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1994 Allen, Heidi M. April 3,1994; New Haven 18 YO
Topic Started: Nov 29 2006, 09:18 AM (3,224 Views)
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http://www.charleyproject.org/cases/a/allen_heidi.html

Heidi Marie Allen


Above: Allen, circa 1994


Vital Statistics at Time of Disappearance

Missing Since: April 3, 1994 from New Haven, New York
Classification: Endangered Missing
Date Of Birth: September 14, 1975
Age: 18 years old
Height and Weight: 5'11, 145 pounds
Distinguishing Characteristics: Brown hair, blue/hazel eyes. Allen has a one-inch scar on her right knee. Her ears are pierced. Allen wears eyeglasses with Renaissance metal frames or contact lenses.
Clothing/Jewelry Description: A gray sweatshirt with a plaid SU logo imprinted on the front, light blue jeans and white sneakers.


Details of Disappearance

Allen was employed as a clerk at the D & W Convenience Store located at the intersection of New York State Routes 104 and 104B in New Haven, New York in 1994. A photo of the store is posted below this case summary. Allen opened the business by herself at approximately 5:45 a.m. on April 3, 1994. The last transaction was recorded on the cash register at 7:42 a.m.
A passerby flagged down a sheriff's patrol unit outside the store at approximately 8:15 a.m. and reported that the business was open but unattended. An extensive search produced few clues as to Allen's whereabouts and she has never been heard from again. The ensuing investigation revealed that Allen was most likely taken against her will from the store. Her jacket, purse and car keys were left behind in the store when she vanished, her maroon station wagon was undisturbed in the parking lot, and money was found in the cash register and on the counter.

Richard Thibodeau was charged with Allen's kidnapping in May 1994, one month after she was last seen. Richard's brother, Gary Thibodeau, was arrested on the same charge in August 1994, three months later. Richard was the last customer known to be in the store before Allen vanished. He says he purchased two packs of cigarettes at 7:30 a.m. and left.

Gary was convicted of kidnapping Allen in June 1995 and sentenced to 25 years to life in prison. Richard was acquitted of all charges in September 1995. Gary attempted to appeal his conviction, but was denied in 1999.

Foul play is suspected in Allen's disappearance. She was a student at Onandaga Community College at the time of her presumed abduction.



Above: D & W Convenience Store


Investigating Agency
If you have any information concerning this case, please contact:
Oswego County Sheriff's Department
315-349-3411
OR
888-349-3411
OR
800-724-8477



Source Information
Oswego County Sheriff's Department
Child Protection Education Of America
Missing Children Center Inc.
NewspaperArchive



Updated 2 times since October 12, 2004.

Last updated May 9, 2005.

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http://www.syracuse.com/news/index.ssf/201...man_chroni.html
Book by New Haven woman chronicles her feelings on the loss of her sister, Heidi Allen
Published: Saturday, October 30, 2010, 10:34 PM Updated: Sunday, October 31, 2010, 2:50 PM
Debra J. Groom / The Post-Standard
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Gary Walts / The Post-StandardLisa Buske at her home in New Haven, working on a book about her experiences going through the disappearance of her sister, Heidi Allen, who was abducted from a convenience store in 1994 and was never seen again. Heidi's photograph hangs on the wall in background left of Lisa's head.
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Share 12 Comments New Haven, NY -- Lisa Buske spends about four hours each week, sitting at a desk in her New Haven home, writing on a laptop, saving the material, then going back to edit.

She glances occasionally over her shoulder at the photograph on the wall of a teen with long, light brown hair, wearing a V-neck sweater.

The teen in the photo — the person about whom she’s writing — is Heidi Allen. Buske’s 18-year-old sister was abducted April 3, 1994, while she worked at the C&W Convenience Store in New Haven. She was never seen seen again.

“I don’t really know how to explain it,” she said. “She was my only sister. Now I live as if I’m an only child.”

Buske has endured ups and downs during the last 16 years, and now is putting it all into a book about her sister and the disappearance.


A photo of Heidi Allen that was used on missing person fliers and posters after she was abducted in 1994.
The book, as yet untitled, deals with the thoughts and emotions of siblings of missing people. Buske is called it a “joining of thoughts and different events, some of which were important and others that weren’t.”

“I feel God’s calling me,” she said. “There’s a lot of siblings of missing children who are going through a lot.”

Now she is editing the material and hopes to send the book to publishers for consideration by Thanksgiving.

Buske was 22 years old and married a year when Heidi disappeared. She was at home in New Haven and remembers a sheriff’s car speeding down the road.

Her aunt called to give her the news.

“I thought it was a misunderstanding. Things like that don’t happen here. There has to be some kind of mistake,” she recalls thinking.

But there was no mistake.

Instead, there has been 16 years of longing, enduring two trials, Easters that are rarely joyous — Heidi was kidnapped on Easter Sunday — and no more celebrations on Heidi’s birthday, Sept. 15.

