http://media.graytvinc.com/images/Jessica+O'Grady+200.jpg

Missing Teen
Missing Persons
UNO student sought


Authorities are trying to figure out what happened to 19-year-old UNO student Jessica O'Grady. Friends and family say they haven't seen her since last Wednesday.

She didn't show up for work on Friday night and her uncle, Kevin Stanzel, says that's out of character for her.

Stanzel says, "It's not like her to run off. She would tell someone. If not us, her close friends."

Jessica is described as being 5' 9" tall, weighing135 pounds. She has brown hair and hazel eyes.

She was reportedly driving a gray Huyndai Accent, license plate: PEI894.

If you have information on her whereabouts, call 402-444-5600.

http://www.kptm.com/video/2098442.html?id=443

Another Young Metro Woman Missing
05/15/2006

Another young woman is missing in the Omaha metro.

19 year old Jessica O'Grady has not been seen since last Wednesday. Her family filed a missing persons report on Friday. Police do say the case is not related to the remains found in Hummel Park last week.

Rachelle O'Grady, Jessica's mother, says the fact she hasn't been heard from in 5 days is out of the ordinary.

"She's always in contact with her roommates, one in particular Holly, and my sister," O'Grady says.

The O'Grady family spent today putting up flyers, hoping someone knows where Jessica may be.

Jessica was last seen Wednesday evening, when she left her apartment in a gray Hyundai Accent, heading to a friend's house.

According to Jessica's mom, her daughter made a cell phone call from near 132nd and Blondo to say she was lost.

"She called her friend Holly and said you know I can't find it and that was the last any of us had heard from her," O'Grady says.

The O'Grady's say the only thing they can do for now is hope Jessica comes home safely.

"We miss her terribly...it's kind (of) like a hole that's just (a) void," O'Grady says.

Jessican was last seen wearing a pink shirt and jeans with flip-flops. She was driving a Hyundai Accent with license plate number PEI 894.

If you have any information in this case, call the Omaha Police Department at 444-5600.

http://www.ketv.com/news/9223330/detail.html



UNO Student Missing

UPDATED: May 16, 2006

OMAHA, Neb. -- A 19-year-old University of Nebraska-Omaha student was last seen on Wednesday, and her family is asking the public's help to find her.

Jessica O'Grady made a call from her cell phone just before midnight Wednesday, saying she was headed to the 120th and Blondo streets area.

O'Grady's car is a gray Hyundai Accent with Nebraska license plate PEI 894. Police said they're looking into the case, and her family is putting fliers all over town.

O'Grady's uncle said the disappearance is completely out of character, and her family is very worried.

"It's very stressful. Something you expect to hear about other families," said uncle Kevin Stanzel. "There's other families in the news and you never think it can happen to you, but it can."

The family will be out searching again on Tuesday. [/hr]Last edited by Kelly : 05-17-2006 at 01:50 AM.

http://www.ketv.com/news/9226473/detail.html

Missing Student's Car Found
Car Found Near Oak View Mall Belongs To Missing UNO Student

POSTED: 3:26 pm CDT May 16, 2006
UPDATED: 3:35 pm CDT May 16, 2006


OMAHA, Neb. -- Omaha police have recovered the car belonging to a missing 19-year-old student at the University of Nebraska-Omaha.

Jessica O'Grady made a call from her cell phone just before midnight Wednesday, saying she was headed to the 120th and Blondo streets area. That was the last she was heard from, her family said.

O'Grady's car was found Tuesday afternoon in a parking lot near 145th Street and West Center Road. Police towed the vehicle to the city impound lot for processing.

There was nothing abnormal about the vehicle, a KETV NewsWatch 7 reporter on the scene said. It appeared it had been parked, and the vehicle was locked when it was found. There were no immediate indications as to what happened to O'Grady.

O'Grady's mother visited the scene.

Someone who recognized the vehicle from news reports contacted police.

O'Grady is still being sought. She is described as white, 5 feet 9 inches tall and 135 pounds with brown hair and hazel eyes.

http://www.wowt.com/home/headlines/2813656.html

Woman's Car Found
UNO student missing since last week


Omaha Police say that they have recovered the car of missing UNO student Jessica O'Grady. The 19-year-old was reported missing last Friday but hasn't been seen by family or friends since last Wednesday.

Her car was found Tuesday morning in what police have described only as a strip mall parking lot at 144th and Center. There is retail development on all four corners of that intersection. Authorities have not specified where the vehicle was found.

Police have been told that Jessica was last seen leaving 5860 South 156th Court on Wednesday, May 10, 2006 at 10:45 p.m.

