Document text
Police act fast in suspicious disappearances Mail Tribune / Drew Fleming Jackson County sheriff's Detective Dan Hobbs explains how missing persons cases are handled. Hobbs said after the initial investigation is completed, there's only so much police can do if there are no suspicious circumstances involved in the case. Several factors considered in setting priority By JILL BRISKEY It's not a crime to just up and disappear if you're an adult. It can, however, cost police a great deal of time, money and effort when the "missing person" wants to stay that way. "It can place a tremendous strain on our resources," Central Point police Chief Mike Sweeny said. "All missing persons cases are not the same, but occasionally somebody is reported missing and that somebody doesn't want to be found." Local police estimate that the majority of missing adult cases in the Rogue Valley are resolved within hours or days. When a report is made, police use a number of factors - such as existence of foul play or suspicious circumstances - to determine each case's priority, according to Medford police Lt. Tim George. "Is the person endangered? Are they under a doctor's care? Are they missing important medication?" George said. "Is there any mental illness?" When the investigation into a missing persons report raises suspicion, George said police must act fast, adding that residents no longer must wait 24 hours to make a report. The 1995 murders of Roxanne Ellis, 54, and Michelle Abdill, 52, a couple who lived in Medford, first came to police as a missing persons report. "Humans are pretty much creatures of habit," George said. "When something really out of the ordinary comes up, we act fast." Since January 2001, Medford police have investigated and cleared 35 missing adult reports. Only two cases reported in 2000 and 1999 are unsolved. "Sometimes people want to leave. Or they get into an argument and take off," he said. "Sometimes it's stress." Jackson County Detective Dan Hobbs says that, occasionally, a person suffering from a mental illness will leave and not come back. "They just go off into the woods to a remote location to finish it," Hobbs added. Medford Detective Terry Newell said he believes that's what happened with Michael Andrew Naglak, a Medford man who suffered from depression, who disappeared in 1996. "We believe that he probably took his own life. He made the comment to several people that he was going to kill himself and nobody would ever find him," Newell said. Some cases are complete mysteries, Hobbs said, referring to the 1998 disappearance of Prospect resident Robert Bobo. Bobo was last seen in a remote campground near Woodruff Meadows. Hobbs said Bobo's belongings, gear and his favorite hat were left behind. Bobo had no transportation. "He just literally up and disappeared out of the campground," Hobbs said. "It's truly a mystery." After a missing person has been entered into the system and the initial investigation completed, there's only so much police can do when suspicious circumstances don't exist, Hobbs added. "Our resources have to go toward criminal activities, and disappearing is not a criminal activity," Hobbs said. "It's not illegal to disappear." Reach reporter Jill Briskey at 776-4485, or e-mail [email protected] Mail Tribune Home | Ottaway Newspapers, Inc. | Dow Jones & Co., Inc. | Privacy | Contact Us Copyright � 2001 Mail Tribune, Inc.