26 replies to this topic

[Denise Harrison]

Print a poster: http://www.projectja...ettaBentley.pdf

http://www.nwherald....nyx2a/index.xml[url]

Woodstock woman reported missing

By BRETT ROWLAND - browland@nwherald.com



WOODSTOCK – Friends and family members are asking for help in the search for a 41-year-old Woodstock resident who last was seen May 23.

Benedetta “Beth” Bentley, 41, of Woodstock, was reported missing May 24 by her husband, police confirmed Monday evening.

Angela Montgomery, a family friend, said Bentley last was seen going to the Amtrak train station in Centralia for a 6 p.m. train.

She did not know whether Bentley boarded the train.

Friends and family are concentrating their search efforts on Mt. Vernon, Centralia and downtown Chicago.

Bentley is described as 5-foot-6-inches tall, weighing about 165 pounds. She has blonde hair and brown eyes.

A Facebook group created by Montgomery to aid in the search had 2,766 members as of Monday.

Anyone with information about Bentley is asked to call the Woodstock Police Department at 815-338-2131.

[Denise Harrison]

http://www.cbsnews.c...419-504083.html

Illinois Woman Beth Bentley Reported Missing, Fails to Return Home After Visiting Friends

June 1, 2010 3:12 PM

NEW YORK (CBS) Family and friends of 41-year-old Benedetta "Beth" Bentley are asking for help locating the mother of three who went missing May 23, reports

PICTURES: Beth Bentley Missing http://www.cbsnews.c...2-10003618.html

The Woodstock woman was reported missing after she failed to return home from a trip to Centralia on May 21.

Bentley was traveling with a friend to visit with other friends, but was scheduled to return to Woodstock alone Sunday evening.

"This is not like Beth at all" - to be out of contact with family and friends for any extended period of time - Angela Montgomery told ChicagoBreakingNews.com. "She's a serial caller, a serial texter."

Bentley was last seen at the Centralia train station where she planned to catch the 6:08 p.m. train to Union Station in Chicago. It is uncertain if Bentley got on the train at that station.

Bentley, who was expected to arrive home in Woodstock, about 60 miles northwest of Chicago, around 10 p.m., was reported missing by her husband Scott on May 24. In addition to her husband, Bentley has three sons ranging in age from age10 to 21.

Montgomery, who is a family friend, hopes to raise awareness of Bentley's disappearance in hopes that someone who may have seen her either at the train station or aboard the train will contact the authorities, says the website

Bentley is described as 5-foot-6-inches tall and 160 pounds with blond hair and brown eyes. She was last seen wearing a black tank top, blue denim miniskirt and carrying a pink and orange overnight Vera Bradley bag.

Montgomery asked that anyone with information about Bentley's whereabouts contact Woodstock police at 815-338-2131.

[Lori Davis]

http://www.thesouthe...1cc4c002e0.html
Family, authorities search for info on missing woman

THE SOUTHERN STAFF | Posted: Tuesday, June 1, 2010 9:18 am

CENTRALIA - Authorities and family are looking for information about a Centralia woman missing since May 23.

Benedetta "Beth" Rogers Bentley boarded an Amtrak train at the Centralia station and was later seen leaving the train at Union Station in Chicago, family said.

The 41-year-old woman has not been seen or heard from since, and family have called authorities to help aid in the search.

Anyone with information about Bentley is asked to contact the Woodstock Police Department at 815-338-2131.

She is described as a white woman, around 160 pounds and 5 feet, 6 inches high.  She has a medium build, brown eyes and long, wavy platinum blond hair.

Bentley was last seen wearing a blue jean mini skirt, black tank top, flip flops, and a Pandora bracelet.  She was carrying a big white purse and a pink and orange Vera Bradley overnight bag.

Bentley has a husband and three children, family said.

[Denise Harrison]

http://ac360.blogs.c...eekend-getaway/

Mom Missing After Weekend Getaway

Posted: 05:56 PM ET June 3

Police in Illinois are seeking help in finding a mother of three who vanished after a weekend getaway with a long-time friend.

Bennedetta “Beth” Bentley, 41, has not been seen or heard from since May 23, police said.

“We are concerned that she’s been gone for so long without contact,” Woodstock Police Chief Robert W. Lowen told CNN. “Disturbing matters, to say the least.”

In a phone interview, Scott Bentley said he’s always been in constant contact with his wife. “She has never not come back,” he told CNN. “She has never not called me. This is very unusual,” he added.

