Researching cold cases and trying to find answers is incredibly important to me. However, I do have a full-time job at a community college. And, when one of my co-workers told me that one of the librarians disappeared a few years back, I started doing some research.
So, today I’m going to tell you the story of Corrie Anderson.
People who knew Corrie described her as loving and kind-hearted. She had an easy-going manner and a smile for everyone she met. And, Corrie had plenty to smile about lately. Her sister had introduced her to Mike Samuelson the previous December and the relationship was going very well. In fact, the two of them were discussing wedding plans for the following summer.
Shortly after noon on October, 28, 2008, Corrie left Hultquist Library at Jamestown Community College where she worked as a part-time library technician. There was a definite chill in the air that day. Some lake effect snow was expected, but that was typical late October weather for western New York State.
Corrie drove to Lake County Dodge, where Mike worked, to drop off his lunch. She told him she planned to go home to take care of some things before picking up her son and younger daughter at school. She also had to meet with her son’s teacher at 3:15 to plan the class Halloween party.
She left the dealership at 1:10. At approximately 1:30 she texted one of her friends. That was the last time anyone saw or heard from Corrie.
At 3:15, she hadn’t shown up for her meeting or to pick up her children. Her daughter started calling around and at 3:45 her family reported her missing.
Her mother and sister went to Corrie’s house where they saw she had made it home. Items from work were there and they found one of Corrie’s shoes at the bottom of the stairs. However, both Corrie and her Dodge Caravan were gone.
Law enforcement got to work right away and started searching for Corrie. However, there was no sign of her or her van. Furthermore, Corrie’s phone was turned off so they couldn’t use that to track her location.
Two days later, on October 30, police received a tip. A hunter (or someone checking oil wells, depending on the source) found Corrie’s van on a lease road approximately 1 mile from her house.
After discovering the van, the police went to speak with Ken Anderson, whom Corrie was in the process of divorcing. Police searched his home but couldn’t find any evidence tying him to Corrie’s disappearance.
Everyone had very good reason to suspect Ken’s involvement. To say the divorce proceedings were contentious would be an understatement.
But, to get a better understanding of Corrie and Ken’s relationship, we need to go back to 2000.
That was the year that Corrie met Ken online. Both had been married before. Corrie had two daughters from her first marriage and Ken had four children. Ken and his first wife divorced and Ken went on to marry three more times before meeting Corrie.
The two had a whirlwind romance and married a few months later. The next year Corrie gave birth to a son. Corrie’s family never warmed to Ken and there were conflicts between him and her daughters. However, Corrie tried to make the marriage work.
But, things changed when Corrie came across paperwork and discovered that Ken had never divorced his fourth wife, making him a bigamist. Corrie sought out Ken’s first wife, Stephanie, and what Stephanie had to tell her probably chilled Corrie to the bone.
Stephanie had married Ken when she was 17 and pregnant. Ken was controlling and manipulative and would padlock Stephanie inside the house whenever he left. He was also abusive, threatening Stephanie with a gun at one point. She finally gathered up the courage and fled with her four children. She advised Corrie to do the same.
Ken’s bigamy and her conversation with Stephanie was all the motivation that Corrie needed to leave Ken and initiate divorce proceedings in 2005. At that point, Corrie could finally admit to her family that Ken had also been abusing her.
The most dangerous time for a victim of domestic violence is when they try to leave and Ken was not ready to let Corrie go. He continued to harass and stalk her. Ken even went so far as to place a GPS on Corrie’s van so he could track her every move. Corrie discovered the tracker in 2007 and placed a restraining order on Ken. He was arrested two months later for violating that order.
He left the area and moved to Alabama but returned a few months later. He continued in his attempts to terrorize Corrie. She told family that she would discover things moved around in her garage. According to one forum on Web Sleuths, Corrie stated that someone had broken into her home and rearranged the furniture. Assuming it was Ken, this was a brazen attempt to show Corrie that he was the one in control.
So, it’s understandable that all fingers would be pointed towards Ken Anderson being involved in Corrie’s disappearance. However, after the initial interview, Ken got a lawyer and refused to answer any more questions.
After Corrie’s van was found and set off for processing, the search continued. According to Eric Tichy of the Post-Journal, local, county and state law enforcement agencies from New York and Pennsylvania were joined by the FBI, Forest Rangers, and the Department of Environmental Conservation to try and find the missing woman before winter conditions set in. On weekends, volunteers combed the fields and woods in hopes of finding Corrie.
Once winter arrived, the family turned its focus to fundraising efforts to keep the search going. Corrie’s co-workers at Hultquist Library set up the Corrie Anderson Family Fund to raise additional monies to assist in the search. Any money left over would be used to establish a college fund for Corrie’s three children.
Come April 2009, Corrie’s family and volunteers were geared up for another search coordinated by Equusearch, located in Texas. Bad weather postponed the initial date and then, 3 days before the re-scheduled weekend, Equusearch backed out. Fortunately, 3 View Search Services from Indiana heard of the family’s plight and stepped in to offer their assistance.
Even though hundreds of volunteers searched the area, they found no sign of Corrie.
For years, there were no new developments and Corrie’s case began to go cold.
But, in 2016, two significant events occurred.
First, in the spring of 2016, a new tip lead to the discovery of Corrie’s missing shoe and the van keys not too far from where Corrie’s van was discovered.
The second major event was the arrest of Corrie’s ex-husband, Ken.
In November 2016, he was charged with kidnapping, first-degree rape and unlawful imprisonment. You see, shortly after Corrie disappeared, Ken married for a sixth time. And, just like Corrie, his current wife also had a restraining order against him. Her family reported her missing. She was located in a hotel in Richmond, KY, where Ken was holding her against her will. She returned to western New York while Ken was remanded to jail.
Corrie’s family that this would be the break they were hoping for. Unfortunately, Ken didn’t provide any new information. I couldn’t find anything more beyond Ken’s initial arrest so I don’t know if he received a conviction. Though, I can tell you that he is currently back in New York.
That brings us to today. Corrie missed seeing her son graduate from high school and the birth of her grandchildren. Corrie’s dad passed away without knowing what happened to his daughter. But, Corrie’s mother is still alive and she deserves to know the truth. So do Corrie’s siblings and children.
Someone knows what happened to Corrie. Maybe they were involved, or maybe it’s something they heard. Here is their opportunity. They can call New York State Police at 716-665-3113. They can also contact Crime Stoppers at 866-313-TIPS (8477) and they will remain completely anonymous.
Let’s bring Corrie home where she belongs.