Heidi Allen’s body was never found. But two brothers were tried in the case.

Gary Thibodeau, now 57, was found guilty of first-degree kidnapping and is serving time at Shawangunk Correctional Facility in Wallkill, Ulster County. He is scheduled to stay in prison until May 19, 2020. His brother, Richard, was found innocent of the same charge in a separate trial in Oswego County Court.

Buske decided to put her feelings into words.

“I had entered a three-day writing contest in 2006 in which you write a book in three days,” she said. “I didn’t win the contest, but I got a handwritten note from the contest coordinator.”

The coordinator challenged her to continue her writing. “She told me to please pursue my writing,” Buske said.

So Buske decided to write about what she went through after Heidi went missing.

“Your emotions start from the time the phone rings,” she said. “You begin a journey of thoughts and difficult events. I remember going to candlelight vigils and I thought ‘what kind of God would take my only sister away?’ But then I discovered, God never left me — I left him.”

Judy Grant, an author and member of the Wit and Wisdom Writing Group who lives in Sandy Creek, has helped Buske in her writing. She said Buske has “done an excellent job” with the book and “people throughout the area will want to read it.”

She isn’t worried about Buske finding a publisher.

“It is such a good story, a traditional publisher will be interested,” Grant said. “She talks about the tragedy, but also is working in spirituality — how to keep and grow your faith.”

Buske has found that her writing has touched siblings who have lost brothers and sisters to all types of tragedy. A woman who lost a sibling in a car accident read part of the book and told Buske “you hit the nail right on the head.”

“It’s a journey of a sister looking back,” Buske said. “And even though it was a terrible tragedy, God didn’t forget.”

Contact Debra J. Groom at dgroom@syracuse.com, 470-3254 or 251-5586.

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Missing Person:
Forcible Abduction

On Easter Sunday, April 3, 1994, 18-year-old Heidi Marie Allen was working alone as a cashier at the D&W Convenience Store, located at the intersection of State Routes 104 and 104B in the Oswego County Town of New Haven, New York State. She opened the store at about 5:45 a.m. and managed the store routinely for approximately 2 hours, with nothing out of the ordinary occurring.

About 7:50 a.m., a marked Oswego County Sheriff’s Department patrol unit was flagged down in the area by a citizen who reported that the convenience store was open, with lights and gas pumps on, but no one tending the business. The cashier had apparently vanished from the store. Additional Sheriff’s units were called to the scene, and an investigation commenced. Intense scrutiny revealed that the cause of her disappearance was foul play. Weeks of massive search by police, the New York State Army National Guard, the US Army 10th Mountain Division and hundreds of volunteers as well as a local and national media blitz followed with no positive results towards finding the missing woman. Even though the search results were fruitless, the intensive police investigation led to the arrests of two local brothers in the case.

In May, 1994, Richard Thibodeau was arrested and charged with kidnapping, 1st degree in connection with the missing person case. In August of that same year, Gary Thibodeau, Richard’s brother, was also arrested and faced the same charge. Separate jury trials were held for the pair. In June, 1995, Gary was convicted of the same charge he was arrested for kidnapping, 1st degree. He was sentenced to 25 years to life in the New York State correctional system. Richard was found not guilty in September, 1995. Gary has since appealed his conviction to the New York State Supreme Court Appellate Division.


On Dec. 30, 1999, the five justices who heard the case unanimously upheld the conviction, writing, “There is overwhelming evidence of defendant’s guilt.” At this time, the Oswego County Sheriff’s Department and the Federal Bureau of Investigation consider the matter to be an open case. Officers are still assigned to the investigation and continue to follow leads, hoping to find the remains of the missing woman.

At the time of her disappearance, Heidi was described as a white female, 5’11”, 145 pounds, light brown/blond hair worn long and curly, and blue eyes. She was last seen wearing a gray sweatshirt with a plaid SU logo on the front, and white sneakers. She wore glasses or contact lenses and had pierced ears. Her date of birth was September 14, 1975.

Anyone who may have been in the area of the convenience store at or around the time of her abduction, or anyone who has any information on the case is asked to contact the Oswego County Sheriff’s Office by e-mail, or by phone at one of the following numbers: 1-888-349-3411, 1-800-724-8477 or 315-349-3411.

http://www.co.oswego.ny.us/sheriff/allen.html
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AS HEIDI ALLEN'S BIRTHDAY PASSES, HER SISTER ASKS, WHERE IS SHE?(Neighbors Oswego)
Article from:The Post-Standard (Syracuse, NY) Article date:September 19, 2002More results for:Heidi Allen

Byline: Lisa Buske - Staff writer Catie O'Toole

Lisa Buske of New Haven, the sister of Heidi Allen, who disappeared eight years ago, marked Heidi's 27th birthday Saturday by writing the following letter to the editor.

September is a memorable month. For me it is because of the attack last September but also because my sister would have been 27 on Saturday, Sept. 14.

