SAMANTHA ANN CLARKE - 19 yo (2010) - Orange (NE of Charlottesville) VA

Police in the town of Orange now say they regard the disappearance of Samantha Ann Clarke, 19, as suspicious.
They are looking for information that could reveal foul play, according to Chief James L. Fenwick.
Clarke was last seen at her home on Lindsay Drive late Sept. 13, according to officials. She told a family member she was going out for the night and would return in the morning, according to Fenwick. There is no proof she took any extra clothing or did anything to show she planned to be away for a longer period, Fenwick wrote.
Authorities don’t know what she was wearing when she left or what sort of vehicle she could be in, if any, according to Fenwick. She was reported missing two days after she was last seen, and authorities have been tracking down leads and talking to her acquaintances.
Investigators did not disclose what has prompted them to treat the disappearance as suspicious.
She is described as 5 feet 4 inches tall, 145 pounds, with brown hair and eyes, according to police. According to officials, she has glasses and four tattoos: a pink Playboy bunny on her right arm, Tigger on her right ankle and two dolphins on her lower back.Anyone with information is asked to call the Town of Orange Police Department at (540) 672-1491, the Orange County Sheriff’s Office at (540) 672-1200 or Orange County CrimeSolvers at (540) 672-7200.

Search Continues For Missing Girl In Orange

Posted: Sep 24, 2010 9:17 AM Thursday

Samantha Ann Clarke

A 19-year-old girl from Orange vanished 10 days ago, and now her family is publicly asking you to help find her. The unusual disappearance has police suspecting foul play, but her relatives are simply hoping she will come home.
Police say they have reason to believe this is not another teen runaway. Samantha Ann Clarke told her family that she would be back. Ten days later, she still has not returned.
"I don't think she had any intention of not coming back," said Samantha's Aunt Brenda Rhodes.
The last place any family member saw Samantha Ann Clarke was at her home on Lindsey Drive. She left home the night of September 13 with no cell phone, no identification, and no extra clothes; no sign of staying away for long. Police say that makes this case a suspicious one.
"Samantha has uncharacteristically not contacted her family, she's been gone longer than she has in the past," explained town of Orange Police Chief James Fenwick.
Now police are tracking down phone and computer records, trying to find out who had contact with Clarke in the moments leading up to her disappearance.
"Just good old fashioned boots on the ground, drum up information," said Fenwick.
Both police and family are hoping that Samantha will show up again.
"We are still very hopeful that that is going to be the case," said Fenwick. "We just want to find Samantha," said Rhodes. "That's all; just want her to come home."
Police are asking anyone with information about this missing woman to call Crime Solvers at 540-672-7200 or the Town of Orange Police Department at 540-672-1491.
A more detailed description of Samantha can be found here.http://www.nbc29.com/story/13207849/search-continues-for-missing-girl-in-orange

Orange County authorities are reaching out to the public for help as they continue to search for a missing teenager. Samantha Ann Clarke, 19, left her home in the town of Orange Sept. 13 and was reported missing by her family two days later. Her disappearance was uncharacteristic, said Orange police Chief Jim Fenwick. “We're following up with the people she was associated with in the days before her disappearance,” he said. “She had no car and no cell phone, so we don’t know if she walked away from her home or was picked up.” A reverse 911 call is planned for 19,000 numbers in Orange County. When the phone is answered, a recorded message will give information about the missing young woman.Clarke is 5-4, 145 pounds, with brown hair and brown eyes. She has long hair but usually wears it pinned up. She has multiple tattoos—a pink Playboy Bunny on her right arm, “Tigger” on her right ankle and a design with two dolphins on her lower back. She wears glasses.On the day she disappeared, Clarke called upstairs to tell her younger brother she was leaving and would return, Fenwick said. What she was wearing at the time is unknown. Anyone with information about her whereabouts is asked to contact the Town of Orange Police Department at 540/672-1491, the Orange County Sheriff’s Office at 540/672-1200 or CrimeSolvers at 540/672-7200.

