2011 Currier, William and Lorraine June 9 2011, Essex

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Copyright © 2011, Burlington Free Press

ESSEX — About a dozen people have voluntarily provided DNA samples to Essex police as part of the criminal investigation into the mysterious disappearance of William and Lorraine Currier about 4½ months ago.

Capt. Brad LaRose, the town’s acting police chief, said the requests are part of the investigation the department has undertaken to try to determine what happened to the couple.

LaRose declined to say if any of the roughly 12 people providing DNA have been eliminated as suspects or whether any of the donors were now considered people of interest.

He said the requests are as much about trying to eliminate people as they are about trying to find a suspect.

“We have no prime suspect,” he said.

LaRose said it would not be a surprise to find the DNA of people that may have passed through the house lawfully, including other family members. Police might get a lead if DNA is found for somebody that should not have been in the house at 8 Colbert St.

“We cannot discuss numbers regarding how many are pending or who has been eliminated. There is more work being conducted at the labs,” LaRose said.

The family’s ranch-style house in a neighborhood off Susie Wilson Road in Essex has been searched by police at least three times, court records obtained by the Free Press show.

William Currier, 49, who worked at the University of Vermont, and Lorraine Currier, 56, who worked for Fletcher Allen Health Care, were last seen by co-workers leaving their jobs about 5 p.m. on June 8. The Curriers are believed to have been at their home at about 7 p.m. that day, but they have not been seen or heard from since, LaRose has said.

Essex police say they suspect foul play in the case but have offered little information about what they have found. LaRose said all people voluntarily provided DNA.

Police also have not had to go to a judge to obtain any type of non-testimonial court orders to be able to compare evidence in the case.

LaRose also said there have been no new search warrants or subpoenas obtained from courts recently. He had said in July that police had secured 13 search warrants and 18 subpoenas from Superior Court in connection with the couple’s disappearance.
He said Sunday the Essex police, in conjunction with Vermont State Police and other agencies, are hoping to do another ground search early this week in an effort to find the Curriers or clues that can be used.

William Currier’s sister reported the couple missing after the Curriers failed to report to work the morning of June 9.

That night police obtained a search warrant for the house, but have said little about the inside of the house. Detective Lt. George Murtie said that night there appeared to be freshly broken glass in a door that connected the attached garage and the living area of the house.

The case has generated considerable interest in the community, but police have been able to say little about the status.

The Burlington Free Press successfully petitioned Judges James Crucitti and Linda Levitt to release some public documents that Essex Police used to get the judges to authorize investigators to conduct the 13-court-ordered searches of private property.

Besides the family home, investigators also searched the couple’s 1996 Saturn sedan, which an Essex officer found June 10 parked outside an apartment complex at 241 Pearl St. in Essex — less than a mile from the Currier home.

Some released search warrant documents have been redacted or blacked out by the Chittenden County State’s Attorney’s office. State’s Attorney T. J. Donovan objected to a full release of the documents to the public.

Vermont Attorney General William Sorrell later took an appeal to the Vermont Supreme Court to try to block public disclosure of some details in the police investigation. The appeal is pending.


Contact Mike Donoghue at 660-1845 or mdonoghue@burlingtonfreepress.com
http://www.burlingtonfreepress.com/article...|FRONTPAGE

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http://www.burlingtonfreepress.com/article...d|mostview
Police say a phone call made to Bill Currier the day he and his wife were reported missing in early June has helped define the area police are searching today.

Three dozen police and Colchester Technical Rescue personnel are searching an area known as “68 Acres” in Essex which partially abuts Vermont 15 across from Fort Ethan Allen. The area includes the Winooski River, which will be searched by two boats.

William Currier, 49, who worked at the University of Vermont, and Lorraine Currier, 56, who worked for Fletcher Allen Health Care, last were seen by co-workers as they left their jobs at about 5 p.m. June 8.

William Currier’s sister reported the couple missing after the Curriers failed to report to work the morning of June 9.

