Idaho campers asked to keep eye out
No strong leads on fate of missing siblings
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| | HOT LINE | To provide information, call the sheriff's hot line: 208-446-2292 or 208-446-2293.
Or email: kcgovtips@hotmail.com
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COEUR D'ALENE, Idaho (CNN) -- Campers enjoying Idaho's national forests this Memorial Day weekend are asked to keep an eye out for "anything suspicious" that may lead to clues in the search for two siblings last seen in their home where three people were beaten to death.
"We're not asking people to go out and search," said Kootenai County Sheriff's spokesman Capt. Ben Wolfinger. "We just ask that if they see something suspicious, out of place, out of character, contact us and let us investigate it."
In addition, Wolfinger said, police plan to begin searching a landfill Thursday or Friday for evidence in the case.
Dylan Groene, 9, and Shasta, 8, have been missing since May 16, when their 13-year-old brother Slade; 40-year-old mother Brenda and her 37-year-old boyfriend Mark McKenzie were found slain in the mother's home.
Authorities have said they have no suspects in the killings or the apparent abduction of the children.
A memorial service for the children's mother and brother was scheduled for Wednesday.
Authorities have said the victims died of blunt-force trauma to the head. The last time they were seen alive was May 15, when they had a Sunday get-together with friends at the home.
The divorced father of the missing children, Steven Groene, has said an FBI agent told him he failed "portions" of a polygraph test and that there were doubts about his innocence. Police, however, insist he is not a suspect "or even a person of interest" in the case.
On Monday authorities announced a $100,000 reward for information leading to the children's return or for information that could lead to those responsible for their abduction. In addition, Kootenai County is posting an additional $7,500 reward. (Full story)
Authorities continue to receive tips in the case, more than 1,100 to date, Wolfinger said.
To offer information, people can call a hotline at 208-446-2292 or 208-446-2293, or e-mail tips to kcgovtips@hotmail.com.
An Amber Alert initially was issued for the children but was canceled earlier this week due to the lack of new information in the case for five days.
