STALKED: Dorothy Jane Scott // Cynthia Jane Anderson

[00:00] Hi, Crime Junkies. It's Britt, and I have big news. One of my favorite seasonal shows, CounterClock, is back with a brand new season, and it is wild. Host Delia D'Ambra is digging into the 2008 Lane Bryant murders. I mean, this isn't just a recap. It is a reinvestigation. She's talking to law enforcement, people from the community, even sources who have never spoken publicly until now. And you know I love a show that asks all the questions. Listen to CounterClock Season 8 now wherever you get your podcasts. [00:31] Hi, Crime Junkies. I'm your host, Ashley Flowers. And I'm Britt. And Britt, [00:36] I did something. I know you did. Would you like to tell the crime junkies about it? Yeah, I made a little Christmas present for our listeners. So I obviously can't physically get something to each and every one of them for the holidays because like, what am I, Santa? But since I know that they're all podcast loving people, I made them a special little holiday podcast treat. And listen, I know we crime junkies like true crime all year round, morning, noon, [01:06] all day, every day. We can't get enough. That's what makes us us, right? Right. But I thought maybe this holiday season, everyone could use something a little lighter. It's been a long year, right? So yeah, like just a little pick me up. Yeah. So I partnered with a couple of my comedian friends out in LA to bring everyone something totally new and totally different. So Britta was kind of founded on this thing that we talk about all the time. Like, so I don't know if

[01:36] like, you know, if this is just like a Midwest culty Christian thing that happened, but like every Christmas season, holiday season, we- The Christmas cards, the letters. Yes. We would get flooded with these Christmas cards that had letters inside that were like super braggy about how wonderful and extraordinary everyone's life was. It's like the old school Spotify'd rap, but for your [02:02] for your kids. Yeah, well, and I even kind of think of it like it's like Facebook before there was Facebook. Like it's all it's all a lie, right? We all know that it's BS. So me and my friends, Holly and Greg have collected some holiday letters, obviously changed like locations, names, some details. And I will read the letter while they try to get to the truth behind the letter. The show is called It's a Wonderful Lie. And there are two episodes out right now. And [02:32] It's in a tizzy. This doesn't take away any crime junkie content. We're releasing an episode today, next week. We've even got extra content coming this week in the fan club. Again, it's just your little holiday treat from us. Yeah. So if after I tell you not one, but actually two crime junkie stories today, and you need something a little lighter, a little pick-me-up, go check out and subscribe to It's a Wonderful Lie wherever you get your podcasts. And now... [03:01] Let me tell you a story of two women who, even though they were strangers that disappeared in different places at different times, suffered under some disturbingly familiar circumstances. Through no fault of their own, simply by trying to go about their daily lives, each of them lived through fear and intimidation, praying for help that didn't come until it was too late. These are the stories of Dorothy Jane Scott and Cynthia Anderson.

[03:29] Music [03:59] In the spring of 1980, a woman in Stanton, California named Dorothy Jane Scott has her life turned upside down when she starts getting these weird phone calls. On the other end of the line is this man. It's the very same man every time telling her that he loves her. [04:20] Now, these calls, even though, you know, he's presumably saying nice things, I mean, these are giving shivers down Dorothy's spine. Because not only is he saying, like, inappropriate things for someone who doesn't know her, but he also tells her that he's been following her. And lists off these details about her daily life, like things that he'd only know if he really was watching her. Wow. [04:50] Dorothy's mind, but no matter how hard she tries, she cannot place where she might have heard it before. [04:58] Now, obviously, this is in the days before caller ID was a thing. And as you can imagine, Dorothy is super freaked out by these calls and starts to worry about her safety. And not just for her own sake either, but for her aunt, who she lives with, and for her four-year-old son, Shanti, who she's raising by herself. As the weeks go by, the calls start to get even worse.

