JALIEK RAINWALKER - 12 yo (2007) - Cambridge-Greenwich NY

GREENWICH - Police on Thursday released a picture of missing
Greenwich boy Jaliek Rainwalker that was enhanced to show how he
would likely look 2-1/2 years after he disappeared.

Cambridge-Greenwich Police Chief George Bell said a picture of
Rainwalker was enhanced by the National Center for Missing and
Exploited Children as part of the ongoing police investigation into
the boy's Nov. 1, 2007 disappearance.

Police held a press conference to distribute the photo to the
media, and used the opportunity to call on the boy's adopted
parents to work with police to figure out what happened to him. He
called their actions since shortly after Rainwalker disappeared
"bizarre."



"I'm hoping this might spark some interest in the parents to
come forward," he said. "It's 2-1/2 years later and they act like
this never happened. They need to reach out and be cooperative with
law enforcement."

Rainwalker's adopted father, Stephen Kerr, was the last person
known to have been with him in the hours before he disappeared.
Police have named Kerr a "person of interest" in the case because
they do not believe he has been honest with investigators about his
actions the night before Rainwalker was reported missing.

Kerr and his wife, Jocelyn McDonald, have said they believe
Rainwalker ran away.

There has not been a trace of him since he was reported missing,
however.

Bell said the National center for Missing and Exploited Children
will only do an age enhancement in a case if a child has been
missing for more than two years.

Rainwalker disappeared at age 12 and would be 14 years old.

Bell said further searches of a deep gorge in the Batten Kill
known as the "Hell Hole" are planned for the spring or summer,
depending on water conditions. Kerr and his family frequently hiked
and fished in the area.

Poster's Note: Background info from America's Most Wanted


Since New York teen Jaliek Rainwalker
disappeared on November 1, 2007, his adoptive grandmother, Barbara
Reeley, has been endlessly searching for her missing grandson.

With the help of Tim Miller -- the founder
of missing persons search group Texas Equusearch -- a full fleet of
boats, airplanes and dedicated volunteers were dispatched to look for
him.

But after months of searching, with no
promising leads as to his whereabouts or any word from Jaliek, cops in
Upstate New York say Barbara went beyond the bounds of the law to find
him.

On July 10, 2008, authorities tell AMW
that Jaliek's grandmother broke into her daughter's
house, the residence where Jaliek had lived with his adoptive family.

What she found has shaken the missing
persons case to its core: she discovered the yellow pullover which
Jaliek had been wearing on the day he went missing.

When the Cambridge-Greenwich (N.Y.) Police
got word of the break-in, they were surprised that Barbara had gone
into her own daughter's home to look for evidence.

Authorities say they were excited about
the discovery, but were forced to charge Barbara with Third Degree
Burglary for the home invasion. She was later released on her own
recognizance.

Authorities say the evidence has breathed
life into the investigation, and they are now performing an exhaustive
search of the home in hopes of finding more clues to Jaliek's
whereabouts.

His adoptive parents have declined to give
police a statement regarding the clothing, but friends and family
members are hoping that this is the clue that breaks the baffling,
heartbreaking case wide open.

If you know anything about Jaliek
Rainwalker's disappearance, call the AMW Hotline at 1-800-CRIME-TV
right now. You can remain anonymous.

A photo of a corpse allegedly used as intimidation during a kidnapping is not Jaliek Rainwalker, police said.Rainwalker, whose 15th birthday was Aug. 2, has been missing since Nov. 1, 2007. He was last seen in Greenwich. Scott
Thorpe, 37, of Greenwich, was working with two accomplices when he
allegedly kidnapped and beat up a man in April, then dumped the victim
in Kingsbury. The man told police Thorpe showed him a "missing" poster
of Rainwalker and a photo of a corpse and claimed he was responsible for
killing the teen, according to Washington County District Attorney
Kevin Kortright. He warned the victim the same could happen to him if he
did not settle his drug debts. "A body in one of the photos has a
resemblance to Jaliek, and (the victim) was told it was Jaliek,"
sheriff's Investigator Bruce Hamilton said. Police recovered the photos during a search of Thorpe's house.

The search will resume this morning for a teenager how has been missing for almost three years.
Dive crews will take to the Battenkill in Middle Falls searching an area that's been off limits before.
They're hoping for any sign of Jaliek Rainwalker. He disappeared three years ago, this November.
Police have wanted to search this particular area since the investigation began.
It was a spot mentioned by Jaliek's adoptive father, who is a person of interest in the case..
Today's search will also double as a training exercise.

