After school Cherrie exited the school bus with three friends at approximately 4:10 pm. To understand the depth of this mother's despair you need to know this: "I got raped and had Cherrie when I was 16 years old and she was 'IT' for me. In another follow up article just hours after the original the police spell out his person of interest status more explicitly: "John Shumway (local reporter) went back to the state police today about Cherries biological father. "It's amazing after all these years we still get a lot of inquiries a lot of information, a lot of tips, sometimes we'll get a couple a week, other times it may go months and we don't hear anything," he says. The family and friends of the family were questioned and, appearance of the van and mural, no van has ever been seized in connection with Cherries disappearance and there has never been a main person of interest. Its every mothers dream to have a child graduate, go on to college and get married. Finally found a replay of it and then the link online and it's a potentially MAJOR update. Upon being reported missing police searched the area around Cherries home for days, with the assistance of helicopters, bloodhounds, and 250 volunteers. McKinney said the father knew a biker gang she felt was dangerous, but she doesn't know if they were violent. Children on the bus that day told police they saw a conversion van with a skier painted on the side. Cherrie Ann Mahan (August 14, 1976 - disappeared February 22, 1985; declared legally dead November 5, 1998) was an eight-year-old American girl who disappeared on February 22, 1985, after disembarking a school bus approximately fifty feet from the base of the driveway to her home in rural Winfield Township, Butler County, Pennsylvania.She was declared legally dead in November 1998. There were further and multiple sightings of avan. A local songwriter even wrote a song for Cherrie and several On the morning of February 22, 1985, Cherries mother Janice accompanied her to the bus stop, approximately 50 yards away from their home. February 04, 2022, "The criminal justice system will take a hard look at what happened to Matthew Eappen. That was the last time she was seen. ", Sign up to get the latest true crime stories, new product releases and more, Sign up to get the latest on sales, new releases and more . Janice and Leroy began searching the area and called people they knew to try to find her. She believes people connected to Cherrie's father were involved in her disappearance. She was last seen wearing a gray coat, blue denim skirt, blue leg warmers, and . she kept the door unlocked every night in the hopes that it was a And instead of picking her up on the way home, she was waiting at home instead. And I said go check and he went down he checked and she wasnt there.. She was carrying a blue backpack with two straps and a cream colored top. Cherrie Mahan only had to walk around the corner and go up her 150-foot driveway to make it home where her parents were waiting for her. They donated the life insurance policy to the National Center for Missing and Exploited Children and put a car accident settlement they had given to Cherri to her brother for a trust fund. Cherrie stood 42 and weighed 68 pounds when she disappeared. bus and heading down the hill towards her driveway. Well always look was wearing a gray coat, a blue denim skirt, a white leotard, blue leg warmers and beige boots. The couple lived in Winfield Township, Butler County, Pennsylvania, with their 8-year-old daughter, Cherrie Mahan. Cherrie Ann Mahan was born in Saxonburg, Pennsylvania, on August 14, 1976. Your email address will not be published. Police began to speak to people in the area, the children who were on the bus and the bus driver to try to locate Cherrie. Word of the potential abduction spread quickly throughout the Witnesses came forward to say they saw ablue van in the New Kensington area traveling back to the Mount Pleasant area in Westmoreland County. On the night of 7th December 2000 he attended his work Christmas party in Dublin and simply vanished. Letters and posters were sent to every television station and 2023 Cox Media Group. Janice later married LeRoy McKinney who accepted Cherrie as his step-daughter. She was last seen getting off the school bus about 100 yards from home. Its so sad, the mom really has a lot of guilt because apparently that was the one day that she didnt pick her up at school or something. Mahan's abduction is strongly believed not to have been committed by a family member. Cops have deemed said father a "person of interest" as well (see below), which is possibly a new revelation too. Now, in 2019, her mother told Target 11 Investigator Rick . Janice claimed that she'd been raped at the age of 15, but this didn't stop Janice being a good mother who doted on her daughter. Did somebody knock her on the head and drag her into a car, did somebody say 'hey your mom said we're to pick you up and get in the car?' Get browser notifications for breaking news, live events, and exclusive reporting. "It's like your heart has been snapped half and it will never go back together again," she says. When the school bus arrived, the two told each other they loved each other before Mahan boarded the bus. Emphasizing her belief that an anonymous tip from the public could finally give herself and her family the closure they crave, McKinney stated to the media: "I just wish someone would come forth and tell me what happened. It was the 22nd of February 1985. for Missing and Exploited Children.7. When ten minutes had elapsed and Mahan had not arrived, her mother and stepfather began to worry. Mahan's local community raised $39,000 as a reward for Mahan's safe return, with a local business also pledging an additional $10,000 for information leading to an arrest and conviction of her abductor or abductors. Missing person fliers were distributed which described Cherrie as 4 feet 2 inches tall and 68 pounds with brown hair and hazel-eyes. Subscribe to WTAE . "It's a torment, I've been tormented since the day she was taken. In 2000, a computer-generated rendition of how Mahan may have looked at age 23 was mailed to thousands of households across America. National Center for Missing and Exploited Children. Eventually the FBI was called in to assist in the search yet no clues turned up. Since KDKA's report aired last night at 11, Trooper Jim Long says, "We've gotten a ton of tips, it's been very effective and as of now, we're still trying to work our way through them, cause even as we are speaking now, I would not be surprised if we got a couple more.". 