Although authorities have not released the actual contents of the letter, they confirmed it included specific names and locations, which were thoroughly investigated. Other children on the bus and a neighbour told police that they Both of these men disappeared under similar circumstances in 2003 and 2004. Someone has to know something.. A neighbor reported Lisa missing on May 1, 2007. According to 11 News, authorities conducted an extensive search of a hunting camp along the Allegheny River, as the letter indicated Mahan was killed and her remains were buried somewhere on the property. no ransom note, said Lt. Francis Walton of the state police. Its every mothers dream to have a child graduate, go on to college and get married. This woman is one of many who disappeared while taking a cruise to a foreign land. Cherrie Mahan disappeared in 1985 after hopping off her school bus. One of the main suspects in the murder in the infamous Zodiac Killer. premonition.4, The case gradually went cold. In the intervening years, a huge local and national search hasn't uncovered evidence about the girl's fate, but just like her family, investigators aren't giving up. In an interview with 11 News, Jendesky said the search for Mahan had been terribly "frustrating." This figure has since greatly increased. A pedophile still is a possibility, McKinney said. "You can never move on until you forgive, and I have forgiven," she said. Brown hair, hazel eyes. Distinguishing Characteristics Caucasian female. But they are trying harder and upping their efforts to find answers around the anniversary of the 8-year-old's disappearance Feb. 22, 1985. Active Missing People reports that the description matches the van Debbie Burk saw parked on the corner Cherrie Mahan would have passed on her way home. People didnt talk about it then. A thorough search of Butler County was bolstered by an estimated 250 local volunteers, although these searches failed to locate the child. She got off the bus with three other children. The mother was allegedly raped and conceived Cherrie. This is a pivotal missing person case because it was the first to feature a circulated flier with the child's photo. We dont give up hope, Kofluk said. That van was very distinctive I wouldnt be surprised if it was destroyed shortly afterwards. That is why we keep pushing., When McKinney, 62, wants to think about her lost child, all she has to do is look at the tattoo she got last year on her left hand. Police are looking for more than someone gives me the creeps tips, DeLuca said. Immediately after his disappearance 100 police officers and bloodhounds searched his SoHo neighborhood high and low for him. Shortly thereafter, they donated the $58,000 reward fund to the National Center Her left arm was previously broken below her left shoulder, but the injury had healed before her 1985 disappearance. According to Chilling Crime, Mahan, along with three other children, exited the bus at approximately 4:10 p.m. Debbie Burk was parked in her van at the bus stop, waiting for her two children and another child who she had agreed to drive home. We grew up together. But Cherrie didn't make it home that day, and 35 years later, Cherrie's family and friends are still waiting for answers.Character limits won't let us list all of our sources here, but you can find them . Long says they may not even realize it. The elementary school became a Mahan's mother has stated that prior to her daughter's disappearance, nobody had believed her claims that her daughter had been conceived through her being raped,[34] adding that on "any other day", she would have been standing at the bottom of her driveway to meet her daughter when the school bus arrived, and that February 22, 1985, was the first day she had not done so. She was only eight-years-old when she disappeared. However, the little girl seemingly vanished into thin air and was never seen again. He had a chance to speak with a guy who, as a boy, got off at the same bus stop as Cherrie did. Cherrie's home in Butler County PA, just north of Pittsburgh, was only about 50 feet from the bus stop. Long will say about suspects: Anybody that was implicated, until we find evidence otherwise, they still would be considered a suspect.. "I think about her all the time, I pray for her every night, I pray for her every morning," Janice says. Cherrie was a tough little girl, she was growing up and fought (with the pedophile), Vincent said. Who Killed KRBC Presenter Jennifer Servo? She cited him as cruel, domineering, and verbally abusive. A distinctive van had been following the school bus and it was theorized whoever was in this van, abducted Cherrie. Leroy wasnt Cherries birth-father. Cherrie's father maintains his innocence in her case. The woman had packed her boxes and taken the art off the walls. Murray also conducted online research and made bookings at hotels in various areas on the east coast. Craig had filed for divorce months before she disappeared but the couple continued living together. Cherrie Mahan's family and members of law enforcement gathered at the Saxonburg Memorial Church 30 years after her unsolved disappearance. This national bank of resources for missing people is run by the United States, but there are missing person investigations going cold around the entire world. Theres nothing to point the finger of suspicion at anybody. Janice McKinney says authorities did not believe her rape allegation and Cherries biological father was never charged. Burk was adamant this Dodge van had also followed the school bus, recounting this sighting in April 1985, Burk stated: "I sat in the car and watched the kids get off. It's been a quarter of a century and the cops are nowhere closer to solving the case than they were the day she disappeared. Two sketches of the vehicle are posted with