IL IL - Richard Griener, 13, Pekin, 17 Jan 1972

[Richard]

Hello, I am sorry for not posting this until now.

My mom was great friends with Griener and was at the sledding hill when he disappeared (the top starts where the Pekin high school staff parking lot is and it ends where the road is, although when I went sledding we never had enough momentum to make it to the road).

Now I'm only recalling this from what my mom told me, but she passed away in 2021, so my info is not complete. This case haunted my mom for the rest of her life and strongly influenced the way she raised me. I want to pass along any info that I do recall in hopes of hopefully solving this case once and for all, for my moms sake as well as his.
So my mom grew up on Fairlane Ave in Pekin, not far at all from where he grew up. I grew up in the house next door to where she grew up on Fairlane as well, with my moms mom living next door to me in the same house my mom grew up in. I know the folks around my moms age that lived in that neighborhood were very close and I could name a few names of people who are still around that definitely could have been there that day but I can't imagine they wouldn't have already told the police everything they know and I don't want to go poking around and stirring up bad memories if it won't get this investigation any further...

 

[Richard]

Thank you for your post and welcome to Websleuths.

From ehat you describe, the sledding hill had rather limited access and egress routes. Where would a likely place be for an abductor to park a vehicle? Driving away seems more probable than walking away for any distance with a child, especially through an area where they might be seen.

 

[formymom]

Thank you for your post and welcome to Websleuths.

From ehat you describe, the sledding hill had rather limited access and egress routes. Where would a likely place be for an abductor to park a vehicle? Driving away seems more probable than walking away for any distance with a child, especially through an area where they might be seen.

Not sure, the landscape over there had changed a lot since then and I have only lived in Pekin since 1996.

I dont know the timeline of when things were built but I'm fairly certain the 4H barns were there next to hill area back then - there's a parking lot at the top of the hill for the high school too but I know the highschool wasn't always there so not sure when that was put in.

If he did try walking home through the housing though, there is lots of parking.

 

[spartanx]

I imagine that the theory that he fell into some deep hole or a sinkhole and was trapped by the snow is out of the question... that a serial killer or kidnapper would take him is more plausible but there would be a parking lot nearby or some place where he could be waiting. to his victim? In the innocence of a child who does not see danger, his life was lost...
either way
rest in peace