She was wearing a pink T-shirt with a picture of a palm tree on the front, blue jeans, and flip flops.

The vehicle that she was driving is a Gray 2001 Hyundai Accent four door with Nebraska license plate: PEI 894. That car was found Tuesday morning.

The family says it's not like Jessica to just disappear and the young woman's cell phone has been unreachable for several days.

Police say that, "while the circumstances seem to be unusual, there are not indications of foul play."

They are, however, asking anyone with information on Jessica O'Grady's whereabouts to call them at 402-444-5590 or 402-444-5600.

http://www.kptm.com/video/2098442.html?id=446

Updates In Cases Of Two Missing Local Women
05/16/2006

The Omaha Police Department says it has located the car of missing UNO student Jessica O'Grady.

The car was found at about 10:30 this morning in a strip mall at 144th and Center.

After checking the car's registration, officers determined that it was the same car O'Grady was last seen driving.

The department says that while the circumstances surrounding the situation are unusual, there are no indications of foul play.

Anyone with any information on the case is asked to call the Omaha Police Department at 444-5590 or 444-5600.
--------------------------------
The family and friends of Tracy Tribble are planning another search for the missing Council Bluffs woman.

They will meet Saturday morning at St. Patrick's Church in Council Bluffs at 8am.

They are again asking for search volunteers. They are also asking for local businesses to donate food for everyone involved.

Deputies Searching O'Grady's Boyfriend's Home

Jessica O'Grady Last Seen Week Ago

POSTED: May 17, 2006

OMAHA, Neb. -- Douglas County sheriff's deputies are searching the home of a missing teenager's boyfriend.

KETV NewsWatch 7 confirmed on Wednesday morning that authorities are searching Jessica O'Grady's home. Investigators said they found evidence of a crime inside the residence.

O'Grady was last heard from a week ago. She is a 19-year-old student at the University of Nebraska-Omaha.

On Tuesday, O'Grady's Hyundai was found in a parking lot near 144th Street and West Center Road. O'Grady works near where the car was found.

http://www.ketv.com/...392/detail.html

http://www.ketv.com/...392/detail.html

Deputies Search O'Grady's Boyfriend's Home
Jessica O'Grady Last Seen Week Ago

POSTED: 10:44 am CDT May 17, 2006
UPDATED: 9:48 pm CDT May 17, 2006



OMAHA, Neb. -- Douglas County sheriff's deputies are searching the home of a missing teenager's boyfriend.

KETV NewsWatch 7 confirmed on Wednesday morning that authorities are searching Jessica O'Grady's boyfriend's home near 130th and Cady streets. Investigators said they found evidence of a crime inside the residence. They also said the case is now considered a criminal investigation instead of a missing persons case.


Detectives took bags of evidence from the home.

O'Grady's mother told KETV NewsWatch 7 that investigators searched her daughter's home on Tuesday evening. They removed toothbrushes, hairbrushes and other items that would contain O'Grady's DNA.


The Douglas County Sheriff's Department has taken over the investigation from the Omaha Police Department because the boyfriend's address is in the county as opposed to the city. The home is owned by Jane Edwards, who Sheriff Tim Dunning identified as "an aunt of the acquaintance of Miss O'Grady's."

The boyfriend has been questioned and released, Dunning said.

There is speculation that O'Grady is pregnant. O'Grady's family told KETV NewsWatch 7 on Wednesday that they knew little about the boyfriend.

O'Grady was last heard from a week ago. She is a 19-year-old student at the University of Nebraska-Omaha.

On Tuesday, O'Grady's Hyundai was found in a parking lot near 144th Street and West Center Road. O'Grady works near where the car was found.

Investigators said anyone with information about the case should call (402) 333-1000.

Web Helping Spread Information

Investigators are searching the Internet for clues about O'Grady's disappearance.

State patrol investigators said a Web site that parents are often warned about, MySpace.com, is actually helping with the case of O'Grady's disappearance. Word spread quickly on the teen's site, and the flier containing all of the information about O'Grady's description and car make and model were quickly posted.

"That word is getting spread, and if some of their friends are doing the same thing, you're actually blanketing out exponentially," said the Nebraska State Patrol's Scott Christensen.

Christensen, as the patrol's lead Internet crimes investigators, often spends time warning parents about MySpace.com. Teens build personal pages on the site and often share very personal information and photos. But Christensen said the O'Grady case is an example of one of the best ways social Web sites can be used.

"I think this is the best use I've seen, where they are trying to put the word out, and they're doing it in a community of MySpace that they all associate in," Christensen said.

