GAGE DANIEL -7 yo - and CHLOIE LEVERETTE -9 yo - Nashville TN

Gage Daniel and Chloie Leverette: Two Tenn. kids thought dead in house fire now believed missing

09/27/2012

(CBS/AP) NASHVILLE, Tenn. - Tennessee investigators are trying to
locate two children who were initially believed to be dead but their
bodies were not found at the scene of a weekend fire at a farmhouse that
killed their step-grandparents.
The Tennessee
Bureau of Investigation issued an endangered child alert on Wednesday
for 9-year-old Chloie Leverette and 7-year-old Gage Daniel under "under
an abundance of caution."
"As time moves on, we don't want to
miss our opportunity to locate them if they were not in the house,"
said TBI spokeswoman Kristin Helm.
Bedford County Sheriff Randall
Boyce said investigators did find the bodies of 72-year-old Leon
McClaran and his 70-year-old wife, Molli McClaran, as well as the
remains of a dog.
The two children who lived at the house were
initially believed to have perished in the intense fire, which
firefighters battled overnight Sunday and early Monday. But their
remains were not found in the rubble.
Investigators said
neighbors last saw the children Sunday evening, hours before a fire
destroyed the home in Bedford County, about 40 miles southeast of
Nashville.
Helm said there is no evidence yet that the children
were not in the house, but investigators are speaking with family
members, friends and people at the children's school.
The State
Fire Marshal's Office said in a statement "that there are no remains of
the two children in the structure. The children's location at this time
is unknown." Its investigators will determine a cause.
Forensic
anthropologists and cadaver dogs searched through the rubble for the
bodies and the Tennessee Highway Patrol used a helicopter to search the
surrounding area.
Family members told The Associated Press that
the McClarans were raising their step-grandchildren because the kids
needed a home and described the McClarans as generous people who loved
their family. Relatives of the McClarans said the girl also used the
last name Pope.
The state Department of Children's Services
investigated the mother of the two children and Daniel's father between
2006 and 2010, said spokesman Brandon Gee. Gee would not release the names of the parents nor say why the parents
were investigated. He confirmed that the McClarans had custody of the
two children, but he said DCS never took custody of the children nor
placed them in a home.

http://www.cbsnews.com/8301-504083_162-57521207-504083/gage-daniel-and-chloie-leverette-two-tenn-kids-thought-dead-in-house-fire-now-believed-missing/

Tenn. search for 2 children focuses on fire debris

SHELBYVILLE, Tenn. (AP) — Authorities looking for any trace of two
missing children doggedly sifted the ashes of a deadly house fire,
searched rolling farmland nearby and untangled complicated family
relationships.

Investigators aren't sure if 9-year-old Chloie Leverette and her half
brother, 7-year-old Gage Daniel, died along with an elderly couple
raising them in a fire that incinerated their home Sunday night. Two
bodies tentatively identified as 72-year-old Leon "Bubba" McClaran and
his 70-year-old wife, Molli McClaran, were recovered Monday but fire
investigators said they found no remains of the children.

At the same time, the Tennessee Bureau of Investigation has found no
indication of foul play or a reason to believe the children weren't
trapped in the fire.

When the agency was called in Wednesday, it issued an endangered
children alert in what spokeswoman Kristin Helm called "an abundance of
caution." Search teams with dogs fanned out around the property and
helicopters hovered above.

Not knowing is the hardest part, said Mary Lamb, sister of Leon McClaran.

"We want to know. We want to know where those children are, if they were in the fire or if they were taken," she said.

On Thursday, investigators focused on the fire debris at the home,
located in horse country roughly 50 miles southeast of Nashville.

Family members and reporters were kept back from the home, which has
taken on the appearance of an archaeological dig. Heavy machinery lifted
bulky pieces of debris. Large sifting tray tables were set up while
workers filled a half-dozen wheelbarrows with fine material from the
fire.

It was still not clear what caused the fire, which burned for hours,
in part because firefighters had trouble getting water to the remote
location.

Local investigators from the Bedford County Sheriff's Department referred all questions to the TBI.
Helm said investigators determined Molli McClaran was the children's
grandmother. Agents have interviewed Cheryl Leverette, the mother of the
youngsters, and Christopher Daniel, Gage's father. Chloie's father is
deceased, she said.

