Post by mysticsnowangel on May 22, 2006 20:17:58 GMT -5
Hundreds of volunteers searched Tuesday for a 19-year-old woman that police said could have been abducted from a Corvallis apartment complex.
Brooke Wilberger was reported missing Monday, after she disappeared from an apartment complex in Corvallis, across the street from Oregon State University's football stadium.
At a Tuesday press conference Wilberger' brother-in-law, Jared Cordon, said to her abductor: "We want her back. We're looking and we're not going to stop."
She had been visiting her sister and brother-in-law while on summer break from Brigham Young University in Provo, Utah.
"Our worlds have been turned heads over heals. It's just unreal. I don’t think this has set in - what has happened," said her brother-in-law Zack Hansen.
"There's every indication to us that some kind of crime was committed," said Capt. Robert Deutsch, a spokesman for the Corvallis Police Department.
Search crews, including more than 200 volunteers, are canvassing a 5-mile radius around her disappearance point, and crews expect to enlarge the search area to 10 miles as the night approaches.
So far, the search has concentrated on two parks, Pioneer and Avery Parks, which are near the apartment complex.
"(Avery Park) is adjacent to - very close to – the scene where we believe Brooke was kidnapped or abducted," said Deutsch.
Deutsch said that Wilberger's purse; keys and other personal items had been left in her sister's apartment.
A piece of clothing belonging to Wilberger was found in the complex's parking lot, but he said he could not elaborate what they were.
"There were some articles of clothing that were found at the scene, where she was last seen doing some maintenance work."
Wilberger's car was still in the lot, Deutsch said.
Wilberger's family told police that the missing woman is a devout, studious member of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints doesn't smoke, drink or party. Her longtime boyfriend is currently in South America on a mission trip, Deutsch said.
"This is completely uncharacteristic of our sister. It just isn't something that should happen," Zack said.
"This is a person who is completely responsible, who doesn't have any kind of record," Deutsch said. "It's so out of character."
Wilberger had been staying with her sister and brother-in-law, Stephani and Zack Hansen, who manage the Corvallis apartment complex where she was last seen. Her parents, Greg and Cammy Wilberger, live in Veneta, Ore., near Eugene.
Wilberger was cleaning the bulb covers of the tall lamps that line the complex's parking lot Monday morning when her sister left for a few minutes, Deutsch said.
Hansen told police that when she returned at about 10:30 a.m., her sister was gone. A bucket of water and cleaning implements had been left behind where Wilberger was working, Deutsch said.
The family reported Wilberger's disappearance later that day, after searching for the missing woman.
"We have all of our staff on top of this, all of the investigators and most of our patrol. Benton County Sheriffs Department, Albany Police Department, Linn County Police Department, the District Attorney's Office, Oregon State Police (are involved)," Deutsch said.
Even with the extra effort put forth to find Wilberger, police are running out of new information.
"We are not having the luck that we’d like to have," Deutsch said. "Unfortunately we did not have a description; we did not have a suspect vehicle, person or a witness, which is unusual."
"We are pursuing every possible lead that we can, we have essentially come up with nothing so far, which is disappointing as time goes on, but we are still hopeful of a positive conclusion," he said.
Carri Jenkins, a spokeswoman for Brigham Young University, said Wilberger completed her freshman year as a pre-elementary education major, and has enrolled for next fall term. Wilberger lives on campus in an all-female residence hall.
Volunteers have been combing through the park's ravines, creeks and forest land since 8 p.m. Monday night, Deutsch said.
Corvallis police will also conduct interviews with people at the apartment complex and at a Hilton hotel which overlooks the apartments, he said.
FBI spokeswoman Beth Anne Steele in Portland said agents from the bureau's Eugene office have been in Corvallis since Monday night.
Steele said the FBI will provide whatever help local authorities request, such as behavioral specialists and federal arrest warrants if a suspect is identified and leaves the state.
Other cases of missing college coeds have captured the nation's attention in recent months.
University of Wisconsin student Audrey Seiler disappeared from her apartment in Madison, Wis., March 27 and was found in a nearby marsh on March 31. Police later determined the abduction was a hoax.
Dru Sjodin, who attended the University of North Dakota, was found dead April 17 in a northwest Minnesota ravine, five months after she disappeared from a shopping mall parking lot in Grand Forks, N.D.
Wilberger is 5 feet 4 inches tall and weighs 105 to 110 pounds. She has shoulder-length blonde hair, blue eyes.
Wilberger also has a scar on her right arm from her elbow to her wrist. She was not wearing shoes as well.
Below is a description of what police believe she was wearing when she disappeared:
Gray Brigham Young University sweatshirt
Ring engraved with 'CTR'
Small hoop earrings
Possibly a silver watch
Anyone with information on her whereabouts is urged to call the Corvallis Police Department Dispatch Center at (541) 766-6911.
