Kansas Cold Cases: Anna Marie Baldwin
TOPEKA, Kan. (WIBW) - Family told authorities it wasn’t unusual for Anna Marie Baldwin to go weeks or even months without checking in.
So when a park ranger with the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers at Melvern Lake found skeletal remains near the Turkey Point Area, no one immediately reached out thinking it could be her.
It was the evening of Aug. 25, 2017. The Kansas Bureau of Investigation had little to go on. They said the remains were badly decomposed, but they could tell the person had been shot. They asked the Washburn University Anthropology Dept. to help find any clues as to who this was. They determined the victim was a woman, between the ages of 35 and 50, likely killed between April and July 2017 - but possibly as long ago as late fall 2016.
Weeks passed, with no leads. In late September 2017, the KBI released new details about the victim’s clothing, along with photos of items found with the body: two rings, a bracelet and eyeglasses. They hoped someone might recognize the items, and, more importantly, would know who wore them.
Finally, July 27, 2018 - nearly a year after she was found - the KBI had their answer. The woman was Anna. She was never reported missing, and the black and white pit bull she always had at her side also disappeared. No one seemed to know where she’d been since late 2016.
Anna’s death is part of a new effort to get new leads on cold cases. She is the six of hearts in the Kansas Cold Case Deck. The special playing cards featuring information on unsolved murders and missing persons cases will be distributed in the state’s prisons and jails.
The KBI wants to hear from anyone who had contact with Anna Marie Baldwin in late 2016 or anytime in 2017. They hope they can retrace her contacts and movements, and find her killer.
Anyone with information can call the KBI at 1-800-KS-CRIME.
Prior KS Cold Case Profiles:
Mercedes Holford and Crystal Andrews
Carla Avery, Eric Avery, Tamesha Lee, and Marvin Woods
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