.

## Characteristics

* Brown hair.
* Blue eyes.
* He had an unspecified tattoo on his left arm.

## Sources

* Jim Boyd at the *Charley Project*
* Jim Boyd at *NamUs*
* Jim Boyd at the *Doe Network*