Photo: National Center for Missing & Exploited Children
A woman is claiming to be Cherrie Mahan, the Pennsylvania girl who vanished at the age of 8 outside her home after being dropped off by her school bus in 1985.
The woman claimed Cherrie's identity in a post shared on the 'Memories of Cherrie Mahan' Facebook group in May, which was flagged to the Pennsylvania State Police Department and launched an ensuing investigation, the Butler Eagle reported. Cherrie was last seen getting off the school bus at the bottom of her driveway in Winfield Township, Butler County, just after 4:00 p.m. on February 22, 1985, according to her active missing persons case.
A blue 1976 Dodge van was spotted in the area and could've potentially been involved in her disappearance, according to investigators. Cherrie's mother, Janice McKinney, told the Butler Eagle that she doesn't believe the woman is actually Cherrie, who would be 46 years old today, as three other woman had falsely come forward claiming to be the missing girl in the past.
“I truly believe she thought in her mind that she was Cherrie,” McKinney said. “It did not look anything like Cherrie at all.”
McKinney said she's typically seen tips about Cherrie come in around the anniversary of her disappearance, as well as her birthday, which is in August, and said it hurts every time someone falsely comes forward claiming to be her daughter.
“If you wanted your 15 minutes of fame, you’ve already blown it,” she said. “People are mean, they are cruel, but this affects me really crazy. It’s gonna be 40 years since Cherrie’s been missing.”