In 1986, Ihm resided in San Diego, California. Originally from Phoenix, Arizona, she made a spontaneous trip back to Phoenix in July 1986 to visit friends. Her former family gardener, Robert Yama, paid for her plane ticket and picked her up at the airport. On the evening of July 12, Ihm attended a party with her friends and was last seen at approximately 11:00 a.m. on July 13. Friends reported that Yama was upset she had spent the weekend socializing with them rather than spending time with him. Yama claimed he dropped Ihm off at a Greyhound bus station near 6th Street and Washington Street, where she planned to board a bus back to California. However, investigators later confirmed she never boarded the bus. Ihm was scheduled to begin a new paralegal job the following day but failed to show up. She has not been seen or heard from since. Yama refused to cooperate with the investigation and is considered a potential suspect in Ihm’s disappearance. Despite this, he was never charged and passed away in 2005.