Shraman Mitra
Investigation Discovery’s ‘Hometown Homicide: Hold The Line,’ portrays the horrifying kidnapping, rape, and murder of 65-year-old Martha “Doe” Roberts in 1992. Her husband, Allen Roberts, was the first to notice and report his wife missing from their Eads, Tennessee home. To pile onto his worries, he was then investigated by the police for any involvement in the crime. The loving husband was dragged through hell as with each passing day, the hope to get his wife back alive slowly drained away. Let’s find out how Allen coped with his misery and if he is still alive today, shall we?
Who Was Allen Roberts?
Born in November 1926, Allen spent most of his teenage years in Memphis. During World War 2, Allen served his country by joining and serving in the Merchant Marines. After marrying his first wife, Martha, in 1948, Allen took up a job as a professional square dance caller as both he and his wife were connoisseurs of the art. After settling down in Eads, Tennessee, Allen kept helping the community and took up the initiative to construct the Eads community center.
On August 7, 1992, the fateful day when his wife vanished, Allen had received a phone call from a person who introduced himself as Sam Wagner. Sam said that he was interested in purchasing a piece of property Allen was selling. Allen had immediately stepped out to show the prospective buyer around, but strangely Sam Wagner never turned up for their meeting. On returning home, the first thing Allen noticed was the open garage door. Upon entering his house, Allen could not find his wife anywhere. The anxious husband smelt further trouble when he noticed Martha’s car and her inhaler still in the house. Even worried and desperate phone calls to the neighbors weren’t enough to locate his wife.
The kidnapper contacted Allen first, and Allen immediately reported it to the police. Desperate to get his wife back, Allen even made a public plea to the kidnapper, telling him that he was willing to follow any demands for the safe return of his wife. Initially, the police investigation was focused on Allen and his whereabouts during the time of the disappearance. With the case crossing the one-year mark and no new information about Martha or the kidnapper, Allen and his family took it upon themselves to look into the disappearance. It was a tremendous sense of relief for Allen when Martha’s nephews managed to identify the kidnapper as Charles Lord, and the FBI charged him with murder.
Is Allen Roberts Dead or Alive?
Allen Roberts left his earthly abode on October 16, 2005. After Charles Lord’s arrest and subsequent conviction, Allen Roberts finally got closure in the mystery of his wife’s disappearance. Still, a sense of closure could never replace the person that he loved, and Allen kept grieving his late wife and constantly kept her in his mind.
Shortly after Lord’s conviction, Allen found love for a second time when he met and fell for Esther Hammons. The couple got married in 1994. With Esther’s loving touch, Allen managed to defeat the demons of his past and leave the darkness behind. The couple shared a blissful eleven years together before Allen’s passing in 2005. On October 16, 2005, Allen Roberts breathed his last due to natural causes in Arlington, Tennessee. He was seventy-eight and was survived by his wife Esther, who passed away in 2015.
Read More: Martha Roberts Murder: Is Charles Lord Dead or Alive?