I decided to write this as a birthday gift to myself and a thank you to the people and community in my life. My sister is Heidi Allen. She was abducted from the D&W Convenience Store in New Haven on April 3, 1994. She was attending OCC and was to graduate with honors in May of 1994.

She wasn't able to graduate because her life was taken from her before she could experience it. My sister was a strong and smart girl. She attended Bishop Cunningham Jr./Sr. High School in Oswego until 1992, when it closed. She was given the option of completing high school in Mexico or starting college a year early. In order to do this, she had to pass numerous tests and maintain a certain average. She did this and received her high school diploma and two semesters of college classes within the same year.

College is hard enough without being a year younger than everyone else is and maintaining a higher grade point average than most of the other students. She was a remarkable person. When she was kidnapped, I watched as my community and numerous communities around us joined in the search for Heidi. It was a powerful and compassionate thing being done.

I remember saying thank you to anyone that I ran into. I didn't know what else to say. It is still uncomfortable to talk about my sister or her kidnapping, and it has been over eight years. I have days where I can talk of her and the past with smiles and tears. Thanks to a few dear friends, I realized that holding my thoughts within myself that I was losing control of the person I was and could be.

In the last few months, I have been opening my mind and mouth more about my sister and memories with her in them.

After my friends helped me understand that I was becoming harder to live with and deal with, I found some help and support. It was doing this that made me realize Heidi wouldn't want me walking around with the attitude and mannerisms that I had been doing. Her dream was to work with children and adults with emotional problems. I had turned into one of her clients without realizing.

I felt that keeping all my anger, frustration and grief inside was better for my family and myself. I was wrong. It is in sharing those feelings that we are released of the pressure and guilt. We all need to face our inner selves before we can deal with other people on a cheerful and positive note.

The first years after Heidi's disappearance, the media was calling on the anniversary of her disappearance, her birthday, Easter and Christmas. It was hard for the family but appearances were made, comments were given and visits to numerous places occurred. Although they were hard, they all had to be done. My parents did a lot of things that they were uncomfortable with, believing that if that one time is the one that brings Heidi home, then it was worth the pain and memories.

This past April, no one called my parents on the eight-year anniversary. I was upset by this but didn't bother anyone with my personal feelings, until now. Heidi would have been 27 and I want to remind people of the wonderful, beautiful, intelligent, giving and compassionate qualities she possessed.

The community has been great and I know they won't forget but sometimes we all need to be reminded through the media. There is still a person out there that witnessed events of that Easter morning in April of 1994.

WHERE ARE YOU? We don't know where Heidi is but your information could help. WHERE IS HEIDI? WHERE IS HER BODY? There are people in this community that know this information.

Heidi is loved by many and needs your help to bring her home. PLEASE BRING HEIDI HOME! You don't need to give your name but you could give HEIDI ALLEN a birthday present, CLOSURE!

My gift to Heidi is one of living. I am going to live the life meant for me with the help of my family and friends. I want Heidi to receive a gift for her birthday this year, don't you? Let's remember Heidi and what she was about. Let's remember that morning. Maybe you will remember something that you had forgot? Something you don't think is important but could bring closure for my parents and this community?

Don't do this for Heidi or my parents, do this for yourself! If Heidi Allen was kidnapped and murdered on Easter Sunday, April 3, 1994, it could have been your daughter! Your sister! Your cousin! I would never wish this tragedy and kidnapping on any other person, not even an enemy. I just want the missing link to realize that if the "shoe were on the other foot," you would feel differently. Please release yourself of your stress from withholding vital information and let Heidi be found! She is missed and loved!

Thank you all that have helped throughout this difficult time and supported the family of Heidi Allen and the Sheriff's Department. Everyone is working for the same goal, CLOSURE! WHERE'S HEIDI? Can you help find her? Did you see something you have forgotten? Are you afraid? I bet Heidi saw the terror going on around her.

Heidi will always remember everything that happened that day! Heidi was afraid that day! Who is the coward here? You are for not sharing your information. Turn your life around and Heidi Allen's. Thank you for remembering my sister on her birthday and everyday throughout the year. One day, we will be able to give her the memorial she deserves and the closure her parents and community need.

Lisa Buske

New Haven

Heidi Allen case still open

Heidi Allen would have turned 27 years old Saturday.

Instead of celebrating, her family wished they knew exactly what happened to her eight years ago when she was kidnapped, and where she is now. She is believed to have been killed. Her body has not been found.

Allen disappeared April 3, 1994, from the D&W Convenience Store in New Haven. Gary Thibodeau and his brother, Richard Thibodeau, were charged with abducting her.

A 12-member Oswego County jury convicted Gary Thibodeau in June 1995. A different jury later acquitted Richard Thibodeau.

"When she was kidnapped I watched as my community and numerous communities around us joined in the search for Heidi. It was a powerful and compassionate thing being done," said her sister, Lisa Buske. "I remember saying thank you to anyone that I ran into. I didn't know what else to say. It is still uncomfortable to talk about my sister or her kidnapping and it has been over eight years. I have days where I can talk of her and the past with smiles and tears."