That morning, someone from UVM called William Currier’s cell phone at about 7:30 a.m. Capt. Brad LaRose said at a briefing Tuesday morning that that phone call, revealed after a subpoena for phone records, was used to triangulate an area where William Currier’s cell phone was at the time. LaRose said William Currier didn’t answer the phone then, and the phone has since died.

Police have said foul play is suspected in the couple’s disappearance, and this morning LaRose said signs of a struggle were seen in their Colbert Street home.

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http://www.burlingtonfreepress.com/article...EWS02/111024014
Police to lead ground and river search for Curriers Tuesday morning
2:44 PM, Oct. 24, 2011 |
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ESSEX — Essex police plan to resume ground searches today for William and Lorraine Currier, a couple missing for more than four months.

Acting Police Chief Brad LaRose said Monday afternoon that he expects about three dozen law-enforcement officers from Essex police, Vermont State Police, several neighboring police departments and area federal agencies to participate.

He said the day will begin with a 10 a.m. closed-door briefing for the searchers at the Essex Fire Department on Sand Hill Road. A media briefing will follow as the officers begin to comb portions of the town, LaRose said.

Police have conducted several ground searches since the Curriers were reported missing in early June.

Police plan to use dogs during the searches, which will include a portion of the Winooski River. He said police plan to search targeted areas for most of the day.

Police have said foul play is suspected, but LaRose said police do not have any clear indication whether this case involves a third person responsible for the couple’s disappearance or whether it is a domestic incident.

William Currier, 49, who worked at the University of Vermont, and Lorraine Currier, 56, who worked for Fletcher Allen Health Care, last were seen by co-workers as they left their jobs at about 5 p.m. June 8. Police said the Curriers are believed to have been at their home, at 8 Colbert St. in Essex, at about 7 p.m. that day, but they have not been seen or heard from since.

William Currier’s sister reported the couple missing after the Curriers failed to report to work the morning of June 9.

The couple’s car, a 1996 Saturn sedan, was found June 10 parked outside an apartment complex at 241 Pearl St. in Essex — less than a mile from the couple’s home.

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It's been nearly a week since Bill and Lorraine Currier mysteriously vanished from their small town in Vermont.

"The fact that they've completely disappeared, none of it seems to make any sense," Essex police Lt. Robin Hollwedell told ABCNews.com. "When two good people disappear from town with seemingly no explanation, that's a concern for us."

The couple was last seen by coworkers on Wednesday, June 8, around 5 p.m. They were reported missing by Bill Currier's sister, Diana Smith, the following day.

Smith told ABCNews.com today, "We're praying for their safe return."

The Curriers live in Essex, Vt., a fairly tight community with a population just over 19,000 and their absence was noticed immediately.

When Lorraine didn't show up for work on Thursday, Hollwedell said the people she worked with were concerned. Police contacted Bill's employer and found he wasn't at work either.

Bill Currier, 49, is an animal care technician at the University of Vermont, and Lorraine Currier, 55, works at Fletcher Allen Health Care.

Hollwedell said they weren't the kind of people who didn't call in if they were going to miss work.

"They were very good about being at work, didn't take a lot of time off," he said.

On Friday police found the Curriers' car abandoned in an apartment building's parking lot, about a mile from their home.
P

They consider the couple's disappearance suspicious, in part because police say they appear to have left behind their daily medication.

Police told the Associated Press the bank accounts of the couple, as well as the mobile phones registered to William and Lorraine Currier, have gone unused.

Neighbors Perplexed By Vermont Couple's Disappearance

Diana Smith declined today to discuss the case of her missing brother and his wife in detail, but shortly after they disappeared she read a statement imploring anyone with information about them to come forward.

"Bill and Lorraine Currier are kind and caring people, beloved members of our families. We are heartbroken by their disappearance and at a loss to explain or understand it," she said. "Bill and Lorraine, if you can hear this, know that we love you and that we're doing everything we know how to do to find you and bring you home."

