MAX APPLE - 4 yo (and his Mother, Sara) - Newark NJ

NEWARK -- Newark detectives are taking a two-pronged approach in the
investigation of a missing woman and her 4-year-old child who were last
seen Thursday.They are looking into whether the disappearance of
Sara Apple, 24, and her son Max, 4, was voluntary or the result of foul
play, Newark police Sgt. Scott Snow said.
"We're looking equally hard at both ways," Snow said.
Sara
Apple was last seen at 5:30 p.m. Thursday picking up her son from a
baby-sitter on Cherry Bend Drive. She told her husband that she would
spend the night with her mother, but never arrived.



They were reported missing Friday after she didn't show up to work at Fiberglas Federal Credit Union, Snow said.
Over
the weekend, Newark police spoke with relatives and friends. No one was
aware of any threats or indications that Sara Apple planned to leave,
Snow said.
She was being treated for depression and stopped taking her medications, Snow said.
Newark
police contacted the FBI and law enforcement in other states, Snow
said. Sara Apple recently reconnected with her father's family in the
Carolinas, he added.
The FBI has the experience and resources nationwide to assist in missing person cases, Snow said.
"We're worked well with the FBI on a number of cases," Snow said.
Family
and friends spent the weekend passing out fliers, updating a Facebook
page, "Sara Apple and Max Apple Missing" and speaking with media.
Sara
Apple drives a white 2004 Saturn Ion with Ohio license plate FCQ 5079.
The vehicle is missing a right rearview mirror and has a sticker
representing a family of four on the rear window.
Sara Apple was
described as an almost 5-feet tall, 159-pound white woman with brown
hair and brown eyes. She has a crooked smile. Max was described as about
3 feet tall, 35 to 40 pounds with brown hair and brown eyes.
Snow
asked residents to be alert and focus on the Apples' facial features
and vehicle, because other features like hair color can change.
"Our belief is that somebody knows where she is," Snow said.
Anyone with information about their location should contact Newark police at (740) 670-7201 or (740) 670-7934.
"Don't allow anything to get in the way," Snow said.

http://www.newarkadvocate.com/article/20110613/NEWS01/110613006

June 13th, 2011

03:41 PM ET
Police in Newark, Ohio are asking for the public’s
help locating a 24-year-old mother and her 4-year-old son missing since
Thursday.
Sara Apple and her son Max were last seen around 6 pm on June 9 when
she picked him up from a babysitter. Her husband, Chris Apple, has said
that she told him she planned to spend the night at her mother’s home in
Whitehall, but she never arrived there.
Sara and Max were reported missing on Friday by both her co-workers
and her husband after she failed to show up for work at a Newark bank,
according to Sgt. Scott Shaw. Police are now conducting a “two-pronged
investigation,” looking at the possibilities of foul play and of a
voluntary disappearance.
Shaw said Monday that authorities have no evidence that strongly
points in one direction or the other, but until they have evidence
indicating otherwise, “we have to be concerned” that Sara and Max could
be in danger.
“We need to find them,” Shaw said. “We need to find what’s going on.”
According to the Newark Advocate, friends
and family have told police Sara had not given any indications that she
planned to leave. However, Shaw told CNN that there has been “domestic
disquietude” in the Apple home recently—though he emphasized no violence
has been alleged.
Shaw said investigators have been “looking carefully” at Sara’s
husband and taking steps to verify information he has given them, and
they have searched the house and areas nearby. At this point, though,
“everything points to the fact that he’s just as in the dark as everyone
else.”
Sara’s father, Mark Yohman, told CNN affiliate WBNS that his
daughter’s disappearance is “completely out of character.” Husband Chris
Apple told WBNS that he has not been able to eat or sleep, saying, “the
worst case scenario pops into your head…Were they carjacked or
kidnapped?”
The FBI is assisting local police with the investigation, as are
local law enforcement agencies in other states. Shaw said Sara had
recently reconnected with estranged family members in Ohio and the
Carolinas, but there is no indication she has had contact with any of
them since Thursday.
Sara Apple was last seen driving a 2004 white Saturn Ion with Ohio
license plate FCQ 5079. The car is reportedly missing its right rearview
mirror and has a sticker representing a family of four on the rear
window.
Police describe Sara as approximately 5 feet tall, 140-150 pounds,
with brown hair and brown eyes. Max is 3 feet tall, 30-40 pounds, also
with brown hair and brown eyes.
Anyone with information on their whereabouts is asked to contact the Newark Division of Police at 740-670-7200.


http://nancygrace.blogs.cnn.com/2011/06/13/authorities-search-for-missing-ohio-mother-4-year-old/

