Although authorities who searched a hog farm near in Iowa didn’t turn up any solid evidence or leads, there is still much ground to cover in the area as they continue to search for missing college student, Mollie Tibbetts.
FOX News reports that Rick Rahn, special agent in charge at the Iowa Division of Criminal Investigation (DCI), expects agents to continue to search additional areas for 20-year-old University of Iowa student, Mollie, of Brooklyn, who disappeared while dog-sitting at her boyfriend’s house on the night of July 18 or the morning of July 19.
JOGGER VANISHED: Investigators are turning to Fitbit data for clues about a missing Iowa college student. Mollie Tibbetts went out on her usual evening run but never showed up at work the next day. https://t.co/2QUQ6u1Vym (via @CBSThisMorning) pic.twitter.com/3X5FRrs4If
— 48 Hours (@48hours) July 27, 2018
The Poweshiek County Sheriff’s Office confirmed with CrimeOnline that the investigation remains active and that there is no evidence to suggest Mollie left on her willingly. Her boyfriend and brothers have been cleared as suspects but authorities continue to look at “anyone and everyone” who Mollie knows in an attempt to locate.
The hog farm search took place near Guernsey, around 15 miles from Brooklyn, where Mollie vanished from.
Authorities are also also going through information found on Mollie’s laptop and information pulled from her phone and a Fitbit watch she had on when she disappeared.
“We are now just starting to get information back from those warrants,”Mitch Mortvedt, Assistant Director of Field Operations for the Iowa Division of CI told The Gazzette. “And there is a ton of information to go through and figure out what’s relevant an what’s not to this investigation.”
As CrimeOnline previously reported, Mollie sent a message to her boyfriend, Dalton, on Snapchat, on July 18. He opened the message at around 10 p.m. on Wednesday night, but it’s still unclear what time Mollie sent the message. It was last time anyone has heard from her, and according to her family, it’s completely out of character for her to go anywhere without checking in. She’s reportedly never had issues with anything or anyone that would spark her disappearance.
Read More: Mollie Tibbetts: FBI hopeful Fitbit, social media accounts can help locate missing college student
Poweshiek County Sheriff Tom Kriegel said that he “is confident that every home in Brooklyn has been visited. Every farm building, barn and shed in the area has been searched,” according to a Facebook post by Mollie’s cousin, Emily Heaston.
CrimeOnline spoke Mollie’s friend and co-worker, Emily Fenner, who said Mollie never showed up to work Thursday, which alarmed her family.
“She’s an incredibly responsible, intelligent person. When she didn’t come to work on Thursday & didn’t call in I proceeded to get ahold of her boyfriend, who was in Dubuque, IA, for work & hadn’t heard from her either. That’s when we got the ball rolling & called authorities.”
“She’s an avid runner & usually goes in the evening once it cools off,” Fenner continued. “At first we thought maybe something happened to her while on a run, but because the day camp shirt she was supposed to wear on Thursday is missing, now they’re thinking maybe something happened Thursday morning. So basically she’s probably either in running tights & sports bra or a red short & denim shorts.”
Anyone with any information on Mollie’s whereabouts is urged to contact the Poweshiek County Sheriff’s Office at (641) 623-5679 or email at tips@Poweshiekcosheriff.com.
[Feature Photo: Mollie Tibbetts/Handout]
