Sade Robinson homicide; Timeline of events leading to criminal charges
Sade Robinson: The timeline ahead of Maxwell Anderson's trial
It's been more than a year since body parts surfaced throughout Milwaukee, which prompted a massive search for a missing teenager, Sade Robinson.
MILWAUKEE - It's been more than a year since body parts surfaced throughout Milwaukee, which prompted a massive search for a missing teenager, Sade Robinson.
Police say Robinson was last seen alive on a first date. It is a crime filled with twists and turns. And soon, the trial is expected to start for the accused killer, Maxwell Anderson.
Crime filled with twists, turns
What we know:
April 2, 2024 was a gloomy spring day in Milwaukee County. The waves of Lake Michigan brought a chilling discovery – a severed human leg in Warnimont Park. The grim finding would unravel the mystery of the disappearance of 19-year-old Sade Carleena Robinson.
Prosecutors say Robinson vanished after a first date with 33-year-old Maxwell Anderson. Unsealed warrants reveal a confidential informant told investigators Anderson planned to kill Robinson. It was a seemingly fatal attraction, leading to an investigation spanning two states, and led to the arrest of Anderson for homicide, arson and mutilation charges.
April 1, 2024
Timeline:
To understand what happened next, we need to go back to the day before, April 1.
Court records show text messages between Robinson and Anderson between 4:15 p.m. and 5:18 p.m.
Anderson texted, "Are you hungry? Im need to stop at twisted fisherman to pick up my w2 from last year and we could eat there first"
Robinson responded, "Ok and yes…Are we eating at the brat house or the other place"
Anderson replied, "Lets eat at twisted I’m feeling seafood"
Robinson answered, "Yes I love seafood"
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Still images from surveillance cameras show the two inside the Twisted Fisherman. Investigators say Robinson had Life 360, a location-tracking app. It placed her at Duke's on Water and later at Anderson's Milwaukee home near 39th and Oklahoma. It is the last place Sade's loved ones believe she was seen alive. Her phone was pinging at his home until 12:45 a.m. on April 2.
Cousin's perspective
What they're saying:
Keke is Robinson's cousin. She has not shared her last name publicly. But over the last year, she has led searches for her cousin and pushed for answers.
Now, for the first time, Keke is sharing videos of Robinson the night before she disappeared. You can see parts of what appears to be Anderson's distinctive arm tattoo.
"Another one of my family members reached out stating they were at the bar with her," Keke told FOX6. "Easter. 31st, at Victor’s. That they were having drinks they seen her with this man and who is described as the demon, who we call him. Maxwell."
Robinson reported missing
What we know:
Robinson was reported missing by a friend after she did not show for a shift at Pizza Shuttle on April 2. That same morning, Milwaukee police said a car was set on fire near 30th and Lisbon Avenue. Detectives later learned it was Sade's vehicle.
"I just heard the car crash and it was a big bang. And I saw the car outside of my window, so I come outside. And by the time I come outside, I see the flames start. Then I see this taller white guy just running away from the car," said Ashley Reiter.
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In that moment, Reiter said she did not realize what she was witnessing.
"I remember his face when he turned around because he looked so shocked. And then I found out a couple days later what was actually going on," Reiter said.
Hours after the car was torched on April 2, a man discovered a severed leg with pink toe nail polish at Warnimont Park in Cudahy. That is the same place investigators would later say Robinson's phone was pinging between 3 a.m. and 4:30 a.m.
In the days to come
What we know:
On April 5, less than a mile from the car fire, a body part was found in the same area of 30th and Lisbon.
On April 6, remains were discovered at 31st and Galena.
On April 7, more remains were found at 31st and Walnut.
At one point, Keke said she found a blanket with Robinson's face on it, lying on the ground in Galena Park.
"I looked down and I seen Sade’s face just flipped over," Keke said. "My heart instantly just started to beat, and I just yelled to my sisters, and I was like I just found her blanket and everybody just ran over to me…and the detects showed up. Nobody called them they just showed up. I told them we just found her blanket and they started shutting off the area."
"Did you ever find anything else?" asked FOX6's Bria Jones.
"I did. I found her bone. And I was about to pass out and I did not. Everybody else around me was crying; everybody was emotional. I can’t get emotional because I am going to break and if I break I’m not going to be able to search," Keke said.
Surveillance video obtained
Dig deeper:
FOX6 News obtained surveillance video from a business near 31st and Walnut. It shows a person with clothing that matches what police said Maxwell Anderson was wearing on an MCTS bus to head home. The person appears to be wearing a hoodie and a gray backpark. This is similar to the surveillance images in the same area prosecutors shared in the criminal complaint.
Days later, Anderson was arrested. He made his initial court appearance on April 12, 2024.
Maxwell Anderson
Detectives used everything from flash lights to sonar boats. Robinson's loved ones searched far and wide with community support.
"One day we actually walked 21 miles," Keke said. "That was between there and back. We walked east, we walked west, probably all the way to Racine."
Body parts recovered
What we know:
On April 18, 17 days after Robinson was first reported missing, Robinson's torso and arm were found in South Milwaukee.
Nearly a month later, on May 11, Robinson's arm washed up on the beach in Waukegan, Illinois.
"What are you still searching for?" asked FOX6's Bria Jones.
"I’m going to say her crown, her head, is still missing ," Keke said. "That’s why its important we still do all these memorials and stuff, so that people don’t forget we still don’t have all of her."
Sade Robinson
To this day, pieces of Sade Carleena Robinson remain lost to the world – a somber reminder that justice waits in the shadows.
Anderson's trial
What's next:
The trial for Maxwell Anderson is slated to start on Tuesday, May 27. FOX6 News plans to stream the trial in its entirety.
Sade Robinson homicide; Maxwell Anderson trial, finding potential jurors
After several delays, Maxwell Anderson is set to go to trial in Milwaukee County in May, more than a year after prosecutors say he killed and dismembered Sade Robinson.
Robinson's family hopes to learn where the rest of Sade's remains may be – and a possible motive for the crime.
The Source: The information in this post was produced by FOX6 News with information from law enforcement, court filings and previous FOX6 News coverage.