[05:28] because the caller has something for her. Now, even though she is terrified, I mean, this is a terrible idea, she needs to know who's doing this. So Dorothy goes outside, and right there on the windshield of her car is a single car. [05:43] dead rose. Did she call the police to like report any of this? I didn't find a clear answer one way or another on that but like what I do know though is that [05:53] No matter what she does try to stop the harassment, whether that's getting police involved or not, the calls don't stop. And as creepy as the dead rose is, the situation only escalates. [06:06] The caller's messages take a dark shift from love confessions to threats of violence and murder. Dorothy starts taking karate classes and even starts thinking about buying a gun for protection. But in the end, she decides not to because she's afraid Shanti might accidentally hurt himself. So pretty much her entire family, with the exception of her young son, because he's so little, like knows about what Dorothy is dealing with. [06:36] understand like the stalking's been going on her friends her family and in may of 1980 she tells her mom vera and her dad jacob about one call in particular that just like i mean they're all crossing the line but this one is just beyond as vera told the associated press the caller said quote okay now you are going to come my way and when i get you alone i will cut you up into bits

[07:06] one will ever find you. [07:08] End quote. Oh my God, that's terrifying. Yeah, and she just really put like [07:13] a rotten cherry on top of everything, in that same call, he also described the very outfit that Dorothy had on that day. Like, just to prove this isn't like some kind of weird hoax or like, I am actually watching her. Watching you. Yeah. I'm actually near her and have access to her. [07:33] Now, unfortunately, as many people who even are listening to this probably know, the horror and anxiety of being stalked doesn't mean regular life stops. Like, Dorothy still has to go to work. She still has to pay her bills. And so on the evening of May 27th, 1980, she leaves Stanton, where she lives, with Shanti and drives him to her parents' house in Anaheim so they can babysit him while she goes to a meeting. [08:00] I do think it's worth mentioning that if you were to research this case yourself, you'll see like some date variations like this happening on like the 28th instead of the 27th. But sources from 1980, like when this was going down, say the 27th. So that's what I'm going with here. Anyway, Dorothy's a secretary for the Swingers Psych Club and Custom Johns, like these two hippie gift shops in Anaheim that are both owned by the same people. And on this night, the whole company is having a staff meeting. [08:29] Dorothy drops Shanti off at her parents' house, says goodbye, and goes to this meeting around like 9 p.m. [08:35] And like any small company, this group of colleagues is kind of, you know, like,

[08:39] like almost like all up in each other's business. - Yeah, like, I mean, you and I have both worked for small companies before. When you're working-- - We work for a small company now. - Right. But when you're working with like just a handful of people in such close proximity, you kind of just, [08:54] become that sort of like family unit where you know a little bit or a lot of it about everyone there. Yeah. Like whether you mean to or not, you just get to know the people pretty intimately that you work with. So at this meeting, Dorothy and one of her co-workers, Pam, actually see that one of their other co-workers, this guy named Conrad, like isn't looking so good. So like, of course, they want to know what's going on with him. [09:17] According to an article I read in the Santa Ana Orange County Register, [09:21] One of Conrad's arms, they say, looks like pretty messed up with this big like red streak going down it. And both Pam and Dorothy are like, dude, you like need to get that checked out. Yeah. And at first Conrad does like the total dude thing. He like brushes them off like I'm fine. But Pam and Dorothy keep telling him like, no, this is not looking good. You need to see a doctor. It's already bad. It's only getting worse. [09:51] to the ER. [09:53] On the way, they stop off at Dorothy's parents' house just so she can check in on Shanti. And while she's there, Dorothy swaps out her black scarf for a red one. Doesn't seem important, but I promise it will be. So before too long, Pam and Dorothy get Conrad to the ER. And this is at the UC Irvine Medical Center. And it turns out that he'd actually been bitten by a black widow spider. So, like, good thing they got him there. Yeah, kind of a big deal.

[10:23] infected so they get him taken care of eventually conrad is discharged from the hospital later that night and while he's waiting for his prescription dorothy offers to like go get the car like listen you guys are waiting in line let me go in and out like i'll pull up we can just like speed these things along right so pam is getting the prescription filled with conrad and once it is filled they go wait for dorothy [10:47] Now, a lot of hospitals have basically like a space for cars to like pull up so patients don't have to walk too far once they're discharged. Right. Usually has like a little awning. Yeah. The ramp there. Yeah. There isn't a ton of information about how exactly the UC Medical Center looked back in 1980. But like so I have to imagine that's kind of like a similar setup, right? Like you have the awning and then the parking lot kind of farther away. [11:17] minute. [11:18] But, [11:19] Dorothy's car never pulls up. [11:23] And eventually, Pam and Conrad are like waiting and waiting. They get tired of waiting. And they leave the hospital building and they actually head out to the parking lot themselves to look for her to make sure like, is the car broken down? Like, what could be keeping her? Right. [11:37] While they're out there, they actually spot Dorothy's car with someone at the wheel. And [11:44] There's some contradictory information out there about what exactly the car is doing or what happens next. Because the Santa Ana Orange County Register reported on June 13th of 1980 that the car was driving away from them. But Pam actually tells the Los Angeles Times the next day about the headlights shining in her and Conrad's eyes, which to me sounds like maybe it was driving towards them. Right. Yeah.

