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Gerald Eugene Layne, age 32, was last seen in Reno, Nevada on January 6, 1961.
Gerald was the general manager of the Riverside Hotel Casino in Reno. He was last seen when he left in his uncle’s white 1960 car for a high stakes poker game in Placerville, California. He was carrying $15,000 in cash. When Gerald did not return to work, his uncle, Loyal Morrow, who also was employed by the casino, notified authorities.
The car was later found in the parking lot of Harrah’s in Lake Tahoe. It was locked and showed no signs of violence. The only clue noted was that the rubber mat in the trunk was brand new.
A Las Vegas promoter named Glen Lucas reportedly had requested that Gerald participate in the poker game and had arranged to meet Gerald at the Lake Tahoe Harrah’s, and they would travel to Placerville together. Glen Lucas told investigators the game was called off because Gerald didn’t show. Lucas claimed to have no knowledge of what happened to Gerald, but he remained a person of interest. One article reports that Gerald was seen with Glen in the Harrah’s parking lot, but I find it somewhat unlikely that a hotel manager from Reno and a promoter from Las Vegas would both be recognized in a SouthLake Tahoe parking lot. It’s worth noting that Harrah’s still exists to this day, but it wasn’t the mega-resort in the 1960s that it is today. It was just a casino, showroom and buffet. The hotel was added later.
Investigators discovered that Lucas was awaiting trial in Placerville on a bad check charge, and the check was cashed in South Lake Tahoe. He is also said to have gone to Mexico for a time immediately after Gerald disappeared, and he was charged with the murder of another man in 1969.
Gerald had been an executive at the New Frontier Casino in Las Vegas prior to moving to Reno. He was divorced with two children.
As investigators looked into Gerald’s disappearance, they learned that he had been arrested in Tulsa, Oklahoma in 1959. The charges related to possession of loaded dice, marked playing cards and a pistol. As a result of this discovery, Nevada gaming authorities determined he was no longer eligible to manage the casino.
Gerald was arrested again in 1960 in Reno, Nevada, as evidenced by a mug shot, but the reason for this arrest is unknown.
I haven’t seen any indication of whether the cash he was carrying was found in the car, but I would be willing to bet it wasn’t. And how many people would have known he would be carrying it, and exactly where he would be? I don’t think there’s a huge mystery as to what happened to Gerald, but where is he?
The Riverside Hotel & Casino no longer exists, but the building is still there and is currently being used as apartments.
Sources:
Find A Grave
Reno Gazette-Journal
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