O'Grady's MySpace.com site has photos of her with family and friends, with links to those people's pages.

"If I have 10 friends who has 10 friends who has 10 friends and everybody would do that, you can see a multitude of people would have this information on the Internet," Christensen said.

http://www.wowt.com/...es/2818571.html

O'Grady Evidence Reviewed
O'Grady Investigation

Sheriff's News Conference
Deputies search home


The disappearance of UNO student Jessica O'Grady is now being handled as a criminal investigation. Evidence was seized from a west Omaha home Wednesday.

Jessica's car was located Tuesday in a parking lot at 144th and West Center Road.

At 1 o'clock Wednesday morning, police and Douglas County investigators searched a home, a few blocks from 132nd and Blondo where O'Grady's boyfriend lives with his aunt.

Neighbors tell us of seeing investigators removing a headboard, three large pillows and many evidence bags from the house.

Douglas County Sheriff Tim Dunning says the case is now a criminal investigation but few other details are being released.

Dunning says, "I hope that you would be patient. I think we're going to do well on this particular case in a very short period of time, but right now, we don't have a lot."

O'Grady's family was also at the news conference where Dunning made that comment. They tell us that police and sheriff's department investigators have been unable to tell them much at all.

Jessica's aunt, Tami Hansen says, "Obviously, you know, we're very concerned about her. We want her, someone to help us find her. It's hard, you know. We just want her back."

It's also been a rough week for Jessica O'Grady's friends.

Holly Stumme has known Jessica since the fifth grade and she's her roommate.

She says, "You focus on the good times. Keep up hope. That's all you can do."

Kari Peterson has known Jessica since their days at Westside High and she tells us, "Her personality is bubbly. You don't see her down very often. If she was, you knew it and you asked her about it.

"You try to be optimistic but the last two days have been difficult. At first it didn't seem real."

Jessica's friends are finding comfort in family.

Kari tells us, "Her aunt and uncle have been great. They said we could come over anytime to talk about it or don't talk about it."

The Douglas County Sheriff is now heading the investigation and if you have any information that would be helpful, contact the department at 333-1000.

http://www.omaha.com...6&u_sid=2173100

Police search house of missing teen's boyfriend

Published Thursday May 18, 2006  BY KEVIN COLE  WORLD-HERALD STAFF WRITERS

Family and friends of Jessica O'Grady spent Wednesday night working on plans to search for the University of Nebraska at Omaha student who has been missing for more than a week.

"Our job is to continue to search until we find her," said Traci Harrison, an aunt of O'Grady's. "We hope to have a bunch of new fliers ready today and maybe even an announcement about our search and how (volunteers) can help us look for Jessica."

The last time friends had contact with 19-year-old O'Grady was May 10, when she made a call on her cell phone just after 11:45 p.m. as she drove toward 120th and Blondo Streets.

Investigators from the Douglas County Sheriff's Office began searching the home of O'Grady's boyfriend about 9 p.m. Tuesday. The boyfriend lives northeast of 132nd and Blondo Streets in the Willow Wood subdivision.

"We've conducted a search warrant on that house," said Douglas County Sheriff Tim Dunning. "It's gone from a missing person to a criminal investigation."

Neighbor Theresa Murray said she and her husband noticed "official-looking people" at the house about 9 p.m.

At 5 a.m. Wednesday, she went for a walk and saw a crime lab truck. By 6:30 a.m., officers were roping off the house, she said.

Murray said she saw crews carry out a headboard, three large bed pillows and large paper bags.

Dunning said the 19-year-old boyfriend has been interviewed and released. A Honda car belonging to the boyfriend was searched and impounded before being released to its owner Tuesday afternoon.

The sheriff declined to say what evidence was found within the home or what crime investigators think occurred there.

"I think we're going to deal well with this particular case in a short amount of time," Dunning said. "I think there is a lot of good evidence for investigators to work on here."

O'Grady's 2001 Hyundai Accent was found Tuesday at a strip mall in the area of 144th Street and West Center Road. Officers, acting on a tip, discovered the car about 10:30 a.m.

Omaha Police Sgt. Teresa Negron said there were no indications of foul play in the car.

Kevin Stanzel, an uncle of O'Grady's, said family members tried to talk with the boyfriend, who works at a restaurant with his niece. O'Grady, he said, told friends last week that she had taken a home-pregnancy test and that it came out positive.

Asked Wednesday whether he had determined if his niece was indeed pregnant, Stanzel said that he wasn't sure and that authorities had asked the family not to say any more on the subject.

