Knife found in Dru Sjodin case - Sitcoms Online Message Boards

PZelda · 12-09-2003, 07:15 PM

Story from http://www.twincities.com/mld/pionee...al/7446776.htm

Knife, blood, suspect linked
BY BILL GARDNER
Pioneer Press

A knife stained with the blood of Dru Sjodin was found in the car of the man charged with kidnapping the 22-year-old University of North Dakota student, a source close to the investigation told the Pioneer Press on Monday.

DNA testing of blood found on the knife is "very accurate" and indicates that the blood matches that of Sjodin, said the source, who asked not to be identified.

"There is a lot of strong physical evidence in that car," the source said, referring to the 2002 Mercury Sable that belongs to suspected kidnapper Alfonso Rodriguez Jr., 50. The four-door maroon sedan was impounded by authorities before Rodriguez's Dec. 1 arrest at his mother's home in Crookston, Minn.

An investigative source told the Grand Forks Herald that the knife was found in a pool of liquid household cleaner in the wheel well of Rodriguez's car. The interior of the car and the trunk obviously had been extensively cleaned, that source told the Herald.

Authorities have also said a knife sheath was found near Sjodin's car in the parking lot of the Columbia Mall in Grand Forks, N.D., where the Pequot Lakes, Minn., native was last seen Nov. 22 as she left work.

The Pioneer Press reported Friday that blood had been found in Rodriguez's car that could very well be Sjodin's.

Evidence in the case, sealed by a judge in the wake of Rodriguez's arrest, is expected to be released today.

Rodriguez is a convicted rapist who was released from prison in May after serving 23 years for stabbing a woman he tried to kidnap on a Crookston sidewalk in 1980. He was registered as a predatory offender, the classification for those believed to be at the highest risk of committing another sex crime.

Rodriguez told his attorney last week that he did not kidnap Sjodin, and he has given authorities no help in locating her. He faces a preliminary hearing Feb. 4 and remains in the Grand Forks County jail on $5 million bail. David Dusek, Rodriguez's court-appointed lawyer, has said Rodriguez prefers to remain in jail for his own safety.

WCCO-TV reported Monday that Rodriguez has been driven around the area by investigators but has not provided any useful information. Peter Welte, the North Dakota state's attorney for Grand Forks County, has said repeatedly that his office would not make a deal with Rodriguez in return for information about Sjodin's whereabouts.

Welte initially asked a judge to seal the evidence in the case, to protect the investigation and Sjodin's family. But after several media organizations filed briefs to unseal the affidavit of probable cause, Welte said he would not oppose making it public. Dusek said he would decide today whether he would object to the unsealing of the affidavit.

District Judge Lawrence Jahnke said Monday that his decision would be made shortly after noon today.

Rodriguez's sister Illeana Noyes, of rural Crookston, said she spoke to Dusek for about an hour Monday, but she declined to elaborate.

Rodriguez has admitted to investigators he was at the mall about the time Sjodin was last seen, but he denied having any contact with her. Sjodin was talking to her boyfriend on her cell phone from the mall parking lot about 5 p.m. on Nov. 22 when she suddenly exclaimed, "Oh, my God!'' and the connection was lost.

Rodriguez drove his car to work Monday, Nov. 24, at a construction site in McIntosh, Minn., about 30 miles east of Crookston, said those who worked with him. Investigators searched the car at the job site a day or two before Thanksgiving and impounded it soon after the search, sources close to the investigation told the Herald.

Sjodin's disappearance and efforts to find her have generated more than 1,500 tips for Grand Forks police. Despite more than two weeks of searches by as many as 1,700 people at one time, no trace of Sjodin has been confirmed by police.

Relatives, friends and some volunteers resumed the search Monday for Sjodin after taking a day off Sunday. The search Monday focused around Alvarado, Minn., about 20 miles north of Grand Forks.

Law enforcement officials said they plan to extend their search to areas south of Grand Forks this week. Authorities will ask North Dakota Gov. John Hoeven for assistance in the searches.

"What we're hoping for is personnel and equipment," said Grand Forks County Sheriff Dan Hill. "We're certainly not going to slow down on this thing."

Grand Forks Police Capt. Mike Kirby said authorities have no reason to believe Sjodin is dead and they will keep searching.

"We are committed to this," Kirby said. "The family is out and we will be out."

Sjodin's father, Allan, told the Associated Press on Monday that he was shocked to learn that police recovered a knife from Rodriguez's car. But given Rodriguez's history, he said, the notion of Rodriguez using a knife was not surprising.

"You know what? It's probably true," Allan Sjodin said. "That's his modus operandi."

The Dru Sjodin case has also become a political issue in Minnesota because Gov. Tim Pawlenty announced he would seek to restore the death penalty. Minnesota is one of a dozen states that does not impose the death penalty. The state abolished capital punishment in 1911, five years after a dramatically botched hanging, and attempts to reinstate it have failed.

-----------

IMO, I think Alfonso is definitely the one that did SOMETHING to Dru. He knows something that we don't and whatever it is, he's not letting on. It's very possible that he murdered her and hid her body...Ugh, that makes me sick to my stomach to think about what that monster did.

