Authorities in Tennessee shared updates on the search for missing Summer Wells in a news briefing Monday afternoon.
Summer, 5, has been missing for nearly a week in Hawkins County. Her parents reported her missing on Tuesday evening, and have said they believe she left the house through a basement door sometime that day. As previously reported, Summer’s father Don Wells has said he believes she was kidnapped and taken out of the area by her abductor.
“While we have not ruled out an abduction, we have no evidence to indicate that has happened,” Tennessee Bureau of Investigation spokesperson Leslie Earhart said at Monday’s news conference.
“We want to reiterate that the circumstances leading to Summer’s disappearance remain unclear, which is why we have been exploring all possibilities.”
As WHJL reports, Hawkins County Sheriff Ronnie Lawson urged area residents to do a thorough check of all structures on their property for signs of the missing girl, even if they had already done so.
From @SheriffLawson : "We need the residence to go back and check their entire property, outbuilding, barns, any place a child can hide. We desperately need you to do that for us….We have not stopped. We've been 24/7 for 6 days. We desperately need help from the community."
— Josh Smith (@JoshSmithWJHL) June 21, 2021
“We need the residents to go back and check their entire property, outbuilding, barns, any place a child can hide,” Lawson said.
Thunderstorms are expected to impact the ground search for Summer on Monday evening.
An AMBER Alert, first issued Wednesday, remains in effect.
Anyone with information about Summer Wells’ disappearance or current whereabouts is urged to call 1-800-TBI-FIND.
Read all of CrimeOnline’s covering of the search for Summer Wells here.
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