According to investigators, Bentley left her house on Thursday, May 20 to spend the weekend with a girlfriend in southern Illinois. Her friend was expected to drive her back home on May 24, police said.

But Bentley’s friend told detectives she drove her to a train station in Centralia, Illinois, on May 23, Police Chief Lowen said. “We don’t know why that decision was made to take the train back to the Chicago area,” Lowen added. “Doesn’t seem to be any rhyme or reason that they would do that.”

“The only information we have from the friend is that she dropped her off at this train station, probably about a half-hour before the train departed,” Lowen said. “She never saw her get on the train.”

“We’ve been working with Amtrak police to see if the ticket has ever been purchased. We have no information that the ticket was ever purchased,” Lowen told CNN.

Scott Bentley, who is an attorney, said his wife works with him as a legal aide. He also said she never would have her stepson’s high school graduation ceremony, which was held last weekend.

“We were the closest couple in the world,” Bentley said. “She told me she loved me, ten, twenty times a day and I did the same thing.”

“I have no idea what happened to my wife. I hope to God there is no foul play. If she did have some issues that I didn’t know about, then I would hope she just did run away, but she would never not contact her family. It’s just we don’t know what happened.”

A Facebook page has been created to raise awareness about Bentley’s disappearance.  http://www.facebook....122739057758360 )

Bennedetta “Beth” Bentley is 5’6”, weighs 160 lbs., and has blonde hair and brown eyes. She was last seen wearing a black tank top shirt, a blue jean mini skirt, and carrying a large white purse and pink and orange overnight bag.

Anyone with information about her whereabouts is asked to call the Woodstock Police Department at 815-338-2131.

[WJHarrison]

http://www.stltoday....9D?OpenDocument

Missing woman may not have left Centralia, Ill.

By Nicholas J.C. Pistor
ST. LOUIS POST-DISPATCH
06/05/2010

CENTRALIA, ILL. — There is no evidence that a northern Illinois woman who went missing May 23 ever left Centralia, police said Friday.

Beth Bentley, 41, of Woodstock, Ill., had reportedly been dropped off at about 4:30 p.m. that day at the Amtrak station in Centralia for a trip home.

But Robert W. Lowen, the police chief in Woodstock, said there is no sign that she got on the train. He said there are no surveillance cameras at the Centralia station, and that video on the Chicago cameras did not show her.

"Typically, travelers must give their name and address when riding Amtrak," Lowen said. "It's possible, however, that an employee didn't take her name. The Centralia station isn't manned on weekends, so it would have been up to the crew on the train."

Lowen also said that no passengers who were contacted could recognize Bentley's picture.

Bentley had attended her 10-year-old son's baseball game on May 20 and then left with her best friend for a trip to Southern Illinois. The friend, who was visiting her boyfriend in Mount Vernon, said she dropped Bentley off at the Amtrak station three days later so Bentley could return to her husband and three children, according to other friends of the family.

Efforts to track her cell phone have produced no conclusive results, Lowen said. None of her credit cards have been used.

"Her husband is distraught and so are her kids," Lowen said. "This appears to be unlike her character. But, there's always a possibility she doesn't want to be found."

Angela Montgomery, a friend of the family's, said it was uncharacteristic for Bentley to miss her 18-year-old son's high school graduation last weekend.

Montgomery said Bentley is a secretary for her husband, lawyer Scott Bentley.

She was last seen wearing a black tank top, a blue jean miniskirt, and carrying a large white purse and a pink-and-orange overnight bag. Anyone with information is asked to call Woodstock police at 815-338-2131.

[WJHarrison]

http://www.stltoday....43?OpenDocument

Search continues for woman missing in Centralia

06/07/2010
By Nicholas J.C. Pistor
ST. LOUIS POST-DISPATCH


CENTRALIA, Ill. -- The husband of a missing Northern Illinois woman is pleading for information from anyone who may have seen his Beth Bentley, who reportedly vanished from Centralia last month.

Bentley had attended her 10-year-old son's baseball game May 20 and then left with her best friend, Jenn Wyatt, for a trip to Southern Illinois. Wyatt, who was visiting her boyfriend in Mount Vernon, said she dropped Bentley off at the Amtrak station three days later so Bentley could return to her husband and three children, according to other friends of the family.

Wyatt declined to comment Monday and told a reporter she was asked not to talk about the case.

Bentley's husband, Scott Bentley, a lawyer from Woodstock, Ill., said on Monday that he last talked to his wife May 23.

