JAMESTOWN, N.Y. — It has been eleven years since a 36-year-old mother of three from Jamestown disappeared. More than a decade later, New York State Police investigators continue to comb the case to figure out what happened to the young Southern Tier mom.
Investigators could see a breakthrough in the case, if they can track down and use new DNA technology.
New York State Police began investigating after Corrie Anderson didn't show up for a school meeting with her son on October 28, 2008.
"Two days later we were advised about the car being parked in a field," said NYSP Senior Investigator Joseph Smith. "It was about a mile from her house it was parked in a well road that you couldn’t see from the road. Someone who was out logging found it and called police."
Search parties with family, friends and strangers combed the area in the Town of Busti where her van was found. Searches stopped when the snow fell in December, but began again in the spring.
"Ya know, ya here stories about somebody who was taken and put into a basement or something, that had always been in the back of our minds" said Corrie Anderson's mother Vicki Acquisto.
Acquisto believes that Ken Anderson, Corrie's ex-husband could be involved with her daughter's disappearance. Corrie had an order of protection against him.
"In my heart I know that Ken is behind this, did he do it? I don't know, but I know that he had something to do with it" said Acquisto.
Years went by without a trace of Corrie until eight years later. New York State Police received a reliable tip leading to another search of the land.
"In 2016 we did the search close to the house where the van was discovered we used K9's, a number of people, medal detectors, the weather cooperated a little better this time," Smith said. "We were able to locate and secure some evidence."
Acquisto told 2 On Your Side that the evidence recovered was Corrie's keys and shoes.
Three years have gone by since that discovery, and despite investigators receiving on average two tips every couple months, the case still remains cold.
However, it may not stay that way for long. Investigators with New York State Police learned that new DNA technology could help bring a breakthrough in the case.
"We have DNA from the house and the vehicle," Smith said. "I'm not a DNA specialist but there was a lot of people in and out of the car. So we have to be able to have the ability to separate that DNA to certain people"
Recently, Smith met with Chautauqua County District Attorney Patrick Swanson to work on using that new DNA technology to decipher the DNA in this case. Swanson has used that technology in a different homicide case in Chautauqua County with success.
"He (Swanson) has learned a lot in the past year with DNA and he's looking at this case and using his expertise in that" said Smith. "It could be very crucial, we’d always be happy to accept a confession but if we can’t we’d be happy to take DNA also."