Lorraine Currier, a 55-year-old White woman, and her husband, William, were last seen on the evening of June 8, 2011, at their home in Essex, Vermont. The following day, when neither of them appeared for work, concerned family members reported them missing. Evidence found at their residence suggested that their disappearance was not voluntary, sparking an intensive investigation.
For over a year, the case yielded few leads, leaving the community and their loved ones in a state of uncertainty.
The break in the case came from an unlikely source, hundreds of miles away in Alaska. A man named Israel Keyes was arrested for the kidnapping and murder of an 18-year-old barista. During his interrogation, Keyes, a 34-year-old self-employed carpenter and Army veteran, began to confess to a string of other murders across the country. He revealed to investigators that he was responsible for the deaths of the Vermont couple. Keyes provided chilling, non-public details about the abduction and murders that convinced authorities of his guilt. He described how he had buried a "murder kit" near the Curriers' home two years prior to the crime, which he later retrieved.
On the night of their disappearance, Keyes broke into the Curriers' home, tied them up, and forced them into their own car. He drove them to an abandoned farmhouse he had previously scouted. At the farmhouse, William Currier was shot and killed after attempting to fight back and protect his wife. Lorraine Currier was then sexually assaulted and strangled to death. In a final act of brutality, Keyes took her to the basement to see her husband's body before he killed her. Despite Keyes's confession, the bodies of Lorraine and William Currier have never been recovered. The farmhouse where they were murdered was demolished, and a subsequent eleven-week search of the landfill where the debris was taken yielded no evidence.
The man responsible for this random act of violence would never face trial for the Curriers' murders. On December 2, 2012, while being held at the Anchorage Correctional Complex in Alaska, Israel Keyes was found dead in his jail cell. He had died by suicide, taking with him the full scope of his violent crimes. Authorities believe Keyes was responsible for at least eleven murders, based on a drawing found in his cell. His death left many unanswered questions for the families of his victims, including the Curriers, whose remains are still missing.
