MN MN - Peter Achermann, 82, Staples, 24 July 2009

[cloudajo]

Thurs, Nov 26, 2009

Man's disappearance takes toll on family during holidays
By MATT ERICKSON
Staff Writer

It's been four months since Peter Achermann disappeared.

The season has changed from summer to fall, the leaves have fallen off the trees and deer hunters trodding through the woods around Leader have failed to turn up any clue as to the whereabouts or fate of the 82-year-old rural Leader man.

For Achermann's family, the absence of the family patriarch will make the holiday season a difficult one. [snipped]

[snipped]
Though the rifle deer hunt didn't result in finding Achermann, Greenwaldt remains hopeful that the continuing bow and muzzleloader deer hunts will and asks that hunters keep an eye out for anything suspicious and call law enforcement if they find something.

The Minnesota Search and Rescue Dog Association has picked up the search left off by Denny Adams, who spent several months searching for Achermann before returning home to South Dakota. And Greenwaldt said Minnesota Army National Guard Lt. Col. Eric Waage will be assisting the Cass County Sheriff's Department with investigating the terrain and possible evidence.

[snipped]
Like Greenwaldt, Fisher hoped hunters and property owners would keep an eye out for anything suspicious and report it to their local law enforcement agency or the Cass County Sheriff's Department at (800) 450-2677 or (218) 547-1424.

http://www.brainerddispatch.com/stories/112609/new_20091126098.shtml

 

[gaia227]

I have nothing to add but I just wanted to bump Peter back up to the first page.

 

[hoppyfrog]

Thanks.

My heart jumped when I saw the thread....<sigh>

Hoppy

 

[summer_breeze]

http://www.brainerddispatch.com/stories/121509/new_20091215025.shtml

 

[hoppyfrog]

Thinking about Peter and his family on this Christmas Day of hope....

Hoppy

 

[summer_breeze]

http://www.pineandlakes.com/stories/010610/news_20100106072.shtml

To help convince people with information to come forward, the Achermann family and their friends would like to offer a reward for information that will lead to the arrest and conviction of any person responsible for the disappearance of Peter.

The family is willing to contribute a substantial amount of the reward money from the proceeds from the "For Pete's Sake" benefit that was held in the fall. Friends of the family believe that the larger the amount of the reward, the greater the chance someone will come forward with some information or evidence that will provide a clue as to what happened to Peter on that day in July.

 

[dreamweaver]

Peter A, at 82 yrs old, goes to the pharmacy and grocery store, has lunch, getting ready for the big wedding coming up, heads home and
...... disappears.
His truck found. But it is not on the road home, it is down a muddy side road.
And Peter, who walks with a cane, is nowhere to be found.
The groceries and medications sit in the truck.
Searches done. Extensive searches.
Peter disappeared.

I sincerely hope that Peter can be found,
that his family can have some peace of mind.

 

[Norrad]

Hi all,

There is still nothing that has been found. There is currently a $10,000 reward being offered.

From this site: http://www.co.cass.mn.us/sheriff/sheriff_press.html


Cass County Sheriff's Office
Press Release

Press Release #1

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

Date: December 16, 2009

Contact: Randy Fisher, Sheriff

218-547-1424 or 1-800-450-2677, Fax: 218-547-3394

Walker, MN – Cass County authorities and the family of a missing Staples man are offering a $10,000 reward in the hopes it may lead to new clues about his disappearance.

Peter Achermann, age 82, was last seen in the Staples Motley area on July 24, 2009. His vehicle was located the following day on a minimum maintenance road in Becker Township in Cass County. Peter walks with a wooden cane and wears a hat like the one in the photo.
The reward of up to $10,000 is offered for information leading to the arrest and conviction of person(s) responsible for Achermann’s disappearance, if it is determined it happened as the result of foul play.

The reward will remain in effect until March 1, 2010. Anyone with information is asked to contact the Cass County Sheriff’s Office at 218-547-1424 or 1-800-450-2677.

There will also be some new pictures and posters available on the web site:

http://helpfindpeter.com

A continued thanks to all who have been following and suggesting ideas. We will keep trying.

Norrad

 

[dreamweaver]

Norrad:
Any theories on what happened to Peter A?
Foul play?
Sudden illness?
Did scent dogs track him back down the road?
Was there any evidence he walked away? Cane and footprints?