Neighbor Edwin Shipley, 72, who lives two houses down from the Curriers, said the couple moved into the neighborhood about five years ago. Occasionally he exchanged small talk with Bill Currier, describing him as "a quiet kind of guy, but friendly enough."

"We're all pretty perplexed about it," he said.

Shipley added he saw relatives visit the Curriers "all the time."

"I know they would always have company. Sometimes there would be a small bus on Sunday mornings," he said, speculating that it might have been for a religious service.

Wendy James, 57, a high school teacher who lives near the Curriers said the couple's disappearance has been upsetting. She remembered they always celebrated the holidays with a lot of decorations, particularly at Christmas.

"It's disconcerting and troubling because it's a pretty quiet, friendly neighborhood," she said.

Anyone with information about the couple, especially in relation to their travels on Wednesday, should call the Essex, Vt. Police Department at 802-878-8331.

The Associated Press contributed to this report.
http://abcnews.go.com/US/missing-vermont-c...ory?id=13837448

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http://www.wptz.com/r/29579493/detail.html
Update: Police Working With New Clue In Currier Case
Essex Couple Missing Since Early June
Associated Press

POSTED: 10:01 am EDT October 25, 2011
UPDATED: 11:57 am EDT October 25, 2011
[EMAIL: Update: Police Working With New Clue In Currier Case] Email [PRINT: Update: Police Working With New Clue In Currier Case] Print

ESSEX, Vt. -- Police say they are working with a new clue in their search for Bill and Lorraine Currier on Tuesday.

After obtaining records from Verizon, police discovered that Bill Currier's TracFone received a call from UVM around 7 a.m. on the day the couple was reported missing. With the help of the FBI, police say they've zeroed in on an area near the Essex/Colchester town line where they believe the phone was when it picked up that call. As of today, this area has not been searched.

Thirty-four law enforcement officers are assisting in Tuesday’s search, including a team from Colchester Technical Rescue, who will be combing over parts of the Winooski River, across from St. Michael's College

Read more: http://www.wptz.com/news/29579493/detail.html#ixzz1bqlSsns2

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The police are asking for the public's help in finding a missing Essex, Vermont couple. They have been missing since June 8th. They left their medications behind and there has been no activity on their bank accounts or cell phones.

A long-haired man was spotted driving the Currier's green Mercury. The car was found in a parking lot, not too far from the Currier's home on June 10th.

If you have any information, please call the Essex, Vermont police.
http://missingpersonsblog.blogspot.com/201...suspicious.html

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http://www.wcax.com/story/14882641/state-i...redirected=true
Police find missing Essex couple's car

Bill and Lorraine Currier Bill and Lorraine Currier


Essex, Vermont - June 10, 2011

The Vermont State police mobile command center looked out of place pulling down a quiet suburban street in Essex Friday morning. Investigators are looking for any clues into the mysterious disappearance of Bill and Lorraine Currier. And police aren't saying much.

"Again, we're preserving details for the obvious reason we want to preserve the integrity of the investigation, verify information as it comes along with details that are not public," Essex Police Capt. Brad LaRose said.

The biggest break-- the couple's dark green Saturn sedan has been located in Vermont. Police are not releasing a specific location or saying if anything in the vehicle indicated foul play.

"We need to process the vehicle," LaRose said. "It will take us some time to secure a warrant and we want to preserve that area as much as we can."

Inside the couple's home, however, police say there are some troubling details. The couple seems to have left in a hurry and without critical daily meds. The window to the garage is broken and they're not answering their cell phones.

"I'm nervous. I don't know about everyone else on the street," Jennifer Roberge said.

Roberge lives down the street from the Curriers. She says she wishes she paid closer attention to her dog's behavior the night the Curriers may have disappeared.

"Very unusual," Roberge said. "When she was in the house she kept going to the door and she was just acting really weird."