this case summary. He was under the impression that she got a ride to her job since her phone and purse were gone. Since Feb. 22, 1985, her mother,. Mahan attended Winfield Elementary School, where she was regarded as a bright, popular and happy child. Janice was a single mother for several years before she met and married Vietnam veteran LeRoy McKinney. and Leroy McInney heard the school bus coming up the road just as they did Burk saw Cherrie walking past a bluish-green Dodge van and then turn the corner to walk the last 150 . Investigating Agency. Although Mahan was legally [] In 2011, Rebecca Coriam disappeared from a Disney cruise ship. After that, she has been neither seen nor. Law enforcement and Butler's psychic sisters are frustrated by a 38-year search for a suspect in the abduction of Cherrie Mahan from a rural bus stop in Winfield Township. Although police continue to run down every tip received, they need something more solid, DeLuca said. Now, nearly 26 years after she vanished, the lead investigator says there could be a break in the case. However, their early efforts were hampered by a thick fog, which covered the region. She believes that incident and the disappearance are related, and that "friends" of her alleged rapist (Cherrie's unnamed biological father) were responsible for Cherrie's disappearance. If she had gotten lost or was killed near her home, for example, officials believe they would have found some trace of her, her clothes, or her belongings during the extensive searches. [27], Investigators quickly discounted any possibility Mahan had been kidnapped for a ransom;[28][n 4] concluding the child most likely knew her abductor or abductors, although all family members were quickly eliminated as suspects. Cherrie Mahan would be 42 years old today. Though nobody witnessed her actual abduction many saw a truck with a camper shell following her on her ride. She believes people connected to Cherrie's father were involved in her disappearance. every week day. NONFAMILY ABDUCTED CHILD CHERRIE ANN MAHAN AGE PROGRESSION DOB : Aug-14-1976 Date Missing : Feb-22-1985 Age : 26 years Height : 4' 2" - 127 cm Weight . Though Craig was a person of interest in the matter he has never been arrested for the disappearance of Lisa Stebic. First published on February 19, 2020 / 7:48 PM. There is no evidence received that puts her in the van, DeLuca said. According to the children, the van a 1970s Dodgethat reportedly followed behind the bus for several miles was blue and had large murals of mountains and a downhill skier. Get browser notifications for breaking news, live events, and exclusive reporting. But unfortunately, many of these crimes still go unsolved. There were no license plate readers or home surveillance cameras at the time. transferred to her brother.6 This is not over. The mans body was never found. That afternoon like usual Cherrie was seen climbing off the Arad was captured by a Shiite group and handed over to Hezbollah while on a mission over Lebanon. I worked 40 years in a nursing home. [9] Her mother, Janice Mahan, was just 16 at the time she gave birth to her daughter, which she later confessed had been a result of her being raped at age 15. 2023 CBS Broadcasting Inc. All Rights Reserved. Whatever happened to her occurred during the walk to her house, police said. scene. Unfortunately, no sign of the van or the girl was ever found. In a strange and elaborate tale, Calkins explained that he had dropped both men off at Circle K convenience stores. I hope someone comes through with some good firsthand knowledge, Trooper Max DeLuca said. Today marks 38 years since 8-year-old Cherrie Mahan disappeared in Butler County. A Seattle store worker turned the tables on an armed suspect during an attempted robbery on Monday, shooting and killing the would-be thief in an exchange of gunfire, authorities . The big news is Cherrie's mother says she believes she knows who took her. (CNN) - Cherrie Mahan was 8 years old when she disappeared from her bus stop one day after school in 1985. frustrating. At the time of her disappearance, Lisa Stebic lived with her two children and husband Craig. Because of this, his first trial went to retrial. On February 22, 1985, Cherrie Mahan got off of her school bus only blocks from her home. Theyll want to get it off their chest., 2023 Trib Total Media | All Rights Reserved, Courtesy of National Center for Missing and Exploited Children, An age progression of Cherrie Mahan, who went missing in 1985. A small blue car was also seen near the site of Cherrie's disappearance. [29], Appeals as to sightings of the distinctive bluish-green Dodge van produced eyewitnesses who informed investigators they had seen a vehicle matching this description in New Kensington, traveling in the direction of Mount Pleasant. The 1985 Disappearance of School Girl Cherrie Ann Mahan ~ True Crime Diva, The Mysterious Disappearance Of Cherrie Mahan Explained - Celeb 99, Lost at Sea The Disappearance of Rebecca Coriam. Theres been Editor's note: "AC360" is investigating some of the nation's most notorious cold cases. She was wearing Cabbage A search of their driveway did not locate the child or any of her footprints upon the snow on the ground leading to her house,[7] although they did discover a set of tire impressions in the driveway soil approximately fifty yards from their home. Not him personally but the people that he knows yes., Police are aware of McKinneys suspicions and have told her the man is adamant in his denials. Instead, Amy stayed on the ship with her brother and took in a show then stayed out until the wee hours partying together. The individual named in this letter was a woman who had been adopted as a child and was unsure of her precise origins, although DNA testing[33] later confirmed this woman was not Mahan.