Brooke Wilberger was reported missing Monday, after she disappeared from an apartment complex in Corvallis, across the street from Oregon State University's football stadium.
At a Tuesday press conference Wilberger' brother-in-law, Jared Cordon, said to her abductor: "We want her back. We're looking and we're not going to stop."
She had been visiting her sister and brother-in-law while on summer break from Brigham Young University in Provo, Utah.
"Our worlds have been turned heads over heals. It's just unreal. I don’t think this has set in - what has happened," said her brother-in-law Zack Hansen.
"There's every indication to us that some kind of crime was committed," said Capt. Robert Deutsch, a spokesman for the Corvallis Police Department.
Search crews, including more than 200 volunteers, are canvassing a 5-mile radius around her disappearance point, and crews expect to enlarge the search area to 10 miles as the night approaches.
So far, the search has concentrated on two parks, Pioneer and Avery Parks, which are near the apartment complex.
"(Avery Park) is adjacent to - very close to – the scene where we believe Brooke was kidnapped or abducted," said Deutsch.
Deutsch said that Wilberger's purse; keys and other personal items had been left in her sister's apartment.
A piece of clothing belonging to Wilberger was found in the complex's parking lot, but he said he could not elaborate what they were.
"There were some articles of clothing that were found at the scene, where she was last seen doing some maintenance work."
Wilberger's car was still in the lot, Deutsch said.
Wilberger's family told police that the missing woman is a devout, studious member of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints doesn't smoke, drink or party. Her longtime boyfriend is currently in South America on a mission trip, Deutsch said.
"This is completely uncharacteristic of our sister. It just isn't something that should happen," Zack said.
"This is a person who is completely responsible, who doesn't have any kind of record," Deutsch said. "It's so out of character."
Wilberger had been staying with her sister and brother-in-law, Stephani and Zack Hansen, who manage the Corvallis apartment complex where she was last seen. Her parents, Greg and Cammy Wilberger, live in Veneta, Ore., near Eugene.
Wilberger was cleaning the bulb covers of the tall lamps that line the complex's parking lot Monday morning when her sister left for a few minutes, Deutsch said.
Hansen told police that when she returned at about 10:30 a.m., her sister was gone. A bucket of water and cleaning implements had been left behind where Wilberger was working, Deutsch said.
The family reported Wilberger's disappearance later that day, after searching for the missing woman.
"We have all of our staff on top of this, all of the investigators and most of our patrol. Benton County Sheriffs Department, Albany Police Department, Linn County Police Department, the District Attorney's Office, Oregon State Police (are involved)," Deutsch said.
Even with the extra effort put forth to find Wilberger, police are running out of new information.
"We are not having the luck that we’d like to have," Deutsch said. "Unfortunately we did not have a description; we did not have a suspect vehicle, person or a witness, which is unusual."
"We are pursuing every possible lead that we can, we have essentially come up with nothing so far, which is disappointing as time goes on, but we are still hopeful of a positive conclusion," he said.
Carri Jenkins, a spokeswoman for Brigham Young University, said Wilberger completed her freshman year as a pre-elementary education major, and has enrolled for next fall term. Wilberger lives on campus in an all-female residence hall.
Volunteers have been combing through the park's ravines, creeks and forest land since 8 p.m. Monday night, Deutsch said.
Corvallis police will also conduct interviews with people at the apartment complex and at a Hilton hotel which overlooks the apartments, he said.
FBI spokeswoman Beth Anne Steele in Portland said agents from the bureau's Eugene office have been in Corvallis since Monday night.
Steele said the FBI will provide whatever help local authorities request, such as behavioral specialists and federal arrest warrants if a suspect is identified and leaves the state.
Other cases of missing college coeds have captured the nation's attention in recent months.
University of Wisconsin student Audrey Seiler disappeared from her apartment in Madison, Wis., March 27 and was found in a nearby marsh on March 31. Police later determined the abduction was a hoax.
Dru Sjodin, who attended the University of North Dakota, was found dead April 17 in a northwest Minnesota ravine, five months after she disappeared from a shopping mall parking lot in Grand Forks, N.D.
Wilberger is 5 feet 4 inches tall and weighs 105 to 110 pounds. She has shoulder-length blonde hair, blue eyes.
Wilberger also has a scar on her right arm from her elbow to her wrist. She was not wearing shoes as well.
Below is a description of what police believe she was wearing when she disappeared:
Gray Brigham Young University sweatshirt
Ring engraved with 'CTR'
Small hoop earrings
Possibly a silver watch
Anyone with information on her whereabouts is urged to call the Corvallis Police Department Dispatch Center at (541) 766-6911.