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He Robbed a Burger King… But the Cops Forgot to Arrest Him for 13 Years – You Won’t Believe What Happened Next!
The police were supposed to arrest him back in 1999–2000, but due to a major clerical error by the authorities, they never showed up. They mistakenly believed he was already serving time in prison.In August 1999, a 22-year-old Cornealious “Mike” Anderson and an accomplice robbed a Burger King assistant manager at gunpoint (using a BB gun) in St. Charles, Missouri, taking around $2,000 as the man was heading to make a night deposit at a bank. Anderson was caught a couple of months later, convicted of armed robbery in 2000, and sentenced to 13 years in prison.However, after his appeals ended and his bond should have been revoked, a series of communication and paperwork mistakes meant no one ever ordered him to report to prison—or came to pick him up. The Missouri Department of Corrections incorrectly thought he was already incarcerated.
Instead of going behind bars, Anderson used those 13+ years to completely rebuild his life. He got married (twice over the years), raised children, started and ran several businesses (including contracting work), became a responsible family man and active community member, maintained a completely clean record with no new crimes, paid taxes, and lived openly under his real name—he even contacted authorities at one point to ask about his sentence status, but nothing happened.The mistake only came to light in 2013, right around the time his original 13-year sentence was set to expire. Prison officials realized he had never actually served a day, tracked him down, and a SWAT team arrested him at his home in July 2013 while he was making breakfast for his young daughter. He was suddenly forced to start serving the time.
Anderson spent about 10 months in prison while his legal team fought for his release, filing a writ of habeas corpus. They argued that the extreme delay violated due process and that forcing him back into prison after such a positive transformation would be unjust and even cruel.In May 2014, a Missouri judge reviewed everything: his spotless record during those “free” years, his family responsibilities, his contributions to society, and how he had clearly rehabilitated himself without any state intervention. The judge ruled that the 13 years he had lived as a free, productive citizen (from his bond release in 2000 until 2013) counted as time served. He declared the sentence fully satisfied and ordered Anderson released immediately—no parole, no further conditions. Anderson walked out a free man that day, able to return to his family.This remarkable case shows how, sometimes, real change and rehabilitation can happen far more effectively outside prison walls than inside them—thanks to an unbelievable bureaucratic blunder that accidentally gave him a second chance he fully embraced.