Police think the Curriers vanished sometime between 5 p.m. Wednesday and 10 a.m. Thursday. By all accounts they were a typical couple; neighbors said they kept to themselves, maintained their home, had family gatherings and allowed neighborhood kids to play in their pool.

"Nothing adds up," Roberge said. "It's weird. I never thought anything in this little neighborhood would happen like that."

Neither did Bill Currier's employer at the University of Vermont.

"Obviously this whole thing is really troubling and scary for all of us here," said Ruth Blauwiekel, a veterinarian at UVM.

Bill Currier has been a contracted animal care technician with UVM since 1986, making a living caring for lab animals. His boss says not showing up for work is completely uncharacteristic for the man she describes as "quiet and unassuming."

"He just sort of went about his business and did his work well and I don't think anyone saw anything like this happening," Blauwiekel said.

Police say they'll spend the night following up on leads and trying to connect some of the dots.

Police would not comment on why the couple may have vanished; whether this may be a domestic, or robbery gone wrong, or if anything was missing from the home. But we'll continue to follow the developments as they unfold.

Jennifer Reading - WCAX News
http://www.wcax.com/story/14882641/state-i...redirected=true

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Essex, Vermont - June 12, 2011

Relatives of a missing Essex couple appealed to the public for help Sunday.

It's been almost five days since Bill and Lorraine Currier's relatives reported them missing. On Sunday they made an emotional plea for help.

"Bill and Lorraine Currier are kind and caring, beloved members of our family. We are heartbroken by their disappearance and at a lost to explain or understand it," said Diana Smith, Bill Currier's sister. "We're here today to plead for anyone's help in doing this and please keep Bill and Lorraine in your prayers."

A picture of the couple was held up during the brief meeting with members of the media. Police say the family asked to talk to the press several days after the couples mysterious disappearance. Police say a window was broken at their Colbert Street home and police say the Currier's crucial daily medications had been left behind.

"If anyone has seen anything between Wednesday, or their car please call Essex Police Department," Smith said.

Police found the couple's green sedan at the Pearl Street Apartments, just miles from the Currier's home. Detectives taped off the scene and questioned residents.

Now their family is doing anything they can to see their loved ones again. "Bill and Lorraine, if you can hear this, know that we all love you and we're doing everything we can do to find you and bring you home," Diana Smith said.

The family did not take any questions from the media, saying they wanted to respect the police investigation. Police on Sunday released no new information. They are still classifying the disappearance as suspicious but have not said if they suspect any foul play.

Gina Bullard - WCAX News

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http://www.wcax.com/story/14893965/police-...redirected=true
Police K-9 teams search Essex woods

Bill and Lorraine Currier Bill and Lorraine Currier


Essex, Vermont - June 13, 2011

Police used specially trained dogs Monday in their search for clues in the case of a missing Essex couple.

It's been five days since Bill and Lorraine Currier disappeared. Police have searched their home and their car which was found Friday parked at an apartment complex about a five minute drive from the couple's home. Police have not said what evidence they have uncovered from those searches.

On Monday police brought in K-9 teams to search wooded areas around the town.

WCAX News

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http://www.wptz.com/news/28297455/detail.html#ixzz1PtNbSpQq
Police Still Reviewing Video, Records In Missing Couple Case
Essex Police Provide Little In Way Of Updates Monday
Jill Glavan NewsChannel 5 - WTPZ JGlavan@hearst.com

POSTED: 2:18 pm EDT June 20, 2011
[EMAIL: Police Still Reviewing Video, Records In Missing Couple Case] Email [PRINT: Police Still Reviewing Video, Records In Missing Couple Case] Print
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COLCHESTER, Vt. -- There was little new information to report in the case of a couple missing from their Essex Junction home, a detective said Monday.

Det. Lt. George Murtie said he and others at the Essex Police Department were still going through a great deal of surveillance video and various records related to the case.

Bill and Lorraine Currier were reported missing June 9 when neither of them showed up for work. Friday, family members offered at $10,000 reward for information leading to a break in the case.

