Korrina Lynne Sagers Malinoski

Korrina, circa 1987

  • Missing Since 11/20/1987
  • Missing From Mount Holly, South Carolina
  • Classification Endangered Missing
  • Sex Female
  • Race White
  • Age 26 years old
  • Height and Weight Unknown
  • Distinguishing Characteristics Caucasian female. Brown hair, brown eyes. Korrina's nickname is Kory.

Details of Disappearance

Korrina was last seen driving out of Mount Holly Plantation towards Highway 52 in Mount Holly, South Carolina between 11:00 and 11:30 p.m. on November 21, 1987. She had worked at a convenience store in Summerville, South Carolina for about six months prior to her disappearance.

After she missed work the next morning, Korrina's boss went looking for her and found her car parked at the entrance to the plantation, where her husband, Thomas Steven "Steve" Malinoski, was the caretaker. The family lived in a cabin on the property, which encompassed 6,000 acres. There was no sign of Korrina at the scene and an extensive search turned up no indication of her whereabouts. She has never been heard from again.

Korrina married Steve in 1981 and they had two sons. It was Steve's third marriage and according to one of the couple's two sons, Korrina and Steve fought frequently and sometimes their fights became violent. On the day of her disappearance, according to Steve, she left home after another argument and never returned.

Korrina's eleven-year-old daughter, Annette Sagers, disappeared from the bus stop in front of Mount Holly Plantation on October 4, 1988, nearly a year after her mother. Her stepfather discovered a penciled note addressed to him saying, "Dad, Mom came back. I have to go with her. Give the boys lots of kisses and hugs and also you to. Love, Annette." Handwriting experts determined that the note was written by Annette. Although several people had seen her at the bus stop that morning, no one saw anyone pick her up.

Authorities don't know whether Korrina did in fact return for her daughter or whether Annette wrote the note under duress. Some theorize that Annette knew something about her mother's disappearance and was silenced, but there is no evidence to support any theory.

Korrina has relatives living in Iowa and Illinois, whom she was very close to, but none of them have heard from her since she disappeared. Her family doesn't think she would have simply left without warning, and they don't believe she would have come back only for Annette and not for her two sons as well.

Steve moved to Florida several months after Annette's disappearance, giving up his rights to his two sons by Korrina. The boys were sent into foster care, were eventually adopted, and have since grown up and reconnected with their biological relatives. Steve maintains his innocence in his wife ands stepdaughter's cases. In 2000, an anonymous caller directed police to search for a body in Sumter County. Investigators took a cadaver-sniffing dog to the location, but found no sign of any remains.

Although Annette's case remains classified as a non-family abduction by many agencies, and it's unclear what happened to her and her mother, authorities believe it's likely that both Annette and Korrina met with foul play and neither of them ever left the Mount Holly Plantation after they went missing.

Updated 5 times since October 12, 2004. Last updated July 13, 2021; details of disappearance updated.