[12:14] attention, but instead of slowing down so they can catch up or like meeting them where they're at, the car makes a right turn and like speeds up when they try and chase after it. Can they see who's driving? Well, according to J. Michael Kennedy's piece in the LA Times, no, because again, he's saying that the headlights are so bright, it's kind of dark outside, that the lights are so bright [12:35] They can't tell anything about the person behind the wheel. [12:39] Now, even though they're both super unsettled by what just happened, Pam and Conrad try to stay calm. They're thinking, you know, maybe she got word somehow that something's happened to her son and she has to take off right away. Basically, like coming up with anything they can think of to rationalize why she would just bolt like that. Like, it doesn't make sense. So they go back inside the hospital, hoping Dorothy will just like come back and pick them up as soon as she can. [13:09] and wait, but there's no sign of her. And finally, after a couple more hours pass, Pam and Conrad, who again, still at the hospital waiting, they actually tell the UC Irvine campus police that Dorothy is missing. Like they know something is up. [13:26] Now, for whatever reason, the campus police don't see this as a cause for concern. Like, you know, I assume they're saying she's an adult. Like, she just didn't want to take you home, get a cab. I don't know. But Pam isn't willing to just sit back and take their word for it. So she calls Dorothy's parents to check in and see, like, if they know what's going on. Did Dorothy come back and check on her son? And when they get a hold of her parents, they're as lost as Pam is. Like, Dorothy hasn't called them. She hasn't been by.

[13:56] for any of them to do. [13:59] except wait. [14:00] So the rest of the evening goes by with just no word from Dorothy. And then [14:06] Around 4.30 in the morning, this is now May 28th, about five hours after Dorothy left the hospital to go get her car, police make a disturbing discovery. [14:20] Your college decision is personal. It's a serious choice that no one takes lightly. Well, Southern New Hampshire University is serious about helping you earn your degree your way. We're talking no set class times and 24-7 access to online coursework, so you can build a schedule that works for you. SNHU also understands that you're coming into college with a goal. Whether you're a career changer, an aspiring leader, or just getting started, they've got over 200 online programs to help you take your next step. And when it comes to paying for college, don't stress. [14:48] SNHU has some of the lowest online tuition in the U.S., plus experienced student finance counselors to guide you through your journey. A college that takes your education as seriously as you do? That's SNHU. Visit snhu.edu slash crimejunkie to learn more. That's snhu.edu slash crimejunkie. [15:10] Summer breaks should be fun, but it is also important to keep young minds active. Even though my daughter's out of preschool, we are helping her all summer continue to learn and study and just not give up building that muscle. And IXL is a great way to help kids stay engaged and avoid losing progress between school years. IXL is used in 96 of the top 100 school districts in the U.S. And as an award-winning online learning platform, IXL helps kids truly understand what they're learning.

[15:40] confidence, or strengthening writing skills. Studies show kids who use IXL score higher on tests, proven in all 50 states. From pre-K through 12th grade, IXL offers personalized, interactive content for each child's level and pace. It is an easy way to support learning now through the summer and into the next school year. Make an impact on your child's learning. Get IXL now. And Crime Junkie listeners, you can get an exclusive 20% off IXL membership when you [16:10] ixl.com slash crimejunkie. Visit ixl.com slash crimejunkie to get the most effective learning program out there at the best price. [16:21] In nearby Santa Ana, just south of Anaheim, around like 5 to 10 miles away from the hospital, police find Dorothy's car in an alley. It's completely empty, like, I mean, it still has stuff, but like no sign of Dorothy anywhere. And the car is actually on fire. What? [16:40] Right away, her family and the police fear the worst, that Dorothy has been taken. Like, I have to imagine, I mean, since her parents, like I said, everyone in her life knew about these phone calls, that they'd have to have been worried about something terrible happening to Dorothy, like, from the get-go. But... [16:57] You know, what they were thinking wasn't actually confirmed anywhere in my research, so I'm just making assumptions. [17:03] The Scott family spends an agonizing several days hoping that they'll hear something, anything about where Dorothy might be, and just like praying that she is all right.

