Viswa Vanapalli
Anjelica “AJ” Hadsell, a teenager, came home to Norfolk, Virginia, for her spring break in March 2015. But in an unfortunate turn of events, she would never return to her university. The authorities found her remains more than a month later; AJ had been murdered. NBC News’ ‘Dateline: The Jacket’ shines a light on the case and features interviews with two of AJ’s friends, Corey French and Andre Barr. So, if you’re curious to find out more about them, here’s what we know!
Who Are Corey French and Andre Barr?
Corey French used to date AJ back in middle school, and they later remained friends. At the time of the incident, he lived close to AJ’s house. Sometime after the teenager’s disappearance, Corey found a part of her credit card near his home and immediately alerted the authorities. However, things quickly got out of hand, with the police bringing Corey in for questioning and asking if he was involved with AJ vanishing.
Corey said, “As soon as I sat down, they just bashed on me. They took my phone and screamed at me, yelled at me, and accused me and all this other stuff. I was losing it. I didn’t know what was going on; I didn’t know what they were talking about.” He maintained that he had nothing to do with AJ’s disappearance and had a solid alibi. Corey even volunteered to provide a sample and took a lie detector test.
However, Corey soon had issues with Wesley Hadsell, AJ’s adoptive father and the man who was eventually sent to prison for killing her. At the time, Wesley broke into Corey’s home, attacked their pet dog, and claimed to have found the jacket AJ was last seen wearing. AJ’s friend then added, “They brought it in, and they opened up the bag and pulled out her jacket, and that’s when I lost it. I started crying. I mean, I had no idea that was in my house.”
As for Andre Barr, he was sure AJ’s disappearance was not on purpose, saying, “This is not Anjelica. We all know her, we know how she would act, and this is not — this is out of character.” He later testified that Wesley tried to scare him and AJ’s other friends by talking about his gang affiliations and the weapons he owned. Furthermore, Andre mentioned that Wesley told him about breaking into Corey’s house and finding the jacket. Then a teenager, Andre found the jacket and called the authorities.
Where Are Corey French and Andre Barr Today?
The prosecutors ultimately believed that Wesley planted the evidence in Corey’s house. The young man also talked about Wesley’s harassment, saying that he found a box with a receipt that had AJ’s name on it. The inside of the box had “We Know” scribbled on it. Corey added, “He not only put fear in me but he’s put fear into my wife and her parents and my mom and my brother and sister.”
Since then, Corey French has joined the US Army and now seems to be an infantryman in Texas. Andre Barr has maintained a low profile since the incident, apart from testifying at Wesley’s trial. His last known location remains Norfolk, where he was reported to live at AJ’s mother’s house.
Read More: How Did Anjelica “AJ” Hadsell Die?
