The Doe Network – pictured above is Rochelle
Born on March 1, 1966, Rochelle “Rocky” Ihm grew up in Phoenix, Arizona, but by 1986, she had relocated to San Diego, California, with her family.
Prior to the move, she’d graduated from Arcadia High School and pursued further education at Scottsdale Community College. Then, once she reached the Golden State, she planned to begin working as a paralegal.
Yet, following a trip back to Arizona that was financed by a former employee of the Ihm family, 20-year-old Rochelle went missing in the summer of 1986. And over 39 years later, what exactly happened to the young woman remains a mystery.
It was near the middle of July 1986 when Rochelle decided to return to Arizona to visit some friends, but she didn’t pay for her own travel. Instead, she reportedly spoke to her family’s former gardener, 33-year-old Robert Yama, who offered to cover the cost of her plane ticket back to Phoenix.
According to Rochelle’s loved ones, Robert was supposedly interested in her, and it’s unclear whether the 20-year-old reciprocated those feelings. Regardless, she agreed to travel to Phoenix and, on July 12, she attended a party with her friends.
They last saw her at 11:00 a.m. on July 13, and her friends alleged that Robert had been upset because Rochelle had spent the weekend partying with them rather than hanging out with him.
Then, that same day, Robert claimed to have dropped Rochelle off at a Greyhound bus station in downtown Phoenix, located near 6th Street and Washington Street, so she could travel back to San Diego.
Nonetheless, she didn’t make it home to California, and according to authorities, Rochelle never actually got on the bus. Moreover, she was supposed to start a new paralegal job the next day, but she failed to show up.
Rochelle was never seen or heard from again, and while Robert is considered a potential suspect, he wasn’t cooperative in the investigation and ultimately died in 2005 without ever facing charges.
The Doe Network – pictured above is Rochelle
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Her sister, Denise Abdelnour, remembers her as an “adorable child” who was a jokester at heart. She also detailed how authorities didn’t seem to take Rochelle’s disappearance seriously initially, saying, “The Phoenix police, at that point in time, were talking, ‘Oh well, she probably ran away with a boyfriend.’”
But days and weeks soon turned into months, and Rochelle did not turn up. This pushed her mother to investigate the case herself, taking detailed notes and even writing to the FBI to request federal assistance in the search. Unfortunately, these efforts were unfruitful since national agencies declined to get involved without proof of a federal crime.
“As the letter from the U.S. Justice Department said, they assist when it becomes a federal case. However, it’s in the hands of local authorities, who may or may not have the resources to research those sorts of disappearances,” Denise recalled.
Per the National Missing and Unidentified Persons System (NamUs), the state of Arizona has over 1,000 open missing person cases. Rochelle’s vanishing represents one of them, but as of 2025, there have been few developments in her case.
Most of Robert’s family members have passed away, including his father in 1998, followed by his sister and mother in 2005 and 2019, respectively. As for Rochelle’s parents, they also died without ever learning what happened to their daughter.
“You know, every phone call you receive, there’s always that hope. I’m the last remaining member of my family in the U.S., and I just feel it’s my responsibility to find out what happened to her before I leave this Earth, not that I’m planning on doing that any time soon,” Denise stated in 2015.
“I’d like to have this resolved, or at least it would be nice to know what happened to her and to put it to rest.”
At the time she disappeared, Rochelle was between 5’3″ and 5’4″ and weighed 98 to 108 pounds. She had blue eyes, blonde/strawberry hair, and a round brown birthmark on her left leg.
If alive today, Rochelle would be 59 years old. Anyone with information regarding her case is urged to contact the Phoenix Police Department at (602) 261-8042.
By Katharina Buczek
Katharina Buczek graduated from Stony Brook University with a degree in Journalism and a minor in Digital Arts. Specializing in… More about Katharina Buczek
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