“She said she'd be home late Sunday night or early Monday morning,” Scott Bentley said. “But, she never said anything about taking a train.”

Scott Bentley was in Centralia and Mount Vernon over the weekend distributing his wife's picture and hunting for any clue that could end the mystery.

“It's a horrible thing,” he said. “I just want her to know, if she did anything wrong, it's fine. We'll get through it. I just want her to come home.”

Woodstock police said Monday they are still treating Bentley's disappearance as a missing person case.

Woodstock Police Chief Robert W. Lowen said police are following every possible lead. He said police have investigated reported sightings of Bentley at a Mount Vernon grocery store and at a hotel. Video surveillance disproved the sightings, he said.

Bentley was last seen wearing a black tank top and a blue jean miniskirt, and carrying a large white purse and a pink-and-orange overnight bag. Anyone with information is asked to call Woodstock police at 1-815-338-2131.

[Lori Davis]

http://www.nwherald....bj0dw/index.xml

Reward offered for information on location of missing woman
Created: Thursday, June 10, 2010 5:30 a.m.

WOODSTOCK – The Woodstock and McHenry County CrimeStoppers are offering $2,000 for information that leads to the whereabouts of Benedetta “Beth” Bentley.

Bentley, a 41-year-old Woodstock mother of three, has been missing since May 23.

She traveled with a female friend by car to the Centralia area May 20.

The friend told police that she dropped Bentley off near the Centralia Amtrak station about 5:30 p.m.

Police have been unable to verify whether Bentley ever boarded a train from that station. Bentley’s cell phone and credit cards have had no activity since May 23, police said.

Bentley last was seen wearing a black tank top, blue jean mini skirt and flip flops and carrying a large white purse and a pink and orange Vera Bradley overnight bag.

If anyone has any information, call the Woodstock Police Department at 815-338-2131 or CrimeStoppers at 800-762-7867.

[Jenn]

http://www.stltoday....A2?OpenDocument

SOUTHERN ILLINOIS > Reward offered for tips on missing woman

ST. LOUIS POST-DISPATCH 06/10/2010

The Woodstock, Ill., and McHenry County Crime Stoppers offered a $2,000 reward on Wednesday to anyone who can provide information leading to the location of a northern Illinois woman who vanished last month in Southern Illinois.

Beth Bentley attended her 10-year-old son's baseball game on May 20 near Woodstock and then left with her best friend for a trip to Mount Vernon, Ill.

Jenn Wyatt, the friend, said she dropped Bentley off at the Amtrak station three days later so Bentley could return to her husband and three children, according to other friends of the family. No evidence exists that Bentley ever got on a train, police said.

Her cell phone and credit cards haven't been used since the day she went missing.

Bentley was last seen wearing a black tank top and a blue jean miniskirt, and carrying a large white purse and a pink-and-orange overnight bag.

Anyone with information is asked to call Woodstock police at 815-338-2131.

[Lori Davis]

http://www.beloitdai...ews/ill1102.txt

$2,000 for missing woman
Published: Friday, June 11, 2010 12:40 PM CDT

WOODSTOCK, Ill. (AP) — A $2,000 reward is being offered for tips on the whereabouts of a northern Illinois woman missing for three weeks.

Benedetta “Beth” Bentley hasn’t been seen since she attended her 10-year-old son’s baseball game May 20 near Woodstock and left with her best friend to Mount Vernon.

Friends and family say Bentley was dropped off at a Centralia Amtrak station three days later so the 41-year-old mother of three could return home. But police say there’s no evidence she got on the train.

Her cell phone and credit cards haven’t been used since the day she vanished.

The Woodstock and McHenry County Crime Stoppers are offering the reward. Anyone with information is asked to call Woodstock police.

Anyone with information is asked to call Woodstock police at 815-338-2131.

[Jenn]

http://www.wsiltv.co...=10389&type=top

Three Families Search For People Missing In Our Area

Last updated 9:52 am CT June 14, 2010.

WOODSTOCK -- Beth Bentley hasn't been seen since she visited our area last month. The 41 year old mother of three was last seen in Centralia on May 23rd, she was visiting friends. Her friends say they dropped her off at the train station to head back to her hometown of Woodstock, but her husband says Beth never mentioned anything about taking the train, instead she told him she was going to drive. No one has seen her since.

Detectives have interviewed the conductor as well as passengers on the train that Bentley was supposed to be on, but no one recalls seeing her.

If you have any information about her you're asked to call the Woodstock Police Department at (815) 330-2131.