No new info on missing Orange girl





Credit: Contributed For the third straight week the Orange Police Department reports no new developments in the case of Samantha Ann Clarke, who was last seen Sept. 13.

By Drew Jackson
Published: October 06, 2010

Buzz up! Samantha Ann Clarke gets homesick. Once, the 19-year-old left her hometown of Orange for nearby Culpeper for a two-week stretch, but during that time called her mother or aunt every day until she made the 17-mile journey back home. The silence the past three weeks is what really worries Barbara Tinder, Clarke's mother, who says if her daughter could call home, she would.
For the third straight week the Orange Police Department reports no new developments in the case of Clarke, who was last seen Sept. 13 when she informed a family member she was leaving for the night, but would return the next morning. When she did not reappear or call her house, the family reported her missing two days later. Since that time Orange Police have worked with agencies in the surrounding counties, following leads and tips, but ultimately gaining little traction in the investigation.
Orange Police Chief Jim Fenwick said there is no credible evidence to suggest foul-play and that he's optimistic the case will have a happy resolution.
"What we've determined from what her family has said, is that it's very uncharacteristic for her not to check in," he said. "She always lets someone know where she's going, but since there's been no contact, that's why we've deemed it suspicious."
Clarke graduated from Orange County High School in June and was living at home with her mom on Lindsey Drive in Orange. She does not have a driver's license, car, or cell phone, her mother said. At the time her daughter disappeared, which was sometime in the late evening of Sept. 13, Tinder was at work. She remembers telling her daughter "bye," and that she would see her in the morning.
"I told her bye and that I loved her, and she said she would see me tomorrow morning," said Tinder, who learned from a sibling her daughter had left for the night when she retuned from work the next morning. She hasn't seen nor heard from her since.
Tinder said she's received a lot of support from her sister Brenda Rhodes, who, along with her husband Randall Rhodes, was close with Samantha.
"She likes roller skating, and listening to music and being with her friends," said Brenda Rhodes about her niece. "She's a real sweet girl with a good personality."
Rhodes said the last time she saw Samantha was Sept. 10, and that the last time she spoke to her on the phone was the next day, two days before she disappeared.
Fenwick said the family has been helpful throughout the investigation to find Samantha and has been quick to pass along any new lead or information they might have.
Tinder said she's received phone calls from around the area of reported sightings, which she then passes along to the police department, but has been disappointed with the results thus far.
"It's my daughter, I can't just sit here. I feel useless if I can't do something," she said.
If she was given the opportunity to speak with Samantha, Tinder said she would ask if she was okay, and tell her that she misses her and loves her.
"I just want to know she's okay," she said.
The Town of Orange Police Department has asked anyone with information regarding the whereabouts of Samantha to call them at (540) 672-1491, the Orange County Sheriff's Office at 672-1200, or Orange County CrimeSolvers at 672-7200.http://www2.orangenews.com/news/2010/oct/06/no-new-info-missing-orange-girl-ar-546149/

Orange getting tips on missing teen, but disappearance remains a mystery.

Date published: 10/8/2010
Search continues for missing teen Town of Orange police say a search is continuing for a missing teenager with help from other law-enforcement agencies in the area. "We've gotten tips from as far away as Fredericksburg and have been working with Madison, Culpeper and the State Police on this case," Orange police Chief Jim Fenwick said.Samantha Ann Clarke, 19, left her home in the town on Orange Sept. 13 after telling her younger brother that she would return. Fenwick said she did not drive, but it is not known whether she was picked up or left on foot. She did not have a cell phone."We don't have any evidence of foul play after she left home and we're chasing rumors all over the place," Fenwick said. Clarke is 5 feet 4 inches, 145 pounds, with brown hair, brown eyes and glasses. She has several tattoos: a pink Playboy bunny on her right arm, a Tigger on her right ankle and a design with two dolphins on her lower back. Anyone with information is asked to contact the Orange Police Department at 672-1491, the Sheriff's Office at 672-1200 or CrimeSolvers at 672-7200.
http://fredericksburg.com/News/FLS/2010/102010/10082010/580931

Wow! Bumped up...what has happened to this case?
This story was featured tonight on HLN's Issues with JVM.
Distraught family members... lots of mystery
She only left the house with her house key.
MySpace clues were revealed on Issues.
Something was going on in this gal's life that she wasn't sharing with family or friends.