State Police
divers explored a treacherous section of the Batten Kill on Thursday to
search for the remains of Jaliek Rainwalker, the boy who disappeared in
November 2007 from Greenwich. By late afternoon, it was apparent their
efforts had been fruitless. State Police Public Information Officer Maureen Tuffey said the divers did not find anything at the site other than some old metal.Divers
searched a section of the river known as the "Hell Hole" they had not
been able to search in the two and a half years since the
then-12-year-old disappeared.Reporters were kept far from the
dive site and could not see the search. But a State Police dive team was
seen arriving earlier Thursday."It's a dangerous place to dive. There is metal and rebar and other stuff down there," Cambridge-Greenwich Police Chief George Bell said earlier this week.The chief described the site as a gorge at the bottom of a hydroelectric dam that leads to a whirlpool.Despite
numerous tips since Jaliek was reported missing, police have no
evidence to show whether he is alive and no suspects have been named in
his disappearance.

GREENWICH -- A search of property formerly owned by Jaliek Rainwalker's parents turned up nothing, Easton-Greenwich Police Chief George Bell said Tuesday.The latest search for the Washington County boy took place less than a week before the three-year anniversary of the day Jaliek, then 12, was reported missing by his father, Stephen Kerr. Kerr and his wife, Jocelyn McDonald, owned a house and more than 20 acres of land at 54 Raven Way until they moved to Vermont with their other children after Jaliek disappeared. Kerr was the last person to see his son after picking him up Nov. 1, 2007, from a respite home where Jaliek stayed for six days. Kerr said the two went to sleep at a relative's unoccupied home and when he woke up, Jaliek was gone. Kerr did not cooperate with police, but he has never been arrested or charged in connection with Jaliek's disappearance. Bell said he didn't expect to find anything on the former Kerr property, but he wanted to cross it off a list of places Jaliek's remains could be. Bell said he believes the boy is dead. Bell said investigators searched the house two years ago and gave the property a "cursory look" when police still thought of Jaliek as a runaway. Kerr later blocked attempts for police to further examine the land, and Bell said he didn't have probable cause for a search warrant.Tuesday, after the new owner gave the OK, Bell returned with five dogs, the FBI and state forest rangers. They searched about four hours and do not plan to return, Bell said. Bell described the land as a mix of open fields and woods.http://www.timesunion.com/local/article/New-search-for-Rainwalker-comes-up-empty-724030.php

GREENWICH — Barbara Reeley has two new opportunities to spread the word about Jaliek Rainwalker, her missing grandson.

Jaliek was 12 in 2007 when he disappeared in Washington County after
his adoptive father picked him up from a stay in a respite home
in Altamont.

A segment about Jaliek will run Feb.1 on the new show "Find Our Missing," on TV One. It will air locally on channel 440, HD 1845. It is a half-hour segment.

Reeley said she has also been invited to appear on the ABC show "The View" next Wednesday. She is awaiting confirmation and travel arrangements.

Read more: http://www.timesunion.com/local/article/New-TV-exposure-for-missing-boy-Jaliek-Rainwalker-2633886.php#ixzz1jy3sraXk

A local couple is hoping fresh eyes and a nationwide audience will generate new leads in the mystery of their missing grandson.
Jaliek Rainwalker's story was featured on “America's Missing with Nancy Grace” about a year ago, and it's been a big local story for years.

Now, the boy's adoptive grandparents are going to bed optimistic a program airing Wednesday night will spark new information they so desperately need.

As they plaster new posters of their missing grandson on a building in Troy, Barbara Reeley and Dennis Smith are holding onto a renewed sense of hope.

“Wherever he is he would be 16,” says Reeley.

No longer that little boy who went missing in November 2007, Jaliek would be growing up.

“We’ve never rested,” Reeley added.

Now, the case that's so close to their hearts and to the Capital Region community is getting new exposure, a breakthrough in this couples' quest to tell Jaliek's story.

TV One Network's show, “Find Our Missing”, is a program that focuses on children of color.

“It’s a new audience, a nationwide audience,” says Reeley.

She got the call the network was interested in her grandson's story four months ago. The crew came to the area in October.

“They spent several hours, days coming out from Chicago to film,” says Reeley.

It will be a half hour dedicated to the details of this local case that's been a mystery for more than four years.

Bright eyes and an electrifying smile, they say his is a face you wouldn't forget.

“He had an infectious smile that just caught your heart,” says Smith.

That's why they believe if someone watching the program Wednesday night has at some point seen Jaliek, it might trigger a new lead. It may be a long shot. But it's what they'll go to bed praying for.

“Hope beyond hope he is alive somewhere,” says Smith.

Jaliek's story will air Wednesday night on the TV One program "Find Our Missing" at 10pm.

That's Time Warner Cable Channel 440 and 1845.

It should also be noted, Stephen Kerr, Jaliek's adoptive father, was labeled a person of interest in this case.

But he was never arrested. Throughout the years, he's repeatedly turned down our request to talk about his adopted son.

http://wnyt.com/article/stories/S2477170.shtml?cat=300