Also Friday, Linda Pratt, an old friend of Lorraine Currier, said that she had run into Currier two months ago. She said Currier told her she was afraid of a man in her life who may have been stalking her. Police confirmed that they were following up on Pratt's information but did not go into more detail.

Anyone with information pertaining to the case has been asked to call Essex Police at 802-878-8331.

Read more: http://www.wptz.com/news/28297455/detail.html#ixzz1bqs9DmI7

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Decision raises ante in public information request


Burlington, Vermont - June 27, 2011

A battle is brewing in the courts over public access to police paperwork. Two superior court judges denied the state's request to keep information related to a missing couple from Essex under wraps.

For more than two weeks, WCAX-TV and other media have been trying to figure out what may have happened to Bill and Lorraine Currier. Gaining access to search warrants and police paperwork may answer a lot of questions -- like why police keep saying the public is not at risk, whether of not they are questioning third parties, what specifically they were looking for inside the Currier's home and on their computer, and does the evidence in the recovered car point to foul play. But something in those documents is so sensitive, that prosecutors are willing to take this fight to court.

"I see no reason releasing information that arguably could end up in an alleged perpetrator's hands," said Chittenden County State's Attorney, T.J. Donovan.

Donovan say that the public is not entitled to see search warrants and police affidavits related to the mysterious disappearance of the Curriers, claiming it could compromise the ongoing police investigation. "I get the need for transparency. I understand that the public has a right to know, but I don't think it's an absolute right. I think that the police are working hard on this --let them do their job," Donovan said.

But the police are saying very little about the Essex couple who vanished from their home on June 8. The records request was initiated by the Burlington Free Press and two superior court judges ruled the public should have access to the information.

"The standard for trying to seal a search warrant -- it's a pretty high standard," said Matt Byrne, an attorney with Gravel and Shea, a Burlington law firm instrumental in establishing a common law right to access to search warrants.

It was 2001 and the region was in shock following the brutal murders of Dartmouth professors Half and Susanne Zantop. The couple was killed by two Vermont teens. Rumors were swirling. The public and the media -- including Channel 3 -- wanted answers from sealed court documents.

The court sided with the media, ruling that the "the public has a presumptive right of access to such materials absent an overriding demonstration of harm to public or private interest."

Byrne says this Supreme Court decision laid the legal groundwork for the Currier case. He says the prosecutor's argument fell short. "They haven't shown that these documents should be confidential. They haven't made a sufficient showing to a judge that whatever reason their offering the judge is strong enough to outweigh the very strong public interest in knowing about these sorts of cases," he said.

Prosecutors are now appealing the lower court's decision to the Vermont Supreme Court. That ruling could take several weeks. In the meantime, the state has also filed a motion to stay the seal. If the state wins, the search warrants and related documents could remain off limits for as long as the court deems appropriate.

Jennifer Reading - WCAX News
http://www.wcax.com/story/14985341/battle-heats-up-over

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http://www.necn.com/04/12/12/New-search-un...178&feedID=4206

New search underway in Vt. cold case
Apr 12, 2012 7:16pm

(NECN/WPTZ: Jill Glavan, Essex, Vt.) - State and Essex police are excavating an area off of Vermont Route 15 in a search for a couple that went missing in June 2011.

Police used a backhoe on Thursday to excavate as state police dog examined the soil as it was removed from the ground.

William and Lorraine Currier of Essex Junction, Vt., were last seen leaving their jobs at Fletcher Allen Health Care on June 8 around 5 p.m. Officials suspect foul play is behind their disappearance.

Jill Glavan has more on the story.

[PorchlightUSA]

Anniversary of Currier disappearance
Posted: Jun 08, 2012 4:59 PM EDT
Updated: Jun 08, 2012 4:59 PM EDT
By Jennifer Reading - bio | email

Bill and Lorraine CurrierESSEX, Vt. - It's been one year since anyone has seen Bill and Lorraine Currier.