Search for missing Orange teen leads into Greene County


Samantha Clarke, 19, has been missing since she willingly left her home in Orange
during the early morning hours of Sept. 14, 2010, and never returned.

February 09, 2011

The search for missing Orange teenager Samantha Clarke has led investigators into Greene County.
Earlier this week, the town of Orange police department
representatives searched Greene Acres Lake near Stanardsville as part of
its search for Clarke, Orange Police Chief Jim Fenwick said Wednesday.
Fenwick did not wish to comment about whether or not anything was found during the recent search of the lake.
Clarke, 19, willingly left her home in Orange during the early morning hours of Sept. 14, 2010 and never returned, Fenwick said.
“Whatever she was doing, whether it was good or bad, she would have
contacted a family member by now, and that in itself is certainly
suspicious,” the police chief said.
Fenwick said that investigators do not believe any foul play in
relation to this case occurred in the town of Orange, but that he cannot
release whether or not they believe foul play may have occurred in
other areas.
The search was assisted by law enforcement from Greene and Orange counties and the Virginia State Police.
Although investigators are no longer physically at Greene Acres Lake
at the moment, Fenwick said their search is ongoing and has not been
completed.
“We’re going wherever the investigation takes us,” he said.
Fenwick also would not comment about what led investigators to the
lake, but said that in the days leading up to Clarke’s disappearance
that she had been out in the Ruckersville area with friends and family.
“We’ve had to be very tight-lipped about the investigation,” he said.
“We have a lot of information we can’t release because it could harm
the investigation.”
Fenwick said that investigators are hopeful that they will find
Clarke alive and alright but that as the time passes, “it certainly
dampens the prospects.”
Anyone with information regarding the case should call the Orange Police Department at (540) 672-1491.http://www2.greene-news.com/news/gcn-news/2011/feb/09/search-missing-orange-teen-leads-greene-county-ar-831639/

Police Take a Second Look Underwater for Samantha Clarke



For the second time this year, investigators are searching the Greene Acres Lake, looking for Samantha Clarke. Samantha Ann Clarke went missing from her home in Orange last September. Police suspect foul play.

On Friday, crews used remotely operated vehicles with cameras on them to search the Greene County lake. Orange Chief of Police Jim Fenwick says they want to use every piece of technology available.

"They're about the size of a small suitcase and they can actually go look at something on the bottom of the lake, capture video that can be reviewed to see whether or not we need divers to go down and recover the objects," explained Fenwick.

Fenwick also says that draining the lake would be a last resort. "That is a great undertaking not only legally but also in regards with trying to have some respect for the community around here," he stated. "The loss of their lake, warmer weather would be a huge impact and we're trying to avoid that."

In February, dive teams also searched the lake for Clarke's body. If you have information call the Town of Orange Police at (540) 672 - 1491.



http://www.nbc29.com/story/14366741/police-take-a-second-look-underwater-for-samantha-clarke?clienttype=printable

The search for Samantha Ann Clarke has led Orange investigators back to a lake in Greene County.

Orange Police Chief Jim Fenwick said his department, with the aid of a state police diving crew and a remote operated vehicle underwater crew from Smith Mountain Lake, searched Greene Acres Lake for evidence related to the missing Orange teenager.

Fenwick declined to comment on what led his officers back to the lake, or what, if anything, was found during the search.

Crews searched the lake’s waters Friday and Saturday and Fenwick said his department is now in the process of reviewing the results of those searches.

This is the sixth or seventh trip Orange Police have made to the specific Greene County lake since investigators first searched it back in February, said Fenwick, who added that he could not comment on whether the search was specifically for a body.

