The Oakland County Sheriff’s Office conducted boat search operations on the Red Cedar River, Nov. 30, as part of the continued search for missing Grand Valley State University student Brendan Santo.
“The water search operation continues,” MSUPD inspector Chris Rozman said. “This is still an active investigation and it’s still an active search. We’ve said all along that the Red Cedar River is of particular interest, however we continue to explore other possibilities.”
As part of the water search operation MSUPD continues to rotate and use different resources.
“Today the Oakland County Sheriff’s Office is actually here with a couple of their boats that are a little bit different style boats than we’ve used in the past,” Rozman said Tuesday. “Today we are conducting, I would say, boat search operations on the river, and I believe we had a couple dogs — couple canines — out earlier as well working with the river search team.”
Rozman said the search on Nov. 30 did not include any divers and was solely a boat search operation, but a dive operation will take place Thursday, Dec. 2.
“We’re going to have multiple dive teams on-site assigned to different sections of the river,” Rozman said. “So, they’re preparing for that as well.”
On Nov. 30, The Bring Brendan Santo Home Facebook and Instagram pages posted an update reminding supporters, though it has been 32 days since Santo went missing on Oct. 29, to not lose interest or focus.
“This ‘case’ is not sensational or flashy,” the post read. “There are essentially no leads as of this point. The general public will, and probably has, lost interest. WE CANNOT LET THIS HAPPEN. We NEED to bring Brendan home.”
The reward for credible information that leads to bringing Santo home was increased to $20,000 on Nov. 17, through Crime Stoppers of Mid-Michigan through MSUPD’s toll-free tip line and tip email.
A virtual town hall was held on Nov. 17 to answer questions and address any safety concerns surrounding the case and Santo’s disappearance.
Those with any information are encouraged to call MSUPD’s toll-free tip line at 844-99-MSUPD, email tips@police.msu.edu or contact Crime Stoppers of Mid-Michigan at 517-483-STOP.
For resources, MSU Counseling and Psychiatric Services (CAPS) are available 24/7 by calling 517-355-8270. The MSU Employee Assistance Program (EAP) is also available by calling 517-355-4506.
Students at Grand Valley State University can also contact their University Counseling Center at 616-331-3266.
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