CONNECTED TO 20020904-Drake-Mary
Mandi K. Alexander, 24, a resident of Great Bend, Kansas, was found dead on September 4, 2002, at the Dolly Madison Bakery outlet store at 1004 Harrison Street (10th and Harrison) in Great Bend, where she worked as a clerk. She was found alongside a 79-year-old co-worker, Mary A. Drake. Investigators believe both women were killed between approximately 5:00 p.m. and 6:30 p.m. that evening; both had been stabbed and their throats cut, and no weapon was recovered at the scene. A delivery driver discovered the bodies inside the store, and Great Bend Police Department officers responded to the scene at approximately 7:55 p.m. A witness reported seeing a white male, estimated at 6'1"–6'2" and approximately 175 pounds, with collar-length light brown to blond hair and a slight beard, walking away from the store's front door around the time of the killings; a composite sketch was produced from that description. Money was reported missing from the store's cash register.
The case has been investigated jointly by the Kansas Bureau of Investigation, the Great Bend Police Department, and the Barton County Sheriff's Office. Alexander's ex-husband was investigated in connection with an ongoing custody dispute but was cleared after providing a verified alibi; he has not been charged. The unidentified male witnessed near the store has never been identified. In September 2022, on the 20th anniversary of the killings, the KBI announced that a male Y-STR DNA profile had been developed from evidence collected from one of the victims during a renewed forensic review; the profile does not qualify for entry into CODIS but remains available for direct comparison against a developed suspect. The case remains open and unsolved, with no arrests reported as of the most recent public updates. The Kansas Bureau of Investigation is offering a reward of $17,000 for information leading to an arrest and conviction. Anyone with information is asked to contact the KBI at 1-800-KS-CRIME (1-800-572-7463) or to submit a tip anonymously at kbi.ks.gov/sar.
