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Authorities search marina for missing woman
MODESTO, California (CNN) -- Authorities searching for a pregnant woman missing since Christmas Eve, used dog teams Saturday to search a marina where her husband went fishing the day she disappeared. Some of the dogs are specially trained to find cadavers. Police said there are still no strong leads in the disappearance of 27-year-old Laci Peterson, who is eight-and-a-half months pregnant. She was last reported seen on the morning of Christmas Eve by her husband, who said he then left the house to go on a solo fishing trip. Saturday, six dogs and six boats carrying investigators combed the Berkeley Marina and bay area, where Scott Peterson said he went on his trip. Also, Modesto city employees re-searched a park near Laci's home where she was planning on walking her dog that day, and they opened all the manholes near the park and her home. Nothing was found, Modesto Police Sgt. Ron Cloward said in a news conference. Peterson, Laci's husband of five years, met with investigators in the case Friday. Authorities have said that Scott, and anyone else close to Laci, have not been ruled out as suspects. Both Scott's and Laci's parents have said Scott had nothing to do with his wife's disappearance. "If you knew Scott, as far as him being implicated, it's just a non-issue," Scott's father Lee Peterson told Nancy Grace on "CNN's Larry King Live" Friday. More than 1,600 calls have come in to a police tip line on the case, said Modesto Police Det. Doug Ridenour, but authorities have no significant leads in Laci's disappearance. "We're using every investigative technique, every tool, every agency, everything we can possibly think of to try to eliminate... and get leads on this case, and we've done that from day one," Ridenour said. A $500,000 reward has been posted for her return. Her baby, a boy, is due February 10. Cloward appealed to the public for help.
"Continue to look, in the obvious and the less-obvious places," he said. "In other words, just keep looking, just keep searching." Scott told police he left home the morning of December 24 for a fishing trip about 85 miles away, and he said his wife intended to walk their golden retriever and go shopping for items for dinner that evening. According to a police news release, Scott said he came home later that night and found the dog, with its leash on, in the back yard. A neighbor had found the dog earlier in the day, authorities said, and put it in the yard. Scott said Laci's purse was still in the house and nothing had been disturbed. Ridenour said the last time another family member had contact with Laci was a telephone conversation the evening of December 23. Thursday, police released pictures and descriptions of Scott's Ford 150 bronze pick-up truck and 14-foot aluminum boat -- which were impounded and searched -- and asked anyone who had seen Scott, the truck or the boat between December 23 and 25 to contact authorities to vouch for his whereabouts. Police said they had verified that a receipt produced by Scott from a parking lot at the Berkeley Marina where he said he had been was legitimate. Authorities have also searched the couple's home, their vehicles and Scott's business. "We would love to eliminate Scott Peterson from the investigation," Ridenour said Friday. Scott's father told CNN's Ed Lavandera Thursday that his son had been hunting and fishing since he was 5 years old and that he had traveled all over the state with his outdoor activities. Cloward said the search for Laci, which has expanded to neighboring counties, would continue over the weekend. Earlier this week, he said that the behavior of canine teams searching Laci's home and yard indicated that she left in a vehicle and not on foot. Volunteers have also joined the search in this community, about 45 miles northeast of San Jose.
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