The quiet Essex couple was reported missing on June 9, 2011, and police have been searching for them ever since. Nearly a dozen ground searches near their home turned up few clues. The biggest break came in April when investigators say a tip prompted them to dig on the site of a demolished home on Route 15 in Essex.

The investigation then moved 70 miles away to a landfill in the Northeast Kingdom. That's where police believe the home's construction debris was taken. Specialized FBI agents are scouring the trash looking for clues. Four weeks later that search is still on, but it's unclear if they've found any evidence of the couple.

Local police and federal authorities say the investigation remains a priority but refuse to comment about the case.

http://www.wcax.com/story/18741297/anniver...r-disappearance

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http://www.wcax.com/story/18669495/dig-for...dence-continues
Dig for Currier evidence continues
Posted: May 31, 2012 4:18 PM EDT
Updated: Jun 03, 2012 8:15 PM EDT
By Jennifer Reading - bio | email

FileCOVENTRY, Vt. - Investigators continue to sift through a mountain of garbage for evidence in the case of a missing Essex couple.

A team of FBI and state police specialists rolled into the Casella Waste landfill in Coventry over three weeks ago. They are digging through tons of trash in hopes of solving the disappearance of Bill and Lorraine Currier. The Essex couple disappeared nearly a year ago.

Police won't say whether they believe the Curriers' bodies are in the landfill, but it's believed this search stems from an earlier search at the site of a demolished home in Essex. Debris from that home would have been dumped in Coventry.

The U.S. Attorney won't say what, if anything, they've found in the landfill but he expects the digging will continue for at least a couple of more weeks

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http://www.wcax.com/story/17420686/the-dis...orraine-currier
ESSEX, Vt. - JUNE 8, 2011: CURRIERS VANISH

Bill and Lorraine Currier vanished from their Essex home on June 8, 2011. The next day, police were calling their disappearance suspicious.

"They left their medications behind. Medications that they needed to take daily and it looks as though they left rather hastily," Essex Police Cpl. Christina Ashley said June 9.

JUNE 10, 2011: CURRIERS' CAR FOUND

The couple's car turned up abandoned at an apartment complex a few miles from their home two days after the Curriers vanished, prompting their families to plead for the public's help.

"We are heartbroken by their disappearance and at a loss to explain or understand it. We're here today to plead for anyone's help in doing this and please keep Bill and Lorraine Currier in your prayers," Bill Currier's sister Diana Smith said June 12.

JUNE 14, 2011: "PERSON OF INTEREST"

On June 14, police announced they had a "person of interest." Investigators said an eyewitness put a man shown in a police sketch in the Curriers' dark green Saturn sedan after they went missing.

"We don't think he's a serious public safety concern at this point," Essex Police Lt. George Murtie said June 15.

In the months to come, police launched several foot searches with cadaver dogs. No major breaks and no activity on their cellphones or credit cards made a safe homecoming less likely.

JULY 18, 2011: FOUL PLAY IS SUSPECTED

And July 18, this announcement from Essex Police Chief Brad LaRose: "Foul play in the Currier case is suspected."

Police hoped to crack the case by sending DNA evidence found in the couple's car and home to an out-of-state government lab.

OCT. 12, 2011: DOCUMENTS UNSEALED

Unsealed court papers revealed that investigators seized military and personal documents, clothing, notebooks and computer hard drives from the couple's home. But it was a clue buried in the couple's cellphone records that told police they needed to expand their search area.

"This cone here in yellow is the possible area of the location of the cellphone when the connection to this tower was made," LaRose said Oct. 25.

The 10th and largest ground search was launched, but no new clues surfaced.

FEB. 7, 2012: POLICE PURSUE BURGLARY SUSPECT

In February, investigators got a court order to take finger and palm prints from a man who police say burglarized the Curriers' home.

APRIL 13, 2012

To date, no arrests have been made and no suspects have ever been named in this mystery.