Gary Thibodeau is being held at Shawangunk Correctional Facility, a maximum security prison in Ulster County, a prison spokesperson said.

The case remains open. Anyone with information is asked to call the Oswego County Sheriff's Department at 800-724-8477 or 888-349-3411.

- Staff writer Catie O'Toole

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REVIEW SOUGHT IN ALLEN CASE; GARY THIBODEAU APPEALS TO FEDERAL COURT TO OVERTURN CONVICTION IN HEIDI ALLEN CASE.(Local)
Article from:The Post-Standard (Syracuse, NY) Article date:November 25, 2001More results for:Heidi Allen

Byline: Catie O'Toole Staff writer

The state is opposing a federal court appeal to retry the case of the man convicted of kidnapping Heidi Allen nearly eight years ago.

Gary Thibodeau wants the federal court system to overturn his conviction for first-degree kidnapping and his sentence of 25 years to life in state prison. Thibodeau has exhausted his state court appeals, so he must take his case to federal court, said Marc Violette, spokesman for state Attorney General Eliot Spitzer in Albany.

Earlier this month, Assistant State Attorney General Senta Siuda of Syracuse responded to Thibodeau's petition, saying her office opposes his bid to appeal.

"We believe he should remain exactly where is, in state prison," Violette said.

Thibodeau's six lawyers filed the habeas corpus petition June 1 in U.S. District Court, said Donald Dodd, chief assistant district attorney in Oswego County. Such a petition asks a judge to decide the legality of Thibodeau's imprisonment.

Thibodeau's lawyers, including Randi Bianco, have until Dec. 20 to answer the attorney general's response, Violette said.

Both sides must wait until U.S. District Court Judge Thomas McAvoy in Syracuse announces his decision to either uphold or reverse Thibodeau's conviction and sentence, Violette said. McAvoy will look at Thibodeau's petition and the state attorney general's office's response.

"It could take a couple of months, or it could take a year before he decides," Violette said.

Thibodeau ran out of options in New York when the Court of Appeals, the state's highest court, on May 26, 2000, rejected Thibodeau's bid to appeal his June 1995 conviction for kidnapping Heidi Allen.

Judge Howard A. Levine ruled that there were no questions of law that needed to be reviewed.

Allen, 18, disappeared from the D&W Convenience Store in New Haven April 3, 1994. Thibodeau and his brother, Richard Thibodeau, were accused of abducting her together.

A 12-member jury convicted Gary Thibodeau in June 1995. A different jury later acquitted Richard Thibodeau.

Gary Thibodeau is being held at Shawangunk Correctional Facility, a maximum security prison in Ulster County, a prison spokesperson said.
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KIDNAPPER OF HEIDI ALLEN LOSES HIS APPEAL; FEDERAL JUDGE RULES AGAINST OVERTURNING GARY THIBODEAU'S CONVICTION.(News)
Article from:The Post-Standard (Syracuse, NY) Article date:October 30, 2004More results for:Heidi Allen

Byline: Edwin Acevedo Staff writer

A federal judge ruled against a petition by Gary Thibodeau, convicted in 1995 for kidnapping New Haven convenience store clerk Heidi Allen, to have his conviction overturned and his prison sentence declared illegal.

Thibodeau, whose appeals in state court ended in 2000, was convicted of first-degree kidnapping and sentenced to 25 years to life in state prison.

In his decision Thursday, U.S. Magistrate Judge David E. Peebles recommended that Thibodeau's petition be dismissed, saying his claims lacked merit.

Oswego County District Attorney Donald Dodd said Thibodeau's petition challenged the legality of his imprisonment. It claimed errors were made during the trial, making the jury's verdict invalid and the imprisonment illegal.

Such petitions first come before magistrate judges, who make recommendations to federal district court judges, said Winthrop Thurlow, assistant attorney general for the Syracuse office.

The decision to reject or accept an appeal now falls to Federal District Court Judge Thomas McAvoy, who could ask for more information or make a ruling based on the recommendation alone, Thurlow said.

"For all intents and purposes, this effectively exhausts the appeals for Mr. Thibodeau," Thurlow said. "I am confident that this report and recommendation will be affirmed by the district court."

Thurlow's office defended the prosecution by the Oswego County District Attorney's Office and the work of the sheriff's department, which handled the investigation.

"Those of us who worked on that case never had a doubt from the very beginning," said Sheriff Reuel Todd, who was the undersheriff at the time. "When we started interviewing people and getting information, until the time we concluded our investigation, we never had a doubt as to the guilt of Gary.

"I think this upholds everything that we believed and that the DA's office believed and that the jury itself believed," Todd said.

Allen, 18, disappeared from the D&W Convenience Store in New Haven April 3, 1994. Thibodeau and his brother, Richard Thibodeau, were accused of abducting her together.

