AMANDA BERRY - 16 yo (2003) - Cleveland OH

Wisconsin investigators on Friday ruled out the possibility that a body
found in a field there last year might be that of missing Cleveland
teen Amanda Berry.

Deputies at the Fond du Lac County Sheriff's Office initially
believed there were striking similarities between Amanda and the body
found by deer hunters in November. But test results comparing Amanda's
DNA and that of the body came back negative, deputies said.
Amanda disappeared on April 21, 2003, a day
before her 17th birthday. She had just left work at the Burger King at
West 110th Street and Lorain Avenue, about a 10-minute walk from home.
She called her sister to say she was getting a ride home, but her
family never heard from her again.
Hunters in Wisconsin found the body partially submerged in a frozen
creekbed on Nov. 23. The body could not be seen from the nearby road.
The Fond du Lac County Sheriff's Office is investigating the case as a
homicide.
Detectives believe the woman in Wisconsin was killed elsewhere and
was alive at least 90 days before her body was found in a wooded area
on private land between Appleton and Milwaukee. The body showed she had
had extensive dental work and either had access to dental insurance or
money to pay for the dental work, officials said.
Some of the woman's teeth showed similarities to Amanda's teeth and warranted DNA testing.
"She has been ruled out," sheriff's Lt. Bill Flood said about Amanda. "It's not her."
At first police considered Amanda a runaway until someone used her
cell phone a week later to call her mother, Louwanna Miller, and claim
her daughter would be fine and would return in a few days. The FBI then
began to investigate the case as a kidnapping.
Investigators followed up on many tips but have never been able to
find out what happened to Amanda. The case was featured on "America's
Most Wanted" in 2004.
For nearly three years after Amanda disappeared, Louwanna Miller
desperately sought answers about her daughter. The ordeal took a toll
on her health. She died of heart failure in 2006 at the age of 44.

Family Holds Vigil for Missing Amanda Berry

Posted on: 10:13 pm, April 21, 2012, by Bliss Davis,
updated on: 10:28pm, April 21, 2012

By Autumn Ziemba, Fox 8 News

VIDEO AT LINK

CLEVELAND — It’s been nine long years of pain, wonder and worry for those closest to Amanda Berry. Almost a decade. Yet for Amanda’s only sister, Beth Serrano, time has stood still.

“There’s days where it feels like it’s so fresh because there’s no new leads, it feels like day one. But it feels like so long because–my heart–I just miss her so much,” Serrano explains through tears.

17-year-old Amanda left work at the Burger King at West 110th and Lorain on April 21, 2003, and was heading home to celebrate her birthday.

She never made it.

Saturday evening, at the very spot where it seems Amanda simply vanished, many gathered, hands held, to share in her absence.

“Today is Amanda Berry. 9 years! I’ve suffered 8, they suffer 9. And it should be enough!” exclaimed Nancy Ruiz, mother of Gina DeJesus, who disappeared just weeks after Amanda.

Moments later, the group marched to retrace Amanda’s steps, chanting her name.

“We want her to know we love her. We want her to know, we’re never going to stop looking for her,” said longtime family friend Victoria Dickens. “Where Amanda’s at right now, she’s not at peace. Her family’s not at peace. and we just want her to come home. It’s been way too long.”

Amanda has become one of Cleveland’s most notorious missing persons cases. A notoriety that was never asked for, and one that taunts.

“Constant worry, stress, just knowing, is she okay? Is she coming home? What’s being done to her? What has happened to her? You never know what you’re gonna hear, what’s the outcome gonna be” Serrano says.

And so, the prayers keep coming, and the candles keep burning, in hopes of an end that will bring Amanda Berry home.

The FBI continues to search for her and is working on another age-progression photo of what she might look like today, at age 26.

http://fox8.com/2012/04/21/family-holds-vigil-for-missing-amanda-berry/

Authorities Search for Amanda Berry’s Remains

Posted on: 8:28 am, July 19, 2012, by Jessica Dabrowski and Jack Shea, updated on: 10:31am, July 19, 2012

CLEVELAND, Ohio — FOX 8 News has learned that there is a possible break in the case of Amanda Berry, the Cleveland teenager who disappeared without a trace in 2003.

Top law enforcement sources tell the FOX 8 I-Team that they have received information, which they consider credible, that the teen met with foul play in 2003 and her body was later hidden.

A search was launched after an inmate from the Southern Ohio Correctional Facility in Lucasville sent law enforcement a letter indicating that he knew the location of Berry’s body.

Crews began to dig at W. 30th and Wade near I-90 on Thursday morning.

Fox 8 News reporter Dave Nethers spoke to Special Agent Vicki Anderson, with the Cleveland Division of the FBI, at the scene.

“We never close these cases, they remain open untin they’re solved,” Anderson said of Berry’s case and those like it. “So any tip that comes in, whether it’s here in Cleveland or anywhere in the nation, we definitely follow up on it.”

“Hopefully we’ll have information to provide later, either discounting this tip or saying yes, it was credible,” Anderson continued.