[Jenn]

NamUs Profile for Beth:  http://www.findthemi...cases/show/7422

[Lori Davis]

http://www.nwherald....ribwq/index.xml

Reward raised in case of missing local woman
By BRIAN SLUPSKI
Created: Friday, June 18, 2010 5:30 a.m. CDT

WOODSTOCK – The reward for information leading to the whereabouts of Benedetta “Beth” Bentley now is $5,000.

Bentley, 41, has been missing since May 23. She traveled by car with a friend, Jenn Wyatt, May 20 to visit Wyatt’s boyfriend, who was working on a home in the Mount Vernon area.

Wyatt told police that she dropped Bentley off May 23 near an Amtrak station in Centralia. Police have not been able to verify whether Bentley boarded a Chicago-bound train that was leaving a little after 6 p.m.

Scott Bentley said that he last spoke to his wife about 4 p.m. May 23.

“I have heard nothing,” Bentley said Thursday when asked whether police had any new information. “I know they are working on it very hard; it’s a top priority for them.”

The $5,000 reward money includes $2,000 from CrimeStoppers and $3,000 from private funds.

Scott Bentley said that concerned friends and relatives indicated that they might want to contribute to the reward fund. He said he was in the process of setting up such a fund at Chase bank, and it should be available next week.

“Beth and I have the most amazing group of friends. They are incredible,” Scott Bentley said. “They are going out of their way to do anything they can to help me and the boys. I’m just blown away.”

To date, the “Beth Bentley...Missing Woodstock, IL Woman!” Facebook page has 6,128 members. The page also includes more than 69 photos. Many of the pictures are of Bentley and her friends. Some of are the area where she reportedly last was seen.

Woodstock police still are considering possibilities including that Bentley was abducted, fell victim to some type of harm, or chose to leave for her own reasons.

On Thursday, police said they did not have any new information to release related to the case.

If you have any information about her you're asked to call the Woodstock Police Department at (815) 330-2131.

[Lori Davis]

http://www.wrex.com/....asp?S=12696704

Woodstock Police say missing woman may be in danger
Posted: Jun 23, 2010 1:50 PM EDT
Updated: Jun 23, 2010 1:50 PM EDT


Benedetta "Beth" Bentley

WOODSTOCK (WREX) - Woodstock Police are looking for help in locating a mother who went missing a month ago.

Benedetta "Beth" Bentley was last seen on May 23 around 5:30 p.m. when she was dropped off at the Centralia Illinois train station to board a train from Chicago to Woodstock.

There's no record of Bentley ever boarding the train.

She was last seen wearing a black tank top, blue jean mini skirt, flip flops and carrying a large white purse and a pink and orange Vera Bradley overnight bag.

The Woodstock and McHenry County Crime Stoppers are offering a reward of up to $2,000 for information that leads to her whereabouts. Call (815) 338-2131 or (800) 762-7867.

[Jenn]

http://www.nwherald....lf3ta/index.xml



Fundraiser to help family search for missing woman

By NORTHWEST HERALD Created: Tuesday, June 29, 2010 5:30 a.m. CDT

WOODSTOCK – A fundraiser to benefit the family of Benedetta “Beth” Bentley and to assist in paying for search efforts is scheduled for July 16 at Gus’s Roadhouse.

Bentley has been missing since May 23. Bentley traveled with her friend Jenn Wyatt in a rented car May 20 to the Mount Vernon area to visit Wyatt’s boyfriend.

Woodstock Police have said that Bentley was dropped off May 23 near the Amtrak train station in Centralia.

Police have been unable to verify whether Bentley boarded a 6:08 p.m. train bound for Chicago.

So far, a $5,000 reward has been offered for information leading to Bentley’s whereabouts.

As of Monday afternoon, the “Beth Bentley...Missing Woodstock, IL Woman!”
Facebook page had 6,760 members.

The fundraiser at Gus’s Roadhouse, 680 S. Eastwood Drive, Woodstock, is being organized by Bentley’s friends in coordination with her husband, Scott.

A news release for the event states that all the money will be turned over to Scott Bentley and Bentley’s family.

The event is scheduled for 7 p.m. July 16.

The fundraiser will feature a silent auction, raffle prizes and live music.

Organizers are seeking items for the silent auction and raffles.