[PorchlightUSA]

http://www.wcax.com/story/15831123/police-...in-currier-case
Police hope DNA will bring new leads in Currier case

Essex, Vermont -- October 24, 2011

Essex police hope DNA samples may lead to new clues in the search for a missing couple.

Bill and Lorraine Currier vanished more than four months ago.

Police tell the Burlington Free Press that about a dozen people have since provided DNA samples as part of the investigation.

Police are not saying whether any of those individuals are considered suspects or people of interest.

WCAX News

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Search warrants released in missing Vt couple case


Bill and Lorraine CurrierOctober 10, 2011


BURLINGTON, Vt. (AP) - A Vermont judge has released search warrants in the investigation of a missing Essex couple.

The documents issued Monday and sought by the Burlington Free Press show that police seized 28 items from Bill and Lorraine Currier's home since their June 9 disappearance and ten items from the couple's car which was found about a mile from their home.

Police say they were looking for "physical evidence, such as blood, hairs, fibers, fingerprints, bodily fluids, dirt/debris, vegetation" when they searched the car. All items taken from the car were redacted or blacked out in court papers.

Police say they seized military and personal documents, as well as clothing, notebooks and computer hard drives from the couple's home. The court reacted 4 of the 28 items listed.

http://www.wcax.com/story/15660352/search-...-vt-couple-case

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http://www.wcax.com/story/17406699/neighbo...in-currier-case
ESSEX, Vt. - A single light illuminates the home of Bill and Lorraine Currier. Neighbors of the missing Essex couple say it burns day and night months after their disappearance.

"It's a little unsettling sitting on my living room couch every night and looking across the street to their house," said Pat Goddard, the missing couple's neighbor.

Goddard says she was stunned to learn police were searching once again, ten months after the couple vanished from their Colbert Street home. She hopes this search turns up clues in the Currier case.

"At least it would bring some kind of closure to what happened to them and where they are located," she said, "But there are still a lot of unanswered questions as to why and how and who."

Questions police would not answer Thursday as they excavated this lot off Route 15 in Essex. Police say a new investigative lead prompted them to dig up the lawn at 32 Upper Main Street. According to the town clerk, Betty Atkins bought the ten acre plot in October 2011. A vacant home on the property was demolished last fall. Staff at a neighboring business say it was a known shelter for squatters and recently a haven for police activity.

"The Essex police were coming and going just for homeless people being there and checking on it. The woman who was taking care of it noticed there was a lot of vandalism," said Jeanne Dufresne, who works across the street from where police were digging.

The Vermont state police mobile crime lab was on the scene as well as two canine units. Throughout the day detectives took their dogs down to the deep ditch, carved out by police, to sniff out evidence. Police measured and bagged a few unidentifiable objects. By day's end it did not appear that the dig turned up any major breaks. Then again it's unclear what police were searching for and they were not talking to the media.

By 7 p.m. Thursday investigators called it quits. The mobile crime lab as well and an Essex police officer will be stationed on the scene overnight. Police say the investigation and the search will continue Friday morning around 8 a.m.

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http://www.wcax.com/story/15022901/tribute...ng-essex-couple
Tribute to missing Essex couple


Bill and Lorraine Currier
Essex, Vermont - July 4, 2011

The mystery surrounding the disappearance of an Essex couple continues to grow, now nearly a month after Bill and Lorraine Currier were last seen.

Flowers, signs and a balloon were left at the front steps of the couple's Colbert Street home Monday morning -- a tribute for Lorraine on her 56th birthday. A neighbor said a relative dropped them off in the morning. The balloon, emblazoned with the words, "Our thoughts and prayers are with you," floated next to the door. A sign taped to the door read, "We love you and miss you."

Police have searched around the property multiple times. Their car was discovered shortly after they disappeared about a mile away. Police say they are growing increasingly concerned that one or both of the Currier's may no longer be alive. Anyone with information is asked to call Essex Police