Instagram Mollie Tibbetts, pictured with her boyfriend, Dalton Jack.
Authorities in Brooklyn, Iowa, held a press conference Tuesday afternoon to provide information about the search for missing 20-year-old University of Iowa student Mollie Tibbetts. She was last seen jogging about 7:30 p.m. near her boyfriend’s brother’s house in Brooklyn on July 18 and was reported missing the next day after she failed to show up for work at a daycamp and did not respond to calls and text messages from her family and friends.
Representative from the Iowa Division of Criminal Investigation, the Poweshiek County Sheriff’s Office and the FBI, who are investigating her disappearance along with other state and local agencies, spoke at the news briefing. No new details about the investigation were released. Police encouraged anyone with information to come forward and detailed some of the efforts investigators have been taking since July 19.
You can watch the press conference below:
Tibbetts, who was dog-sitting while her boyfriend, Dalton Jack, her boyfriend’s brother and his boyfriend’s brother’s fiancee were out of town, last sent text and Snapchat messages to her mother and boyfriend in the evening of July 19. Her family has also said that information from Tibbetts’ computer revealed she was working on homework at some point that night. Investigators do not know whether she returned home after the run or if she went missing sometime during the overnight or morning of July 19. She could be wearing dark-colored running shorts, a pink sports bra and running shoes, or in a red shirt and denim shorts she planned to wear to work.
Authorities have searched several locations around Brooklyn, including areas where Tibbetts often runs, but have not found any evidence. They have also interviewed more than 200 people, but have not identified any suspects. The sheriff said that Tibbetts’ boyfriend has been ruled out as a suspect. Investigators have not yet determined if there is any foul play involved in Tibbetts’ disappearance, but have said abduction is a possibility. Investigators have also combed through Tibbetts’ electronic devices, email and social media profiles, and were able to get information from her FitBit activity tracker. They said that information was useful, but did not provide any other details.
FacebookMollie Tibbetts.
Tibbetts is set to enter her sophomore year at the University of Iowa, where she is studying psychology. She was born in Oakland, California, but moved to Iowa, where her mother is from, when she was young. She has two brothers, one older and one younger. Her father still lives in the Oakland area, but is in Iowa assisting with the search for his daughter.
“We’re just going to have to rely on the authorities and their investigation. They have a terrific team and so we just have to put our faith in them,” Mollie’s father, Rob Tibbetts, told Fox News.
He told KCCI-TV, “We are fighting. That’s all we can do. She is a real person. Not a missing girl on a poster.”
Richard Rahn, special agent in charge of the DCI’s Major Crime Unit, told CNN, “We live in a digital world. We’ll look at cell phones, computers, social media sites, and everyone knows there’s a Fitbit involved as well. We look at that, try to establish a timeline as best we can. We feel we have done that thus far. We’ve done everything that we can investigatively thus far, in hopes of trying to locate Mollie, and we’ll continue to do so until we find her.”
According to police, “If you have any information related to Mollie’s disappearance, please email Poweshiek Sheriff’s office at tips@poweshieckcosheriff.com or by calling 641-623-5679.”
You can read more about Mollie Tibbetts at the link below:
