Elderly Woman Not Returned After Husband Pays Ransom

Annie Laurie Hearin from Tuscaloosa, Alabama, attended the University of Alabama in the late 1930s. There, she was an editor for the school’s newspaper and named one of the seven most beautiful students by actor Tyrone Power. During that time, she also met Robert Hearin, a fellow student and they married soon after.

The couple moved to Jackson, Mississippi, and started a family. After Robert returned from serving in the US Navy during WWII, he worked at a US gas company until 1955.

Afterward, he became a successful businessman and subsequently one of the richest men in Mississippi. He joined the First National Bank (now Trustmark National Bank) and by the late 1980s, the couple’s estate was worth $100 to $200 million.

Meanwhile, Annie was a patron of the Jackson Symphony, co-chairperson of the Mississippi Arts Festival. president of the Jackson Opera Guild and the Jackson Junior League.

At 72-years-old, Annie had scoliosis, arthritis, and required daily medication for ileitis — an intestinal disorder that can be deadly if unmedicated.

On July 26, 1988, Annie hosted her bi-weekly bridge club at her home. Her guests arrived at 10:15 AM and left by 2:30 PM. By 3 PM, the housekeeper had also left.

When Robert arrived home, at 4:30 PM, Annie was not there despite her car being parked outside. He assumed that his wife had gone with one of her friends and would be back soon. He was wrong.

Three hours later, Robert was calling his son-in-law, asking him to help search for Annie. At 9:49 PM, they called the police.

While inspecting Robert and Annie’s home, authorities found drops of blood on the carpet and blood smears on the front door — they were later matched to Annie’s blood type. It is believed she was struck in the head.

A typewritten ransom note was also found near the door:

“Mr. Robert Herrin, Put these people back in the shape they was in before they got mixed up with School Pictures. Pay them whatever damages they want and tell them all this so then can no what you are doing but dont tell them why you are doing it. Do this before ten days pass. Don’t call police.”

School Pictures was a company Robert had taken over in the late 80s. To collect debts, the company sued 12 franchises. On the note was also the list of those 12 franchises which the abductor wanted Robert to pay in order to get his wife back. Authorities could not be certain if the abductor was someone directly involved with the company since the lawsuit’s records were public.

In September, Robert made an appeal for the return of his wife. Days later, a letter postmarked from Atlanta, Georgia arrived:

“Bob, If you don’t do what these people want you to do, they are going to seal me up in the cellar of this house with only a few jugs of water.

Please save me, Annie Laurie”

It was determined that the signature had been written by Annie. Robert then paid the ransom, sending nearly $1 million to the 12 franchises.

In the early 1980s, Newton Alfred Winn, a civil attorney from St.Petersburg, Florida, had been in charge of a School Pictures franchise. After a court battle in 1984, he was ordered to pay $153,000 to the company.

Interestingly, police had been following a tip from the Hearins’ neighbors. A white van with a Florida license plate had been seen near their home in the weeks leading up to Annie’s disappearance. Not only did Winn match the description of the driver but neighbors also identified his van as being the one they had seen.

Winn’s former franchise was on the list given by the abductor. Consequently, he received a $145,000 check from Robert. However, either Winn or his attorney returned the check 10 days later with no explanation.

Annie Hearin’s case kept being investigated and Robert was now offering a reward to whoever could find her. Her case also appeared on an episode of Unsolved Mysteries. After the airing, someone called the show with a tip: keep investigating Winn.

Winn was eventually apprehended in March of 1989.

An ex-girlfriend of his, Marilyn Taylor, and his paralegal, Don Ward, were offered immunity in return for testifying against Winn in court.

Both agreed and recounted what they knew about Winn’s involvement in Annie’s abduction.

On July 31, 1988, Taylor was offered $500 to do Winn a favor. He first asked his ex-girlfriend if he could trust her, to which she responded yes.

They then met for a meeting. When she arrived, he repeatedly asked her if she had been followed or if her car was bugged. She said no.

Under his instructions, Taylor flew from Daytona Beach, Florida, to Atlanta, Georgia, under a fake name. At the airport bathroom, she met with Winn. She changed her clothes and dyed her hair, while Winn put on surgical gloves and took a manilla business envelope from his coat pocket.

Winn gave her clear instructions on what to do next. She took public transportation to the post office in East Point. The letter to be mailed was inside the envelope, wrapped in cloth — Taylor was under no circumstance to look at the name and address on the letter. She had to put the letter in the slot, slowly removing the cloth.

On her way back, she flew to a different Florida airport.

Although she was strictly told not to look at the name on the letter, while removing the cloth she saw a glimpse of the person’s name: Robert Hearin.

Meanwhile, Don Ward admitted that Winn asked him to corroborate his alibi. Ward was asked to bring money to a St. Peterburg bar and when he arrived, Winn was drunk outside with a prostitute.

Throughout the whole process, Winn claimed to be innocent.

Nevertheless, he was sentenced to 19 years and 7 months of prison after being convicted of conspiracy to commit kidnap, extortion, and perjury in 1990. He was released in 2006 and died in 2012.

In an episode of Discovery Channel’s FBI Files, they deemed it likely that her remains were disposed of somewhere between the Texas panhandle and Lousiana.

In the end, no one was charged with kidnapping Annie Hearin. She was legally declared dead in 1990, and Robert died of a heart attack the next year.

Annually, Annie is remembered in Jackson. She has a memorial bench at Robert’s gravesite in Lakewood Memorial Park.