Isabel Mercedes Celis missing from Tucson, AZ/ The father has been barred from seeing his children!/ 550+ pages reveal details in the Celis investigation

TUCSON, Ariz. – The overnight disappearance of a 6-year-old Arizona girl triggered a massive search Saturday by scores of police, FBI agents and a large contingent of deputy U.S. Marshals as officials investigated the possibility that she might have been kidnapped or just wandered off.
First-grader Isabel Mercedes Celis's parents last saw her in bed at 11 p.m. Friday, and they discovered her missing at about 8 a.m. Saturday, said Tucson police spokeswoman Sgt. Maria Hawke.
Police continued to search an area of Tucson around East Broadway Boulevard and Craycroft Road late into the afternoon using street patrols, canines, detectives and a helicopter.
Hawke said investigators were looking into all potential scenarios, including the possibility that Isabel got up and wandered out of the home she shares with her parents and two brothers or that she was kidnapped.
The working-class neighborhood of single-family homes is sandwiched between a large shopping mall to the east and business and a Catholic school to the west.
Both parents live in the home, so police did not think a child custody dispute was involved.
"Because of the possibly existing that this child could have been abducted we're treating it as if it's that significant," Hawke said Saturday afternoon. "We don't want to be caught behind the ball by not exploring that possibility. So because of that we literally, all hands on deck, every available resource has been called."
Hawke says at least 75 law enforcement officers were involved, possibly as many as 100, as more resources continue to arrive to help in the search and investigate the disappearance.
Isabel is described as just under 4-feet-tall and weighing 44 pounds, with brown hair and hazel eyes.

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Another one!!

I started to post this and I am glad I checked. Thanks lissette.

Another beautiful child missing. I hope they find her and she is okay.

A massive search for a 6-year-old Tucson, Ariz., girl who vanished overnight yielded no clues by late Saturday.
Scores of police, FBI agents and deputy U.S. marshals combed the city’s east side for first-grader Isabel Mercedes Celis. Officials tried to determine if the girl was kidnapped or just wandered off.
Isabel’s parents last saw her in bed at 11 p.m. Friday, and they discovered her missing when they woke up around 8 a.m. Saturday, Tucson police spokeswoman Sgt. Maria Hawke said.

Police using dogs and a helicopter were still out late Saturday night, police communications operator Patrick Olea said.
Friends of the family distributed fliers with a photo of Isabel, NBC station KVOA in Tucson reported.

"We're really surprised or shocked that anything like this could happen to our family," the girl's uncle, Justin Mastromarino, told KVOA.
Hawke said investigators were looking into all potential scenarios, including the possibility that Isabel got up and wandered out of the home she shares with her parents and two brothers or that she was kidnapped.
Investigators also were examining every door and window of the house for signs of a break-in, Hawke said.
Both parents live in the home, so police had no indication a child custody dispute was involved but weren't completely ruling it out.
"We don't want to be caught behind the ball by not exploring that possibility," Hawke said Saturday afternoon.
The working-class neighborhood of single-family homes is sandwiched between a large shopping mall to the east and businesses and a Catholic school to the west.
Isabel is described as just under 4 feet tall and weighing 44 pounds, with brown hair and hazel eyes. She is missing her two front teeth.
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Six-year-old Isabel Celis allegedly vanished in the middle of Friday night and still hasn't been found. Police in Tucson have been searching desperately for the girl, but it appears that there are doubts about the parent's claims that she was abducted from her room. In fact, police have publicly declared that they have found no evidence of a break-in, nor have they found any evidence to compliment an abduction theory at this point.

That's unfortunate, but it also mirrors the other high-profile missing children cases over the past year such as the disappearances of Ayla Reynolds and Lisa Irwin. In both cases the parents told detectives that someone broke into their home and kidnapped the children. In both cases, detectives have concluded that no evidence of break-ins were apparent.

So what happened to six-year-old Isabel Celis? Was she abducted by a well-prepared predator who left behind no evidence? Was she harmed by someone who knew her? Or is this another tragic case like the two aforementioned missing girls?

Justin Mastromarino, the family spokesperson, claims that the window in Isabel's room was left open, but detectives still insist that they've found no evidence to prove whether she was abducted by a stranger or not.

"We don't have an actual piece of evidence that points us in one direction or another so for example we don't have a piece of evidence that says she was definitively taken from the residence. We don't have any specific piece of evidence that tells us she left the residence on her own," said Sgt. Maria Hawke.