A 12-member jury convicted Gary Thibodeau in June 1995. A different jury later acquitted Richard Thibodeau.

Richard Thibodeau had filed a $5 million wrongful-arrest lawsuit against Oswego County and its sheriff, but a state Supreme Court judge dismissed the case in 2000.

Gary Thibodeau is being held at Shawangunk Correctional Facility, a maximum-security prison in Ulster County, according to the New York State Department of Correctional Services Web site. His earliest release date is May 19, 2020.

Charles Nellis, who was sheriff at the time, said he thinks about the Allen family every Easter. The kidnapping occurred on Easter Sunday.

The case continues to frustrate investigators because Allen's body was never found.

"It hasn't come to closure yet, and as the years go by it gets harder and harder (to close the case)," Nellis said. "But I think that at some point in time there will be closure to it, whether it be someone finds part of the remains or something of that nature."
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KIDNAP SUSPECT IN COURT TWO BROTHERS ACCUSED IN DISAPPEARANCE OF OSWEGO COUNTY WOMAN.(CAPITAL REGION)
Article from:Albany Times Union (Albany, NY) Article date:July 26, 1994More results for:Heidi Allen

Byline: Associated Press

OSWEGO A second suspect was arraigned in the disappearance of a convenience store clerk on Monday while authorities searched his property for clues to the teenager's fate.

Also, authorities on Monday denied that Heidi Allen was acting as a police informant against one of her suspected kidnappers.

Gary J. Thibodeau, 40, of Mexico was being held in the county jail on a charge of second-degree kidnapping following a brief appearance before Oswego County Judge John Elliott. Another hearing for Thibodeau was scheduled for tonight in Town of Mexico Court.

After hearing brief statements from attorneys, Elliott set bail at $15,000 cash, $30,000 bond or $50,000 partially secured bond. Assistant District Attorney Donald Dodd had asked that Thibodeau be held without bail, noting he has a criminal record in at least three states: New York, Massachusetts and California.

``Gary is innocent,'' said Thibodeau's girlfriend, Sharon Raposa, before court proceedings began.

``I wish the newspapers would stop all these lies,'' Thibodeau muttered ashe was escorted into the courtroom in shackles.

Thibodeau was arrested Friday night, nearly two months after the arrest of his brother, Richard Thibodeau of New Haven. Richard Thibodeau, 48, is free on $7,500 bail.

The men are charged with the abduction of Allen, who was last seen on April 3, when she was working alone at the D & W Convenience Store in New Haven, a rural community 45 miles north of Syracuse near Lake Ontario.

Authorities say the brothers fit the descriptions given by an Oswego resident who said he saw two men forcing a woman toward a van in the parking lot of the convenience store the morning of Allen's disappearance.

At the time of Richard Thibodeau's arrest, Gary Thibodeau and Raposa were also arrested and charged with drug-trafficking on fugitive warrants from Massachusetts.

During a 60-day stay in jail, Gary Thibodeau allegedly bragged to two cell mates that he had abducted and killed Allen, Dodd said.

In statements to investigators, the men claimed Gary Thibodeau told them Allen was killed by a blow to the head, and that her body was burned and the remains buried in woods on his property, Dodd said.

``We have no reason to doubt them,'' said Oswego County Sheriff's Lt. Dean Goodsell.

Both men are out of jail now and had nothing to gain by talking with investigators, he said. One man was in jail on a traffic infraction, the other for writing a bad check, Goodsell said.

The lieutenant said both men knew facts about the case that would have been difficult to obtain if they had not actually spoken with Gary Thibodeau.

Goodsell also said investigators have nothing to show that Allen knew about Gary Thibodeau's alleged drug activities.

The men told investigators that Gary Thibodeau said Allen was murdered because she knew too much about his involvement with drugs and Thibodeau was afraid she would tell police.

Allen had spoken to police about an unrelated drug case two years ago, but investigators never used that information, Goodsell said.

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http://query.nytimes.com/gst/fullpage.html...752C0A9669C8B63
METRO NEWS BRIEFS: NEW YORK; Conviction Upheld In Woman's Kidnapping
Published: January 1, 2000
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. .ROCHESTER— The State Supreme Court Appellate Division has unanimously upheld Gary Thibodeau's 1995 conviction for first-degree kidnapping and his sentence of 25 years to life in state prison.

Heidi Allen, 18, disappeared from her job at a convenience store in New Haven in Oswego County on Easter Sunday 1994.

Although her body was never found, an Oswego County jury convicted Gary Thibodeau of first-degree kidnapping, a charge that presumes the victim died. Mr. Thibodeau's brother, Richard, was later acquitted on the same charge.

