Corinne Perry
Corinne Elaine Perry
17 YOA
Case # 83-02161
Creston, Iowa
Union County
April 17, 1983
Union County in Iowa
Corinne Perry, 17, was last seen April 17, 1983, at a coin-operated laundromat in Creston, Iowa. According to authorities, a man walked out of the laundromat right behind the teen sometime between 8:30 and 9:00 p.m. on the night she disappeared.
The following day, her car — with the clothes neatly folded and lying on the seat — was found parked at the laundromat. Her purse was found on a highway bridge seven miles away.
Perry was described as having light brown hair, gray eyes and a fair complexion. She was 5 feet, 7 inches tall and weighed 110 pounds.
Three weeks after she went missing, Gerald Shanahan, chief of the Iowa Division of Criminal Investigation, announced that a $2,500 reward was being offered for information that would help authorities locate the Creston teen. Shanahan said the reward was offered by Miss Perry’s family through the First Congregational United Church of Christ in Creston.
On the one-month anniversary of Perry’s disappearance, Iowa Governor Terry Branstad conditionally approved a proposal to remove the 72 hours some law enforcement agencies were required to wait before asking the DCI for help in missing person cases with suspected foul play. A law enforcement officer at the event said some agencies would take immediate action if cases seemed to involve foul play, while other agencies might wait 24 hours. A DCI official said most agencies waited 72 hours before asking for state investigators’ help.
“I have no problems with removing that,” Branstad said on Tuesday, May 17, 1983, as reported by the Dubuque Telegraph Herald.
Branstad signed a proclamation declaring May 25 as Missing Children’s Day. Joining him were Noreen and John Gosch, parents of missing Des Moines paperboy Johnny Gosch, Corinne Perry’s sister and her mother Barbara Perry of Creston, and the directors of the national non-profit organization “Child Find.”
Missing Children’s Day began with a yearly remembrance of Etan Patz of New York.
Corinne’s body eventually was found November 27, 1984 in a shallow grave south of Creston.
When the Iowa Division of Criminal Investigation (DCI) established a Cold Case Unit in late 2009, Perry’s murder was one of approximately 150 cases listed on the Cold Case Unit’s new website as those the DCI hoped to solve using latest advancements in DNA technology. Although the Cold Case Unit closed down in December 2011 due to lack of funding, the DCI continues to investigate the cases where progress already was being made. They also follow up on any new leads provided in these cases.
Corinne Elaine Perry was born August 28, 1965, in Creston, Iowa. Her murder remains unsolved.
Anyone with information regarding Corinne Perry’s unsolved murder is asked to contact the Iowa Division of Criminal Investigation at (515) 725-6010, e-mail dciinfo@dps.state.ia.us, or contact the Creston Police Department at (641) 782-8402.
Corrine was an occasional babysitter for my sister and I when we lived in Kent. I always check on her case every few years to see if there is any update. Her disappearance (and eventual discovery) was a formative memory for me. I hope one day they they solve her murder.
Corinne was my cousin and I have fond memories of time with her and her sisters at my Grandparent’s home in Creston. I hope that one day her murder is solved.