In other words, it seems as though the police are saying there is no definitive proof or evidence that compliments any theory of Isabel leaving her Tucson home. So was the window left open on purpose so as to make it look as though she was abducted? Or is the window being open something that has nothing to do with this? Detectives in Arizona, along with U.S. Marshalls and FBI agents, have been on top of this since early Saturday and there doesn't appear to be a reason to doubt anything they've released.

Hopefully more details come soon so as to reveal just what happened to this missing six-year-old child.

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TUCSON , Ariz. - A police spokeswoman says investigators found "suspicious circumstances around a possible entry point" at the home of a 6-year-old Arizona girl who has gone missing from her Tucson home. They’re calling it a suspicious disappearance and possible abduction.

Police Sgt. Maria Hawke wouldn't comment Sunday on whether the entry point was a bedroom window or a door.

However, family friend Mary Littlehorn says she heard from others close to the family that a window screen in the girl's bedroom had been knocked down.

Tucson police chief Roberto Villasenor says that more than 150 law enforcement officers searching for Isabel Mercedes Celis are working around the clock.

Police have locked down the neighborhood where Isabel went missing. They served several search warrants at homes in the area but would not comment further.

"Really there's not anything that has guided us from going from one direction to another. We're not negating and we're not looking into anything, we're being very general in how we approach this right now," said Villasenor.

He told media on Sunday that the girl's parents have been cooperating completely.

Isabel was last seen Friday night as her parents put her to bed. They discovered her missing at about 8 a.m. Saturday and called 911 minutes later.

Multiple agencies are involved with this search including the FBI, Border Patrol and U.S. Marshal's Service.

Police say there are even specialized search dogs that are being flown out from Virginia to help.

Sunday night, there will be a candlelight vigil held at the Circuit City near Craycroft and Broadway at 7:30.

"We are asking God to melt the hearts of those who are responsible for this. That they may have a change of heart. So that Isabel may return safely to her family and to this community," said Fr. Miguel Mariano of St. Joseph's Church.
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TUCSON, Ariz.- The parents of a missing 6-year-old Arizona girl asked their parish priest for prayers Sunday as volunteers passed out fliers across Tucson and more than 150 law enforcement officers tried to figure out whether she had been abducted.

Tucson police chief Roberto Villasenor said at an afternoon news conference that officers working the case had served at least two search warrants but had no new clues in the disappearance of first-grader Isabel Mercedes Celis.

He said the girl's parents, identified by friends as Becky and Sergio Celis, were helpful as police worked to find their youngest child. He said police still were classifying the case as a "suspicious disappearance/possible abduction."

"We're not ruling anything out of the investigation at this point because we really need to keep our mind open about all the information that's been brought to us," Villasenor said. "The family has been cooperating with us."

Officers kept the whole neighborhood block where Isabel lives cordoned off for a second day and fanned out over a wide area looking for clues to the possible kidnapping.

The Celises last saw their daughter in her bedroom at their Tucson home at 11 p.m. Friday and discovered her missing at about 8 a.m. Saturday, police spokeswoman Sgt. Maria Hawke said. The parents phoned 911 minutes later.

Mary Littlehorn, who has worked with Becky Celis as a registered nurse at Tucson Medical Center for five years, said the couple has been together since they were teenagers and doted on their sons and daughter. She said Isabel, whose nickname is Isa, loved to play baseball and dance; the girl was supposed to play in a baseball game Saturday.

"She's just the sweetest, she is feisty, she's full of life and spirit," Littlehorn said.

Littlehorn, who gathered Sunday with other family friends at a police command post, said authorities separated the two parents for hours Saturday as they questioned them. She said it was difficult for them knowing their little girl was out there somewhere.

"She hasn't been allowed to help look for her daughter," Littlehorn said of Becky Celis.

She said she's spent a lot of time with the family, visited with them in their home and their families shared babysitting responsibilities. She said Becky Celis is a registered nurse in the pediatrics unit and Sergio Celis is a dental hygienist.

She said there's no way anyone in the family is involved in the disappearance.

"We all feel this is somebody who's been watching Isa for some amount of time to know where her bedroom is," Littlehorn said.

At St. Joseph Parish on Sunday morning, the parents and their two sons attended an early Mass, and deacon Leon Mazza described the parents as "very upset."

"We didn't ask for any information. We just let them know if they need help, come see us," Mazza said.

