Indictment could make Anderson extradition easier

By Lisa Majors-Duff

The true bill of indictment was handed down Monday against Derek Anderson, 32, during a special called Grand Jury session. Anderson was charged Feb. 1 with the death of Allen Krnak, 55, whose skeletal remains were discovered near Moses Creek in December 1999. An autopsy revealed Krnak died of a blunt-force trauma to the head.

Anderson was the last person to see his father, who disappeared in July 1998 along with his wife, Donna, and 21-year-old son, Thomas. The three family members were planning to spend the Fourth of July weekend at their cabin near Coloma, Wis., about an hour's drive from their home in Helenville, Wis.

Anderson, who changed his named from Andrew Krnak just days after his family disappeared, was questioned by Wisconsin authorities in the case but never charged. To date the whereabouts of his mother and brother have not been determined.

Monday's indictment will be added to information forwarded to the Wisconsin governor's office requesting Anderson's extradition to North Carolina. A affidavit sent last week from N.C. Gov. Mike Easley was rejected by Wisconsin authorities for "clerical errors," Sheriff's Jim Cruzan said. As reported by a Wisconsin television news station, the affidavit described Anderson's actions just prior to his family's disappearance and pointed out more than 2,600 unexplained miles added to one of the family's vehicles within a 17-day period.

Neil McGinn, a Wisconsin attorney appointed to defend Anderson, called the affidavit "extraordinarily thin." The document even "raises the question as to whether any homicide took place in North Carolina," he said.

Local law enforcement authorities have been cautious in revealing many of the facts in the case against Anderson, a 1994 honor graduate of Western Carolina University. In addition to his familiarity with Jackson County, Anderson is known to have disagreed with his family on various topics over the years.

A $10,000 reward for information leading to the arrest and conviction of the person or persons responsible for the Krnaks' disappearance or deaths has been posted by other family members in Wisconsin.

The investigation is continuing. Anyone with information about the case is asked to call either the Jackson County Sheriff's Department at 586-4480 or the Jefferson County (Wis.) Sheriff's Department at 1-800-675-7310.

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