Robert John Lanoue, a 72-year-old man from Reno, Nevada, has been sentenced to life in prison after pleading guilty to the rape, kidnapping, and murder of 5-year-old Anne Pham in a 1982 cold case. Lanoue was also sentenced to an additional 31 years for his crimes and ordered to register as a sex offender for life. The case remained unsolved for over 40 years until it was reopened in 2020 by the D.A.’s Cold Case Task Force. Through forensic genetic genealogy, investigators were able to link Lanoue to the crime scene based on DNA evidence found on Pham’s body. Lanoue, an Army veteran stationed at Fort Ord at the time of the murder, lived near the Pham family home and had a history of sexually assaulting young girls. He admitted to picking up Pham in his car but claimed he couldn’t remember the murder. Lanoue’s guilty plea brought closure to a tragic case that had haunted the community for decades.
In 1998, Lanoue was convicted in his home state for crimes against a minor in Las Vegas. By July 2023, he was already in prison in Nevada’s Washoe County jail for a parole violation. Lanoue pleaded guilty on Feb. 20, 2025, to first-degree murder, kidnapping, committing a forcible lewd act on a child under 14, forcible rape, and forcible sodomy.
L’Heureux expressed the difficulty of leaving this case unsolved, highlighting the tragic nature of the young victim’s innocence as she was on her way to school. The community was deeply affected by the case remaining unsolved for 40 years. Nassoura stated that the victim’s family was informed throughout the investigation and resolution, bringing a sense of closure and justice to them.
If you or someone you know has experienced sexual assault, please reach out to the National Sexual Assault Hotline at 1-800-656-HOPE (4673) or visit rainn.org.