Parish priest Miguel Mariano said the family regularly attends Mass and said he asked the parents if they needed any help from the congregation. "And then they said, `No, Father, just prayers," Mariano said.

The couple hurried off, saying they were going to meet with police.

The Catholic church and its school are just down the street from the family's home, and Mariano said in his sermon that he hoped whoever has Isabel has a change of heart.

"I feel, in the name of the community, we feel we are violated," he said later.

Investigators were looking into various scenarios, including the possibility Isabel wandered out of the home she shares with her parents and two brothers. Hawke said Sunday the wandering off theory was becoming less likely as time passed.

Karen Hebert, another registered nurse, said Sunday that she has worked with the girl's mother for the past six months. Hebert, with help from her dog, planned to help with the search.

"She talks very highly about her kids, how smart they are, how playful they are. She just lights up and smiles when she's talking about them," Hebert said. "With all the hurt I'm feeling, I can't imagine what they're going through."

After a fruitless day of searching Saturday, numerous patrol and search and rescue personnel continued the hunt Sunday morning, Hawke said. She said that at any given time, 75 to 100 officers were taking part, including police, FBI agents and deputy U.S. marshals.

Teams combed a large swath of Tucson on Saturday into the evening using street patrols, dogs and a helicopter. At one point late Saturday, communications operator Patrick Olea said the area encompassed "pretty much the entire east side."

The girl's home is situated in a working-class neighborhood, sandwiched between a shopping mall to the east and businesses and the Catholic school and church to the west.

On Sunday morning, the street was still cordoned off by police who were keeping anyone but residents out, and the alley that runs on one side also was blocked off. A home on the street of small, older single-family brick homes was surrounded by yellow police tape, while a group of people outside one home talked with a police officer.

Volunteers were manning an outpost set up near the family home as others, many family and friends, fanned out across the city for a second day. They were posting fliers of the girl _ who is described as about 4-feet-tall with brown hair and hazel eyes _ in gas stations, malls and fast food restaurants that included a photo of Isabel holding up a school achievement award.
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Updated at 11:16 p.m. ET: Investigators found "suspicious circumstances around a possible entry point" at the home of a 6-year-old Arizona girl whose disappearance has prompted a massive search, with more than 150 law enforcement officers trying to figure out whether she was abducted, a police spokeswoman said Sunday, according to the Associated Press.

Tucson police Sgt. Maria Hawke wouldn't comment Sunday on whether the entry point was a bedroom window or a door. But family friend Mary Littlehorn said she heard from others close to the family that a window screen in the girl's bedroom had been knocked down.

The parents of first-grader Isabel Mercedes Celis have said they last saw her in her bedroom at 11 p.m. Friday, according to Hawke. She was discovered missing at about 8 a.m. Saturday, and the parents phoned 911 minutes later.

Officers kept the whole neighborhood block where Isabel lives cordoned off for a second day and fanned out over a wide area looking for clues to the possible kidnapping. A fourth search of a three-mile radius around the home was completed Sunday afternoon in temperatures that reached the high-90s, police Lt. Fabian Pacheco said at a Sunday evening news conference.

Pacheco wouldn't comment on the suspicious "entry point," saying: "I don't want to compromise anything."
Earlier Sunday, Tucson police chief Roberto Villasenor said officers had served at least two search warrants. The girl's parents, identified by friends as Becky and Sergio Celis, were helpful as police worked to find their youngest child, he said. He said police were still classifying the case as a "suspicious disappearance/possible abduction."

"We're not ruling anything out of the investigation at this point because we really need to keep our mind open about all the information that's been brought to us," Villasenor said. "The family has been cooperating with us."

Littlehorn, who gathered Sunday with other family friends at a police command post, said authorities separated the two parents for hours Saturday as they questioned them. She said it was difficult for them knowing their little girl was out there somewhere.

"She hasn't been allowed to help look for her daughter," Littlehorn said of Becky Celis.

The massive search resumed Sunday morning.
Scores of police, FBI agents and deputy U.S. marshals combed the city’s east side for Isabel. Officials tried to determine if the girl was kidnapped or just wandered off.

Isabel’s parents last saw her in bed at 11 p.m. Friday, and they discovered her missing when they woke up around 8 a.m. Saturday, Tucson police spokeswoman Sgt. Maria Hawke said.

Police using dogs and a helicopter were still out late Saturday night, police communications operator Patrick Olea said.

Friends of the family distributed fliers with a photo of Isabel, NBC station KVOA in Tucson reported.