36 Years Later, Still No Sign Of Girl Abducted After Getting Off School Bus WPXI If you have any information regarding the disappearance of Cherrie Mahan please contact the Pennsylvania State Police Missing Persons Unity at (412) 284-8100. Its very Enter your email to receive notifications of new posts. It was just thetwo of them for a while and they were extremely close. Mahan alighted her bus with three friends at approximately 4:10 p.m. before her friends entered a car driven by the mother of one of the girls, Debbie Burk, that had followed the school bus. There were further and multiple sightings of avan. headquarters and a local grocer donated food for those assisting in the search. Cherrie got found you know. by Chilling Crimes Three other children got off the bus at her stop. transferred to her brother.6 This is not over. "I truly believe that there is someone out there that knows exactly what happened," she says. In 2020, McKinney revealed her conviction that although she does not believe Cherrie's biological father was involved in her abduction, she believes individuals known to him were. She believes people connected to Cherrie's father were involved in her disappearance. She has never been seen or heard. The van has never been located or identified and investigators are still not sure if it was connected to Cherrie's case. Powered by Shopify, Leroy worked as a postal worker.They chose the area as it, Witnesses claimed that there was also a blue car following the van that day. Theonly other piece of evidence police had was tire marks that had been left in the snow at the bottom of the hill.Nobody saw Cherrie get into a van or car and nobody saw anybody taking Cherrie. The police did not believe the rape allegation and Cherrie's biological father was never charged. Mahan accompanied her mother to the bus stop located approximately fifty feet from the base of the uphill driveway to their home. But she does not believe he was involved in her disappearance? But somebody knows something. A small blue car was also seen near the site of Cherrie's disappearance. And in the follow up they mention that after this new report initially aired on local TV in the past few days, the local cops said they have received DOZENS of new tips in the past few days. While she had accepted that her daughter had most likely been no ransom note, said Lt. Francis Walton of the state police. but to no avail. WINFIELD TOWNSHIP, Pa. (KDKA) - On a sunny Feb. 22, 1985, 8-year-old Cherrie Mahan got off her school bus on Cornplanter Road and headed to her driveway and her home. "I think about her all the time, I pray for her every night, I pray for her every morning," Janice says. Cherrie, as you may know, is an 8-year-old girl who disappeared shortly after getting off her school bus on February 22, 1985 from Butler County, Pennsylvania. about Cherries whereabouts. Police were notified within an hour of Cherrie getting off the bus. The police were called and days of searches began. Blue incolor with the mural on both sides. Mahan was wearing a gray coat, a blue denim skirt, a white leotard, blue leg warmers, beige boots, and Cabbage Patch earmuffs. "Because I wasn't there that day. They donated the life insurance policy they received to the National Center for Missing and Exploited Children, and put a car accident settlement she had received into a trust fund for her brother. Janice had moved to Mars with Leroy and the couple now had a 5-year-old son, Robert. "It's very interesting and there are questions that have been posed and we need to find the answers. Leroy wasnt Cherries birth-father. Bloodhounds were unable to pick up Cherries trail past the point where the blue van had stopped. Her friends on the bus notice a van with a mural painted on the side lurking in the background. In December of 1910, she disappeared without a trace. Please enter valid email address to continue. There was a van parked behind Debbie's van that Cherriehad to walk past. Target 11's Rick Earle has uncovered a new lead in the case that has investigators working on new interviews and a DNA test in Michigan. In 1995, the case was taken over by state Trooper Frank Jendesky. She was in the third grade. According to Janice, Cherrie's biological father was a man living in nearby Armstrong County. Fisher, Bonnie S.; Lab, Steven P. (2010). Cherrie was excited, as her mother was planning on taking her on a play date when she returned home from school. Cherrie's family had her declared legally deceased in 1992. She was declared legally dead in November 1998. The child's mother has stated that she doesn't believe Cherrie's biological father kidnapped her, but that people "known to him . forthcoming weeks, firefighters and helicopters assisted in the daunting search 8 year old Cherrie Mahan was last seen exiting her school bus near her home in Winfield Township, Pennsylvania on February 22, 1985. Now, 35 years later, Janice McKinney just wants to know. Debbie, the children on the bus and the bus driver told Janice and Leroy that Cherrie did get off the bus. Here are the exact passages from the article: "Janice believes there is a connection between her rape, Cherries birth, and eight years later her disappearance I do, I believe that but I cant prove anything, she says. The young married couple moved to Winfield Township and Leroy worked as a postal worker.They chose the area as itwas a quiet area and they thought it was the perfect place for Cherrie to grow up as there were many children who played outdoors and everyone felt so safe that they left their doors unlocked. Its a kidnapping. Cherrie Ann Mahan (disappeared February 22, 1985; declared legally dead November 5, 1998) was an eight-year-old American girl who disappeared on February 22, 1985 after disembarking a school bus approximately fifty feet from the base of the driveway to her home in rural Winfield Township, Butler County, Pennsylvania. ", by Chilling Crimes She thought about suicide and even tried to jump out of the passenger door of her truck on Route 8. Cherrie's father maintains his innocence in her case. Janice and her husband Leroy were in their home at the top of the hill waiting for Cherrie to get home so they could take her to a play date with friends. Cherrie was last seen getting off of the bus from her elementary school at approximately 4:05 p.m. on February 22, 1985. Cherrie never made it home, and has never been seen again. Cherrie's father maintains his innocence in her case. Cherrie, circa 1985; Age-progression to age 44 (circa 2020); Sketches of van possibly involved. They also wrote to He later recollected he had intended to walk down the 150-yard driveway to meet his stepdaughter before his wife said: "No, it's a nice day. According to her mother, Cherrie was conceived through rape when her mother was sixteen years old. Cherrie Mahan was born on August 14, 1985, to 16-year-old mother Janice Mahan. "It's heart breaking for anybody. Theyare in our work places, our friendship groups and sometimes even our homes. She was in the