FORT MYERS - A Fort Myers family is hoping 21st century technology can help police solve a 31-year old missing persons case.

Margie Phillips was last seen on April 22, 1976. She was heading to a bank in downtown Fort Myers with her boyfriend. But no account activity was recorded that day, and nobody has seen her since.

While much has changed over three decades, for Margie Phillips' family, the constant has been the lack of answers.

"Deep down in my heart, I know she's dead," said Phillips' sister, Zenda Rowe.

It's still diffifult for Margie Phillips' family; after 31 years, they still don't know what happened to a woman they describe as a loving mother of four. Her daughter Wanda was just four years old at the time.

"Having school plays and this and that, nobody to come, it's been torture," she said.


"This is not a woman that anybody believes by any account walked away from her family," said detective Jennifer LaDelfa of the Fort Myers police department. She is one of two detectives who have been reviewing the case for the last couple of years.

There have been fewer leads as time passes. the most recent was in 2005, when investigators dug up a lot on larmie street, but found nothing. Now, detectives are turning to DNA, taking a sample from one of Phillips' sisters to compare to unsolved cases.

"There's remains found all over the place, and always unidentified," said detective Brant Gederian.

Investigators have interviewed Margie Phillips' then-boyfriend several times over three decades. WINK News found him still living in Fort Myers, but he did not want to speak to us on camera. In 1976, he told investigators that phillips disappeared after he took her to a downtown bank. But other witnesses then said the couple was spotted driving north on US 41. The family admits suspicions about margie's former boyfriend, but her daughter simply wants to know what happened-- to finally get some closure.

"I don't hate him, I forgive him. But he needs to come forward," said Wanda Phillips.

Wednesday would have been Margie Phillips' 62nd birthday. Her sisters say the best present would be to get a new lead in the case. If you know anything, you're urged to call CrimeStoppers at 800-780-TIPS. Your calls can remain anonymous.