[17:13] Now, there's hardly anything out there about really what's happening with her family or with the investigation in the very earliest days after she goes missing. And, you know, one of the reasons for this is because as a part of their investigation, the police actually ask Dorothy's family not to say a word about what's going on in case the person who abducted Dorothy reaches out and tries to make some kind of deal. They don't know if this is a ransom. They have no idea. [17:42] And as difficult as that has to be, like, I mean, I would imagine you just want to get in front of the press and like ask anyone like where she is. But they agree. They follow police's advice and everything stays quiet. [17:54] That is, until one day about a week after Dorothy vanished. Her parents, Vera and Jacob, are at their house in Anaheim [18:03] when the phone rings. [18:05] Vera answers the phone, and there is a mail caller on the other end of the line that asks her a single question. [18:13] question. [18:15] Are you related to Dorothy Scott? Heart in her throat, [18:19] Vera answers. [18:21] Yes. And then the caller says, [18:24] I've got her. And hangs up. Oh my God. And at that point, that is enough for Dorothy's parents. Despite what the police say, they're done being quiet. And within a week, Jacob's on record with a local paper, the Santa Ana Orange County Register, going to press on June 12th. And this is about two weeks now after Dorothy went missing.

[18:49] Now, literally the very next day after this paper is published, the register's managing editor, this guy named Pat, gets a phone call as well. There's a man on the other end of the line and he refers to Dorothy as, quote, his love. And he says more than once in that call that he killed her. Don't get me wrong. That's terrifying and awful. But it kind of makes me think that this is probably why the police didn't want them to go to the press in the first place. [19:19] Someone who read the article and decides to play this cruel, disgusting joke. Oh, I mean, it totally could be, but not in this situation. Because the caller actually knows details that haven't been published. Not by the Santa Ana Orange County Register, not by anyone else. So you remember how I told you that before Dorothy went to the hospital, she changed her scarf? Yeah, from black to red at her parents' house, right? Right. [19:49] reporting in the register. That had never been made public at the time that this guy was calling in. And only a small handful of people would actually [19:58] know that, right? Because I mean, it happened after she left work. So really only the people she was with, maybe her parents, maybe the people at the hospital. And yet the caller had said that Dorothy was wearing a red scarf. [20:12] And somehow, he also knew that Conrad's arm was infected specifically from a spider bite, which wasn't published either. And maybe the most twisted of all, the caller goes on to claim that he was there at the hospital because he says Dorothy herself called him. He says that he went there to confront her about her seeing another man, as if Dorothy was like,

[20:42] cheating on him. And the caller says that Dorothy denied seeing anyone else, but he was convinced that he knew the truth. And he says that's why he killed her. So this sounds like, [20:53] This guy believes that he did have a relationship of some kind, at least, with Dorothy. Which could be totally fabricated. I mean, that happens in cases of stalking. But it also could mean that they did have some kind of relationship. Even if it wasn't romantic, it kind of goes along with the idea that maybe she was at least familiar with him. Like, she swore that the voice was familiar. She just couldn't place it. Yeah, this sounds like more than a stalker kind of ranting off the hook, at least to me. [21:23] uses a couple possibilities that this guy isn't lying and Dorothy really did call him and told him all about the spider bite or he was actually there at the hospital watching her closely enough to notice that she had changed the scarf to a different color and even overhear about the spider bite. Yeah to me I think the second option is more likely that he was like there again I don't know how busy this ER waiting room was I don't know how you get close enough to find that out I don't know if he found all that out after he took Dorothy but I especially believe he was there [21:53] versus like Dorothy making a call to him like he's saying, because Pam, who was at the ER that night that Dorothy disappeared, says that Dorothy didn't make any phone calls. [22:04] Now, I did some reading about stalkers while I was researching for this story. And while there doesn't seem to be like one universal, I guess, like diagnosis list of like the different types, Psychology Today did publish their version in 2016. And this guy, to me, sounds like what that piece calls a, quote, love scorned stalker.

