DES MOINES, Iowa (KCAU) — A Council Bluffs man has been charged with first-degree murder in connection to the 1989 disappearance of a woman from Woodbine.

Authorities arrested Robert Davis, 61, on Monday in connection to the 1989 disappearance of Barbara Lenz. Lenz was 31 at the time of her disappearance, according to court documents.

The documents state she was reported missing on May 17, 1989, and was last seen on May 6, 1989.

Back when the case was originally being investigated, Davis, then 26, told officials that he had last seen Lenz on May 6, 1989, when he had dropped her off at her apartment, documents state. He told officials that he had received a call from her stating that she had gone to Omaha to visit her daughter.

On the day she was reported missing, police and family members stopped by Lenz’s apartment where they found her pets had been uncared for and that many of her personal belongings such as her wallet and luggage were left behind. This indicated to officials that she was not expecting to be gone for long.

Officials with the Woodbine Police Department then requested assistance from the Iowa Division of Criminal Investigation as they believed her disappearance to be involuntary and suspicious.

Prior to her disappearance, the court documents state that Lenz had told multiple people that she was afraid of Davis and that Davis had assaulted her on multiple occasions. Just a few days before her appearance, she had also allegedly told people that Davis had threatened to kill her.

Investigators learned from multiple witnesses and Davis that he had assaulted Lenz in the past, and had also assaulted Lenz’s daughter.

The court documents then state that Lenz would often visit her daughter in Omaha which Davis did not like. On the day of her disappearance, Davis and Lenz reportedly got into an argument over her wanting to go visit her daughter and a witness claimed that Davis had assaulted Lenz during the argument. Lenz was last seen leaving Davis’ home with Davis in Davis’ vehicle, according to a witness account.

Prior to her disappearance, Lenz would allegedly often leave for a few days at a time. Witnesses stated that Davis’ behavior after May 6 was different than it usually was when she would disappear for long periods of time.

A witness also reported allegedly seeing Davis bury something in a rural area near Davis’ home and Davis’ brother had shown the witness where they had dug the hole and buried something wrapped in plastic. There have been multiple attempts to locate Lenz’s body in the area but her body was never found.

Since Lenz’s disappearance, the court documents state that witnesses have reported that Davis has made threats stating that someone would “end up like Barbara” during arguments.

After reviewing evidence and speaking with witnesses, law enforcement found that they had probable cause to arrest Davis. Davis has since been charged with first-degree murder and is being held on a $3 million bond. Davis will make his first appearance on March 20 at 10 a.m. at the Harrison County Courthouse.

This arrest was made with assistance from the Iowa Cold Case unit that was launched by Attorney General Brenna Bird in 2024. This was the unit’s first arrest since it was made, a release from Bird stated.

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