Harrison described her niece, a sophomore at UNO and a 2004 graduate of Westside High School, as "an outgoing and wonderful part of our family."

According to her senior yearbook, O'Grady participated in Westside's show choir and the school's Warrior Choir.

Harrison said O'Grady enjoys helping coach a youth softball team, collecting toy frogs and spending time with her three roommates.

"We know, and her roommates know, that it just isn't like Jessica to run away," Harrison said. "That wouldn't be in her character. She would've called somebody."

O'Grady is white, stands 5-foot-9 and weighs 135 pounds, and has brown hair and hazel eyes. She was last seen wearing a pink shirt with a palm tree on the front and blue jeans.

Anyone with information about her whereabouts is asked to call the Douglas County Sheriff's Office at (402) 444-3554 or the tip line at 333-1000.

http://www.ketv.com/...119/detail.html

DNA Testing Can Be Tedious Process
Families Wait As DNA Processed In Several High-Profile Cases

POSTED: 8:21 am CDT May 18, 2006  UPDATED: 8:32 am CDT May 18, 2006

OMAHA, Neb. -- DNA testing is an important to several high-profile criminal cases happening in the Omaha metro area right now.

Jessica O'Grady, 19, was last seen on May 10, and now investigators are testing items taken from both her apartment and her boyfriend's home. Remains found May 11 in Omaha's Hummel Park may solve one of several missing person's cases, and several families -- including that of missing 12-year-old Amber Harris -- are awaiting the results of DNA tests on the remains. On May 6, some Pottawattamie County mushroom hunters found a body in a barrel, and investigators are working to identify those remains, too.

DNA analysis is often a tedious process in solving such mysteries, according to the director of the University of Nebraska Medical Center forensics lab, Dr. Kerry Bernal. The lab is top secret because analysts test DNA for law enforcement agencies and attorneys around the state.

"You need to keep track of who has the specimen, when they have it, when they give it to another person -- chain of custody is very important," Bernal said.

Bernal said it's an arduous task, especially when technicians are analyzing bones. The first step is extraction.

"The issue with bone is the DNA is contained in the very center of the bone. You would have to cut through the outer cortex to get to the tissue," Bernal said.

The next step is amplification.

"That's where we photocopy the DNA," Bernal said.

Next, scientists detect the DNA with the help of an ultraviolet light. The entire process can take as little as three days and as long as several months.

The lab at UNMC is one of only two forensic labs in the state. Technicians at UNMC only do DNA testing. The Nebraska State Patrol lab does DNA and other forensic tests, such as fingerprint and fiber analysis. In addition to missing persons, DNA analysis can go a long way to identify or eliminate suspects in all kinds of criminal cases.

http://www.wowt.com/...es/2831141.html

Families are still praying for loved ones to be found

The families of three missing people are still waiting for word on the whereabouts of Amber Harris, Jessica O'Grady, and Tracy Tribble. There is still no definite word on where these missing loved ones are.

Tribble's relatives question whether Tracy is even alive but they are preparing another search in the hopes that their prayers will be answered.

Tribble's father, John Gostomski says it is not like his daughter to be gone this long without contacting anyone. He believes that she has been gone too long.

"When you're searching for this, you know, you are not searching for one that's alive and well, but you have to do it."

A cadaver dog assisted in the search for Tribble last week and much of the area surrounding her home has been eliminated from the search area. This Saturday the search perimeters will expand.

Hundreds of volunteers have shown up to help, but Tribble's husband has not been one of them.

"We've had four days of organized searches and we haven't seen them at one," said Gostomski.

Tribble's husband was the last one to see Tracy and he tells police that she was sleeping when he left for work. Police have released a description of what Tribble was wearing the night before; the last time that someone other than her husband saw her.

Police say that Tribble was seen wearing dark blue jeans, a dark green sweater, and a dark green jacket with a hood. Sgt. Jerry Mann says that these may or may not be the clothes that Tribble was wearing when she disappeared, but it is a starting point.

Mann says they have searched the home a couple of times and the clothes have not yet been discovered.

Police say that Tribble's husband is merely a person of interest and for now, the focus is on finding Tribble.

"We would like to see Tracy show up alive. That's what out ultimate goal is here. We hope that's how this case turns out, but we'll have to see," said Mann.

A tipline has been set up for those who may have any information regarding Tribble, the number is 218-1199.

A search is has also been set up for anyone who would like to help.

Meanwhile at Amber Harris' house, her parents continue that long wait to hear about their missing daughter. Omaha police have contacted them and other families after human remains were found in Hummel Park.