"We're really surprised or shocked that anything like this could happen to our family," the girl's uncle, Justin Mastromarino, told KVOA.

Hawke said investigators were looking into all potential scenarios, including the possibility that Isabel got up and wandered out of the home she shares with her parents and two brothers or that she was kidnapped.
Investigators also were examining every door and window of the house for signs of a break-in, Hawke said.

Both parents live in the home, so police had no indication a child custody dispute was involved but weren't completely ruling it out.

"We don't want to be caught behind the ball by not exploring that possibility," Hawke said Saturday afternoon.

The working-class neighborhood of single-family homes is sandwiched between a large shopping mall to the east and businesses and a Catholic school to the west.
Isabel is described as just under 4 feet tall and weighing 44 pounds, with brown hair and hazel eyes. She is missing her two front teeth.

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If it's so hot in Tucson, why would they leave a window open? Wouldn't they have the a/c going? And, I would Never leave an open window in a child's room while they are sleeping or in any room in the house.

Here's an example of what I'm talking about. NO WAY one could sleep w/an open window in triple digit temps.
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(CBS/AP) TUCSON, Ariz. - The family of a 6-year-old girl who disappeared from her bedroom was being kept away from their home in Tucson after an FBI dog search early Monday turned up information that required a follow-up, investigators said.

Police Chief Roberto Villasenor would not reveal what was found at the home of first-grader Isabel Mercedes Celis. Police says her family last saw her in her room at 11 p.m. Friday and she was discovered missing at 8 a.m. Saturday.
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There's a video at the link.

Police asked the family of missing 6-year-old Isabel Mercedes Celis to leave their Tucson home on Monday after search dogs found clues that could shed new light on the little girl's disappearance.

Tucson Police Chief Roberto Villasenor didn't say what the FBI canine unit found during the overnight search, only that the evidence required "more followup," ABC News reported.

In the meantime, the first-grader's parents, Sergio and Becky Celis, and two brothers were asked to leave the home until further notice, and the house was being treated like a crime scene.

Villasenor also said that investigators were considering a broken window screen in Isabel's bedroom as a "possible entry point" for someone who may have abducted her.

“We have a window that was opened and a screen removed. We’re labeling it as suspicious circumstances and a possible abduction,” he told CNN on Monday morning.

Isabel was last seen by her parents at 11 p.m. on Friday.

She was reported missing at around 8 a.m. Saturday after her mother went to work and her father went to wake her up.

Police upgraded the case from a missing child to a possible abduction over the weekend, and search and rescue teams fanned out across the area on Sunday in a desperate hunt for the girl.

An entire block around the family home was cordoned off and more than 250 people, including friends, family, FBI agents, bloodhound teams and deputy U.S marshals, were canvassing the area, knocking on doors and posting flyers.

Investigators were also in the process of checking on the status of sex offenders in the area.

Police have no suspects, and Villansenor said the family was cooperating.

Celis' uncle Justin Mastromarino told ABC News that Isabel's parents were devastated by the disappearance of their "sweet little girl."

"They're very upset right now, mother is beside herself," he said. "We're just trying to let police do their thing and get as much info as possible."
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I wonder what kind of dogs they used? Whats with all the kids being "KIDKNAPPED" out of thier bedroom?

Amen, Slys!! I have a real difficult time believing children are being kidnapped from their rooms. The "kidnapper" would have to know which room is the childs and take the risk of being caught red-handed. It seems to me this "child being kidnapped from their bedroom" has become quite popular ever since the Lisa Irwin case.

Updated 12:46 p.m., Tuesday, April 24, 2012

TUCSON, Ariz. (AP) — The family of a missing 6-year-old girl was allowed to return to their Tucson home on Tuesday, a day after authorities kept them away as they searched for clues to her disappearance from her bedroom.

Police spokesman Sgt. Marco Borboa said Isabel Mercedes Celis' family was told that they could return to the house. It was not immediately known whether they had returned.

On Monday, FBI dogs — one that can find human remains and the other used for search and rescue — went through the family's home and turned up information that required a follow-up, but police declined to say what that was.

Tucson police are trying to determine what happened to Isabel. Her parents say they awoke on Saturday to find her missing. Police said a window was open with the screen pushed aside.

Since Saturday, investigators and volunteers have fanned across Isabel's neighborhood and an area landfill searching for clues. Volunteers posted fliers with a photo of Isabel — about 4 feet tall with brown hair and hazel eyes — holding a school award.

