New tip leads to cops reopening 66-year-old cold case of missing eight-year-old girl
Georgia Jean Weckler was last seen by a family friend who took her home from school May 1, 1947
The friend saw the young girl get her family's mail and continue down a trail towards their home
Both the girl and the mail were never seen again
By RYAN GORMAN
PUBLISHED: 00:06 EST, 6 August 2013 | UPDATED: 03:23 EST, 6 August 2013
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Wisconsin authorities think they may have finally found the remains of an eight-year-old girl who went missing 66-years ago.
Based on a tip they received, officials have begun searching a lot in hope of finding the remains of blonde haired, blue eyed Georgia Jean Weckler after she went missing in 1947. The man who tipped authorities to the location said she may be buried in the lot, according to reports.
Weckler was last seen retrieving the mail from her mailbox, according to the Janesville Gazette.
Never found: Georgia Jean Weckler, 8, went missing May 1, 1947 and was never seen again
Never found: Georgia Jean Weckler, 8, went missing May 1, 1947 and was never seen again
Both the local sheriffs office and town police descended on the Janesville, WI., lot after being told by an elderly man that he believed Weckler may be buried there, according to WISC. A preliminary search of the property by a K9 unit detected human remains at the site and authorities moved in.
[The tip] is credible, and were going to do our best to hopefully find evidence, either shes there or she's not, Rock County Sheriffs Office spokesperson Todd Christiansen told WISC.
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Of the 48 square plots the parcel of land has been divided into, investigators have only dug and sifted through two so far, according to WISC. Remains have yet to be found.
It could take days. Its quite a big area and we have to sift through the dirt thats plotted out, Christiansen told WISC, theres numerous plots that we have to go through and individually sift the dirt.
Based on a tip: Authorities are digging up a lot in Janesville,. WI., after acting on a tip that led to a K9 unit detecting human remains
Based on a tip: Authorities are digging up a lot in Janesville,. WI., after acting on a tip that led to a K9 unit detecting human remains
The young girl was reportedly abducted in broad daylight May 1, 1947.
Given a ride home by a family friend, according to an archived Gazette report, Weckler was seen taking the family's mail from the mail box along the highway and stroll down the lane. She was never seen again. The mail was never found.
Multiple law enforcement agencies, including the Federal Bureau of Investigation, were involved at the search, according to the Gazette. Neither Wecklers remains, nor an abductor were ever found.
No easy task: Investigators have only dug up and sifted through two of the 46 sections the lot has been divided into
No easy task: Investigators have only dug up and sifted through two of the 46 sections the lot has been divided into
An imprisoned murderer confessed to the crime but changed his story enough times for authorities to shift their focus away from him, reported the Gazette.
In 1967, then Sheriff Roger Reinel expressed his disappointment over having not solved the case, even after 20-years.
I don't imagine it will ever be closed, Reinel told the Gazette, tt will always be on file.
Almost 70 years later his words ring true, authorities hope to prove him wrong.
Read more:
http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/art...-reopened-66-years-new-tip.html#ixzz2bD6o7kVb
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