18-year old Heidi Allen was employed as a clerk at the D & W Convenience Store in New Haven, New York. She opened the store by herself at 5:45 a.m. on April 3, 1994 and her last transaction was recorded on the cash register at 7:42 a.m.
Several customers came and went after that, leaving cash for their purchases on the counter when they couldn’t find a clerk. Finally, a customer flagged down a sheriff's patrol car outside the store and reported that the business was open but unattended.
The investigation into Heidi’s disappearance would reveal that Heidi was likely taken against her will from the store. Her jacket, purse and car keys were left behind in the store when she vanished and her maroon station wagon was in the parking lot.
The primary suspect was the last customer known to be in the store before Heidi vanished. He told police that he had purchased two packs of cigarettes at 7:30 a.m. and left. Detectives didn’t believe him. But there may have been more to Heidi’s story than a random abduction. There was something about Heidi that most people didn’t know. Heidi was working as an informant for the police. Was Heidi the target of drug dealers who wanted to keep her quiet?
Join us at the quiet end today for Where’s Heidi: The Kidnapping of Heidi Allen.