[22:34] relationship with the victim, but is rebuffed. End quote. So she might've just met this guy like once in her life, had... [22:43] a totally harmless, normal interaction to her, but something about it like flipped that switch in his head. Right, right. Okay, so I do have a question. Does Dorothy have any creepy exes? Like, what's her relationship with Shanti's father? Well, according to her family, Dorothy didn't actually date much and at the time wasn't actually seeing anybody. And based on what I read in the LA Times piece that I mentioned earlier, Shanti's dad lives out of state, like over in Missouri, [23:13] just had gotten back from a visit out to Southern California to see his son. So it doesn't seem likely that he was involved. By the time the Santa Ana Orange County Register evening edition goes to press with this story the next day, they've got another scoop to add to it. [23:30] They've got confirmation from the state police that law enforcement believes the call did in fact come from the man who's spent the last few months making Dorothy's life miserable. And the police are basing this off the call or having information only a few people would know. Like not something that he could have gotten from newspapers or something else. [23:52] But other than these horrifying phone calls, police have nothing to go on. I mean, [23:57] Not even a starting point. Zero. [23:59] And so now, even without proof that Dorothy is dead, everyone knows that the chances of actually finding her alive are getting slimmer and slimmer the more days that pass.

[24:11] But unfortunately, the Scots can't do anything but just sit and hope and pray. [24:17] But as if this person, the man who took Dorothy, hasn't done enough damage to their family, he keeps dying. [24:25] Calling. [24:26] Vera and Jacob, of course, tell the police. I mean, they get their phone tap the whole nine yards. But the person on the other side is really careful to never stay on the line long enough for police to trace them, just long enough to taunt them about Dorothy and basically just like twist the knife of their pain before hanging up and vanishing back into the darkness. And we're not talking like a call here and there after she goes missing. This goes on forever. [24:55] For... [24:56] years. Oh my god. All through the early 80s, even though Dorothy's case is ice cold. [25:03] For four long years, the Scott family suffers through the uncertainty and their mystery callers' cruelty. [25:09] This man calls their house with taunts every single Wednesday like clockwork. Sometimes he says Dorothy's dead and he killed her. Other times he just asks if she's home. But here's the thing. [25:24] According to the freelance star, it's always Vera who answers the phone. Until one day in 1984, Dorothy's dad, Jacob, picks up. And something about this, like, seems to shake the person on the other end. Because after the time that Jacob picked up,

[25:43] the calls seem to just stop. [25:47] For several months, the Scots get [25:49] something close to peace. But that same year in August, a construction worker doing some digging on Canyon Road in North Anaheim makes a horrifying discovery. [26:01] There in the bushes, about [redacted address], are two sets of partially charred bones. One's pretty clearly an animal. [26:11] with the other. [26:12] is human. [26:14] Bill Cawson reported for the Santa Ana Orange County Registrate that police find two femurs, an arm, a pelvis, and a fully intact human skull with plenty of teeth. And they also find a turquoise ring and a woman's watch. Within two weeks, police are able to get a positive ID from dental records, and they're able to confirm that the body belongs to Dorothy Scott. [26:40] Now, at this point, they can't determine a cause of death or even how long her body had been out there. But since her bones were a little charred and that area had wildfires back in like 82, they're thinking that she had been there at least a couple of years. Do we know if that area had ever been searched before? There just isn't enough out there about this investigation to actually know for sure. So it's possible they searched that in the early days. It's possible not. And again, I think this is why we have no idea how long she had been out there. [27:10] even like rule that piece out. [27:13] Even though the investigation continued and the Scots are actually finally able to bury their daughter, they don't...

[27:18] get any closure because they don't get justice. [27:22] There are theories all over the internet on forums and blogs, like maybe the brother of one of Dorothy's co-workers is responsible for her death. Like, I mean, there's lots and lots of theories, but no one has ever been named as a suspect or a person of interest. [27:37] Both Vera and Jacob Scott passed away without ever knowing what really happened to Dorothy. And to this day, 40 years after her disappearance and murder, no arrests have been made and the case remains cold. [27:51] As of 2020, her son Shanti, who's now going by the name Sean, is alive and still searching for his mother's killer. [28:00] Meanwhile, thousands of miles away in the Midwest, an all too similar nightmare begins to unfold just a few months after Dorothy had vanished. [28:13] For decades, some cold cases have been reduced to files in a cabinet, but not anymore. I'm Ashley Flowers, and me and my team on the deck have been traveling across the country to report on these forgotten cases. And in some instances, it's resulted in these cases being solved after decades. [28:32] Join me every Wednesday as we revive these stories one card at a time. Listen to the deck now. [28:39] wherever you get your podcasts. [28:43] From the outside, this young woman named Cynthia Jane Anderson, who everyone calls Cindy, has a perfectly normal life in late 1980. She's 20 years old, living at home with her parents in Michigan. And lately, her dad's noticed that Cindy's been spending more and more time on her appearances, acting like, quote, a debutante, as he puts it.

