Sara Anne Wood | |
|---|---|
 Wood, pictured in 1992[1] | |
| Born | March 4, 1981 New York, U.S. |
| Disappeared | August 18, 1993 (aged 12) Litchfield, New York, U.S. 43°00′47″N 75°12′19″W / 43.01319°N 75.20533°W[2] |
| Status | Missing for 31 years, 2 months and 24 days |
| Known for | Missing person |
| Height | 5 ft 0 in (1.52 m) |
| Parents |
|
| Distinguishing features | Caucasian female. 96 pounds. Shoulder-length curly brown hair, blue eyes, and facial freckles. Scars on both legs. One toe on each of her feet is disabled. |
Sara Anne Wood (March 4, 1981 – disappeared August 18, 1993) was a twelve-year-old American girl who disappeared while riding her bicycle home from Norwich Corners Church in Sauquoit, New York.[3] She is believed to have been abducted less than half a mile from her own home by convicted child killer Lewis Stephen Lent Jr.[4][5]
Lent later pleaded guilty to both Sara's abduction and murder and that of a twelve-year-old boy named James Bernardo, whom he had murdered in 1990. He received a mandatory sentence of life imprisonment for Bernardo's murder, and a sentence of 25 years' imprisonment to life for Sara's abduction and murder.[6]
Sara's abduction and murder ultimately inspired numerous initiatives by both law enforcement and the public within and around New York to raise public vigilance of the issues regarding missing children and child safety to prevent child abduction and sexual exploitation.[7] Her family also established the Sara Anne Wood Rescue Center, which ultimately became a New York branch of the National Center for Missing & Exploited Children.[8]
Despite the intense publicity surrounding Sara's disappearance and repeated efforts to locate her body, her body has never been found.[9]
- ^ "Gallery: The History of the Sara Anne Wood Case". Observer-Dispatch. August 12, 2018. Archived from the original on August 17, 2023. Retrieved July 7, 2023.
- ^ Roth, Amy Neff (September 20, 2024). "Still Looking for Sara Anne Wood: TV Show Looks at Law Enforcement's Unending Efforts". Observer-Dispatch. Retrieved November 3, 2024.
- ^ "Norwich Corners Christian Church". norwich-corners-christian-church.business.site. January 1, 2023. Archived from the original on July 6, 2023. Retrieved July 5, 2023.
- ^ Good, Meaghan (July 16, 2013). "Sara Anne Wood". The Charley Project. Archived from the original on August 22, 2018. Retrieved August 22, 2018.
- ^ Jones, Charisse (January 13, 1994). "Town Prepares to Mourn In Search for Girl's Body". The New York Times. ISSN 0362-4331. Archived from the original on July 5, 2021. Retrieved May 27, 2017.
- ^ "Killer Declines to Tell Where Girl Is Buried". The New York Times. Associated Press. April 12, 1997. Archived from the original on July 19, 2023. Retrieved July 5, 2023.
- ^ "The legacy of Sara Anne Wood". Observer-Dispatch. August 10, 2018. Archived from the original on August 17, 2023. Retrieved July 16, 2023.
- ^ Croyle, Jonathan (August 18, 2018). "25 Years Ago, Sara Anne Wood Vanished and Launched a National Search". The Post-Standard. Archived from the original on July 8, 2023. Retrieved July 8, 2023.
- ^ "N.Y. Police May be Close to Finding Missing Girl's Body". upi.com. Raquette Lake, New York. United Press International. January 12, 1994. Retrieved July 5, 2023.