NEWARK, Ohio --

Police have determined that the disappearance of a Newark mother and her son is voluntary.
Sara Apple, 24, and her 4-year-old son, Max, were reported missing on Friday, June 10. Sara picked up Max from day care Thursday evening but didn't make it home to her husband.
Investigators immediately began searching for the pair and looking at the circumstances surrounding their disappearance.
After a review of the facts, investigators said they determined that the disappearance is voluntary on Sara's part.
Police said Sara was responsible for the money management
in her family and was given significant resources to make the payments,
but failed to make payments on bills including her mortgage and car payments.
Investigators said numerous checks were returned becuase of insufficient funds, existing bank accounts were drained and new accounts were created.
According to Sara's husband, Chris, police also found undelivered good-bye letters to her mother and Max.
When asked if he thinks his son could be in danger, Chris said, "At first, I would have said no, but I never would have thought she would leave town."
He said he is aware of the money issues, but never thought she would run away from it.
Police said they also found a "to-do" list of products to obtain and actions to take to impair or delay her discovery.
Investigators said they have been unable to find a single piece of
direct evidence that the disappearance is anything other than willful
and pre-planned.
Sara was employed as head teller of a Newark bank. According to the bank, there was a significant shortfall in Sara's banking till from Thursday.
Police said the bank will make a determination if they will pursue a criminal investigation into the missing money.
According to Newark police,
officers will maintain an open investigation with respect to possible
criminal charges of inducing panic, interference with custody or others.
Police said that while there is great interest in determining the safety of Max, police are no longer actively searching for Sara as the victim of any crime.
“I'd give both my legs to be able to pick my son up right now. I miss him more than anything in the world,” says Chris Apple, Max’s father.
He says the announcement that Newark Police believe his estranged wife took Max gives him some comfort.
“I don't believe in my heart she would ever do anything to hurt him. I know she loves him. I don't think she would,” he says.
Chris says there is evidence that suggests Sara took off voluntarily.
“There's a list of hair dye and a prepaid cell phone and clothes and duffle bag and stuff like that,” he says.
He says they also found undelivered goodbye letters from Sara to her mother and to Max. Chris says both asked for forgiveness.
Chris says he never thought Sara would do something like this. Sara's parents say they don't believe she did.
“Anybody that knows her, something doesn't add up,” says Sara’s father, Mark Yohman. “Something's wrong."
A vigil was held Tuesday night to pray for Sara and Max’s safe return.
Until then, Chris has a message for his son.
“I want to say Max,
I miss you buddy. I want you to come home. I love you and I know that
you miss me and you want to come home. You need to tell your mom it's
time to come home,” he says.
"Sara and Max are still missing and they need to be found,” says Yohman. “We will find them."
Chris told NBC4 previously that Sara
gave no indication that she would leave town and added that she was
being treated for depression and had recently changed medication.
He also said he and Sara have recently agreed to separate and share custody of Max. He said the separation was amicable.http://www2.nbc4i.com/news/2011/jun/14/6/missing-newark-mom-left-her-own-police-say-ar-539796/

I'm not sure where to put this now. They are not legally missing, but we'd like to know max was sighted and safe, so moving to unresolved for now for want of a better place as found doesn't seem appropriate until then.

Good move ! (Betcha never saw a Kiwi smiley before)

Let's keep them here until we get some resolution.
The Dad's gonna have some say, eventually.
The Bank's probably gonna want their back, too!

Chris was reunited with his son, Max, on Monday evening at Port Columbus International Airport.

Newark Father Says He's Forgiven Wife In Disappearance

Tuesday,
June 21, 2011 9:11 AM

NEWARK, Ohio — Police were determining whether they would file charges against a woman who allegedly took money
from her employer before she disappeared with her son.
Sara Apple returned home on Monday evening with her four-year-old son, Max.
The two were greeted by friends and family members at Port Columbus International Airport,
10TV's Ashleigh Barry reported.
SLIDESHOWS:

Mother, Son Return Home

Images From Case

Police said that Sara Apple, 24, fled to Maine and was out of contact with family members for 10
days. Her husband, Chris Apple, said that he was worried about his son and was deeply hurt
that his wife did not even call him with word that they were OK. The two are going through
divorce proceedings.
"I just think that right now (Sara is) down and out and wasn't thinking straight and (had) too
much stuff building up on her shoulders and she thought that was the easiest way out," Chris Apple
said.
Police started their multi-state search for Sara Apple on June 10, a day after she disappeared
after work with Max. Detectives later determined that she left on her own. The Heath
credit union where she works later found money missing from her bank drawer.
Investigators said that they found evidence on Sara Apple's work computer that she was
researching coastal towns in Maine.
Family members received word on Sunday night that a new car that Sara Apple purchased was having
problems, near Trenton, Maine.
"I really kind of got depressed and all of a sudden the phone call came in and they said that we
had found him," Chris Apple said.
Max Apple said his 10 days away from home included sightseeing tours and boat rides. He
said that his time away felt like he was on a vacation.
Chris Apple, who now has full temporary custody of Max, said that they planned to watch a movie,
eat ice cream and play outside in their first night back together.
Sara Apple stayed with her parents on Monday night, Barry reported.
http://www.10tv.com/live/content/local/stories/2011/06/21/story-newark-sara-max-apple-return-home-missing.html?sid=102