Beth Serrano, Berry’s sister, told Fox 8 News she received a phone call from police and will meet with them to receive the latest information on the case.

On April 21, 2003, then 17-year-old Berry left work at the Burger King at West 110th and Lorain and was heading home to celebrate her birthday, but never made it.

Her family has worked to keep the case in the public eye, holding out hope for some answers.

Berry’s mother passed away in 2006, taking all of the unanswered questions to the grave.

Those who knew her and what she endured after her daughter’s disappearance maintain she died of a broken heart.

Stay with Fox 8 News and FOX8.com for the latest on this developing story.



http://fox8.com/2012/07/19/source-authorities-searching-for-amanda-berrys-remains/

Source: Inmate Claims He Knows Where Amanda Berry Was Buried

Posted on: 10:06 am, July 19, 2012, by Jessica Dabrowski and Jack Shea,
updated on: 11:14am, July 19, 2012

CLEVELAND — A top law enforcement official confirmed to Fox 8 News an inmate at the Southern Ohio Correctional Facility sent a letter indicating he had information on Amanda Berry’s disappearance and knew the location of her remains.

Then 17-year-old Berry went missing in April 2003 after she left her job at Burger King on West 110th and Lorain in Cleveland.

Authorities considered the inmate’s information “credible” and launched a search at W. 30th and Wade near I-90 on Thursday morning.

Robert Wolford, who provided the information, was serving time for the unrelated killing of a homeless man in Cleveland.

Wolford told authorities he was acquainted with Amanda and that he and a second individual were involved in her disappearance.

Fox 8 News reporter Jack Shea, who broke the story of the new investigation, noted that authorities are often skeptical of information provided by inmates because it is often given with the intention of striking a deal to their benefit.

Shea also reported that his law enforcement source said there is always a concern that if a big investigation turns up empty, the victim’s family will be crushed again.

The Amanda Berry case was never closed and investigators say they follow-up on all leads.

http://fox8.com/2012/07/19/inmate-provided-tip-on-amanda-berry-case/

LIVE VIDEO: FBI Investigates Lead on Amanda Berry

Posted on: 10:09 am, July 19, 2012,
updated on: 11:08am, July 19, 2012
by Dan Jovic

Fox 8 News will provide LIVE video from the scene on W. 30th and Wade Avenue where the FBI and Cleveland Police search for leads in the missing person case of Amanda Berry.

http://fox8.com/2012/07/19/live-video-fbi-investigates-lead-on-amanda-berry/

Amanda Berry Search - Noon Update:



http://www.newsnet5.com

Source: Inmate's Amanda Berry tip was fake

Posted: Jul 25, 2012 8:25 AM CDT
Updated: Jul 25, 2012 4:58 PM CDT

CLEVELAND, OH (WOIO) - 19 Action News is uncovering new information in the search for Amanda Berry - a Cleveland teen missing since 2003.

Investigators have now determined a tipster made up a story that led to the massive search for Amanda's body on the city's west side last week.

Reporter Ed Gallek spoke to multiple sources from multiple police agencies, and they are calling the man behind the confession - Robert Wolford - a liar.

Investigators grilled Wolford, a convicted killer currently serving a 26-year prison sentence, and he admitted he lied.

Investigators said Wolford wrote a letter to the County Prosecutor and admitted to killing the teen. Wolford also said he could show police where he buried her body.

He passed a lie detector test, but search teams found nothing.

Wolford is behind bars for killing a homeless man in a drug deal in 2007 in the same area as investigators searched for Amanda's remains.

Reporter Ed Gallek is investigating, and will have much more starting First at Four on 19 Action News.

http://www.woio.com/story/19108713/convicted-killer-provided-false-tip-on-missing-teen-amanda-berry

Found alive May 6th, 2013 along with Gina DeJesus (also listed in the missing children), an additional woman (yet unnamed, missing 12 years) and a child.

TomTerrific0420 wrote:Wisconsin investigators on Friday ruled out the possibility that a body
found in a field there last year might be that of missing Cleveland
teen Amanda Berry.

Deputies at the Fond du Lac County Sheriff's Office initially
believed there were striking similarities between Amanda and the body
found by deer hunters in November. But test results comparing Amanda's
DNA and that of the body came back negative, deputies said.
Amanda disappeared on April 21, 2003, a day
before her 17th birthday. She had just left work at the Burger King at
West 110th Street and Lorain Avenue, about a 10-minute walk from home.
She called her sister to say she was getting a ride home, but her
family never heard from her again.
Hunters in Wisconsin found the body partially submerged in a frozen
creekbed on Nov. 23. The body could not be seen from the nearby road.
The Fond du Lac County Sheriff's Office is investigating the case as a
homicide.
Detectives believe the woman in Wisconsin was killed elsewhere and
was alive at least 90 days before her body was found in a wooded area
on private land between Appleton and Milwaukee. The body showed she had
had extensive dental work and either had access to dental insurance or
money to pay for the dental work, officials said.
Some of the woman's teeth showed similarities to Amanda's teeth and warranted DNA testing.
"She has been ruled out," sheriff's Lt. Bill Flood said about Amanda. "It's not her."
At first police considered Amanda a runaway until someone used her
cell phone a week later to call her mother, Louwanna Miller, and claim
her daughter would be fine and would return in a few days. The FBI then
began to investigate the case as a kidnapping.
Investigators followed up on many tips but have never been able to
find out what happened to Amanda. The case was featured on "America's
Most Wanted" in 2004.
For nearly three years after Amanda disappeared, Louwanna Miller
desperately sought answers about her daughter. The ordeal took a toll
on her health. She died of heart failure in 2006 at the age of 44.