So far, authorities haven't gotten any new leads.

Forensics expert Dr. William Bass, who founded the Body Farm research
center at the University of Tennessee in Knoxville to study the
decomposition of corpses in a variety of circumstances to aid scientific
and criminal research, said even in an intense fire some bones and
teeth should remain. Finding them could be difficult, though, because
the fragments might be only a couple of inches long, he said.

Family members aren't sure what to think.

Daniel, Gage's father, said he believed the children were in the
house when it caught fire but was holding out hope they might be found
alive.

Lamb was among about six relatives at the home Thursday waiting for
news from investigators. She said she had believed all four died in the
fire until the Tennessee Bureau of Investigation put out the endangered
child alert.

"I think that we changed our thinking when the TBI came in," Lamb said. "We realized that there might be something else."

Around the burned-out home on the family farmstead were many signs of
children — a bicycle, a plastic yellow play house and toy car large
enough for a child to ride in.
Asked how the elderly couple ended up raising the children, Lamb said, "They needed a home, so they took them."

The state Department of Children's Services investigated the mother
of the two children and Daniel's father between 2006 and 2010, said
spokesman Brandon Gee, though it wasn't clear whether that led to the
children staying with the couple at the farmhouse.

Lamb described Gage, whom the family called "Buster," as "the sweetest little boy."

She said he was a special needs child who followed Leon McClaran
everywhere and especially loved to ride with him on the Gator, a small
utility vehicle.

She said Chloie would play with one of her young cousins who lived in a neighboring home.

"One day the two of them came up to me in the dirtiest little
swimsuits and I said, 'Where have you been?' cause I knew there were no
ponds around," Lamb said. "They had been in the cattle trough," she said
laughing.
Both the children loved the farm life, in particular the animals that
included a white pony, a herd of goats, chickens and dogs. At least one
dog died in the fire, misleading investigators early on into thinking
its carcass was the body of one of the children.

"It's tragic either way you go. But our hearts are so saddened about
these children. Molli and Bubba lived 70 years, but these children were 7
and 9 and it is heartbreaking."

Lamb said authorities warned her at the beginning of the
investigation that they may never be certain what happened to the
children.

"They will continue to search until they know something," she said.
http://bigstory.ap.org/article/fate-2-tenn-children-unknown-after-fatal-fire

I think when the fire dept. identifies where, when and how the fire started it will shed some light on the childrens' status. What a delightful life they must have had living on a farm. It sounds like the grandparents were very loving individuals.

Amber Alert issued for 2 missing after Tenn. fire

11:01PM EST September 28. 2012 -
NASHVILLE,
Tenn. (AP) -- Authorities in Tennessee issued a statewide Amber Alert
on Friday for two children missing since their home was destroyed by an
intense fire.
The Tennessee Bureau of Investigation sent out the
alert late Friday evening after investigators spent a fifth day trying
to determine if there were any remains of the children in the fire
debris.
The children, identified as 9-year old Chloie Leverette
and 7-year old Gage Daniel, were living with their grandparents at the
house that burned Sunday night and early Monday.
"I don't know
what to think. I don't know what to think," Christopher Daniel, Gage's
father, told The Associated Press in a brief telephone interview. "They
don't think that they burned up in the fire, the way I took it they
don't."
Daniel, his voice breaking, said he had no idea what could
have happened to the children, who have not been seen since before the
fire Sunday evening.
Two bodies tentatively identified as
72-year-old Leon "Bubba" McClaran and his wife, 70-year-old Molli
McClaran, were recovered Monday and have been sent to the Nashville
medical examiner's office for autopsy. She was the children's maternal
grandmother, he their step-grandfather.
TBI spokeswoman Kristin Helm said the alert has not been sent to other states.
"We don't know where they are," Helm said. "We don't have any indication that they're in another state."
Multiple fire experts had processed the debris of the incinerated
farmhouse and no trace of the children was found, the TBI said in a news
release announcing the alert.
On Wednesday, when officials still
had not found evidence of the children's remains in the debris, TBI
issued an endangered child alert.
Helm said the TBI does not have
any direct evidence that the children are victims of foul play. She said
there are no persons of interest in the case and that investigators are
following all leads, but would not elaborate.
Forensic teams from
Middle Tennessee State University and the University of Tennessee at
Knoxville were brought in to help in the search.
Forensic
anthropologist Steven A. Symes, who formerly worked in the medical
examiner's office for Shelby County, said it was a smart decision for
authorities to bring in these teams because they have the expertise.
"It
just takes some screening and some close looking and understanding that
a piece of drywall and piece of skull bone burned look about
identical," he said.
Symes said the recovery of remains from fires
has advanced as the forensic anthropology field grows, but he
acknowledged it is still a slow process. He said the length of time to
recover remains depends on the scene and how detailed the search is.
"Unfortunately sometimes a case that you least expect to be suspicious or difficult turns into that type of case," he said.
Christopher
Garrett, a spokesman for the State Fire Marshal's office, said he did
not have any information on a cause of the fire.
http://www.usatoday.com/story/news/nation/2012/09/28/amber-alert-tenn-girls/1602007/

