September 01, 2013 11:00 am • From Staff Reports


(0) Comments



Anna Mae Mann, 73 at the time of her death, was found murdered in her home at 44 Burks Road in Farmington on Tuesday, April 13, 1982. Her death remains a mystery to this day.

Her niece went to her home shortly after noon on that Tuesday. She found both the front and back doors locked, but could hear noise from a radio or television. She went to a neighbor's house to ask for help.

The two women returned to the home of Mann and the kitchen door opened. The house was ransacked and Mann's purse was dumped out. The telephone wire was ripped out of the box on the wall. The women left and called police.

Two Farmington officers arrived at 12:20 p.m. They found Mann face down with her hands tied to the headboard and her feet tied to the baseboard of the bed. The preliminary cause of death was listed as strangulation.

Police said there was no sign of forced entry. Residents reported several dogs barking at approximately 2 a.m.

Then St. Francois County Sheriff Capt. Vernon Nelson confirmed the incident was the second time the house had been ransacked that year. While Mann was in the hospital in February the house had been burglarized in the same manner.

A neighbor reported speaking with Mann between 4 to 6 p.m. Monday and that a brother spoke with Mann at 9 p.m. Monday. The neighbor reported seeing lights on in the house at 4 a.m. Tuesday when she got up, but said that was about the time Mann woke up every morning.

The autopsy showed no evidence that Mann had been beaten. The coroner said there were few if any defensive marks, indicating Mann did not struggle with her killer for any extended amount of time.

Residents said Mann was not well known in the area. They said she was out Easter Sunday, two days prior, giving out candy and eggs to neighborhood children. Mann had prior addresses in Piedmont and in St. Louis.

Mann is buried in the Layne Cemetery in Elvins.

The St. Francois County Sheriff's Department says the case is still open.