Woman Accused Of Kidnapping Daughter
Police Searching For Pair
POSTED: 11:15 am EDT March 28, 2008
UPDATED: 12:55 pm EDT March 28, 2008
BOSTON -- Police are searching for a Gardner mother who was accused of taking her daughter from the protection of the Massachusetts Department of Social Services, according to Gardner Police Department Lt. Gerald J. Poirier.
Joanne Keefe's daughter, Justine, who will turn 2 next month, was taken from her by DSS after she was found to be suffering from mental health issues, police said. DSS placed the baby in the care of the child's grandmother in Yarmouth.
Police said that Keefe, 41, went to the woman's home on Monday and took Justine away from her, and the mother and child have not been seen since.
Keefe is described as a schizophrenic white female, with brown hair and brown eyes. She is 5 feet 5 inches tall and weighs 115 pounds.
Keefe has a fixation with Annie Oakley, claiming to be a direct descendant of the legendary Wild West sharpshooter. In the past, Keefe has made several phone calls to a Wyoming museum that contains Oakley artifacts to challenge the curator as to the legal ownership of the displayed items.
In September, police in Ohio suspected Keefe in the theft of a roadside historical marker signifying the birthplace of Oakley.
On Thursday the Leominster District Court issued a warrant ordering police to arrest Keefe for kidnapping a minor by relation.
Police said Keefe could be camped out in the New England region. Keefe and child may be in the company of a Winchendon man who disappeared at the same time as the alleged kidnapping. Mark R. Strohl, 58, of 72 Prospect St, is described as a white male, with thinning brown and gray hair, brown eyes and glasses. He is 5 feet 11 inches and has a medium build. No charges are filed against Strohl.
All three may be traveling in a white1991Winnebago Le Sharo 17-foot motor home with a Massachusetts registration of CA6057B. Strohl is known to have ties to South Carolina and Florida.
If Keefe is not with Strohl, she may be in either a green 1995 Toyota pickup with a Massachusetts registration of 79FN63 or a blue 1992 Nissan Sentra with a Massachusetts registration of 95NH57
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