09/30/2012
There are few clues this morning in the search for two missing Tennessee
children following a house fire that killed their grandparents last
week.

Tennessee officials put out a statewide Amber Alert on Friday for 9-year old Chloie Leverette and her 7-year-old brother, Gage Daniel.


A fire destroyed the Unionville, Tenn. home where the children lived
with their grandparents Molli and Leon McClaran on Sept. 23. They were
killed in the blaze and at first everyone thought the kids were killed
too. The cause of the fire is still unknown.

"I don't know what to think. I don't know what to think," Christopher
Daniel, Gage's father, told The Associated Press Saturday. "They don't
think that they burned up in the fire, the way I took it they don't."

After cadaver-sniffing dogs combed through the debris, only physical evidence remained of the grandparents, not the children.

"If we just had ashes, their little bodies, you know, but we don't have
anything," said the children's aunt, Mary Lamb, Molli McClaran's sister.

Several fire experts were called in to try to find some trace of the
missing bodies in the ash, and investigators used infrared cameras
attached to helicopters to scour the scene, but nothing turned up.

"The fact that we don't have sufficient evidence from fire investigators
right now to positively conclude that they died in this fire, makes us
want to make sure that they are not somewhere else," said Tennessee Bureau of Investigation spokesperson Kristin Helm earlier.

According to Helm, the TBI has no direct evidence that the children, who
were reportedly last seen near the home around 6:30 Sunday night, about
three hours before the fire began, are victims of foul play.

"It's extremely frustrating for investigators particularly when you have
children of tender years like these two....unless they are with someone
who has no intention of harming them, you're very concerned that
they've been in harm's way," former FBI Agent Brad Garrett and ABC News
consultant said.

Police are questioning everyone who knew the kids including their
parents but investigators said they have no suspects and aren't even
sure they have a crime.

"Their mother has been spoken to, she does not have the children," Helm told ABC News.

Between 2006 and 2010, The Tennessee Department of Children's Services
investigated the children's mother and Daniel's father, The Associated
Press reported. The department is sharing that information with
investigators, said spokesman Brandon Gee.

"The key in this case is the origin of the fire," said Garrett. "Is it an accident or is it intentional?"

http://abcnews.go.com/US/chloie-leverette-gage-daniel-missing-tennessee-kids-father/story?id=17358917#.UGhPR67AEtU

If the investigators believe they are missing then its a worried thing because it can be the case of life insurance.

"Is the Bedford County Tennesse house fire Amber Alert Case for Chloie Leverette, 9, and Gage Daniel, 7, turning cold? Like many cases, possibly a lot of information is being held for investigative purposes. Still, enough information has been said that leaves you wondering and thinking, what is going on? And while time had passed for precautious reasoning before a nationwide amber alert had been issued, there has not been enough publicity in the case to bring these two young children home . The story turns out to be very mysterious.

On the evening of Sept. 23 Chloie Leverette, 9, and Gage Daniel, 7, were last seen about three hours before a house fire broke out that killed their two grandparents, Leon “Bubba” McClaran Sr., 72, and Mollie McClaran, 70. At first, investigators believed the two children were killed in the fire with their grandparents, but human remains for the children were never found.