In September, defense attorneys challenged the conviction, arguing that Mr. Thibodeau's trial was marred by errors, improper rulings and prosecution misconduct. The Appellate Division's five justices dismissed the claims.
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FACE CARDS AIM AT COLD CASES; SHERIFFS HOPE THE CARDS WILL SHUFFLE INMATES' MEMORIES AND SOLVE CRIMES.(News)
Article from:The Post-Standard (Syracuse, NY) Article date:May 17, 2008More results for:Heidi Allen

Byline: Diana LaMattina Staff writer

Could a game of Texas hold 'em solve a real-life hold-up? Could a full house in the big house find a missing person?

That's the notion behind the decks of Cold Case Playing Cards distributed to inmates at county jails across the state. Each card features details on an unsolved case and a toll-free number to call. The hope is that inmates will see something they recognize and help out.

"People in jail do have some conscience," said Cayuga County Sheriff David Gould.

"The inmates have a lot of time on their hands, naturally," he added. "This is an opportunity for every inmate to see 52 cases."

One card in the current deck features the case of Heidi Marie Allen, who was kidnapped from the D&W Convenience Store in New Haven, Oswego County, on Easter Sunday 1994. Gary Thibodeau was sentenced in 1995 to 25 years to life in prison for kidnapping Allen, but her body has not been found.

"Obviously the people that are in the county facilities are subject to a lot of knowledge and contacts with people they meet in the system," said Oswego County Sheriff Reuel Todd.

The cost of printing about 7,000 decks and distributing them to jails across the state is paid for through a grant from the New York State Sheriff's Association.

Oswego County expects to receive the decks shortly, Todd said. Cayuga County received 96 decks on Wednesday and distributed them to the 180 inmates in jail that night, Gould said.

"The inmates were very excited," said Cayuga County Undersheriff James G. Stowell. "They swarmed around (the lieutenant distributing them) to listen as he explained how it worked."

The number of an anonymous tip line -- 1-800-346-3543, ext. 2 -- is listed at the bottom of each playing card. A sticker on the deck's box lists a number that can be reached from any inmate collect-call telephone. People providing valuable information could receive a cash reward.

Sheriff's departments around the state submitted photos and information about the cases included on the cards. When a case is solved, that card will be removed and a new one added.

One replacement card may feature a Cayuga County case. Gould said he submitted a paragraph and photo of Dean Dawson, a well-known handyman in the Martville area who disappeared April 26, 1996.

The Cold Case Playing Card program is a project started in New York state by the Center for Hope in Ballston Spa. Doug and Mary Lyall created the center to help families of missing people after their daughter, Suzanne, disappeared from the area near the state University at Albany in 1998.

In Florida, a similar idea generated tips that solved 19 cases, Gould said.

"We've taken all the other decks away. These decks are the only ones they'll be using," Gould said. "I truly believe in my heart that a lot of the cases will be solved by these cards."

Diana LaMattina can be reached at 470-3213 or 253-7316 or dlamattina@syracuse.com.

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MAN GETS 25 YEARS TO LIFE FOR KIDNAPPING TEEN-AGER
Article from:Buffalo News Article date:August 8, 1995More results for:Heidi Allen

A man convicted of kidnapping a teen-age convenience store clerk was sentenced Monday to 25 years to life in prison.

"I am innocent. I feel like Jesus Christ being prosecuted," Gary Thibodeau said before he was sentenced by acting Oswego County Judge Lee Clary.

Thibodeau was convicted in June of first-degree kidnapping in the disappearance of Heidi Allen, 18, of New Haven. The charge presumes the victim is dead.

Ms. Allen disappeared from the D & W Convenience store in New Haven on Easter morning 1994. Also charged in her disappearance is Gary's brother, Richard, who is awaiting trial.

Chief Assistant District Attorney Donald Dodd built his case on circumstantial evidence, such as the testimony of a motorist who saw two men pushing a young woman into a van resembling Richard's outside the store.

http://www.highbeam.com/doc/1P2-22745846.html
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HEIDI SEARCH TO ENTER YEAR 11; TEEN DISAPPEARED 10 YEARS AGO TODAY. ONE MAN REMAINS IN PRISON, HUNT CONTINUES.(Local)
Article from:The Post-Standard (Syracuse, NY) Article date:April 3, 2004More results for:Heidi Allen

Byline: Catie O'Toole Staff writer

A decade has passed since Heidi Allen disappeared April 3, 1994.

The 18-year-old was working alone Easter Sunday morning at the D&W Convenience store in New Haven. An investigation into her disappearance led Oswego County sheriff's deputies to Gary and Richard Thibodeau, who were charged with her kidnapping.

Gary Thibodeau was convicted and is serving 25 years to life at Shawangunk Correctional Facility, a maximum security prison in Ulster County. Richard Thibodeau was found innocent and went free. Allen has not been found, and is presumed dead.

"I have had more tears in this week than I've had in a very long time," Allen's sister, Lisa Buske, of New Haven, said Friday.

The tears are from remembering what happened 10 years ago, not knowing where her sister is today, for the families involved in similar tragedies who have received closure after many years, and the community that has continued to remember Heidi.

