Today a new book came out about the Samantha and Gianna Rucki case. It is called “The Girls Are Gone: The True Story of Two Sisters Who Vanished, the Father Who Kept Searching, and the Adults Who Conspired to Keep the Truth Hidden” by Michael Brodkorb & Allison Mann.
Wise Ink Creative Publishing was kind enough to send me some information.
On the evening of April 19, 2013, Samantha and Gianna Rucki disappeared. Two of five children born to David Rucki and Sandra Grazzini-Rucki, the teenage sisters vanished in the midst of their parents’ divorce.
The girls’ father, David Rucki, worked tirelessly with law enforcement to search day and night for his two missing daughters, following every lead while raising the three remaining children at home.
Their mother, Sandra Grazzini-Rucki, used her newfound freedom to travel around the world, having abandoned her children. As the investigation intensified, catching the attention of the media, Sandra disappeared too.
On November 18, 2015 – 944 days after the girls disappeared – law enforcement found them. The girls were living on a ranch in northern Minnesota.
Criminal charges were filed against four people, including the girls’ mother, for their role in the disappearance of the Rucki sisters. “The Girls Are Gone” chronicles key events during the criminal trials of the people who were later convicted or plead guilty for their involvement in this heinous crime. The book examines the other adults who aided in the conspiracy to hide the truth and the Rucki sisters.
About the Authors:
Michael Brodkorb and Allison Mann met during the 2016 criminal trial. Allison worked at a law firm representing David Rucki, the father, who was trying to find his girls. Michael was working for the Star Tribune at the time and covered the story as the case developed.
Michael and Allison have spent the last two years working together investigating and researching to find answers to many questions left unanswered for years. They analyzed court documents, reviewed investigative files, and conducted many interviews to offer a completed story about how and why two children vanished from their family and friends for 944 days. Their passion for following the case and connecting the dots to figure out the truth of what really happened led them to write “The Girls Are Gone.”
“The Girls Are Gone” provides new details about the disappearance of Samantha and Gianna Rucki and includes interviews with members of the Rucki family, including exclusive interviews with Samantha and Gianna Rucki. The book also discusses the connection between Michelle MacDonald, who is currently a candidate for the Minnesota Supreme Court. MacDonald was labeled a “person of interest” by the Lakeville Police Department in the disappearance of Samantha and Gianna Rucki, but did not cooperate in the investigation.
I have not read this book yet. If you do, let me know your thoughts.
[…] The Girls are Gone by Michael Brodkorb and Allison Mann tells the story of Samantha and Gianna Rucki, two teenage sisters, who vanished on April 19, 2013 while their parents Sandra Grazzini-Rucki and David Rucki battled each other in court over custody and other elements of their divorce. I announced the release of the book here. […]