The case continues to baffle investigators because there has not been a finding on the official cause of the fire, officials said they found at least 20 propane tanks in the basement of the house, which probably made the fire much worse. While they do not suspect arson, they said they may never know what started the fire in the first place.

May never know the cause of the fire? Is that possible in this day and age, did gas from the propane tanks suddenly combust in midair that burned the country house down to ruin? Are there possibilities even that could give us a reasonable clue as to what might have happened to these children?

The authorities surely had these same questions, having state bomb and arson investigators join the search who said that the children were not victims of the fire and that their whereabouts remained unknown. Search crews had found what they thought was a tooth, but the tooth turned out to be old dental work. Crews also used helicopters and searched the nearby woods to see if the children escaped the fire.

The sheriff’s department brought in additional cadaver dogs to assist in the search, as well as forensic teams from Middle Tennessee State University and the University of Tennessee. ”Blue flames, indicating the presence of gas, were occasionally visible Sunday night,” Bedford County fire chief Mark Thomas said, indicating that the fire might have been hot enough to disintegrate the bodies of the children. The State Fire Marshal’s Office has since released a statement that it has concluded “that there are no remains of the two children in the structure. The children’s location at this time is unknown.”

Their mother did not respond to a request for comment from the Times-Gazette. Chris Daniel is Gage’s father and Chloie’s father is deceased, Sheriff Randall Boyce said. He would not say why the parents were investigated, but said the agency was sharing information with law-enforcement officers involved in their search. He confirmed that the grandparents had custody of the two children, but he said DCS has never taken custody of them nor placed them in a home. The children’s aunt Joy Frame stated “I know someone did this, I know from things I can’t talk about, but I know someone did this. It was a homicide. There’s no doubt.”

Chloie Leverette is 4’8″ tall and has brown hair and hazel eyes. Gage Daniel is 4′ tall. He also has brown hair hazel eyes and wears glasses. If you’ve seen them or have any information on their whereabouts, call your local law enforcement, the Bedford County Sheriff’s Office, or the Tennessee Bureau of Investigation."

http://americanlivewire.com/bedford-tn-fire-amber-alert-case-for-chloie-leverette-9-and-gage-daniel-7-case-going-cold/

TBI: Very few leads in case of missing children
Posted: Dec 22, 2012 12:59 PM EST

As family of Chloie Leverette and Gage Daniel prepare for the holidays without their loved ones, investigators with the Tennessee Bureau of Investigation said they have few leads in the search for the missing children.

Leon McClaran, 72, Molly McClaren, 70, were killed in a house fire in Unionville, TN, on Sept. 23, 2012. Their grandchildren - Chloe Pope, 9, and 7-year-old Gage Daniel - are considered missing by TBI.More
Agents have been checking out every lead that comes in, according to Kristin Helm, TBI spokesperson.

A balloon release was held Saturday for the children at the Unionville home they vanished from back in September. Tied to balloons were messages in bottles including love letters and missing persons flyers.

"We identified the meaning of each balloon," said family member Mary Lamb. "The green is life, and we do believe Chloie and Gage are out there somewhere. We pray for their return."

Behind the home on Kingdom Road is a rock drive the family has named "Lane of Hope".

"I'll consider it the Lane of Hope until they return, and then they and I will rename it," said Lamb.

Autopsy reports for Mollie and Leon McClaran, just released this month, failed to determine how they died, according to the medical examiner's office.

The autopsies also did not shed any more light on the fire that destroyed their Bedford County home.

The TBI said the fire damaged their remains so badly, the medical examiner could not determine a cause of death.

Authorities never found the bodies of the McClarans' grandchildren, Chloie and Gage.

The Amber Alert for the children remains active, according to the TBI.

