America's Most Wanted - Twenty-Seventh Season

I'm John Walsh,

and I've dedicated my entire life

to locking up the worst criminals.

Since 1988, we've caught 1,191 fugitives.

We're tracking down one of the most

ruthless gangs of lawbreakers we've ever gone after.

Including several of the FBI's most wanted.

And we've reunited dozens

of missing children with their families.

But the job continues, and this time,

my son Callahan joins the fight.

With your help,

we're going to put more low life criminals behind bars,

including these that you'll see tonight.

First, we need your help to find the man police believe

is behind a double murder and police shootout.

Shots fired!

Burning down the family farm

before disappearing into the Wisconsin woods.

Then, it was one of the biggest gold heists in U.S. history.

And even more monumental was how anyone could have pulled it off.

And finally, a 14-year-old boy is wanted

for a deadly shooting spree at a Texas convenience store.

And the teen's accomplice was none other than his own father.

America's Most Wanted is the original true crime series.

You can run, but you can't hide.

-Hello everyone, I'm John Walsh. -I'm Callahan Walsh.

And this is America's Most Wanted.

We are back again tonight with a lineup of dangerous fugitives

that we really need your help to find.

The AMW Catch Counter is currently at 1,191 catches

because of your tips, and I know that tonight,

with your help, we can get that number even higher.

Now, as always, we have our team of investigators,

local and state police, and the FBI

all standing by for your information about these cases.

Please, send us your tips,

and don't forget, you can remain anonymous.

Let's make the world a much smaller place

for these scumbags. So, let's get right to it.

A horrifying double murder and police shootout

rocks a quiet Wisconsin farm town,

and the man suspected to be behind it all

disappears without a trace.

Authorities now desperately need your help to find him.

My parents were Jim and Nedra Lemke.

They were high school sweethearts

and had been together ever since then.

They had five kids.

I am the second oldest.

I have a brother, Joe.

There's myself, my sister, Amanda,

and a brother, Jacob and Josh.

Both of my parents were very involved in the community

their entire lives, very involved in the church.

Very involved in their kids' lives.

They worked with a youth group,

taking in a lot of foster kids to the home.

As much as my parents were known for helping people,

my uncle, Kevin, my mom's brother,

was the black sheep of the family.

As the son-in-law of Jim and Nedra Lemke,

I am married to their daughter, Amanda.

My wife, Amanda, does obviously still struggle

with talking about the past and trying to make sense

of what happened and why it happened.

I would see Kevin every Christmas Eve

over at the family farm property.

Kevin was just kind of that tough guy persona,

hunting and fishing,

and he'd talk about pickup trucks and guns and drinking.

He had troubles with the law and drugs and alcohol.

He was that uncle that you didn't talk to

because you felt uncertain around him.

He was always a very intimidating personality for me.

He had an intense persona about him.

His parents, my grandparents, lived on a family farm.

There's about 40 acres of farmable land

and horses, pigs, a couple cows.

Just your rural Wisconsin farmer.

Kevin, as the oldest son,

was always the executor of the will.

As my grandfather got older,

my mom was the one taking him to all their doctor's appointments.

She was the primary caregiver

managing their health and managing the farm.

Due to all of the support

my mother had given to my grandfather over the years,

my grandfather decided to

make my mother the executor over my uncle.

As my grandfather got closer to death,

the conversations between

my mother and Kevin became more heated.

He had thought that farm was going to be his.

In June 2020, my grandfather Verdal passed.

When my grandfather passed, my dad asked me

if I would be carrying a gun at the funeral.

Being a former Green Beret,

I spent eight years in the Army Special Forces.

He knows I have guns. So I asked him why.

My dad, for a quote, said,

"Because Kevin's going to be there,

and I'm not sure how he's going to act."

So, I agreed to do that.

Definitely a gigantic red flag

of kind of where the tension in the relationship was.

Four days after Verdal's funeral,

Nedra reaches out to her brother Kevin

about some rather routine chores

she wanted to do at their parents' farm.

Jim and Nedra arrive at the farm later that evening,

but something seems off.

They notice several broken windows.

At 5:48 p.m., they call 911

to report a potential burglary.

Jefferson County 911.

Hi there.

I'm taking care of my parents' house

and there's windows broken out and windows open.

Please don't go in

because we don't know if someone's still in there.

All right.

That would be the last phone call she ever made.

What the couple don't realize is Nedra's brother,

Kevin Anderson, is stationed inside the farmhouse

at the second-story window,

armed with a hunting rifle.

He fires two fatal shots.

The first one hitting Nedra in the abdomen.

-And then a second shot... -

...hitting Jim.

Twelve minutes after Nedra's 911 call,

a Jefferson County Sheriff's deputy arrives in response.

He notices the bodies of Nedra and Jim.

Recognizing there may be an active shooter.

He seeks cover behind his vehicle.

595.

Just as the deputy is radioing for backup...

Shots fired at the residence!

Shots fired!

Shots fired!

Not knowing the shooter's line of sight,

the deputy makes a run across the property away from the home.

595, upper window.

The deputy seeks cover

in a nearby ditch with tall grass.

595, I have a female laying down next to the vehicle.

One male in the back.

Minutes pass while the deputy waits in the ditch.

Once he sees backup arriving,

he radios that he's making his way towards them.

581, coming to you.

While the deputy was seeking cover,

police believe Kevin Anderson

intentionally lit his parents' house on fire.

Most likely as a diversion.

After the home burned, officers descend on the property

and discover Nedra and Jim's deceased bodies.

Law enforcement search the property

and find no signs of Kevin Anderson.

Later, forensics inspected the remnants of the home

and found no evidence of the shooter's remains

or the hunting rifle.

A manhunt was led

through the surrounding rural farm areas,

which includes dense woods and marshland.

They were unsuccessful in locating the suspect.

It's believed he escaped to another state

or has fled to the Wisconsin wilderness.

All right, now we've got a lot to unpack in this case.

Later, we're going to talk to Jim and Nedra Lemke's children

about this horrible murder.

But right now, the focus is on where Kevin Anderson could be.

Authorities believe Anderson has likely fled Jefferson County,

but based on the fact he's an avid outdoorsman,

it's highly likely that he's somewhere in the woods.

How far is Sumner to Canada?

It's about an hour west of Milwaukee

and about 500 miles south of the Canadian border.

But the northern parts of Wisconsin

and the surrounding states are heavily wooded

and can be pretty remote,

making them perfect hiding places for Anderson.

Reminds me of Ted Kaczynski, you know, the Unabomber

that hid in the woods for so many years.

Well, if you're a hunter or outdoorsman

in the north woods of Wisconsin, Minnesota, or Michigan,

please keep a lookout for this creep.

Kevin Anderson is now 65 years old

with brown hair and blue eyes.

He's six feet tall and when last seen weighed 200 pounds.

If you see Anderson, do not approach him.

He's considered armed and very dangerous.

Call or go to our website,

866-AMW-TIPS

Coming up next, we'll learn even more

about this story when we return.

We talk to two of Jim and Nedra's children

and hear what they have to say about their uncle,

the man police say allegedly killed their parents.