"I can say that the search was related to the
Samantha Clarke investigation," he said. "I don’t want to release
anything that might jeopardize that investigation."

Clarke
has been missing for nearly seven months and was last seen in the early
morning hours of Sept. 13 when she willingly left her house on Linsdey
Drive in Orange. Fenwick
has maintained that the investigation remains a search for a missing
person, but that based on information from family members, the length of
time that has elapsed without contact is suspicious and out of
character.

Fenwick
said the weekend searches utilized an underwater camera that worked
like a small submarine and allowed investigators to record video of the
lake’s floor. Fenwick
indicated that, in his opinion, a return to the lake is likely and that
if the results of underwater searches were inconclusive, the water
could be drained.

"If we need to drain the lake, then we’ll drain the lake," said Fenwick.

Anyone with information regarding the whereabouts of Clarke is asked to contact the town of Orange Police Department at (540) 672-1491, Orange County Sheriff’s Office at (540) 672-1200, or Orange County CrimeSolvers at (540) 672-7200.


http://www2.orangenews.com/news/2011/apr/06/search-missing-orange-girl-returns-greene-lake-ar-955956/

Police still searching for missing teen

Published: June 01, 2011
The search for missing Orange teenager, Samantha Clarke, continues, as the Town of Orange Police Department reports it has no new information it can release to the public.
Clarke, 19, willingly left her home on Lindsey Drive in Orange, Sept. 13. Since that time, Orange Police
have tracked down leads in and out of the county and even into other
states, but with no success of locating Clarke's whereabouts. Recently,
the department has been investigating the Greene Acres lake in Greene County, but Orange Police Chief Jim Fenwick said that his agency has not returned to 27-acre, residential lake in the past month.
"We have no new information that we can comment on," said Fenwick. "We're constantly reevaluating the investigation."
An
April 27 search of the lake was the eighth such time Orange
investigators had searched the lake's waters. Given that level of
interest with no results, Fenwick said draining the lake was a last resort possibility, but one he would order if he deemed it necessary.
The Orange chief
has been tight-lipped about the investigation from the beginning and
continues to maintain his stance of protecting the investigation.
"I don't want to say too much and create questions or speculation regarding the investigation," said Fenwick. "We're at a point in the investigation where the less said, the better. My loyalties remain with Samantha Clarke and her family."
Fenwick
said that there have been few leads in recent weeks and that those from
outside jurisdictions have not yielded much progress, but that his
investigators follow every possible lead.
From the public's standpoint, the case has changed very little over the past eight months and Fenwick said that despite the length of time that has elapsed, the case remains a missing person's investigation.
"As
we've said from the beginning, the length of time that's passed without
her contacting a family member is totally uncharacteristic of Samantha," said Fenwick.
"The longer it goes on without word from her leads to speculation, but
until we have concrete evidence otherwise, the case remains a search for
a missing person."
Anyone with information regarding the whereabouts of Samantha Ann Clarke is asked to contact the Town of Orange Police Department at 672-1491, Orange County Sheriff's Office at 672-1200, or Orange County CrimeSolvers at 672-7200.
http://www2.orangenews.com/news/orange-news/2011/jun/01/police-still-searching-missing-teen-ar-1078486/

July 26, 2011

An Orange County family is still waiting for the
return of their daughter as authorities continue to search for
information in the disappearance of Samantha Ann Clarke.
The then 19-year-old Orange County woman went missing
last September. Police dive teams have searched Greene Acres Lake for
clues more than ten times and tell CBS19 they were out there again in
mid July. In the past, dive teams, underwater photography equipment and
sonar have been used to search for evidence.
Authorities refuse to reveal what
information continues to lead them to the lake. However, they say the
case is "solvable" and they're committed to finding closure for the
family.
While police admit the circumstances are suspicious, they say the investigation will remain
a missing person case until recovered evidence indicates otherwise.
Clarke was last seen on the morning of September 13,
2010 when police say she willingly left her home on Lindsey Drive in
Orange. She is 5-foot-4-inches, 145 pounds with brown hair and brown
eyes. She wears glasses and has a pink Playboy Bunny tattoo on her right
arm, a Tigger tattoo on her right ankle, and two dolphin tattoos on her
lower back.