[Kelly]

Project Jason Profile:

Name: Benedetta Bentley

Alias: Beth
Date of Birth: 02/12/1969
Date Missing: 05/23/2010
Age at time of disappearance: 41
City Missing From: Centralia
State Missing From: IL
Gender: Female
Race: White
Height: 5 ft 6 in
Weight: 180 lbs
Hair Color: Platinum blonde
Eye Color: Green/brown
Complexion: Fair

Identifying Characteristics: Platinum blonde hair with extensions

Clothing: Black tank top, blue jean skirt, flip flops, white Gucci purse, pink & orange Vera Bradley Overnight bag

Jewelry: Wedding ring, possibly wearing a silver Tiffany necklace

Circumstances of Disappearance: Beth was last seen on Sunday, May 23rd, 2010. It is thought that Beth was going to the Amtrak Train Station in Centralia, IL for a 6pm train. Neither Amtrak nor passengers that were interviewed could place Beth on the train. The search is concentrating on her last known whereabouts in Mt. Vernon and Centralia.

Beth was driven to the station by her friend in a 2009 White Nissan Ultima. Beth was carrying her pink & orange Vera Bradley bag and a big white purse. She may have walked around the area.

Medical Conditions: None

Investigative Agency: Woodstock, IL Police Department
Agency Phone: (815) 338-2131

Print a poster: http://www.projectja...ettaBentley.pdf

[Kelly]

AAN Poster Notify Sent to AAN Subscribers  Code 88

Help us find the missing: Become an AAN Member and receive notifications about missing persons via email.

Click here to become a part of the solution: http://www.projectja...awareness.shtml

[Kelly]

http://www.nwherald....rl2vg/index.xml

Husband waiting 
for a sign

By JILLIAN DUCHNOWSKI
8/29/2010

WOODSTOCK – About three or four years ago, Beth Bentley picked up a dog she saw roaming during a rainstorm.

She returned to the neighborhood the next day to see if anyone knew who its owners were. About a year ago, a friend at a hair salon showed her a picture of a dog who needed to be adopted – and Bentley brought it home.

“She is the most helpful, kindest person that I ever met,” her husband, Scott, said. “... If we had the room, we would have 100 stray dogs and 100 stray cats.”

Now, the 41-year-old mother of three is the one for whom people are searching, the one whose photographs appears on missing posters. Bentley, of Woodstock, last was seen May 23 when a female friend dropped her off near a train station in Centralia, which is about a 70-mile drive from St. Louis.

Authorities don’t believe she ever made it on the train to Chicago, but Scott Bentley has few other indications of what happened to his wife more than three months after he last spoke with her on the phone.

Police are considering the possibilities that Beth Bentley was abducted, was harmed, or chose to leave for her own reasons. But Scott Bentley just shook his head last week when considering those options.

“I don’t know,” he said. “We don’t have any starting point. We don’t have any evidence to rule anything out.”

But longtime family friend Angela Montgomery refused to believe that Beth Bentley – whose youngest son was in kindergarten about five years ago with her son – would leave her family. Bentley, whose maiden name was Rogers, was born and raised in Woodstock.

“I’ve never wavered from the beginning that I feel with everything in my heart and soul that Beth is not missing on her own accord,” Montgomery said. “Beth would not choose to be away from her family.”

Indeed, Scott Bentley said family life had been progressing normally and relatively uneventfully in the weeks before the disappearance. They had been discussing building a barbecue in the yard, hosting a graduation party for the middle son, and taking a family summer vacation.

Then, she took a weekend trip with a friend, Jenn Wyatt, to visit Wyatt’s boyfriend, who was working on a home in the Mount Vernon area. Scott Bentley said he never got any indication that anything was wrong or worrying his wife.

“Over that weekend, I think I probably talked to her four or five times a day,” Scott Bentley said. “There’s never been a day gone by that we didn’t talk to each other.

But since then, Beth Bentley’s phone has not been used and her bank and credit-card accounts have not been accessed, Scott Bentley said.

There hasn’t been a peep from the woman who – as Scott Bentley put it – communicated so much she “would wear out her iPhones.”

Woodstock Police Chief Robert Lowen said police didn’t know of anyone in a close relationship with her who has had contact with her in the last three months.

“It appears that whatever happened, happened in southern Illinois,” Lowen said. “And we’re working with the other police down there to piece it together.”

Scott Bentley and Montgomery complimented Woodstock police efforts and their communication with family and close friends. But they, along with several friends and supporters, also are using Facebook and other Internet tools, newspaper advertisements and volunteers to try to find her.

Centralia police distributed fliers throughout Centralia’s downtown but did not receive any response – “not even one,” said Capt. Richard Densmore of the Centralia Police Department.