You can donate money to a reward fund for information on this at the Regions banks in Shelbyville and Eagleville. The current reward for information is $1,500.

http://www.wsmv.com/story/20409698/tbi-very-few-leads-in-case-of-missing-children

Chloie Leverette

Age: 9 Years

DOB:

Height: 4' 8"

Weight: 75 lbs

Hair: Brown

Eyes: Blue

CALL: 8008243463

A Middle Tennessee AMBER Alert has
been issued for the Bedford County Sheriffs Office for 9-year old Chloie
Leverette and 7-year old Gage Daniel. The children were last seen on
Sunday September 23 2012 at approximately 6:30 p.m. by a neighbor.
Chloie and Gage lived with their grandparents at 730 Kingdom Road
Unionville Tennessee. That home was destroyed by fire on Sunday night.

Last Seen: 9/23/2012

Location: Unionville, TN

This AMBER ALERT is still active.

Family maintains hope 1 year after children disappeared in fire

WSMV-TV
updated 9/23/2013 5:48:25 PM ET

It's been one year since a devastating fire destroyed a Bedford County home, killing the couple who lived there.

At the time, officials believed the couple's granddaughter and grandson also died in the blaze, but the bodies of Chloie Leverette and Gage Daniel were never found. The children have been listed as missing ever since.

Family members have never given up hope of finding the children.

"I believe, from the very beginning, that Gage and Chloie are alive. I will keep that hope because hope keeps you going," said aunt Mary Esther. "They weren't in the fire. They didn't find them in the fire. So they have to be somewhere."

Leon and Molly McClaran died in the fire, and investigators sifted through the rubble for weeks, looking for any signs of Chloie and Gage.

The Tennessee Bureau of Investigation issued an Amber Alert and posted the children's pictures on its website and social media platforms in hopes of gathering leads.

But the few tips the agency has received so far have been dead ends.

Family members have their own theories about what may have happened to the children.

"My brother had gotten a settlement, and he may have had some money in the house," Esther said. "I think they were taken by whom I don't know, I don't know that."

Chloie would be 10 years old now, and Gage would be 8.

"I want Gage and Chloie to know we love them, that we are doing all we can to find them," Esther said.

The family is marking the one-year anniversary of the kids' disappearance with a vigil Sunday at 3 p.m. at the Ag Center in Shelbyville.

The public is invited to participate.

http://www.nbcnews.com/id/53088315/#.UkHHxD-Wx6k

This is such a bizarre case. I hope and pray they can find Chloie and Gage. They have been missing 1 1/2 years now. So sad.

CHLOIE LEVERETTE
Missing: September 28, 2012
Age Missing: 9
AMBER ALERT

A Middle Tennessee AMBER Alert has been issued for the Bedford County Sheriff's Office for 9-year old Chloie Leverette and 7-year old Gage Daniel. The children were last seen on Sunday, September 23, 2012 at approximately 6:30 p.m. by a neighbor. Chloie and Gage lived with their grandparents at 730 Kingdom Road, Unionville, Tennessee. That home was destroyed by fire on Sunday night at approximately 9:30 p.m. After an extensive five day search, multiple fire experts have processed the scene and are unable to locate evidence that Chloie and Gage were victims of the fire. The location of Chloie and Gage are unknown at this time.

If you have any information concerning the children, please contact the TBI at 1-800-TBI-FIND (1-800-824-3463).

Click  to display a printable poster with further details on her case.

http://www.tbi.state.tn.us/missing_children/miss_child.shtml

GAGE DANIEL
Missing: September 28, 2012
Age Missing: 7
AMBER ALERT

A Middle Tennessee AMBER Alert has been issued for the Bedford County Sheriff's Office for 9-year old Chloie Leverette and 7-year old Gage Daniel. The children were last seen on Sunday, September 23, 2012 at approximately 6:30 p.m. by a neighbor. Chloie and Gage lived with their grandparents at 730 Kingdom Road, Unionville, Tennessee. That home was destroyed by fire on Sunday night at approximately 9:30 p.m. After an extensive five day search, multiple fire experts have processed the scene and are unable to locate evidence that Chloie and Gage were victims of the fire. The location of Chloie and Gage are unknown at this time.

If you have any information concerning the children, please contact the TBI at 1-800-TBI-FIND (1-800-824-3463).


Click on Gage's picture to display a printable poster with further details on his case.



http://www.tbi.state.tn.us/missing_children/miss_child.shtml