Photo: Instagram
She had just moved to New York City before she disappeared.
By Emily Blackwood — Written on Nov 15, 2017
Nineteen-year-old Corinna Slusser moved from her home in Pennsylvania to New York City late this summer. Even though her Facebook said she attended Indiana University, friends of hers say she has been pursuing a career in cosmetology since graduating high school.
But those dreams — and that new life of living on her own in the big city — were interrupted when she went missing in September.
Slusser was last seen leaving the Haven Motel in Queens on Sept. 20. About a week before that, her family reported her missing when she didn't attend her grandfather's funeral in Florida.
The teen, who was an avid social media user, shared a photo on Instagram Sept. 10, that tagged her location as the Bronx. She turned 19 in October but didn't contact any of her family or friends, leaving them to believe she's being held against her will.
People say in the weeks before her disappearance, Slusser sought an order of protection in Manhattan against a friend who they claim had become her pimp. A copy of the order was mailed to her mother's home in Pennsylvania.
“This letter of protection was granted against somebody she was living with. It went to her mom’s house,” said one relative, who asked not to be named. “We didn’t know what to think.”
The letter reportedly directed the man to stay away from the teen after he was arrested for beating and choking her at a hotel in Harlem on Aug 25. Police believe she relocated to New York with this man.
Members of law enforcement found Slusser crying and shaking inside the hotel and said that she told them her pimp stole $300 from her. When she confronted him about it, he attacked her.
When her mother, Sabrina Tuorto, got the letter, she reached out to her daughter, who acted like it was no big deal.
Corinna Slusser's last Instagram Post
Police now say they're treating Slusser's disappearance as a possible sex trafficking case. Members of the New York Police Department's Vice Human Trafficking Team believe she's been handed off to several pimps because her name has come up in several vice investigations over the last few weeks.
Her relatives say she was a cheerleader with dreams of becoming a makeup artist before she dropped out of school and moved out at the age of 17. She stayed with friends near her mother's home for a year until she attempted suicide.
While she was recovering in a hospital, she met the man who would later allegedly become her pimp and lure her to New York City.
“I can’t bear any more days like this,” Tuorto said on Facebook. “I fear the worst, but I pray for the best and her to return home. (I’m) waiting for an angel to hear my prayer.”
Slusser has blond hair and blue eyes and is 5 foot 6. She weighs approximately 140 pounds and large black flower tattoo in the middle of her chest, police said. Anyone with information is asked to call the NYPD’s Crime Stoppers Hotline at 1-800-577-TIPS [8477].
Emily Blackwood is an editor at YourTango who covers pop culture, true crime, dating, relationships and everything in between. Every Wednesday at 10:20 p.m. you can ask her any and all questions about self-love, dating, and relationships LIVE on YourTango’s Facebook page. You can follow her on Instagram (@blackw00d) and Twitter (@emztweetz).