There is a candlelight vigil planned for 7 p.m. on Friday, May 19th at Pulaski Park in 41st and 'H' St. Anyone who would like to join is welcome.

Another family is waiting to hear about their daughter.

Nineteen year old, Jessica O'Grady has been missing for a week and her family is still waiting to hear of any developments.

The Douglas County Sheriff has assigned additional detectives to O'Grady's case.

Anyone with information on where she may be is asked to call the Sheriff's office at 333-1000.

http://www.ketv.com/...933/detail.html

Woman's Body Found Under Bridge
Police Working To Identify Body

POSTED: 11:25 am CDT May 19, 2006  UPDATED: 1:28 pm CDT May 19, 2006

COUNCIL BLUFFS, Iowa -- Crews are investigating the discovery of a body near the Veteran's Memorial Bridge on the Council Bluffs side of the river.

Investigators confirmed that the body is that of a white woman.

Sgt. Jerry Mann, with the Council Bluffs Police Department, said his office was first contacted at about 2:30 a.m. Friday. A pest control worker reported seeing the body in the river, according to Mann.

The area is residential with a number of mobile homes.

The body was removed and sent to the state lab in Ankeny for identification.

So far, investigators have not linked the discovery to the disappearance of Tracy Tribble, 35, of Council Bluffs, who was last seen on May 3; or that of Jessica O'Grady, 19, of Omaha, who was last seen May 10.

Kelly Jolkowski, Mother of Missing Jason Jolkowski
President and Founder,
Project Jason
http://www.projectjason.org
Read our Voice for the Missing Blog
http://voice4themissing.blogspot.com/

http://www.ketv.com/...933/detail.html

Tribble's Mother Fears Body Is Her Daughter
Police Work To Identify Body

POSTED: 11:25 am CDT May 19, 2006  UPDATED: 5:23 pm CDT May 19, 2006

COUNCIL BLUFFS, Iowa -- Crews are investigating the discovery of a body near the Veteran's Memorial Bridge on the Council Bluffs side of the river.

Investigators confirmed that the body is that of a white woman.

Sgt. Jerry Mann, with the Council Bluffs Police Department, said his office was first contacted at about 2:30 a.m. Friday. A pest control worker reported seeing the body in the river, according to Mann.

The area is residential, with a number of mobile homes.

The body was removed and sent to the state lab in Ankeny for identification. That autopsy is scheduled for 9 a.m. Saturday.

So far, investigators have not linked the discovery to the disappearance of Tracy Gostomski Tribble, 35, of Council Bluffs, who was last seen on May 3.

Tribble's mother, Mary Gostomski, said people knew her daughter as Tracy Gostomski, so she has asked KETV NewsWatch 7 to add her daugther's maiden name.

Mary Gostomski said she feels that the body found in the river is her daughter's. Investigators would not confirm Gostomski's fears.

"I don't know how I'm going to go on without my daughter. We were such good, good friends," the mother said.

Mary Gostomski said her daughter was last seen by a work friend. She said it would be completely unlike her daughter to disappear without a word. She said she had held out hope of finding her daughter alive, but that hope is now dead for her.

"He coudn't tell us, specifically, that it was my duaghter, but I feel in my heart that it was Tracy, or that it was Tracy," Mary Gostomski said.

Douglas County investigators told KETV NewsWatch 7 on Friday that they believe the body found is not that of Jessica O'Grady, 19, who was last seen on May 10. The sheriff's office said the discovery is not affecting or slowing their investigation of O'Grady's disappearance.

A search to find O'Grady is scheduled to begin at 9 a.m. Saturday at St. Andrew's Church in Omaha at 150th Street and West Maple Road.

http://www.wowt.com/...es/2839716.html

Volunteers Search For Jessica
150 people join effort

The search continues for Jessica O'Grady, the 19-year-old UNO student missing for more than a week.

Jessica was last seen by friends and family on May 10th.

On Saturday morning, friends and volunteers organized a search effort in west Omaha near her last known whereabouts.

Volunteers were organized into 12 search teams with 10 people in each group.

Along with the task of looking for clues about Ms. O'Grady's disappearance, the volunteers passed out flyers to local businesses.

Jessica's aunt, Traci Harrison, says, "It's fantastic. So many of them know Jessica and, you know, people that we've never even met -- all we can ask for is for them to show up and help us."

The O'Grady family says 150 volunteers helped with Saturday's search effort.

