Mother of Cherrie Mahan hopes new tip will lead to a conclusion of the case

By Ricky Sayer

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    PITTSBURGH (KDKA) — The family of Cherrie Mahan is seeking help from the public as they chase a new tip, 40 years after the 8-year-old disappeared when she got off her school bus in Winfield Township.

“I would never wish this upon anybody to have to deal with this. 40 years of not knowing is a killer,” said Janice McKinney, Cherrie’s mother.

A 26-acre property could hold the key to solving the 40-year-old mystery, one that McKinney can’t take her mind off of.

“Not knowing is horrible,” she said. “It’s excruciating. Every single day, I get killed a little but more than by not knowing.”

McKinney hasn’t given up hope of finding her daughter, dead or alive.

“I have got to the point in my life where I physically, mentally, just can’t do this anymore,” she said.

That’s why she has gotten help from a group called “Cherrie’s Angels,” and now they’ve got a call out for help.

“We’re asking for somebody to come with the dogs, with this equipment, and help us,” she said.

McKinney said they want to focus on a two-to-three-acre section of the property that she said police never looked at, and it’s across the street from where Cherrie’s grandparents lived.

“I have got to the point in my life where I physically, mentally, just can’t do this anymore,” she said.

That’s why she has gotten help from a group called “Cherrie’s Angels,” and now they’ve got a call out for help.

“We’re asking for somebody to come with the dogs, with this equipment, and help us,” she said.

McKinney said they want to focus on a two-to-three-acre section of the property that she said police never looked at, and it’s across the street from where Cherrie’s grandparents lived.

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