Yes, SapphireSteel, I agree every local & state LEO has been eating, sleeping and breathing this case, and are very frustrated that there has not been a successful conclusion after almost 18 months.
However, I disagree that is offensive for others to express their differing opinion that the investigation may have been botched due to the many investigative errors and faulty assumptions by investigators in the initial stages. The information that a white, older model, full-size SUV-type vehicle was witnessed at the park early in the investigation and should have been shared with the public, imo. Imo, investigators have squandered their most valuable investigative resource in this case; the American public...
In the midst of the investigation, the
lead senior state investigator was removed from the case.
Public awareness and transparency is imperative for successful missing/murdered persons investigations, imo. Here we are almost 18 months later with very important questions, yet very few answers...
Just a few of the many errors and missteps in the EC & LC investigation, imo:
http://wcfcourier.com/news/evansdal...cle_bc5363a2-dcf1-11e2-be6a-001a4bcf887a.html
According to a press release from the Black Hawk County Sheriffs Office,
investigators have received witness information that a white, older model, full-size SUV-type vehicle was parked on or near the lake along Arbutus Avenue near Meyers Lake on July 13, the day the girls went missing.
Smock said the newly released information was a combination of old and new reports.
Earlier on, within the first two or three months of the girls going missing, as we were interviewing people ... a couple of different people identified the vehicle as being on Arbutus, Smock said. A few months ago, we received some information from another party who had seen a similar vehicle on the east side of the lake.
The latest information came from a woman who assumed police had already been told about what she saw, but they had not, Smock said.
He said no description is available of the person or persons in the vehicle.
Additionally, the abduction of two girls in Dayton and the subsequent murder of one of them grabbed investigators attention just days after they received the latest information on the white SUV.
http://www.classichitsandoldies.com/v2/2012/07/22/fbi-believes-missing-iowa-girls-are-alive/
FBI Believes Missing Iowa Girls Are Alive
22 July 2012
(NEW YORK) The FBI said they have evidence that leads them to believe that two missing Iowa girls are still alive.
We believe the two girls are alive, FBI spokeswoman Sandy Breault told ABC News. Breault said this belief was based partly on the evidence found Friday, but would not elaborate further.
Authorities reclassified the case as an abduction on Friday.
http://www.coloradoan.com/usatoday/article/3875803
Officials continue to investigate a possible link to Michael J. Klunder, who police say abducted two girls from Dayton on May 20 and killed one, 15-year-old Kathlynn Shepard, before killing himself.
Officials have not found any evidence linking Klunder to the Evansdale case, but they haven't ruled him out either, Meyers said.
"We're still leaving it on the table at this point," Meyers said. "We don't have substantial facts to articulate either way," that Klunder was or wasn't responsible.
Investigators are still waiting for some evidence to be analyzed at a specialized FBI crime lab, and Meyers said there is no timeline for when that analysis could be completed.
http://qctimes.com/promo/front/deco...cle_923086ce-d1f5-11e2-9935-0019bb2963f4.html
Decorated DCI special agent suspended
Special Agent in Charge Larry Hedlund, a 25-year department veteran, has been on paid administrative leave since May 1, Department of Public Safety spokesman Rob Hansen told The Associated Press.
Hansen said other special agents have handled Hedlund's responsibilities during the suspension, and he downplayed the impact on the missing cousins case, which is currently very active. Since late May, investigators have been looking for any tie in the case to Michael Klunder, a registered sex offender who committed suicide last month after police said he kidnapped two girls in central Iowa. One of the girls escaped but the older girl, 15-year-old Kathlynn Shepard, was found dead over the weekend.
"There are a number of extremely talented investigators within the DCI. We're doing all we can" to follow leads in the death of the cousins, 10-year-old Lyric Cook and 8-year-old Elizabeth Collins, Hansen said
http://www.kcci.com/news/central-io...18107780/-/vklortz/-/index.html#ixzz2Lsen3asD
State crime lab tech fired over errors
Scope of problem still unknown
Read more:
http://www.kcci.com/news/central-io...18107780/-/vklortz/-/index.html#ixzz2mnSgTSTK
http://www.cbsnews.com/pictures/fbis-top-10-most-wanted-fugitives/
FBI's Top 10 Most Wanted Fugitives
The program was founded on March 14, 1950, when a reporter asked late FBI Director J. Edgar Hoover for the names and descriptions of the "toughest guys" the Bureau would like to capture. The resulting article generated so much publicity and had so much appeal that Hoover implemented the top ten program.
Since its inception, 497 fugitives have been on the top ten list. Among those listed, the FBI says that 466 have been apprehended or located, including 154 fugitives who were captured or located as a result of citizen cooperation.
The current top ten list is maintained on the FBI website and relies on the assistance of citizens and the media..