Kerry O’Brien Krueger: A Missing Mother, an Impossible Trip and a Broken Timeline

The Disappearance of Carrie O'Brien Krueger [0:00]

• Carrie O'Brien Krueger, a 32-year-old woman, went missing in December 1989.
• Her disappearance was reported after she failed to show up for a supposed trade show in Wyoming.
• Her family immediately suspected foul play due to her strong bond with her daughter.

  "And if no one can find her, she's sure right then and there that something bad happened."

The Fabricated Trade Show [1:41]

• Tracy Krueger, Carrie's husband, told her sister Molly that Carrie had to fill in for someone at a trade show in Wyoming.
• He claimed Carrie left early in the morning on December 6th, 1989, for this trip.
• Carrie's manager, Jim, was supposed to drive them to Chicago for a flight.

  "Jim was supposed to swing by and drive them both to Chicago so they could catch an early flight."

A No-Call, No-Show [2:35]

• Carrie failed to appear for work, a first in her career at Gander Mountain.
• Her manager, Jim, contacted Tracy, confused about Carrie's whereabouts.
• It was revealed there was no trade show in Wyoming, a fact Carrie, working in PR, would have known.

  "Jim had no clue what he was talking about because it turns out there was no trade show."

Escalating Concerns and Police Involvement [3:41]

• Carrie's family, including her sister Kathy, a prosecutor, became increasingly frantic.
• Tracy was urged to file a missing persons report.
• Police initially showed little urgency, considering Carrie an adult who might need space.

  "Officers are like, you know, meh, not so much."

A Doctor's Note and Suicidal Ideation [4:30]

• A doctor's note surfaced, indicating Carrie had been treated for depression and might be suicidal.
• This note escalated the case, leading to Carrie being entered into the NCIC database.
• The note did not mention Carrie's severe, unexplained stomach pain over the previous year and a half.

  "So that is what escalates things, at least enough so that she gets entered into the NCIC database."

Marital Strife and Suspicious Lies [6:14]

• Carrie and Tracy's marriage had been rocky, with Carrie suspecting infidelity.
• Tracy had lied about seeing a counselor and claimed to have a brain tumor, which he did not.
• Carrie had threatened to leave if things didn't improve.

  "If you can lie about a brain tumor, like, you're willing to do anything."

Family Search of the Kruger House [9:25]

• Carrie's family searched the Kruger house and found many of her belongings, contradicting Tracy's story.
• Her purse and ID were missing, but her briefcase, wedding ring, medication, and even a winter coat were present.
• A large suitcase Tracy claimed she packed was found in the attic.

  "Her briefcase is tucked under a desk. Her wedding ring is there in this, like, dish on the dresser."

The Missing Money and a Mysterious Car [11:30]

• The only money missing was $500 from an emergency stash in a basement air duct.
• A neighbor reported seeing a small black car and a man outside around the time Tracy claimed Carrie left.
• The neighbor could not confirm the exact date or if Carrie got into the car.

  "And outside of that car, there was this man standing beside it."

Inconsistent Timelines and Fabricated Alibis [13:01]

• Tracy provided multiple, conflicting accounts of the timeline and events surrounding Carrie's disappearance.
• His story about who called Carrie and where the trade show was located shifted.
• His own father indicated Tracy mentioned the Wyoming trip before Carrie supposedly received the call.

  "This is a full day before Carrie supposedly even got that late night call telling her that she she needed to fill it."

Suspicious Car Dealership and Truck Ownership [15:20]

• Tracy had left Carrie's car at a dealership, claiming it wouldn't start, but mechanics found no issue.
• He instructed the dealership not to release the car without his permission.
• Investigators discovered Tracy had purchased a Ford pickup truck, which he claimed was a loaner, in both his and Carrie's names, with a signature potentially forged.

  "The paperwork was slow, so it didn't hit Carrie's social security number until after she vanished."

Tracy's Job Troubles and False Excuses [17:45]

• Tracy was reportedly skipping shifts and padding his time cards at work.
• He used Carrie's supposed work trips as an excuse to avoid responsibilities, even telling people she was in Alaska when she wasn't.
• This lie unraveled when people spoke to Carrie directly.

  "He has to watch their daughter."

Carrie's Last Day at Work [21:00]

• Phone records from Gander Mountain showed Carrie made short calls home that morning.
• Tracy claimed Carrie asked him to bring her an envelope, but her workplace had no record of him visiting.
• Carrie left work later than usual, with a colleague teasing her about her watch.

  "And she left later than usual, late enough that one of her co-workers teased her about, like, her watch being broken."

The Polygraph and Sudden Amnesia [24:48]

• Tracy underwent a polygraph test, which yielded inconclusive results.
• The morning of a scheduled second test, Tracy claimed to be unwell and canceled.
• Shortly after, Tracy collapsed at work and was diagnosed with hysterical amnesia, claiming it was 1979 and he had no memory of the past decade.

  "The day after Tracy's never-taken second polygraph, he is at work when he glances at a newspaper article about his missing wife, and he just collapses."

Investigation Amidst Amnesia [28:00]

• Doctors found no physical cause for Tracy's amnesia, agreeing it was likely hysterical.
• Investigators obtained a search warrant for the Kruger house, finding it had been redecorated.
• The $500 emergency stash and the air duct hiding spot were missing, and the air duct itself did not exist.

  "The hiding spot doesn't even exist."

Potential Serial Killer: Philip Andrew Fox [44:15]

• Police received a tip about Philip Andrew Fox, a neighbor with a violent criminal history and suspected involvement in multiple murders.
• Fox's story about his whereabouts on December 5th, 1989, was inconsistent.
• Carrie's family believed Tracy was the threat, not Fox, though he was known to be dangerous.

  "And Phil was no joke. His record stretched back to the early 1960s in California when he shot and killed his own uncle during an argument."

Renewed Investigation and Cadaver Dogs [55:00]

• In 2013, a Burlington officer transferred to Racine County Sheriff's Office took Carrie's case.
• Investigators used cadaver dogs, which alerted to the presence of human remains in Tracy's truck and inside the Kruger house.
• A tip about a suspicious concrete patch in a basement led investigators to believe the body might be elsewhere.

  "Lieutenant Van Sock called this hit the strongest indication he's ever seen."

The Basement Mystery and Phone Records [58:40]

• A contractor recalled laying carpet in a basement with a fresh concrete patch around the time Carrie disappeared.
• The contractor's recollection did not match the layout of the Kruger's basement.
• Investigators sought help deciphering old phone bills to determine if Carrie received a local call that night.

  "Maybe this will jog someone's memory because it does not match the Kruger's basement."

Tracy's Continued Claims and Megan's Perspective [38:00]

• Tracy maintained Carrie left on her own, suggesting she had psychological issues.
• He claimed to have had a stroke, which doctors ruled out.
• His daughter, Megan, believed her father, having been told her mother was cold and uncaring.

  "My feeling is if she were dead, somewhere that body would have shown up someplace or another."

Unanswered Questions and Active Case [1:07:00]

• The doctor who supposedly wrote the note about Carrie's depression denied ever treating her for it.
• Tracy's amnesia was further doubted by a forensic psychiatrist.
• Carrie's remains have never been found, and her case is officially active, with Tracy remaining the prime suspect.

  "But across that divide is Megan, who's slowly reconnected with some of Carrie's siblings."