According to officials with the Pennsylvania State Police, the body was found Saturday afternoon near Platz and Sterrettania roads in Erie County, Pa. Police say a local resident made the discovery when he went to inspect debris that someone had dumped the day before in a field near his house. Upon further inspection, the man discovered the body wrapped up inside a rug.

Jack Daneri, district attorney for Erie County, told the Erie Times News that the victim had a "number of wounds" that appeared to have been caused by a "sharp force instrument." As a result, the cause of death was listed as "suspicious."

State police, with assistance from the Erie County Sheriff's office, worked over the weekend to identify the victim as Carla Westhofen, 58, of Sandusky, Ohio. Carla was last seen by friends on the night of Nov. 5. Family members reported her missing the following day when she failed to show up for a scheduled appointment. A check of Carla's house found that her vehicle was missing, and calls to her cell phone went unanswered.

Authorities are now searching for Carla's former boyfriend, David L. "Jody" Kromer, 56, of Margaretta Township, Ohio.

"After they broke up, it didn't go well," Carla's son, Todd Dahnke, told morningjournal.com. "She felt at risk, so she got the protection order. There had been issues previously while they were dating. I thought he could be aggressive, based on things I had seen."

According to Erie County Sheriff's Capt. Paul Sigsworth, Kromer was recently released from jail after bonding out on charges that he had violated the protection order by sending Carla a letter.

Authorities are not commenting on what, if any, evidence they have connecting Kromer to Carla's death; however, they have issued warrants for his arrest on charges of murder and kidnapping.

The Erie County Coroner's Office is conducting an autopsy on Carla's body today to determine exactly how she died. Meanwhile, authorities in several states, in conjunction with the Federal Bureau of Investigation, are actively seeking Kromer, whom they describe as armed and dangerous.

David Kromer is described as 6' 1" tall, weighing 210 pounds, with blond hair and blue eyes. He is possibly driving a blue 2000 Jeep Cherokee with Ohio license plate DQW 3569 or Carla Westhofen's tan 2002 GMC Envoy with Ohio license plate AXS 6883.

Anyone with information about this case is asked to call the Erie County Sheriff's office at 419-625-7951.

Photo Credits: Crime Scene: David Lohr; Carla Westhofen: Police file photo; David Kromer: Police file photo

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Leah was just 15 years old when, on June 29, 2000, she went for a walk near her home in Coquille, Ore. What happened to her during that walk remains unclear; however, on Aug. 3, 2000, her fate became all too clear when her body was found in a wooded area roughly eight miles from Coquille. An autopsy revealed that Leah had died as a result of "homicidal violence."

Fast forward nearly a decade, and Leah's murder remains unsolved. Waiting such a long time for an answer would discourage most people, but Cory Courtright is determined to see justice prevail and is asking local officials for help.

"I am simply asking Coos County District Attorney Paul Frasier to dedicate a cold case team to re-investigate Leah's murder," Cory said. "I don't feel like the agencies handling the case have ever been in sync, and with all of the personnel changes at the Coquille Police Department, I fear that crucial details of the investigation could very well have fallen through the cracks."

Cory says that the police were initially conducting a very active investigation into her daughter's case, but it seemed to cool down quickly, and she has received very few updates on the case in recent years.

According to the Coos County District Attorney's Office, the case is considered "cold," but investigators remain active, following up on all tips that they receive.

"They need to do more than follow-up on tips," Cory said. "They need to have a dedicated team go back and look through all of the files again, re-interview everyone involved, and re-examine all of the evidence."

There is no word yet on whether the Coquille Police Department will consider forming a cold case squad to reinvestigate Leah's murder.

Anyone with information regarding this case is asked to contact the Coquille Police Department at (541) 396-2114 or Coos Stop Crime at (541) 267-6666. Leah Freeman's family is offering a $5,000 reward for information leading to an arrest and conviction of those responsible for her murder.

For more information, please visit: www.leahfreeman.com.

Photo Credit: Contributed

"It's been a very difficult year," Corrie's mother, Vickie Acquisto, said in an interview with Investigation Discovery. "We're a close knit family, and we really miss her every day.

Corrie was last seen at about 1:00 p.m. on October 28, 2008, when she visited her boyfriend at the Lake County Dodge dealership in Jamestown. Family members reported her missing at about 3:45 p.m. that day, when she failed to show up at her son's school for a meeting. Items found at Corrie's house suggest that she made it home some time prior to her disappearance; however, whatever happened to her after that remains a mystery.

Two days later, on October 30, 2008, a hunter discovered Corrie's minivan abandoned at a gas well off Kortwright Road in the town of Busti. The location is approximately two miles from Corrie's house.

"There's a hole in our lives and in our hearts," Corrie's cousin, Laurie Keefe, said. "Not knowing where she is or what happened to her is horrible. We cannot move forward with our lives, and yet life continues to move on around us."

The pain of not knowing has had not only a negative effect on Corrie's family, but also on the traditions that they once shared together.

"We can't do any more family gatherings in the dining room because it's too difficult without her," Vickie said.

While local authorities have conducted several searches for Corrie, her family has also taken it upon themselves to do everything in their power to locate her. In addition to hiring a private investigator in the weeks following her disappearance, they also enlisted the help of Texas EquuSearch, a nonprofit search and recovery organization headquartered in Dickinson, Texas. The group initially promised to lead a community search for Corrie in April 2009; however, just three days before the search was set to take place, they pulled out, leaving the family scrambling to find a replacement group to lead the hundreds of volunteers who had preregistered for the search. Luckily, 3 View Search Services, a new search and recovery group from Indiana, was able to step in and take over. Ultimately, they found no sign of Corrie, but it was certainly not for lack of effort.

"Corrie's case was the first one we worked together as a team after forming our organization," said Mandy Albritton, co-founder of 3 View. "We were disappointed when, despite the efforts of over 400 community volunteers, the search effort failed to turn up any sign of Corrie, but we remain committed to Corrie and her family."

According to Albritton, her organization is already planning a second search for Corrie, scheduled to take place in the spring.

"Corrie's children need to know where their mother is and that she would never have left them on her own," Albritton said.

Local and state officials have released very few details in Corrie's case and have declined to comment on the status of the investigation, other than to say that it remains a top priority. Despite the lack of comments from police, Corrie's family has no illusions as to the reason she is missing.

"It is a criminal investigation," Laurie said, adding, "We seek justice toward the person(s) responsible for taking her away from her family."

In the meantime, Corrie's family must continue to move on with their lives. They must also ensure that her children are cared for and that her youngest son, 7-year-old Zachery, never forgets his mother.

"Zachary saw her picture in the local paper this morning," Vickie said. "He looked up and said, "I remember that day -- we played in the leaves."

The investigation continues…

Corrie Anderson is 5-foot-11, 170 pounds, with green eyes and blonde hair. She was last seen wearing black corduroy pants, a black leather jacket, and small wire-rimmed glasses. Corrie's family is offering a $15,000 reward for information leading to Corrie's whereabouts. For more information, please visit: www.findcorrie.com.

Anyone with information regarding Corrie's disappearance or whereabouts is asked to call the New York State Police at (716) 665-3113.

Click here to read an article on the one year anniversary that was written by my friend and collegue, Robert Rizzuto.

Related Link:
Investigation Discovery: Full Coverage: Corrie Anderson

Photo Credits: Contributed

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