http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-2320519/Amanda-Berry-Gina-DeJesus-Michelle-Knight-Cleveland-Girls-tied-basement-TEN-YEARS-escaping-3-brothers-arrested.html

Here's a long story with a lot of details. I did not want to post it since it is long. Just visit the link. William

3 women missing for years found; 3 brothers arrested

Yamiche Alcindor and Doug Stanglin, USA TODAY
9:38 a.m. EDT May 7, 2013

CLEVELAND -- Three middle-aged brothers have been arrested after police, summoned by a frantic 911 call, raided a house in a residential area on Monday and rescued three women who have been missing for as long as a decade.

A hospital physician said all three women -- who had apparently been tied up during their captivity -- were in fair condition. All three were released on Tuesday morning.

"Most important, the victims' physical and emotional well-being are the main concern and have to be addressed," Police Chief Michael McGrath said at a news conference.

Crowds gathered Monday night on the street near the house where police said Amanda Berry, Gina DeJesus and Michelle Knight were found earlier in the day.Police said a 6-year-old girl who was also at the house is believed to be Berry's daughter.

The three suspects were identified as brothers, Ariel Castro, 52, the owner of the house and a Cleveland school bus driver, Pedro Castro, 54, and O'Neal Castro, 50.

Police said the women were in "fairly good health" but that officials wanted to move slowly in questioning them about how they were abducted and what went on in the house over the past decade.

"Right now, we want to let them spend some time with ther family and take this process very, very slowly and respectful for their families and the young girls' needs," said Deputy Police Chief Ed Tomba.

The three women, along with the 6-year-old girl, were rescued by a neighbor, Charles Ramsey, who heard Berry yelling for help.

"I heard screaming," he told WEWS-TV. "I'm eating my McDonald's. I come outside. I see this girl going nuts trying to get out of a house."

Ramsey said the door was only wide enough for a hand to fit through, so they kicked out the bottom and made enough space for her to escape.

Berry, who crawled out along with the 6-year-old girl, said there were other women help captive inside and insisted on calling 911. Police quickly swarmed the house and found the other young women, apparently tied up inside.

"This isn't the ending we usually hear to these stories, so we're very happy," said Gerald Maloney, an emergency room physician at the Cleveland hospital where all three were being treated.

"They are able to speak with us. Beyond that, I can't go into any further details," Maloney said.

Cleveland Police Chief Michael McGrath said he thinks the three women were tied up in the house where they were found and had been there since they disappeared.

A recording of a 911 call made Monday was released: "I'm Amanda Berry. ... I've been kidnapped, and I've been missing for 10 years. And I'm here. I'm free now."

She said she had been taken by someone and begged for police officers to arrive at the house on Cleveland's west side before he returned.

Each had gone missing separately. Berry disappeared at age 16 on April 21, 2003, when she called her sister to say she was getting a ride home from her job at a Burger King.

DeJesus went missing at age 14 on her way home from school about a year later. They were found just a few miles from where they had gone missing.

Police said Knight went missing in 2002. The Plain Dealer quoted Michelle Knight's grandmother, Deborah Knight, as saying her daughter believed that Michelle was last seen several years ago in a van with an older man at a shopping plaza.

Ramsey, the neighbor, said he'd had barbecue with the home's owner and never suspected anything was amiss.

"There was nothing exciting about him — well, until today," he said.

Mayor Frank Jackson expressed gratitude that the three women were found alive.

"We have many unanswered questions regarding this case, and the investigation will be ongoing," he said in a statement.

"I've been praying, never forgot about her, ever," Kayla Rogers, a childhood friend of DeJesus, toldThe Plain Dealer newspaper. "This is amazing. This is a celebration. I'm so happy. I just want to see her walk out of those doors so I can hug her."

In January, a prison inmate was sentenced to 41/2 years after admitting he provided a false burial tip in the disappearance of Berry.

Police used backhoes to dig up a lot identified by the inmate last year in search of Berry's remains but found nothing.

Berry's mother, Louwana Miller, died in March 2006. She had spent the previous three years looking for her daughter.

Councilwoman Dona Brady said she had spent many hours with Miller, who never gave up hope that her daughter was alive.

"She literally died of a broken heart," Brady said.

http://www.usatoday.com/story/news/nation/2013/05/07/missing-women-cleveland-brothers-arrested/2140359/