Her parents, identified by friends as Becky and Sergio Celis, told investigators they last saw the first-grader at 11 p.m. Friday. Her mother, a nurse, was at work Saturday when her father went to wake her at 8 a.m. and discovered her missing, police said.

Police call the case a "suspicious disappearance/possible abduction."

"We're not ruling anything out of the investigation at this point because we really need to keep our mind open about all the information that's been brought to us," Police Chief Roberto Villasenor has said.

Villasenor said at a briefing Tuesday that the National Center For Missing & Exploited Children, which has been assisting investigators, now considers Isabel's disappearance the highest profile case in the nation right now.

Officers have been interviewing sex offenders in the area, a practice that has become standard in all abduction investigations.

The Pima County Attorney's Office is offering a $6,000 reward, which includes an anonymous donation of $5,000.

The family said in their first public statement that they are fully cooperating with authorities.

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thats what I was wondering if they used a SARS dog for remains. This doesnt sound good at all!

Just started following this case - NG on she says that authorities will not confirm if she was in school on Friday.
If she wasnt in school wouldnt that be a huge red flag that the parents are not being truthful? Also wasnt it about 104 degrees there that week?

Artgal, it was probably that hot on Friday. I haven't read or heard anything about school Friday so I'm no help. I didn't watch NG tonight. Maybe someone else heard about that.

Police are scaling back search efforts for a 6-year-old girl who was last seen Friday night when she was getting ready for bed in her Tucson home.

Tucson Police Chief Roberto Villasenor said Tuesday that law enforcement officials expect to wrap up their intensive search for any sign of Isabel Mercedes Celis by Wednesday morning.

More than 20 officers will work through Tuesday night in the neighborhood surrounding Isabel's home, Villasenor said. That's a sharp reduction from the 150 officers from various agencies who first took part in the search.

Villasenor said the drop in personnel doesn't mean authorities have given up hope of finding Isabel alive.

"Obviously, I'm disappointed that we haven't found her at this point. But that doesn't mean we're giving up hope or that we're not going to continue to use all the resources that we need to try and find her and follow up on these leads," Villasenor said.

He said police will be shifting from searching to an investigative phase, since investigators have re-visited sites they believe could be relevant.

About 50 officers finished searching a city landfill, but Villasenor would not disclose if any leads were found. Authorities had said the landfill search was conducted because trash had been taken out Saturday before police could secure the home.

Authorities said they were following more than 260 tips in the case.

Investigators have kept Isabel's family away from the home as they search for clues to her disappearance from her bedroom.

On Monday, FBI dogs - one that can find human remains and the other used for search and rescue - went through the home and turned up information that required a follow-up, but police declined to say what that was.

Investigators from the FBI were going through the home again Tuesday, and the family had not returned, said Lt. Matt Ronstadt, a Tucson police spokesman.

Since Saturday, investigators and volunteers have fanned across the neighborhood searching for clues. Volunteers posted fliers with a photo of Isabel - about 4 feet tall with brown hair and hazel eyes - holding a school award.

Her parents, identified by friends as Becky and Sergio Celis, told investigators they last saw the first-grader at 11 p.m. Friday. Her mother, a nurse, was at work Saturday when her father went to wake her at 8 a.m. and discovered her missing, police said.

Police call the case a "suspicious disappearance/possible abduction."

"We're not ruling anything out of the investigation at this point because we really need to keep our mind open about all the information that's been brought to us," Villasenor has said.

He said at a briefing Tuesday that the National Center for Missing & Exploited Children, which has been assisting investigators, now considers Isabel's disappearance the highest-profile case in the nation right now.

The Pima County attorney's office is offering a $6,000 reward, which includes an anonymous donation of $5,000.
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I was over reading at statement analysis and they mentioned an uncle - with a criminal record - anyone know about the uncle and when he made the statements discussed in this article?
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The case is baffling to me - I honestly dont believe she was abducted - the dogs didnt bark - we dont know if she was in school on Friday and I heard something about some fabric being missing from the family car. The windows on the side of the house are small and very high up - I cannot see someone taking that old of a child out of the house by the window without her making a sound? Nope its not right - something happened to her in that house.

Artgal, I did happen to hear NG talking, I think it was this morning on GMA but not sure. She said that it was confirmed she was in school Friday and that her brother had a softball game Friday night and the girl and her parents were there. I agree about those windows being so high up plus it was so hot there that day the windows had to be closed w/ the a/c on, MOO. There was a red family car that LE was taking things from (tonight on NG, I think, I'll try to find the transcript), it doesn't run and I read on the ticker tape that they took 'some' of the carpet. I think you're right, something happened in that house.