[29:13] Not whatever her dad's implying there. Dads are weird. Dads are dads. But, you know, it's not unexpected, especially because Cindy's got a steady boyfriend and she's got a job working as a legal secretary at the law offices of Neller and Rabbit across state lines in Toledo, Ohio. So she's like wants to look nice. The girl's like just like she's like a little like professional now. I totally get that. [29:35] Now, the firm's pretty small with only a handful of attorneys. So instead of being in like a big office building somewhere, it's actually in a strip mall. So there's like front windows she can see like right outside from her desk, which means she has a perfect view of the wall right across from the office. The wall where someone has spray painted in huge letters. I love you, Cindy by GW. [30:05] Just a coincidence. Well, everyone who looks at this case believes it was directed at her, though no one knows who wrote it. According to the Unsolved Mysteries episode that talks about this case, there are no other Cindy's working in the complex. She is the only one. Cindy is understandably totally freaked out by this. She doesn't know anybody that has like the initials GW. None of her friends have those initials. There's no GW's at the law firm or her church. [30:35] Not even acquaintances. [30:37] For six long months through the rest of 1980 and into 81, Cindy has to stare at this creepy message before it's finally painted over. But just weeks after it gets painted over, the same message reappears on the wall. I love you, Cindy, by GW. Oh!

[30:58] To make matters worse, at some point in 1981, Cindy starts getting creepy phone calls while she's at work. Now, nothing in my research clarifies when exactly in 81 the calls start or what they say. But whatever they're saying, Cindy is terrified. Now, obviously, living through something like this is beyond scary. It has got to take a toll. And for Cindy, that starts manifesting in horrible nightmares. [31:28] dreams, she sees herself opening the door to her house and like a man she knows, someone she trusts standing there only to be violently abducted by that person. I mean, this is just me being, you know, an armchair detective doctor, but it almost sounds like Cindy may be having some post-traumatic stress symptoms. Oh my God, totally. I mean, multiple sources that I looked at, like the CDC [31:58] PTSD and so much more as a result of what they live through at the hands of their attackers. Yeah, just that constant thought of like someone is watching you, someone's around the next corner. I totally get that. Yeah. The harassment starts affecting Cindy's work life as well as her mental health. Like she never leaves the doors unlocked anymore, which honestly just like a good crime junkie life rule for everyone. And she is so afraid that the lawyers in the firm go so far as to install an

[32:28] Like a panic button? Basically, yeah. Now, despite the fear she's carrying, though, Cindy does her best to keep moving on with her life. We talked about it in the last story. Like, life does not stop. Heading into August, she gives her notice at the law firm because she's actually headed off to Bible College with her boyfriend soon. So, like, she's really trying, you know, she's going to, like, see it out. She's got 10 more days of work. Then it's on to the next phase of her life. But... [32:57] Just like we saw with Dorothy, the person stalking Cindy does not stop. And one of the law firm's clients, this guy named Larry, actually sees it firsthand when he comes into the office one day. As he tells Unsolved Mysteries, he stops by the firm on August 3rd to drop off a payment. And while he's there, Cindy picks up the phone only to hang it up like super fast. [33:27] base really [33:28] makes him pay attention, especially when it happens again. Same thing, like quick call, Cindy hangs up right away and this terrified look on her face. [33:37] She looks so scared that Larry actually calls the police and asks them to do a drive-by wellness check to make sure everything's okay. Do they do it? [33:46] Well, the episode doesn't say, but we know that Cindy's all right because nothing happens to her that day. We know that she comes in to work the next day. And the next day at the firm at about 12 p.m., James Rabbit, who's one of the firm's partners, gets back from a meeting. And the radio is playing in the office and all the attorney's desks are ready for the day like usual, like pretty much a typical Tuesday.