Anyone with information is asked to contact the
Orange County Sheriff's Office at (540) 672-1200 or the Orange County
Crime Solver's hotline at (540) 672-7200.
http://www.newsplex.com/home/headlines/126175313.html

One year ago this week, Orange teenager Samantha Clarke
told her brother she was going to meet a friend, then walked out of the
family home on Lindsey Drive and into the late summer night.

Clarke
has not been seen or heard from since that night, Sept. 13, but her
disappearance remains a missing person’s case with the Town of Orange Police Department. The past 12 months have led police chief Jim Fenwick and his investigators all over Orange and the surrounding counties in search for Clarke, but in that year few details could be divulged to the public. Fenwick maintains that two things that are clear in the case is that Clarke willingly left her home on the night of her disappearance and that her investigation is his agency’s top priority.

Clarke had graduated from Orange County High School
in June of 2010 and was living at home with her mother and brother.
After her disappearance, her family members indicated to police that it
was very unusual for Clarke not to stay in contact, regardless of where she might be or what she might be doing. For this reason, Fenwick said the police department was treating her disappearance as suspicious.

For most of 2011 the investigation centered on a residential lake in Greene County, where numerous dives and searches were conducted, but the results of those searches were never made public. Fenwick
said that his agency has not been back to the lake in the past month
and that he can’t release any current details at this time.

“We have not been back to the lake recently,” said Fenwick.
“There are some other areas we’re looking at, but we can’t go into
specifics at this time…We have lots of things in the works, but at this
point we can’t talk about them.”

Throughout the investigation, Fenwick
has kept the details of the case largely within his department, an
effort he says decreases the likelihood of jeopardizing any eventual
prosecution related to Clarke’s disappearance.

“Everything we do needs to eventually stand up in a court of law,” said Fenwick. “We all want answers, but ultimately what we do needs to stand up to the scrutiny of the courts.”

Despite the lack of volunteered information, Fenwick does believe the investigation is progressing positively.

“I’m confident we’re heading in the right direction,” he said.

Fenwick said that he updates Clarke’s family when possible, but that he can’t reveal certain details even to them.

“Obviously they’re devastated, they haven’t heard from a family member in a year,” said Fenwick. “They have a lot of questions we simply can’t answer, because of the necessity of being able to work the case.”

Many of the area’s law enforcement agencies have assisted in the search for Clarke, including the Orange County Sheriff’s Office, the Greene County Sheriff’s Office and the Virginia State Police. Because the Town of Orange Police Department doesn’t have a dedicated dive team, outside agencies have always been used to assist in the dives of the Greene Acres lake. Fenwick said that no assistance or option has been refused in the investigation.

“We have not shied away from asking for help,” he said. “The other
agencies have been absolutely wonderful. Whoever we feel can help us
out, we’re going to them hat in hand.”

A year is a long time for any investigation, especially for one involving the disappearance of a young girl. Fenwick
said his agency is certainly aware of the one-year anniversary of the
case, but that it doesn’t impact the way his investigators work. In
comparison to other longer investigations, Fenwick pointed to the Johnell Greene murder case, which he said took four years to complete.

“The longer things go on, details and witnesses’ memories change,” said Fenwick. “Time can be detrimental to the evidentiary pieces, but this is not something we can rush and then make a mistake.”

Calls made to Clarke’s mother, Barbara Tinder, were not returned.

Anyone with information regarding the whereabouts of Samantha Ann Clarke is asked to contact the Town of Orange Police Department at (540) 672-1491, Orange County Sheriff's Office at (540) 672-1200, or Orange County CrimeSolvers at (540) 672-7200.

http://www2.greene-news.com/news/gcn-news/2011/sep/15/orange-teenager-missing-year-search-led-greene-lak-ar-1312455/