I think about Peter. He is the same age as my dad was.

 

[dreamweaver]

Norrad:
Just read the website for Peter. Probably should have done that before I asked questions.
So, K9 searches, many searches, probably not any sudden illness.

Have you set up a facebook page for Peter yet?
There are many missing persons pages on FB.

I joined most of them.

 

[Norrad]

Some reward posters are here:

http://www.co.cass.mn.us/sheriff/sheriff_home.html

norrad

 

[Norrad]

Norrad:
Just read the website for Peter. Probably should have done that before I asked questions.
So, K9 searches, many searches, probably not any sudden illness.

Have you set up a facebook page for Peter yet?
There are many missing persons pages on FB.

I joined most of them.

No Facebook. Family prefers not to.

 

[webrocket]

NORRAD - this is the first time I have looked at this thread and I feel terrible for Peter's whole family.

These are my impressions - Peter was never down that long road where the car was abandoned. I watched the video from Fox News (I think it was post #45) was around the 55 second mark they said that some imprints from his cane were found. The fact that cane impressions were found but the dogs found no scent of Peter would lead me to conclude that whoever drove the car there left with Peter's cane.

I read that the car was taken in to be examined by the state's crime lab. Sorry if this question has been asked and answered already, but what if anything did they find?

I do not live in a rural area so if anything I say here is not compatible with rural lifestyles, I mean no offense. I think Peter picked someone up and that person or persons did him harm. However, it could not be a classic hitchhiker as the person wound up in a more remote location than the road where he was picked up. Carjackings are probably very rare up there, but the typical carjacker wants a vehicle for one of three things - 1. the car itself if it has value 2. as a means of escape from someone or 3. as an instrumentality of a crime where they do not want to use their own vehicle.

1 does not apply here as the car was abandoned and not taken to a chop shop.

2 is a possibility, but who was escaping from what or whom? Were there any escaped prisoners in the area? Were there any crimes in say the 24 hours prior to Peter's disappearance? If this person was looking to get away from someone, Peter's vehicle could have been the way out, but then to abandon it in such a remote spot would only make it more difficult for that person to get to wherever they wanted to go.

3 were there any crimes committed in the Staples area between the time Peter disappeared and the time the car was found? Peter may have picked up someone who harmed Peter and left him somewhere, then used the car for criminal purposes. Once the car was no longer needed for criminal pursuits, the perp could have abandoned it and used his own car to leave the scene.

 

[cloudajo]

Good idea to scrutinize the police records in the area both before and after July 24 for criminal activity or citizen complaints.

I also agree with those who suggested Peter picked someone up. I don’t necessarily think Peter was with his car where it was left.

Norrad previously posted: “Peter was a very kind man who would help anybody. He has been known to pick up people and give them rides home. Could have happened this way.”

Weather for that day in Staples, MN says Rain, Thunderstorms (min temp 60 degrees F; max 80 degrees F). Maybe it was raining at the time and he stopped to give someone a ride, was going to drop the person somewhere, and something happened after that (as people have suggested).

Was there anyone the family/friends know of anyone in particular that Peter would give a ride to? Anyone that he had mentioned in the past?

Have any tips come in about anyone seen walking along Peter’s route that day? Anyone seen hitchhiking?

The car was reported to have been “stuck in the mud,” so that means the person driving was probably intending to drive the car further, but had to leave it there. Where does that road lead to? Have people in that area been questioned about seeing any person(s) driving or walking in that area? Assuming it was someone other than Peter.

Were scent-tracking dogs brought in while the car was still on the road, and were the dogs “scented” to get last known scent from the car (if not Peter’s)? Wonder if the person driving walked away or if they were followed by another vehicle and picked up after the car got stuck in the mud.

May be a needle in a haystack, but hopefully any cigarette butts found on that road were picked up for evidence/DNA, if the person driving the car (not Peter) was a smoker.

Like others, I wonder whether they were able to get any DNA (even touch DNA, e.g. skin cells) other than Peter’s from his car that could possibly lead to a match in a database.

Does anyone have a good map drawn that shows the key locations, e.g. the grocery store, Peter’s normal route, where the car was found, etc.? Might be good to put that on Peter’s website too.

http://www.wunderground.com/history...eq_city=NA&req_state=NA&req_statename=NA&MR=1

 

[dreamweaver]

I am thinking back to earlier posts and I think there is a mention of Peter A stopping near or right after a small bridge. The bridge was very close to where he was last seen, at the grocery store.

