Nov 1, 2007 10:29 pm US/Central
Police Search Bolingbrook Cop's Home, Nearby Pond
BOLINGBROOK, Ill. (CBS) ―
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Stacy Peterson of Bolingbrook is missing.
CBS
Police on Thursday searched the Bolingbrook home of police Sgt. Drew Peterson, whose wife has been missing since Sunday.
At 2:15 p.m. Thursday FBI agents, state's attorney's investigators and Illinois State Police swarmed the house to execute search warrants. They then searched the house using canines and video. They also towed away two vehicles to be searched. State police officers walked out of the Peterson house Thursday night with rifles, a computer and several boxes -- one so heavy two officers had to carry it.
Sgt. Peterson briefly emerged from the next door neighbor's home wearing a baseball cap and bandana.
Police also searched a retention pond near the Petersons' home, alongside a runway at a local airfield. The pond is a half mile north of the home, just north of 107th Street at the south end of the airfield. It's not known if they found anything useful to the investigation.
Investigators say Sgt. Peterson himself led investigators to the air field. Stacy Peterson's car was found there over the weekend. Bolingbrook does not have a dive team, so a dive team from another jurisdiction is assisting in the investigation.
Drew Peterson is not facing any charges at this time in the disappearance of his 23-year-old wife, Stacy. So far, Sgt. Peterson has declined to give any on-camera interviews, saying he would prefer to protect his anonymity. Peterson, a 29 year police veteran, has insisted he had nothing to do with Stacy's disappearance. He told CBS 2 Wednesday he believes Stacy has gone underground. He said he thought their marriage was healthy, but maybe she did not. He also said that since the death of her sister, Stacy had become a different person, in part, he believes, because she was on antidepressants.
Her half-sister says that is not the case at all. Stacy's family members said today the Petersons had a troubled marriage.
"We're there to support each other," Kerry Simmons said. "She's had problems in her marriage and she needed… if it was for anything it was for that, just to help her."
Martin Forgue, Stacy's brother-in-law said, "from little stuff we've heard, it was not a good relationship as long as we knew of it."
Stacy's loved ones watched as investigators searched the couple's home and front and back yards.
Matt Simmons, who is married to Stacy Peterson's half sister, is holding out hope Stacy has not been harmed.
"Stacy, if you're out there, hopefully you see what the family is going through and we all just hope and pray that you come home today, tomorrow, whenever you can."
In 2004 Sgt. Peterson's third wife, Kathleen Savio, was found dead in a bathtub just down the street from the Petersons' current home. The incident was ruled an accident, but the state's attorney is taking a second look at that case.
Drew and Stacy Peterson have been married for four years. Stacy Peterson's only surviving sister, Cassandra Cales, says Stacy lived in fear of the veteran police officer.
"She feared for her life," Cales said. "She wanted a divorce and was talking about getting a divorce."
Police escorted Peterson back to his home. When reporters asked if he had anything to say he replied, "Don't have overdue books."
CBS 2's Jim Williams, Mike Puccinelli and Kris Habermehl contributed to this report.
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