NASHVILLE, Tenn. (WTVF) — Almost five years after a young mother disappeared in Nashville, her family is still waiting for answers.
"Brooke was beautiful. She was intelligent. She was caring," said Deanna Anderson, Jodie Brooke Anderson's aunt. "She had a heart of gold. She just went down the wrong path."
Brooke was known to hang out in the area of Brick Church Pike and Trinity Lane in Nashville. The last person to see her was a Metro Nashville Police Department officer. On June 5, 2017, the officer gave her a citation, and let her go. Family members and Metro detectives agreed someone has information on what happened to her next.
"There’s definitely someone out there that knows what happened to her," said Detective Matthew Filter with the Metro Nashville Police Department. "I know some people are afraid to come forward, and talk about it for one reason or another. But as time goes on, relationships change, and people move on, and hopefully, someone will be comfortable talking to us about what happened."
Deanna Anderson said Brooke, 18, was fiercely independent, loved animals and her 13-month-old son. She said when she stopped posting on social media, she knew something was wrong.
"It’s a horrible thing," Anderson said. "To not know where a loved one is, or what happened to them."
Anderson said she scoured the area where Brooke hung out, and put up posters with her photo and information. Brooke is 5 feet 3 inches and weighs 125 pounds. She has green eyes and brown hair.
"I feel like my heart has been ripped out of my chest. I never feel like I can do enough to try and find her," Anderson said.
Filter said the investigation is still classified as a "missing person" case, but investigators suspect foul play may be involved. He said officers need information from the public that can help them determine exactly what happened.
"That’s usually what always ends up breaking these cold cases wide open," said Filter. "It's that one tip or one phone call that’s made."
"Somebody knows something," Anderson said. "If they would come forward, they don’t realize what a blessing it would be for the family to put this and her to peace."
The Anderson family has started a GoFundMe to raise money for a reward for information that leads to Brooke or her remains. They have currently raised $1,300.
If you have any information on Brooke's disappearance, please call the Metro Police Cold Case Unit at 615-862-7329, or Nashville Crime Stoppers at 615-74-CRIME.