[34:10] except [34:12] Cindy isn't. [34:13] there on this next day. [34:15] Since she's usually alone at the firm in the mornings, this itself isn't too weird. Like, maybe she needed to run an errand, like whatever, no big deal. But if she needs to run out, if she had an errand, James knows that Cindy always puts the phones on hold and makes sure to leave a note on the door saying that she'll be right back. But today, the phones aren't on hold and there's no note. [34:39] even stranger, [34:41] Cindy's keys and her purse are gone, but her car is still right there in the parking lot. There is, however, an intriguing clue on her desk. [34:54] For decades, some cold cases have been reduced to files in a cabinet, but not anymore. I'm Ashley Flowers, and me and my team on the deck have been traveling across the country to report on these forgotten cases. And in some instances, it's resulted in these cases being solved after decades. [35:14] Join me every Wednesday as we revive these stories one card at a time. Listen to the deck now. [35:21] wherever you get your podcasts. [35:26] According to the Ohio Attorney General's website, Cindy was reading a romance novel that she left open on her desk. And here's the creepy part. When James picks it up, he finds the page is to the only, like, violent part in the story. The part where the main female character

[35:49] gets kidnapped at knife point. Oh my god, that's... I have full body chills. I know, I mean, it sounds totally made up, but there it is. And the lawyers freak out. They search through the building looking for her, calling her name, even though everything in their gut is telling them exactly what you and I are thinking, that something is seriously wrong. [36:14] They can't find a single trace of her anywhere. And finally, around 2.30 that afternoon, James calls police to report Cindy missing. [36:23] Right from the start, police have the same bad feeling as James. You see, Toledo's going through a bit of a rough patch in terms of, like, its crime rate at this time. As Keith Harrison reported for the Detroit Free Press, the day before Cindy vanished, police found two bodies actually stuck in the trunk of a car just three blocks from the law office. [36:53] worst. As law enforcement keeps looking into Cindy's disappearance, they're able to nail down a clearer time frame of when exactly she went missing. So they learn that the firm's maintenance guy is the last person to have seen her sometime between 8.50 a.m. and 9.45 a.m. on the morning of the 4th. [37:16] Taylor Dungeon reported for the Toledo Blade that by 10 o'clock, so just 15 minutes later, calls to the firm were going unanswered. So, I mean, we've got a pretty tight time frame here.

[37:29] But here's the thing. [37:31] I don't know how much we can trust that time frame. Because the maintenance worker, the guy who [37:37] last saw her, he could be a little more familiar than anyone realizes. [37:44] Because it turns out that his initials are GW. The same as the graffiti from all those months back. [37:53] Now, here's like what I find so baffling and like I want to dig into a thousand times, but I can't. So Unsolved Mysteries mentions that police initially like look at him. Obviously, this seems like. [38:04] prime suspect or least person of interest. Yeah. But... [38:08] When they look into him, basically they clear him. [38:11] And I have no idea like, [38:13] Why? I have a million questions for him. Exactly. Can I question him? Exactly. Okay, but just to look at all sides. [38:21] Is there any chance that she ran away? Like you said, you know, [38:24] She's planning on going to Bible college and her dad sounds maybe a little bit conservative. Maybe didn't really fully see her as an adult yet. And I mean, even if she left her car, she still took, you know, her keys in her purse. Well, I think it's something that they thought of. But that idea of Cindy running away kind of gets tossed out pretty quickly because Cindy's family and friends are adamant that she wouldn't do that. [38:47] Plus, I mean, if she was going to run away, I mean, we talked about this in how many episodes, like you need some kind of resources. She left behind a good amount of money in her bank accounts. And since she went missing, there's been no activity left.

[39:01] on her social security number. And she would need both those things if she was going to run off and try and start over somewhere. Right, you'd expect her to clear out her account or whatever. Or at least take something, right? Yeah. [39:12] There's not a lot of information out there about how exactly the investigation unfolds beyond this. Like nothing I read mentions any kind of forensic testing or the Toledo police dusting the office for prints. But whatever they do or don't do, though, it's no use. It's as if Cindy vanished into thin air and it barely takes any time at all for her case to turn cold. But then one day, about a month after Cindy Anderson's disappearance, [39:41] a call comes in. [39:42] A woman calls the Toledo Police Department and tells them Cindy is alive and being held captive in the basement of a white house. Wait, what? Yeah, according to Unsolved Mysteries, the woman sounds pretty scared and she like hangs up without giving police any more details. Just white house, Cindy's in the basement. But she does call back a little bit later and this time she's willing to give a little bit more information. [40:12] owners of the White House own two houses that are side by side and that they're out of town right now. [40:21] Before she hangs up again, she goes on to say that the owner's son is right here in Toledo, and he is the one holding Cindy hostage. And that's all.

