Retta Atkins -- The Gold Lady -- and Spouse victim of double homicide

July 1, 2022

Many of us knew Retta Atkins (age 73) and her husband, Darren Vanhouten (age 50), from the gold show circuit.

On Tuesday, 6/28/2022, Mohave County Sheriff's officers conducted a welfare check at their home in the 9200 block of Dilligaf Rd. in Kingman, Arizona, and discovered they had been victims of a homicide.

Sheriff's detectives have released few details, but did publish a photo that was apparently captured by a home surveillance system. Detectives stated the person is the photo "is currently wanted for questioning in this case."

They did not publically state what prompted the welfare check, but these are typically conducted when family or friends have not seen the person(s) in a few days. 

We are hopeful someone out there in the Kingman area or in the prospecting community will recognize this person. Mohave Silent Witness has offered a reward for anyone with information leading to the arrest of the person responsible.

From the Mohave County Sheriff's Office: 
Anyone with information about this incident or may be able to identify this subject is encouraged to contact the Mohave County Sheriff’s Office at 928-753-0753 or call our toll free number at
1-800-522-4312 and reference DR# 22-024010.