"When it happened, I couldn't believe it. Now that it's been 10 years, it (still) doesn't seem possible," Buske said. "This week, we've had so many people saying they remember and they'd be thinking of me over the weekend. I still see fliers and posters in people's windows. So many people are hoping and praying for her. It's an amazing community."

Since Onondaga County sheriff's deputies discovered a body Thursday in Clay, Buske said it makes her and her family hope that someone will come forward with information about Heidi's whereabouts.

"It's so wonderful that those families get closure, but then it's so disheartening that we don't," said Buske, 32. "We need that closure. I think anybody in that situation needs closure."

Buske said she and her 5-year-old daughter will spend the 10th anniversary of Heidi's disappearance with her parents, Ken and Sue Allen.

At 5 p.m., family members and the community will remember and pray for Heidi Allen at a Mass dedicated to her at St. Mary's Star of the Sea Church in Mexico.

"It's a tragedy that still has no closure," said the Rev. John Manno, who will say the Mass today. "Nothing is really definite. I think for people, that compels their grief all the more. We're just going to come together as a community and pray for Heidi and pray for her family."

Buske said she still receives telephone calls from the Oswego County Sheriff's Department whenever investigators have a possible lead. The last call she received was between Thanksgiving and Christmas, but it turned out to be nothing.

"It's always something that crosses our mind, absolutely," said Oswego County Sheriff Reuel Todd, who responded to the kidnapping scene when he was undersheriff. "We always hope that we find what we've been searching for 10 years. And that would be Heidi. With all the new forensic equipment and DNA, we hope someday we can identify where she is."

Todd said he is certain the sheriff's department arrested the correct people, and that one of them was convicted. Now, they just want to find Heidi Allen, and give the family closure.

"I absolutely hope we find her. We'll keep trying until we do," Todd said. "That's all we're working for now. To put a closure on this for the Allen family."

Allen's sister said the family believes someone knows where she is or what happened a decade ago.

"There hasn't been a day that we've given up hope," Buske said. "We'll never give up hope."

Heidi Allen

The case involving the disappearance of Heidi Allen 10 years ago today remains open. Anyone with information is asked to call the Oswego County Sheriff's Department at 800-724-8477 or 888-349-3411.

http://www.highbeam.com/doc/1G1-114955219.html
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http://www.highbeam.com/doc/1P2-22610442.html
CLERK VANISHES FROM CONVENIENCE STORE
Article from:Buffalo News Article date:April 5, 1994More results for:Heidi Allen

Authorities set up a command post Monday to help search for an 18-year-old convenience store clerk who disappeared nearly two hours into her shift.

Heidi Allen, who was in her final year at Onondaga County Community College, worked part time at D & W Convenience store, a mile from her home. She opened the store shortly before 6 a.m. Sunday and rang up a customer at 7:42 a.m., according to the Oswego County Sheriff's Department. A customer who found the store unattended flagged down a deputy.

There was no sign of a struggle or a robbery. Ms. Allen's keys were on the counter and her car was parked outside, deputies said.

Investigators were trying to determine whether she might have walked away from the store, 30 miles north of Syracuse.

The 5-foot-11, 145-pound woman has light brown hair and was wearing a Syracuse University sweat shirt, jeans and sneakers.

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HEIDI ALLEN RECALLED AT CEREMONY IN ALBANY.(News)(Column)
Article from:The Post-Standard (Syracuse, NY) Article date:October 4, 2006More results for:Heidi Allen

Byline: ERIK KRISS ALBANY NOTEBOOK

Relatives of Heidi Allen, the Oswego County woman who was kidnapped on Easter Sunday 1994 and has never been found, traveled to Albany Tuesday for a remembrance ceremony for missing persons.

Lisa Buske, Allen's older sister, her uncle Jim Searles and cousin Melissa Adams attended the ceremony, at which first lady Libby Pataki and Senate Majority Leader Joseph Bruno spoke.

The Missing Persons Remembrance, a stainless steel sculptural frame topped by an eternal flame, stands 20 feet tall in the Empire State Plaza Memorial Park near the Capitol.

Allen then 18, was kidnapped from the former D&W Convenience store at the intersection of state routes 104 and 104B in New Haven while working alone on April 3, 1994. Gary Thibodeau is serving a 25 years-to-life prison sentence for her abduction.

http://www.highbeam.com/doc/1G1-152350484.html
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http://www.highbeam.com/doc/1G1-114955110.html
TOWN RECALLS MISSING GIRL; TEN YEARS AFTER HEIDI ALLEN DISAPPEARED, HER MEMORY IS FRESH IN NEW HAVEN'S MIND.(Local)
Article from:The Post-Standard (Syracuse, NY) Article date:April 4, 2004More results for:Heidi Allen

Byline: Chris Iven Staff writer

The message in New Haven hasn't changed in 10 years: "Let's not forget Heidi."

Those words, in red, foot-high letters, stretch across a white sign in the center of town. They've been there for most of the time since the 18-year-old disappeared on April 3, 1994.

