As near as the investigation could reconstruct, Annemarie Schiff had never gotten over her miscarriage which had also left her unable to bear children. Adoption proceedings would always run up against her bipolar disorder and a few youthful possession convictions. So Annemarie was left with training in early childcare and no possibility of ever becoming a mother herself.

It appears that she stopped taking her medication around that time, and started a new job at a very exclusive daycare. Interviews with former coworkers confirmed that Annemarie spoke often of how many families did not pay proper attention to their children, especially one wealthy clan dubbed “the Andersons” during the investigation for reasons of privacy. No one thought to make a connection between Annemarie’s quiet fuming–an opinion many of her co-workers shared–and the later kidnapping of “the Andersons'” child. He was returned unharmed after about a week, after which Annemarie resigned her position claiming she couldn’t handle the stress.

Faced with families who did not appreciate their children, investigators believe, childless Annemarie took it upon herself to see that they changed their ways though a little harmless kidnapping. She apparently fell into a pattern of moving to a new area, securing employment at a childcare center, and then finishing her tenure with a kidnap and return. The full extent may never be known, as several victims were from poor families who never reported the disappearance and reappearance, but authorities believe Annemarie may have repeated the process as many as 20 times.

She might have gotten away with it indefinitely, in fact, had she not decided to keep the last victim.