I dont know about the ac thing not to argue but it was 97 here today and I didnt turn mine on.

OMG Slys, I would absolutely die in 97 degrees w/o air! Then again, I'm spoiled by our beach weather, really haven't lived any other place long enough to get used to other weather. You all are used to it and so are the people in AZ but I do think it was like 107 or something there last weekend.

I just checked the transcripts for NG and the one from today isn't up but I'll check later and try to find a link to back up what I said about school and her brother's softball game.

I posted an NG video upthread and also posted the temp was and is in triple digits at the time she went "missing".

I am w/Raine. NO WAY I could NOT turn on the a/c if the temp outside was 97!! I would probably not be able to breathe.

Something is "hinky" on this case for sure!

Nancy Grace
We have the neighbor of missing 6-year-old Isabel Celis on tonight. She shows me the window where she believes little Isabel was abducted. Who did this? And what did the neighbor hear the night Isabel vanished?

source: NG's FB page

Crews search lake for clues in Celis case

Posted: Apr 27, 2012 1:31 AM CDT
Updated: Apr 27, 2012 1:31 AM CDT
By Carissa Planalp

TUCSON NEWS NOW -
Pima County Search and Rescue took to the water Thursday in the search for clues in the Isabel Celis case. They scoured the waters of Lakeside park near Pantano and Stella on Tucson's southeast side.

"It sounds like there trying to set up some kind of grid in here," says visitor Mike Hoger. "Because they were talking about making a line."

The sight of officers searching for signs of Isabel Celis turned the tone from calm to tense.

"Especially when they would say stop the pontoon boat or whatever it is. Or just stop and poke with their sticks, and you just wonder if she's in there, but you hope that she's not."

In a press conference Thursday Tucson Police Chief Roberto Villasenor would not be specific about what crews were looking for.

"I think we'd be remiss if we didn't search all of those areas that could be possibly be a location that hides evidence," said Villasenor.

Crews showed up at the park around 5:30pm Thursday with tools that looked like underwater camera lenses and small buoys.

"I think they're working with something like a camera system, maybe like a sonar," suggested visitor Tammy Heier.

Visitor LeeAnna Hammons described the scope of the search area.

"They went around that side of the lake first all the way around, backed up a couple times over there," says Hammons. She says she also saw them search the southern part of the lake which is separated from the north side by a concrete barrier.

There seemed to be a sense of anxiety for all who watched.

"I hope the little girl's alive and they find her. Safe return is always the best wish," said Hammons.

The lake at Lakeside park is about 14 acres wide and more than 30 feet deep. No word yet on whether crews will return to the area and resume searching tomorrow.

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I think there might be a break in the case - on NG they found that there was video surveillance of the back alley
and there were infared cameras that could see tag numbers and see very well. The father was questioned again apparently and was escorted out by a police officer from the police station.Possibly she was abducted in revenge for something against the father or uncle? The owner of the surveillance says he thinks he saw the Uncle and Father at 8 am walking down the alley - possibly looking for Isabel and also a report that the police are searching a park some 6 miles away.

WOW!!! Thanks, ART!! Reminds me of poor little HaLeigh!

Nancy Grace
Secret surveillance footage of alley near vanished 6-year-old girl’s home surfaces! Do you think it will show investigators what happened & lead cops to missing Isabel? I’m speaking with the owner of the surveillance cam and exploring what it could show! Plus the parents have remained out of the public eye since their news conference - why? Do you think the parents speaking out could help generate more leads for their missing little girl Isabel?

source: NG's FB page

Thanks Art!

Isabel Celis: Tucson Police Looking For Group Seen On Surveillance Video

Tucson, Arizona police are looking for a group of five people who were captured on surveillance video leaving a club near the home of Isabel Celis around the time the 6-year-old disappeared.

The three women and two men were captured on camera just a block from the Celis house on the night the girl vanished.

Police said the group was walking away from a club at 1:30 a.m.

"We want them to come forward and tell us did they or did they not see anything unusual," a Tucson police spokesperson said.

Isabel Celis was reported missing by her father around 8 a.m. April 21 after her mother left for work and her father went to wake her up. The child was not in her room, and a bedroom window was opened with the screen removed, police said.

The little girl was last seen around 11 p.m. April 20, when she was put to bed.