If you know anything about Jessica O'Grady's whereabouts you're urged to contact authorities. The Douglas County Sheriff's Department is the lead investigating agency in the case. You can reach the department by calling 333-1000.

http://www.kptm.com/...442.html?id=468

Search Begins, Expands for O'Grady

05/20/2006

Another search for a missing Omaha woman still has hope tonight.

19 year-old Jessica O'Grady has been missing since May 5th.

Much of the news on this case has been discouraging but that's not dampening the spirits of the O'Grady family.

It has been a tumultuous ten days for the O'Grady family but that's not stopping them.

Armed with maps, red flags, notebooks, cell phones and plenty of donuts and water, the search troops headed to the trenches.

"You need to be patient and figure out where your two teams are gonna start out on each side," says a searcher.

More than a 100 people spent six hours combing two mile areas around Lake Zorinsky, Standing Bear Lake and Chalco Hills looking for any clues.

"Anything suspicious or out of the ordinary in those places," Jessica's aunt Traci Harrison says.

Jessica's family says it's been an emotional roller coaster.

From her disappearance on Wednesday, May 5th, to the discovery of her car this past Tuesday, then to Douglas County Sheriff's deputies searching her boyfriend's home as a crime scene on Wednesday.

"We don't know a lot of information, what was there or what they did, we were there in front of the house, but we didn't really see anything." Harrison adds.

Jessica's aunt Linda Taylor states, "It's hard but we just have to wait and be hopeful that she's still here."

Despite yesterday's identification of Amber Harris' remains and the discovery of a body in the Missouri River, they remain hopeful.

"We were scared, we were hopeful, it wasn't Jessica, we feel very badly for the family the person belongs to," adds Taylor.

"We're focusing less on that and on our search efforts and doing what we need to do as a family," Harrison says.

The search did turn up a few items which have been turned over to the Douglas County Sheriff's Department.

And the sheriff is investigating this as a criminal case and do not have any suspects as of yet, only people of interest.

http://www.ketv.com/...600/detail.html

Search Continues For Jessica O'Grady
Missing UNO Student Last Seen May 10

POSTED: 9:48 am CDT May 21, 2006  UPDATED: 10:39 am CDT May 21, 2006

Omaha, Neb. -- Douglas County investigators are helping volunteers narrow their search for a missing University of Nebraska-Omaha student.

Jessica O'Grady, 19, was last seen on May 10. She made a call from her cell phone just before midnight, saying she was headed to the area of 120th and Blondo streets.

On Saturday, about 100 friends, family members, and college classmates gathered for the first organized search for O'Grady. Last week, O'Grady's car was found in found in a parking lot near 144th Street and West Center Road.

Investigators have also searched the house of O'Grady's boyfriend near 130th and Cady Streets. They told KETV Newswatch 7 that evidence recovered during that search has provided useful information.

O'Grady's boyfriend was questioned and released.

Anyone with information on O'Grady's whereabouts should call 333-1000, police said.

http://www.kptm.com/...442.html?id=476

ATV Team Helps

5/22/06

For nearly two weeks, searchers have been desperate to find clues in the disappearance of UNO student Jessica O'Grady. The Douglas County Sheriff's Department is putting their hope in a group that is specially trained to do just that.

The group is called United States ATV search and rescue. Monday was day three of their search for Jessica.

Searchers spent the day at Standing Bear Lake. Volunteers are looking for clues in the disappearance of missing UNO student Jessica O'Grady.

Sheriff's deputies say that with 340 square miles within Douglas County, even if nothing is found, the ATV riders can help rule out certain areas.

The search and rescue group is all volunteer, using their own ATV's and gas. They even take time off work to help in the search.

If you want to help the group through donations, or apply to become part of the team, log onto usatvteam.com

http://www.wowt.com/...es/2851616.html

Home Searched Again
Missing woman's boyfriend lived there

Authorities returned to the home of Jessica O'Grady's boyfriend Monday night searching for more evidence as they continued the investigation of the UNO student's disappearance.

O'Grady has not been heard from since May 10th and the Douglas County Sheriff's Department is handling the case as a criminal investigation.

Last Wednesday, authorities removed evidence from a house at 130th and Cady, the home where Jessica's boyfriend was living at the time of her disappearance. He lived there with his aunt. Neighbors told us of seeing investigators removing a headboard, three large pillows and many evidence bags from the house last week.

Authorities returned to the same residence Monday night. No one answered the door and deputies broke it open to gain access.

The homeowner and an unidentified man later showed up and were briefly involved in a verbal altercation with deputies.

It's not clear what investigators were looking for or what they might have taken, if anything, on Monday night. They did take a number of photographs in the home and the department's mobile crime van was on the scene as the search was conducted.