It stays in my mind, because I thought at the time, that perhaps Peter stopped and picked someone up.

 

[webrocket]

if I recall the sequence, the car was found about 4 miles or so away from the bridge where the vehicle was last seen. Someone who was acting in an impulsive manner to obtain a vehicle from an unsuspecting citizen probably would not take great care in disposing of that person (assuming the worst here sorry). is it possible that Peter was dumped off a bridge into a current of water and washed downstream?

 

[cloudajo]

I put together a 3 page reference document (attached) based on info found on this site, Help Find Peter site, and articles.

It includes a timeline, some of the search efforts, pictures, and maps (not sure of exact location of some key areas or routes taken).

Corrections welcome.

 

[webrocket]

thanks Cloudajo for that summary.

There is a bridge over a river on Co Hwy 34 just after the road changes its name from Warner Road NE. I am not sure what river that is (might be the Mississippi) but it flows a few mile downriver to a man made lake, Lake Placid.

Sadly, my hunch is that Peter was dumped in that river, with the weather conditions of the day, he was swept to Lake Placid. As that lake has a dam, that's about as far as he got.

 

[cloudajo]

thanks Cloudajo for that summary.

There is a bridge over a river on Co Hwy 34 just after the road changes its name from Warner Road NE. I am not sure what river that is (might be the Mississippi) but it flows a few mile downriver to a man made lake, Lake Placid.

Sadly, my hunch is that Peter was dumped in that river, with the weather conditions of the day, he was swept to Lake Placid. As that lake has a dam, that's about as far as he got.

Thanks, I see that river on the map. When Norrad comes on again maybe he can say whether any water search dogs were brought in (I know many dogs were used, just not sure about water seach dogs) - do you know?

Reference:
Not all SAR dogs perform the same type of search. Some dogs are tracking (or trailing) dogs, and others are air-scent (or area-search) dogs. The types overlap, but the distinction between the two guides are the training process and how the dog participates in missions. Tracking dogs work with their nose to the ground. They follow a trail of human scent -- typically heavy skin particles that fall quickly to the ground or onto bushes -- through any type of terrain. These dogs are not searching, they're following: Tracking dogs need a "last seen" starting point, an article with the person's scent on it to work from and an uncontaminated trail.

Water - Dogs search for drowning victims by boat. When a body is under water, skin particles and gases rise to the surface, so dogs can smell a body even when it's completely immersed. Due to the movement of water currents, dogs can seldom pinpoint the exact location of the body. Typically, more than one SAR team searches the area of interest, and divers use each dog's alert point, along with water-current analysis, to estimate the most likely location of the body.

http://animals.howstuffworks.com/animal-facts/sar-dog2.htm

==================
Scent can cling or be diffused, depending on the wind, weather, terrain, or humidity. It travels differently in mountains than valleys, on rainy days than on clear days, in dry, cold air than in warm, moist air. Handlers must be aware of the differences in order to give the dog the best chance for success.

Handlers of water search dogs must also know about currents that can carry bodies and affect the diffusion of scent.

http://www.canismajor.com/dog/sandresc.html

 

[cloudajo]

I'm curious about the person who spotted Peter’s car – were they out looking for Peter on that old logging road when they saw the car? Also the local man who was contacted by the person who saw Peter’s car and then called the family.

Saturday, July 25, 2009
About 7:00 pm Saturday, a local man called the family and said he was told that someone saw Peter’s car stuck down a long minimum maintenance (old logging) road. The family went out to check it and it was Peter's car. Peter’s car was found abandoned, stuck in the mud on the road

(no link)

Questions about Peter’s car (see attached):

4 Door 1995 Chevrolet Station Wagon

• Both the driver’s side and passenger’s side front windows were completely down (paper and tape were later place over the open windows by LE after car was found)
• Did the car have power or manual windows?
• Was it Peter’s habit to drive with both windows completely down? (Weather history shows a max temp of 80 deg F with rain/thunderstorms on July 24, 2009)
• It appears the passenger’s side mirror is missing. Was it missing prior to July 24?
• The passenger seat looks somewhat reclined. Who last rode as a passenger in Peter’s car and do they remember if the seat was reclined like this?
• Note that an article states that Peter’s wife’s prescription meds were found laying on the front seat of the car