"If this child were abducted out of her house, through a window, out a door, somebody may have seen that," said Brad Garrett, a former FBI agent and ABC News consultant.


While the police have not ruled out Celis's parents as suspects, they have said the family has cooperated fully with police during the investigation.

"We have tremendous gratitude to the millions of people around the world who have prayed for Isabel," Becky Celis said. "Please continue to pray for her return. We don't want the focus to be taken off Isabel by talking in front of the cameras."

FBI search dogs, including a scent dog and a cadaver dog, hit on something in the house that police noted was "important" to the investigation on April 22. Police then executed search warrants on the Celis home and other homes in the neighborhood, though they would not say which ones.

Authorities are awaiting lab results of the evidence gathered, sources told ABC News.

Police have searched homes in the family's neighborhood, dug through a nearby landfull and searched waterways and drainage systems in Tucson, but so far have few leads.

The missing girl's parents issued a plea this week for the safe return of their daughter.

"Just please, please, to the person or persons who have Isabel, tell us what you want. We will do anything for her. We're looking for you, Isa," Sergio Celis, the girl's father, said tearfully.

Standing with family members clad in matching "Bring Isa Home" T-shirts, Celis and his wife, Becky,spoke directly to their daughter's captor, saying in both English and Spanish that they would do anything for her return. The parents have offered $6,000 for information about her disappearance.

Police noted that there are 15 registered sex offenders in the neighborhood, all of whom have been interviewed by police.
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She is such a little cutie! I'm afraid some SO had his eye on her and somehow found out which room was hers...But that window seems awfully high off the ground and small to get her out without some noise. IDK...the parents seem very sincere.

Authorities in Mexico join search for missing Arizona girl

TUCSON, Ariz. – The search for a 6-year-old Arizona girl who disappeared from her family's home has extended to Mexico, authorities said Friday.
U.S. Marshals have been in touch with Mexican law enforcement officials who are checking hotels, bus terminals and other businesses as they help look for Isabel Mercedes Celis, according to Tucson police. A photo of the first-grader is being circulated in Mexico as well.
Police began looking at the possibility that Isabel could have been taken there because of Tucson's close proximity to the border, Lt. Fabian Pacheco said.

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Comment from Valhall at The Hinky Meter:

U.S. Marshals contacted Mexican authorities to request their assistance in searching for the missing child on their side of the common border. Officers in Mexico are reported to be checking motels, bus terminals and businesses. This expansion of the search into Mexico could have something to do with a revealing, but not yet detailed statement, made on a local news channel in Tucson yesterday. Law enforcement confirmed they were looking into a “narcotics angle” in Isabel’s disappearance.

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What could the "narcotics angle" be?

In the video above, the narrator talks about the "suspicious disappearance." Tell me what disappearance of a six-year-old girl from her bedroom in the middle of the night wouldn't be "suspicious"?? :scratch:

Media loves to add their own spin!!

Concerning the "narcotics angle": Could the dogs have been drug dogs and hit on drugs or residue in the house? (when the family was kept out for a couple of days). I think I read that an uncle had a criminal record of some sort and maybe was staying with them that night. Maybe somebody owed a drug debt...I know that the drug cartels have huge presence in that area. And in the press conference with the parents, the father said, "What are your demands? We will do anything..." or something along those lines. Sounded like he had an idea that she had been taken for a specific reason...

I agree, Lisette. Why would the father ask, "what are your demands?" I doubt they are rich so one would not ask that unless they had boat loads of money. I DO think that drugs plays a huge part in Isabel's "abduction", if that is truly what it was.

Still, I keep going back to the fact that her bedroom window was wide open in triple digit temps! This makes no sense. I would NEVER, in this day and age, allow my grandchild to sleep with an open window, no matter what the temp. MOO.

This was not a random kidnapping IMO, this might have been linked to drugs - if so in Mexico they dont play around - they will kill babies, children, the aged they dont give a damn who they will kill and in the most horrific ways if you hold out on them where drug deals are involved. If so the parents would be scared to death to talk about it. However, that doesnt bode well for the child as the parents and the uncle are now under surveillance.

My thoughts are drugs or she was trafficked. When they brought Mexico into it those were my immediate thoughts.

I completely agree with both of you. I think the father might have been selling drugs. I wonder if the parents have been poly'd.

I think it might have been the Uncle - didnt he have a record that involved drugs?

Not sure. Honestly, have not kept up Completely on this case but I do remember someone in the family was involved w/drugs.

