Expert coming to campus to aid in search for missing Purdue student

Wade Steffey

A member of the center's Team Adam who was previously with the FBI will arrive on campus Monday (Jan. 22) to assist with the investigation.

"The center's help will be very significant," said Purdue police Capt. Tim Potts. "Not only will the agent provide us with an outside perspective, we will be able to tap the center's extensive database of cases to look for matches. Wade's information will be added to the database as well."

While police continue the investigation, Wade's father, Dale, has asked the community to consider whether they heard a cell phone ringing on or close to campus that went unanswered. Verizon officials have told police that the cell phone was continuing to transmit from Jan. 13, when Wade Steffey disappeared, until about noon on Wednesday (Jan. 17) from the northeast part of campus. The area is roughly bounded by State and Russell streets and Northwestern Avenue, and it includes Ross-Ade Stadium, the residence hall where 19-year-old Wade resided and much of the academic campus. A search on Saturday (Jan. 20) failed to recover the cell phone.

Steffey family

Steffey's parents also requested that anyone who was in the Tower Acres area of campus from around midnight to 3 a.m. on late Jan. 12 to early Jan. 13 contact Purdue police if they have any information that could lead to clues about the whereabouts of their son. Steffey attended a party late on Jan. 12 at Phi Kappa Theta fraternity house, 900 David Ross Road, which is near Tower Acres.

According to police, Steffey's phone was transmitting from an area that includes the fraternity house during the time he was known to have been at the party. Sometime on Jan. 13 until the time the phone stopped transmitting, the signal shifted east.

"While this is a large area, this is still a significant piece of information because it gives investigators a place in which to focus their search efforts," said Purdue spokesperson Jeanne Norberg.

Purdue students organized a prayer vigil for Steffey that took place Saturday (Jan. 20) afternoon at the Purdue Bell Tower. Police asked those attending the vigil to help search for Steffey's cell phone.

"If anyone finds a cell phone in this area, the best course of action is to leave the phone exactly where it is," Norberg said. "Someone should stay with the phone while police are contacted and remain there until officers arrive."

Volunteers get search instructions
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Steffey's parents on Friday (Jan. 19) announced a reward is being offered for information leading to the whereabouts of their son, a National Merit Scholar majoring in aviation technology from Bloomington, Ind.

The reward fund, established by Steffey's family and friends, is being administered by Fifth Third Bank in Central Indiana. Donors should make their checks out to The Wade Steffey Reward Fund in Central Indiana, and donations can be made at any Fifth Third Bank branch. For information, call Fifth Third Bank in Lafayette at (765) 423-5557.

In addition to a flier available online at https://www.purdue.edu/uns/html3month/2007/071019SteffeyFlyer.pdf, Purdue police also have requested that campus and Greater Lafayette residents search areas near their homes and workplaces for clues to Steffey's whereabouts. Norberg said that, along with the cell phone, police are particularly interested in recovering any items of clothing, wallets and other personal effects, such as identification cards.

Police also have partnered with A Child Is Missing, a non-profit agency that helps police departments find missing people. The alert program will send out 2,000 to 3,000 phone calls to residents within a three- to five-mile radius of where Steffey was last seen. The calls will include a description of Steffey and his clothing, as well as a phone number people can call to report information on the case.

Prayer vigil
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Police were alerted to Steffey's disappearance on Tuesday (Jan. 16) when classes resumed after a three-day holiday weekend and family and friends became concerned that he had not been seen.

Police received a tip that a person matching Steffey's description was seen at the northwest corner of Owen Hall around 12:30 a.m. Jan. 13, near the time when a call was placed from his cell phone to a female student who lives there. Steffey had reportedly left his coat in Owen Hall, Norberg said.

Steffey is white with short brown hair and brown eyes, is 5 feet, 10 inches tall and weighs about 150 pounds. He was reported to be wearing a white long-sleeved shirt with light blue stripes and light-colored jeans.

Anyone with information about the case is asked to call the Purdue Police Department at (765) 494-8221 or the anonymous tip line at (765) 496-3784.

Writer: Brian Zink, (765) 494-2080, bzink@purdue.edu

Source: Jeanne Norberg, (765) 491-1460, jnorberg@purdue.edu

Purdue News Service: (765) 494-2096; purduenews@purdue.edu

PHOTO CAPTION:
Purdue Police Chief Gary K. Evans instructs the more than 300 volunteers who answered a call for assistance on Thursday (Jan. 18) to help find missing student Wade S. Steffey. Volunteers searched several areas in and around the campus. (Purdue News Service photo/David Umberger)

A publication-quality photo is available at https://www.purdue.edu/uns/images/+2007/steffey-search.jpg

PHOTO CAPTION:
Purdue police Capt. Tim Potts, at left, gives search instructions to those attending a Saturday (Jan. 20) prayer vigil for missing student Wade Steffey. Following the vigil, which was led by Purdue students Sarah Kelzer and Brooke Anderson (at far right), police led volunteers in a search for Steffey's cell phone. (Purdue News Service photo/David Umberger)

A publication-quality photo is available at https://www.purdue.edu/uns/images/+2007/steffey-prayer.jpg

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