Scott Bentley, Montgomery and other supporters distributed their own fliers in the Centralia and Mount Vernon areas in mid-June. A group of residents from that area have been canvassing open spaces for about the past month searching for signs of Beth Bentley, Montgomery said.

Scott Bentley also plans to purchase newspaper advertisements in metropolitan areas nationwide in hopes that someone far from McHenry County has spotted her. They are using some of the $4,000 or so collected during a fundraiser in Woodstock last month.

A $5,000 reward remains available for anyone with information leading to her whereabouts.

In the meantime, Scott Bentley said, there’s a lot of waiting – and fervent anticipation in the seconds between when the phone rings and when he learns who is calling.

“If there’s any sort of sighting,” he said, “we’re ready to drop everything and go.”


How to help

Anyone with information related to Beth Bentley should call Woodstock police at 815-338-2131 or CrimeStoppers at 800-762-7867.

For more information or to help, go to www.bethismissing.com or the Facebook group called “Beth Bentley...Missing Woodstock, IL Woman!”

[Lori Davis]

http://nancygrace.bl...010/09/21/3265/

Missing Illinois woman disappears after weekend getaway with friends

September 21, 2010 at 03:29 PM ET
Posted by: Philip Rosenbaum

Nearly four months after her mysterious disappearance, friends, family and police are still searching for suburban Chicago mom Beth Bentley.

Investigators believe Bentley, 41, disappeared on Sunday, May 23, from Centralia or Mt. Vernon, Illinois.

Bentley reportedly went on a weekend trip with a woman friend to spend time with a few other people but did not return.

According to reports, her friend last saw Bentley as she dropped her off near a train station in Centralia. Whether Bentley made it to the station, bought a ticket and boarded a train remains unclear.

“Nobody has seen her,’’ her husband, Scott Bentley, said Monday on HLN’s Nancy Grace.

Passengers interviewed by police reportedly said they had not noticed Bentley and efforts to track her on her cell phone have been unsuccessful.

Bentley says he spoke to his wife by phone the day she vanished. He tells Nancy Grace that Bentley told him she expected to be home late that night or the next day.

Bentley reported Beth’s disappearance the next day, according to chicagobreakingnews.com. He says she has never failed to come home before.

Bentley described their relationship as ‘’the best in the world’’ and added that they even work together.

On Nancy Grace he said, “I was always talking to her whenever she went away for a weekend. She packed appropriately for going away for a couple of days.’’

She has not used any credit cards since she fell out of sight.

Bentley wouldn’t rule out foul play but said he could not think of anyone who would harm her.

The couple, married since 2004, lives in Woodstock, about 50 miles northwest of Chicago. They have a 10-year-old son together and Beth has two sons, 18 and 22, from another marriage.

Beth is 5’6’’, about 165 pounds, has platinum blonde hair and brown eyes.

Before she disappeared, Beth was wearing a black tank top, blue denim miniskirt, flip flops and was carrying a large white purse and a pink and orange overnight bag.

If you have any information, call the Woodstock Police Department at 815-338-2131.

[Lori Davis]

http://www.nwherald....oatbg/index.xml

Vigil to be held 
for missing woman

Created: Wednesday, September 22, 2010 5:30 a.m. CDT
– Northwest Herald

WOODSTOCK – A candlelight gathering has been planned for Thursday in honor of missing Woodstock woman Beth Bentley.

The gathering is scheduled for 8 p.m. in the gazebo on the Woodstock Square.

Bentley has been missing since May 23, and Thursday marks four months since she last was seen. A female friend dropped her off near a train station in Centralia, which is about a 70-mile drive from St. Louis, but authorities don’t believe that she made it back on a train to Chicago.

Those who cannot attend the gathering are invited to light a candle at 9 p.m. Monday, wherever they are located.

A $5,000 reward remains available for anyone with information leading to Bentley’s whereabouts.

Anyone with information related to Bentley can call Woodstock police at 815-338-2131 or CrimeStoppers at 800-762-7867.

[Lori Davis]

http://www.ncmissing...r-beth-bentley/

Miles For Beth Bentley
December 2, 2010 by Linda 
Filed under General, News
Leave a Comment



Miles for Beth Bentley Campaign

How is works…
You register at the site for “Miles for Beth Bentley” (http://www.ncmissing...r-beth-bentley/) and navigate to the county you live in or are familiar with, search for any road way and adopt it. Once you adopt the road or street, you must register that information on the site. This effort will aid the search for Beth as it is imperative to locate information on her travels and or whereabouts. Each ADPOTED” road or street that is delivered posters door to door, will allow us to obtain knowledge on Beth and where might have been in her travels. This campaign is open to anyone who would like to help in this case.