The yellowed fliers with pictures of the smiling Allen have been around so long that few people notice them anymore. But they can't forget, either.

"Everybody lives here comfortably and happily, but it's still never the same," said Bob Andrews.

Andrews owns a used car lot across the street from the former D&W convenience store at state Routes 104 and 104B, where Allen was last seen.

"You might go days or weeks or months without thinking about her," Andrews said, "but then it comes back to your mind."

In the weeks following Allen's disappearance, hundreds of area residents walked shoulder-to-shoulder through New Haven's marshes and over its hills. About 200 National Guard soldiers and 100 troops from Fort Drum joined in the search.

On June 19, 1995, a jury convicted Gary Thibodeau, 41, of Kenyon Road, Mexico, of kidnapping her.

No trace of Allen has been found. She is presumed dead, but the story hasn't ended for New Haven.

Jennifer Goodberry was 12 years old and living in the Jefferson County hamlet of Lorraine when Allen disappeared. She and her friends would often talk about Allen, she said.

"I always hoped she would walk out of the woods near my house," said Goodberry, who now lives in Oswego and works at the Sun Up Food Store, the same building where Heidi was last seen. "I didn't know what she looked like but I wanted her to be found."

Ed and Diane Kahler, who live in the house next to the store, said they remember the police and others walking over their property in the search for Allen. The Kahler's two children were young then, no more than 6, but even they understood that Allen's disappearance meant possible danger for them, Diane Kahler said.

"We had to explain to them what was going on," she said. "They were terrified... They were afraid to go out for a long, long time."

Like most New Haven residents, the Kahlers knew Allen because they went to the convenience store, one of the few places to buy anything in the town.

"This is a very small town and everybody knows everybody," Diane Kahler said. "She's still remembered and talked about and missed."
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New book by Heidi Allen’s sister discusses her disappearance
by Alex Dunbar
Posted: 09.14.2012 at 1:42 PM
SYRACUSE -- Heidi Allen’s sister will discuss the challenges and difficulties families face after a loved one goes missing or is kidnapped.


Lisa Buske will unveil the cover of her book "Where’s Heidi? One sister’s Journey" at 4:30pm on Friday afternoon in the Oswego County town of New Haven.


The event is scheduled to take place at the Heidi Allen Memorial Garden near the intersection of Route 104 and Route104b in the Oswego County town of New Haven.


Allen disappeared on Easter morning 1994. She was 18 at the time. Allen was working as a cashier at the D & W Convenience store when she disappeared. An Oswego County Sheriff’s deputy was flagged down by a customer who found the store empty at 7:50am.


The Oswego County Sheriff’s Office has said foul play was the cause of her disappearance. A massive search was conducted by police, the National Guard, troops from Fort Drum and hundreds of volunteers, but Allen was never found.


Brothers Richard and Gary Thibodeau were charged with Kidnapping in the 1st degree in connection with Allen’s disappearance. Gary Thibodeau was found guilty and sentenced to 25 years to life. Richard Thibodeau was found not guilty. Gary Thibodeau appealed his conviction in 1999 and 2007.


The Oswego County Sheriff’s and the FBI consider Allen’s disappearance to be an open case.


The website for the Oswego County Sheriff’s Department says Heidi Allen’s disappearance is considered an open case and deputies "continue to follow leads, hoping to find the remains of the missing woman."


The Valley News Online says that Oswego County Sheriff Reull Todd and Allen’s parents will be present at today’s book cover unveiling.


The book is expected to be released in the spring.
http://www.cnycentral.com/news/story.aspx?id=801034
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Kidnapping victim’s sister writes book; hopes to help siblings cope with loss, tragedy
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Murder victim's sister writes book to help others cope with loss and tragedy.
Print Story Published: 9/14 7:56 pm Share Updated: 9/14 10:04 pmSyracuse (WSYR-TV) -- Heidi Allen was abducted from a convenience store where she was worked in the town of New Haven back in 1994. She was 18 at the time. Her body was never found, but one man is in prison for kidnapping her.

Now, almost 20 years later, Allen’s sister is telling her story in a book called “Where’s Heidi? One sister’s journey.”

Lisa Buskey says that she wrote the book to help siblings cope with loss and tragedy and to let them know that they’re not alone.

"It’s not any easier any day without my sister. But I’m definitely a stronger and different person than I was the day she disappeared," Buske told NewsChannel 9. "It’s something a lot of people don’t realize when there’s tragedy, memory is greatly affected, so it was difficult to go back and remember the hard stuff and then try and fill in the gaps at the same time."

Investigators say they continue to investigate every tip about the Allen case, in hopes of bringing Heidi home. The book is set for release on April 3 of next year – the same day that Heidi vanished.

Copyright 2012 Newport Television LLC All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.
http://www.9wsyr.com/news/local/story/Kidn...wVuUvoY8qw.cspx
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