Lafayette Man Missing Since Friday

LAFAYETTE, IN – Today, at approximately 4:12 p.m., Indiana State Police officers found the body of a male subject in the water of Wea Creek. The body was located west of the creek’s overpass on County Road 150 East and north of the intersection of County Road 510 South. 

Prior to finding the body, conservation officers from the Indiana Department of Natural Resources assisted state troopers by searching the water in a gravel pit using high tech sonar equipment brought in from LaPorte County. The gravel pit was located on the property of Vulcan Materials, which was south of Wea Creek. While officers where conducting the search of the gravel pit, a citizen led troopers to the body in the creek. The citizen found the body while checking property owned by his family. 

On Monday, March 10, 2008, Joel T. Saunders was reported missing to the Indiana State Police Lafayette Post. Troopers opened a missing person’s investigation and tried to develop leads on the whereabouts of Saunders. Officers were initially led to the Vulcan gravel pit because of information received from the Tippecanoe County Sheriff’s Department who had investigated a single vehicle crash which was reported to them on March 7, 2008, at approximately 11:47 p.m.

The crash occurred at the entrance to Vulcan Materials. The driver was not found at the scene of the crash. The vehicle involved was a 1999 Oldsmobile owned by Saunders. Officers suspected Saunders could be in the gravel pit’s water due to a police search dog from the Tippecanoe County Sheriff’s Department tracking a human scent to the water’s edge. 

At this time the body has not been positively identified. That information will have to be released by the Tippecanoe County Coroner. 

This is an ongoing investigation. 

Indiana State Police detectives were assisted in the investigation by the Indiana State Police Aviation Section, Indiana State Police Underwater Search Rescue/Recovery Team members, and Indiana Hope Missing Persons Search Team.

Source: Indiana State Police

Technorati Tags: News State Crime / Police Indiana State Police - ISP Joel T. Saunders

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