Purpose:
The concept for this campaign is to garner the attention of the general public and media outlets in an effort to aid in awareness of a missing mother, Beth Bentley; and to help identify areas of interest to conduct future search efforts.

Objective:
To challenge citizens of the state of  Illinois to participate in locating Beth Bentley who remains missing. We hope to eliminate roads, streets and highways in search of any clue or tip she may have left behind. Our ultimate goal to locate missing, Beth Bentley and afford her family a resolution.

Link to Mapquest to the routes that Beth may have traveled. In and around the area of the blue line is the possible directions of travel.

[Jenn]

Charley Project Profile for Beth: http://www.charleypr..._benedetta.html

[Kelly]

http://www.nwherald....gation/adi0v9c/


Illinois State Police to assist in Bentley investigation

By CHELSEA McDOUGALL - cmcdougall@nwherald.com
11/9/2011

WOODSTOCK – The Illinois State Police now are assisting in the investigation of missing Woodstock woman Beth Bentley, a development that offers a glimmer of hope for her husband in uncovering what happened to her.

Illinois State Police in Zone 7 in downstate Illinois are assisting Woodstock police with the investigation and following up on any leads, ISP public information officer Isaiah Vega said.

However, Woodstock police officials said there was no new information regarding Bentley’s whereabouts. She last was seen seven months ago in downstate Centralia.

While police continue the investigation, Bentley’s husband, Scott, is trying to carry on with life as best he can.

“We’re trying to be as normal as possible,” Scott Bentley said of his family. “Life doesn’t stop. We’ve got bills to pay, you’ve got to do your homework, go to school. … You have to just do those things. We’ve been able to make it through.”

No one has seen or heard from Beth Bentley since May 23, when her friend, Jenn Wyatt, dropped her off near an Amtrak station in Centralia. Beth Bentley and Wyatt were in the Mount Vernon area visiting Wyatt’s boyfriend, who was rehabbing
a house there. Beth Bentley was supposed to take a train to Chicago, although neither Amtrak nor the authorities could confirm that she ever boarded the train.

Beth Bentley’s phone and credit cards have not been used since her disappearance.

“That’s why we all think that, unfortunately, that she didn’t leave voluntarily,” Scott Bentley said. “She has three children, including one young one that’s 10. And first of all, if you have no money, no credit cards that are being used, no phone, it just doesn’t seem that you would miss birthdays, graduations, sporting events, Christmas. I just don’t think that you would disappear like that.”

Police are considering all options, including that she was harmed, abducted or chose to leave on her own.

“It’s just a very bizarre case, and it’s strange,” Scott Bentley said. “There’s nothing, absolutely nothing.”

Scott Bentley said he was in contact with his wife many times during the weekend of her disappearance. The last time was about 4 p.m., when Beth Bentley told him that she would see him that night or the next morning.

“It just doesn’t seem like that was anything that was planned,” Scott Bentley said.

Scott and Beth Bentley have been married for six years. She has three children, including a 10-year-old son with Scott.

“They’re all very strong people, and they’re doing wonderfully under the circumstances,” Scott Bentley said of the boys.

As Scott Bentley sits, waits and watches lead after lead fizzle out, he can’t do anything but hope for some answers.

“You have no other choice, just move forward and be normal, and at some point, you know, we’re just hoping for some type of conclusion, some type of answer,” he said.

A $5,000 reward remains available for anyone with information leading to her whereabouts.

For information or to help, visit www.bethismissing.com or the Facebook group “Beth Bentley ...Missing Woodstock, IL Woman!”

Anyone with information is encouraged to call the Woodstock Police Department at 815-338-2131.

[Jenn]

http://www.stltoday....b81778b3d7.html

Trail of missing Illinois woman leads through St. Louis
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Trail of missing Illinois woman leads through St. Louis

BY NICHOLAS J.C. PISTOR Posted: Wednesday, January 19, 2011 12:25 am

CENTRALIA, ILL. • Beth Bentley would have seemed easy to spot with her platinum-blond hair, black tank top, blue jean miniskirt, large white purse and pink-and-orange overnight bag.

But Bentley has not been seen since a friend said she dropped her off near a train station here on May 23. Since then, Bentley has not spoken to her friends, kissed her children good-night, or showed up for work at her husband's Chicago-area law office.