Jessica's car was located Tuesday, May 16th, in a parking lot at 144th and West Center Road.

Douglas County Sheriff Tim Dunning said last Wednesday, "I think we're going to do well on this particular case in a very short period of time, but right now, we don't have a lot."

If you have any information on Jessica O'Grady's whereabouts, contact the sheriff at 333-1000.

http://www.omaha.com...6&u_sid=2176262

Bed parts examined in O'Grady probe

Published Tuesday May 23, 2006  BY JENNIFER GREFF AND SUSAN SZALEWSKI WORLD-HERALD STAFF WRITERS

A box-spring mattress, broken into little pieces, was found Monday night inside the home of the boyfriend of a missing Omaha woman, Douglas County Sheriff Tim Dunning said today.

It appeared someone was trying to remove the mattress from the home without being noticed, he said.

"Why would someone do that?" Dunning said.

Sheriff's officials have interviewed Jessica O'Grady's boyfriend in connection with her disappearance, but he has not been arrested and denies any wrongdoing.

Meanwhile, in Council Bluffs, authorities searched the home of Stan and Tracy Tribble. Tracy Tribble's body was found Friday after she was reported missing May 3.

In the O'Grady case, Dunning said the 19-year-old boyfriend has been cooperating with authorities.

O'Grady, a 19-year-old University of Nebraska at Omaha student, last was heard from on May 10. She called friends on her cell phone just after 11:45 p.m. that day as she drove toward 120th and Blondo Streets.

Monday night's search of the home, which is northeast of 132nd and Blondo Streets, was the second conducted there by sheriff's officials. Officials also searched the house with a warrant on May 17.

Attorney James Martin Davis is representing the boyfriend and his aunt, who owns the home and also lives there. Davis said family members were not home when sheriff's deputies arrived with the search warrant about 9 p.m. They did receive a call notifying them that the deputies were entering the home, he said.

"I think the police have a job to do," Davis said, "but I don't want the public to jump to any conclusions.

"I hope (police) are not prematurely turning it into a homicide case."

The sheriff's mobile crime lab officers could be seen removing items from the home Monday night. Neighbors said officials carried out boards, carpet, shovels, brooms, a stair rail and parts of a bed, along with several paper bags.

Dunning said it appeared from Monday's search that there had been a "major" cleanup inside the home, and the windows had been taped up so no one could see inside, he said. Evidence from the search is being analyzed, he said.

During the May 17 search of the home, a neighbor saw crews carry out a headboard, three large bed pillows and large paper bags.

After that search, Douglas County Chief Deputy Marty Bilek said, "We've recovered some evidence to indicate a crime has been committed. It's gone from a missing person to a criminal investigation."

The Sheriff's Office also has seized the boyfriend's car, and they are continuing to search it for evidence, Dunning said.

O'Grady's car was found May 16 at a strip mall in the area of 144th Street and West Center Road.

In Council Bluffs Monday, police served a second search warrant at the home of Stan and Tracy Tribble, 133 Benton St., about 8 p.m.

Tracy Tribble apparently was last being seen by her husband when he left for work the morning of May 3. Stan Tribble said he had "a tiff" with his wife the previous night.

Tracy Tribble's body was recovered Friday from the Missouri River on the southern edge of Council Bluffs. Investigators have said they still are awaiting a cause of death for Tribble and said they are waiting for the results of more tests before deciding whether her death was a homicide.

http://www.kptm.com/...442.html?id=479

Sheriff's Department Not Hopeful in O'Grady Disappearance

05/23/2006

Investigators in the Jessica O'Grady case say they are suspicious, after finding evidence during a second search of her boyfriend's home. Douglas County Sheriff Tim Dunning says the scene at the house suggests that O'Grady is probably not alive.

Sheriff's deputies say the boyfriend, Chris Edwards, is not a suspect, but is a person of interest.

Deputies searched Edwards' aunt's home for the second time in about a week Monday night. What they found raised their suspicions. The Sheriff's Department says the people living there were uncooperative, and think that someone tried to clean up the scene.

"We made several attempts to phone residence inside the home didn't answer finally had to force our way in," says Douglas County Chief Deputy Martin Bilek.

Investigators say they found clues that someone tried to cover up something.

They found traces of blood, and found broken bed springs.

"They chopped it up in small pieces so it could be removed from the house without being detected by neighbors or law enforcement officials," Bilek says.

Attempts to contact Chris Edwards at the home were unsuccessful.