Police still tracing leads in missing girl case
7:40 PM, Apr. 28, 2012

TUCSON, Ariz. (WTW) — Police were settling in for a long, frustrating investigation and reported no breakthroughs in the eighth day of a search for a missing 6-year-old Tucson girl.

Dozens of tips are being investigated for the one that may lead to Isabel Mercedes Celis, but none so far has broken the case open, Tucson police spokesman Lt. Fabian Pacheco said Saturday. Instead, detectives aided by the FBI and U.S. Marshals Service were settling back and reassessing what they needed to do to find the first-grader.

The girl's parents, Becky and Sergio Celis, reported her missing last Saturday morning, saying they last saw her in her room the night before. The couple's two older boys also lived in the home on the city's east side, just down the street from the Catholic church they all regularly attended.

Pacheco said at a Saturday afternoon press briefing that one of five people captured in a video walking by the church the night Isabel was last seen has called them. Detectives want to ask him if the five saw anything unusual.

Police are now discounting the possibility that Isabel got up in the middle of the night and left on her own, Chief Roberto Villasenor said Friday.

Pacheco said Saturday that police in the northern Mexican state of Sonora are on the lookout, in case she was abducted and taken south of the border. He also said talk that police are focusing on a drug connection is misplaced, instead saying detectives are looking at every possible scenario.

"We have to do a broad investigation, look at all possible scenarios, and we're not at a point where we can start eliminating any of them or focusing more efforts on one than another," Pacheco said. "We understand that some folks might feel frustration. Eight days, believe me, we feel it as well.

"This isn't CSI Tucson where we're going to solve this in an hour. It's going to take us a while and we need that patience," he said.

The ground search for Isabel is essentially complete, Pacheco said. "A three-square-mile area around her home was canvassed three times and area ponds, dry streambeds and empty houses repeatedly searched.

The parents are continuing to cooperate with police.

Police say the reward for information in the case is now $50,000, and they've added additional ways for the public to feed tips to them. Besides calling 911, or the local tip telephone line of 520 88-Crime, or a secure smart phone app called TipSoft.

The application lets people anonymously with police. The cope for the Isabel Celis case is Tucsonpd5265.

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Similarities sought in Tucson case, assaults

by JJ Hensley - Apr. 30, 2012 09:21 PM
The Republic | azcentral.com

The investigation into 6-year-old Isabel Mercedes Celis' disappearance expanded Monday as Tucson police and Pima County Sheriff's deputies looked for similarities between her case and the reported molestation of three girls outside Tucson city limits.

However, Tucson police spokeswoman Sgt. Maria Hawke warned, "We literally have no idea (whether the cases are related), they are so early in their investigation."

The three girls, ages 6, 8, and 10, told authorities they had been sexual assaulted early Monday by an unknown male, according to Deputy Dawn Barkman, spokeswoman for the Pima County Sheriff's Office.

The three girls were in a bedroom at their grandparents' house when someone reportedly entered sometime late Sunday or early Monday, Barkman said.

Police investigators began working Monday with Pima County detectives to spot any common elements between Isabel's disappearance and the molestation report, Hawke said.

Isabel was last seen late the night of Friday, April 20. She reportedly disappeared from her family's home near Broadway Boulevard and Craycroft Road before her parents awoke the following morning.

"We are investigating pretty much everybody, no one has been ruled as a person of interest or suspect," Hawke said.

Forty to 50 police detectives continue to work on the case, and Hawke said investigators are meticulously combing through hundreds of tips that have come in.

Police received more than 300 in the first weekend of her disappearance and continued to receive about eight tips an hour on Saturday.

The search for Isabel was extended to Mexico, where Tucson Police Lt. Fabian Pacheco said investigators have followed up several leads that have so far proved fruitless.

The thoroughness of the investigation was evident in police efforts to track down a group of pedestrians captured on late-night surveillance video as they walked near the Celis home.

Investigators made contact with those captured in the footage, who voluntarily came forward, Hawke said. But police later determined that the group was walking in the area the evening after Isabel's disappearance.

The person who provided a disc of the surveillance footage included footage from the wrong day, Hawke said, and investigators mistakenly believed the footage was from the night of Isabel's disappearance when they broadcast a plea for the public's help in identifying those in the video.

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So, the video surveillance was fruitless. Back to square one.

I Still don't get it. How are these pervs getting into kids rooms so readily? Don't parents know how to LOCK their windows? And, wouldn't a parent hear their daughters screams?