The 41-year-old mother of three was in Southern Illinois on a weekend jaunt with friend Jenn Wyatt, who also works in the law office. Bentley's husband, Scott, says he was told a lie: that the two were visiting Wyatt's relatives in Madison, Wis.

Scott Bentley said it turned out there was a lot he didn't know — in particular, that his wife was apparently in St. Louis with an unknown man two weeks before her disappearance.

In Woodstock, Ill., a small town northwest of Chicago where Bentley lives with her husband and three sons, police say she is considered a "missing person." But almost everyone else in her orbit fears that she's dead.

One thing that weighs on their minds is that she missed her son's high school graduation about a week after her disappearance, something they say she would never willingly do.

Robert Lowen, the Woodstock police chief, said it hasn't been easy investigating the disappearance of a woman last seen 300 miles away. "We are six or seven hours away, so it's difficult," he explained.

He said he hopes to turn the file over to the Illinois State Police soon.

The case has flummoxed detectives, who have even sought a psychic's opinion. "We heard her out, but it didn't lead to anything," Lowen said.

The mystery seems to track back to early May. Wyatt told the Post-Dispatch that she and Bentley flew to St. Louis over Mother's Day weekend.

Wyatt said the two separated and that she went on to see her boyfriend in Mount Vernon, when Bentley stayed behind in St. Louis to see an unidentified man.

At the end of the weekend, Wyatt said, "I was supposed to meet Beth and her friend at the (Gateway Arch), but he never showed up," Wyatt said. "All Beth said was they stayed at a fabulous, beautiful hotel."

Wyatt said she never saw him. "I don't know who he was; I didn't ask any questions," Wyatt said. "She was doing her thing."

The two friends rejoined at the end of the weekend in St. Louis and headed back to Chicago.

Scott Bentley said he knew of none of that.

On May 20, Beth Bentley left Woodstock after attending her 10-year-old son's baseball game.

According to Wyatt, the two women headed by car to Mount Vernon, about 80 miles east of St. Louis. Police say cell phone and credit card records place her there.

Scott Bentley said he was in frequent contact with his wife by phone that weekend. "I thought she was in Wisconsin until a day after she went missing," he said later.

Wyatt said she dropped Bentley off across from the Amtrak station in downtown Centralia, where Bentley said she would connect with her male friend from St. Louis and return to the Chicago area on her own.

Wyatt says she never saw Bentley again and does not know the identity of the man.

Efforts to track Bentley's cell phone have been unsuccessful, Lowen said. Police said they found no video surveillance that showed her in Centralia. None of her credit cards have been used since May.

Scott Bentley says his wife had a small personal savings account, which has gone untouched.

Angela Montgomery, who met Beth Bentley through their children's kindergarten class, has spent months searching for answers. She's taken ads out on Facebook and has spent hours searching for clues.

"I just want to know what happened," she said.

Police in Woodstock say their active investigation is over.

"Most of the legwork is done," Lowen said. "We still follow up on any leads."

[porchlight]

http://www.chicagotr...0,2666184.story


9-month-old mystery
Police continue to investigate as rifts open among family members

Beth Bentley, of Woodstock, has been missing since late May. (March 10, 2011)


By Dan Hinkel, Tribune reporter
7:28 p.m. CST, March 10, 2011


After taking her 10-year-old son to Dairy Queen to celebrate his baseball team's victory, Beth Bentley packed her shoulder bag, telling her husband she'd be back in three days from a weekend visit to Wisconsin with a friend.

She never returned. In the nine months since that weekend, she hasn't called home. The 42-year-old mother of three from Woodstock simply vanished.

Her family's confusion was compounded by an unsettling revelation delivered the night she was reported missing — she didn't go to Wisconsin. Instead, her traveling companion told police they went to southern Illinois to visit friends.

Please read more at the link above.

[Lori Davis]

Family, friends remember missing woman 1 year after disappearance

Created: Sunday, May 22, 2011 5:30 a.m. CDT
By CHELSEA McDOUGALL

WOODSTOCK – A friend of a missing Woodstock wife and mother says she is done protecting the people who she thinks know something about what happened to Beth Bentley the weekend she disappeared.

Monday marks one year since Bentley last was seen. Her family and friends will host a balloon release in her honor at 3 p.m. today at Emricson Park at the top of the sled hill in Woodstock.

Angela Montgomery thinks that Bentley’s friend Jenn Wyatt.

Read more: http://www.nwherald....arance/axr0ygw/