"It causes the department to be a little bit suspicious whether or not people in that residence are being cooperative with law enforcement officials," Bilek says.

Bilek says between the lack of cooperation and the evidence, there probably won't be a happy outcome.

"I don't offer much optimism that she's still alive, but nonetheless we need to find her one way or another," Bilek says.

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If you know anything about the disappearance of Jessica O'Grady, call the tip line at 333-1000, you can also remain anonymous.

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http://www.wowt.com/...es/2856051.html

Evidence Reviewed
O'Grady Update - Second search of home

Authorities investigating the disappearance of 19-year-old Jessica O'Grady are reviewing the latest evidence taken from a west Omaha home where O'Grady's boyfriend had lived with his aunt.

Deputies returned to the home near 130th and Cady Monday night. It was their second search there within a week. They removed several bags from the home along with a piece of railing and a section of carpet.

Investigators used Luminol in the garage. That's a chemical to detect small traces of blood.

On Tuesday, Sheriff Tim Dunning said, "It was very apparent to us that there had been a major cleaning exercise going on there. In fact some items were dismantled and made in a smaller size so they could be removed from the residence without the obvious detection of anyone -- very suspicious."

Jessica O'Grady vanished on May 10th.

http://www.omaha.com...6&u_sid=2176896

Sheriff says two not cooperating in O'Grady case

Published Wednesday  May 24, 2006  BY JENNIFER GREFF WORLD-HERALD STAFF WRITER

Douglas County Sheriff Tim Dunning said today that Jessica O'Grady's boyfriend and his aunt have been less than helpful in the investigation into her disappearance.

"They are absolutely not cooperating," Dunning said. "If they were cooperating, we would know where Jessica O'Grady is."

Investigators twice have searched a home northeast of 132nd and Blondo Streets where O'Grady's boyfriend had been living with his aunt. O'Grady last was heard from about 11:45 p.m. May 10, when she called friends on her cell phone as she drove toward 120th and Blondo Streets.

The sheriff said that they have found evidence of a crime and a major cleanup in the boyfriend's house. They also found a box spring, cut into little pieces.

Attorney James Martin Davis, who is representing the boyfriend and his aunt, has said the boyfriend is cooperating with authorities. That statement was attributed incorrectly to Dunning in some World-Herald editions.

Davis said today that his client was indeed cooperating with authorities. The sheriff, Davis said, believes that cooperating means confessing to a crime.

"Even though there is no body," Davis said, "the sheriff's (investigators) are convinced for whatever reason that (the boyfriend) has committed a crime."

Davis said he expects his client to be arrested.

The first time the boyfriend was interrogated for five hours, Davis said. Both times, Davis said, the 19-year-old man and his aunt consented to a search.

Davis said the search warrant for the second search makes reference to any other items pertinent to a homicide investigation. "That's why he got a lawyer," Davis said.

The boyfriend maintains that he had no involvement in O'Grady's disappearance, Davis said.

The house was "trashed" in the first search, Davis said. That's why the family cleaned up and tried to remove a box-spring mattress, not to cover anything up, he said.

"They've convicted him already," Davis said.

Meanwhile, Traci Harrison, O'Grady's aunt, said family members are holding out hope that O'Grady is alive.

"We're still looking for her," Harrison said. "We'd like everybody to keep their eyes open."

http://www.kptm.com/...al/2869196.html

Police Have Suspect in O'Grady Disappearance, No Name Released

The mother of missing UNO student Jessica O'Grady says the Douglas County Police Department has a suspect in her daughter's disappearance, but is not telling her who it is.

Sheriff's Department investigators searched the home where O'Grady's boyfriend lives twice, and say they found clues that someone tried to cover something up.

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If you would like to help the family with their search, they are accepting donations at any First National Bank branch, under the Jessica O'Grady Fund.

http://www.kmtv.com/....7/Default.aspx

NEW SEARCH FOR MISSING TEENAGER

Posted Thursday, May 25, 2006

Sarpy County, NE- Action 3 News has uncovered new information in the case of Jessica O'Grady. The Omaha teenager has been missing for two weeks. This morning, Sarpy County Sheriff's Investigators searched two cemeteries for O'Grady. One is Ball Cemetery near the town of Louisville. Douglas County Sheriff Tim Dunning says the investigators did not find anything. Yesterday, Dunning told Action 3 News if O'Grady's boyfriend, Chris Edwards, and his Aunt, Jane Edwards, would cooperate, he would know where O'Grady is. Sheriff Dunning has not named O'Grady as a suspect. However, Dunning says he does have a suspect in mind and that person is under 24-hour surveillance.