[40:32] So that... [40:33] That's it? That's it. So, armed with this information, the police are, like, basically canvassing the city streets looking for any houses that match this woman's description. But, I mean, even knowing that two houses side by side are owned by the same person, like, you would have to go through, like, anything. [40:51] every property record in the city. This is like a huge task. Yeah. And so without more information, there's just no way for them to really narrow down the location anymore. And even though this lead seemed promising, it actually doesn't lead them anywhere, which is just like wild to me. Like, I mean, granted, if this was a hoax, there's nothing to find. But to me, it seems like such a good lead. Like, where is this woman who called? I mean, it's a lead that's more than they had [41:21] Yeah. And I mean, if it's real, like so many years later, is this woman still alive? Does she still think about this? Will she ever call again? [41:51] and he mentioned that they've been checking Cindy's dental records up against murder victims from as far away as California. Can I come back to those two bodies found near her office in the car trunk? Like, were those ever connected to Cindy? Nope, there is no connection to those other murder victims. And so

[42:10] At this point, I mean, even the police are, like, honest at this point about how little they have. And in that same piece that I mentioned, they're just straight up, like... [42:17] We got nothing. [42:19] So for 14 long years, Cindy's case stays ice cold. [42:24] Her family hires private detectives and holds tight to their devout faith, praying against all odds that Cindy might still be out there. [42:32] And then in 1995, some stunning revelations changed the whole landscape of the investigation. So, [42:39] Remember how Cindy was a legal secretary and it was actually one of the firm's like namesakes, one of the partners that actually reported her missing? Yeah. Rabbit, right? Right. So according to the Newark advocate, the other guy, not Rabbit, but this guy named Richard Neller, actually gets indicted by a federal grand jury on drug charges in early November as part of this like huge bust in Toledo. [43:05] Even though he's not being charged with murder, like the indictment also alleges that Richard and his partner, Jose Rodriguez Jr., kidnapped Cindy and killed her to keep her quiet after she overheard them talking about their operation. Okay, but like, does the graffiti just mean nothing and the calls? I don't know. So this is my thing, too. I think about that. I don't know if... [43:29] Say this was what happened, we still don't know. [43:32] But did they see an opportunity? Was Cindy really being stalked? And they saw an opportunity that they could capitalize on. Or, you know, I don't know how early this conversation was supposed to have happened that Cindy overheard. Like, did she hear that? And then the stalking?

[43:49] was like set up because they were like planning so far ahead. I have no idea. Like everything else you've told me today, I have so many questions. Right. So... [43:58] You know, all these years later, police finally think that maybe they have a motive, a motive that really makes sense to them. And even beyond that, they think that they may know where Cindy's body is. So they start searching around a pond in Perrysburg, Ohio, which is just south of Toledo, hoping that this is going to be the answer. They're going to find her. Mm hmm. [44:18] A DEA task force spends three grueling days searching, but [44:22] In the end, they don't find any trace of Cindy. So it's just another devastating dead end for her family. And neither Richard nor Jose have ever been charged with her murder. [44:36] Over the years, there are other theories that have emerged about [44:40] what might have happened to Cindy. Some believe that she might have become a victim of Anthony and Nathaniel Cook, who were serial killer brothers who committed at least nine rapes and murders in the Toledo area between 73 and 81. And police actually looked into this in the late 90s, but the Cook brothers deny any involvement and there's no concrete evidence to prove that they're [45:10] never been found and her killer or [45:13] abductor, if we're really being hopeful, has never been brought to justice.

[45:19] If you know anything about the disappearance of Cynthia Jane Anderson, please contact the Toledo Police Department at 419-[redacted phone]. [45:27] 245-3340. And if you know anything about the murder of Dorothy Scott, you can submit a tip anonymously through the Orange County Crime Stoppers website at OCCrimestoppers.org. [45:41] And if you or someone you know has been or is a victim of stalking, you can visit stalkingawareness.org for resources. [46:03] Don't forget, if you guys need a little lighthearted pick me up after the episode, check out the new holiday podcast AudioChuck has out called It's [46:12] A Wonderful Lie. [46:14] *music* [46:26] you [46:27] you [46:28] you [46:31] Crime Junkie is an AudioChuck production. [46:34] So? [46:35] What do you think, Chuck? [46:36] Do you approve? [46:37] okay crime junkies you know i absolutely love a twist and a turn especially when it comes to people who turn out to be someone they're not that's why i have been obsessed with the podcast chameleon every thursday host josh dean deep dives into a scam so bizarre it will leave you wondering how did they get away with that

[46:58] It is truly one of my favorite podcasts right now and I've been listening for years. [47:02] I think you'll love it too. [47:04] Listen to Chameleon wherever you get your podcasts.