Lucylover22 · 12-09-2003, 09:16 PM

I just read that on AOL News. It was sick reading that the guy claims he is innocent.

Nanny Fine · 12-09-2003, 10:29 PM

This news just devastates me.

I was away for work all weekend and I called home just to see if there was any news on Dru.

I know that they have not found her yet so there is not a full out reason to be pessimistic but it does not look good.

My dear 8 year old daughter is saying prayers for Dru. I hope for a good outcome but I hope as much for some closure for this family. I cannot even fathom the way they are feeling right now.

Meanwhile I hope that bastard rots in prison for the rest of his life.

Nanny Fine · 12-09-2003, 10:33 PM

Look at what a beautiful fun person she seems to be...

how could anyone hurt her?

Nanny Fine · 12-09-2003, 10:34 PM

and another...

Brent88 · 12-09-2003, 10:48 PM

I just don't see how anyone could hurt this poor, beautiful, innocent young woman, who had her whole life ahead of her. I hope the suspect gets the book thrown at him!

dandelion wine · 12-09-2003, 10:48 PM

I just read about this too, and I also feel that he's keeping information to himself. If he is, he needs to cut the crap and OPEN UP NOW..

All this time, I've been trying to keep hope that she'd be found alive and now this.

Nanny Fine · 12-09-2003, 10:51 PM

PS I got those photo's from Find Dru Sjodin!

Nanny Fine · 12-09-2003, 10:53 PM

Quote:

Originally posted by little insomniac

All this time, I've been trying to keep hope that she'd be found alive and now this.

I feel the same way. They found one of her shoes by the river banks. It just doesn't look all that promising unfortunately.

They've called in the NATIONAL GUARD for search and what they are saying recovery now (not rescue

) They know more than they are letting on.

PZelda · 12-09-2003, 11:08 PM

Quote:

Originally posted by Nanny Fine
I feel the same way. They found one of her shoes by the river banks. It just doesn't look all that promising unfortunately.

They've called in the NATIONAL GUARD for search and what they are saying recovery now (not rescue ) They know more than they are letting on.

OMG.

Oh no...Well, folks, you can figure the rest out now...

Brent88 · 12-09-2003, 11:57 PM

I just hope they find her if she is dead(which I think she is) it'll at least give some closure to the family. There's nothing worse than not knowing what happened to your family member.

dandelion wine · 12-10-2003, 01:37 AM

Quote:

Originally posted by Nanny Fine
I feel the same way. They found one of her shoes by the river banks. It just doesn't look all that promising unfortunately.

They've called in the NATIONAL GUARD for search and what they are saying recovery now (not rescue ) They know more than they are letting on.

With that piece of information, not at all. It makes me angry that he's not talking because, as every parent who's been in this situation has said, it's the not knowing that's so hard. They deserve to know what happened to her.

PZelda · 12-11-2003, 07:26 PM

UPDATE

From http://story.news.yahoo.com/news?tmp...ng_student_141

Dru Sjodin's Mother Calls Suspect's Mom
Thu Dec 11, 6:00 AM ET Add U.S. National - AP to My Yahoo!

GRAND FORKS, N.D. - While officials and friends searched without success for Dru Sjodin, her mother went looking for help from the mother of the man charged with kidnapping the missing college student.

AP Photo
Slideshow: N. Dakota Missing Student Case

Sheriff: Missing Student Search Expands
(AP Video)

Related Links
• Missing Person: Dru Sjodin (Grand Forks Police Dept.)
• FindDru.com

"I asked her to reach out to her son and please ask him to lead us to Dru," Linda Walker told the Grand Forks Herald for its Thursday editions. "I asked mother-to-mother."

Alfonso Rodriguez Jr., 50, of Crookston, Minn., is being held on $5 million bond. Rodriguez has said through his attorney that he had nothing to do with the Nov. 22 disappearance of Sjodin, who is enrolled at the University of North Dakota.

Walker said Dolores Rodriguez did not respond to her request when they spoke Saturday. But she said Dolores Rodriguez and her daughter, Illeana Noyes, were compassionate, expressing concern about Sjodin's safety and the family's well-being.

Dolores Rodriguez and Noyes visited Alfonso Rodriguez for 45 minutes Tuesday, but the topic of their conversation wasn't known.

Authorities say a small amount of blood found in Rodriguez's car tested against DNA from Sjodin's toothbrush, and a knife found in Rodriguez's trunk matched a sheath found near her car, which was found at the mall where she disappeared.

Meanwhile, National Guard soldiers from North Dakota and Minnesota will help scour the countryside for Sjodin beginning Friday.

Minnesota expects to send 150 soldiers to cover roughly 500 square miles of Polk County in northwestern Minnesota after Sheriff Mark LeTexier asked Gov. Tim Pawlenty for help.

Up to 90 North Dakota soldiers will help about 55 Highway Patrol troopers, Crime Bureau agents and state conservation officers go over 275 to 300 square miles, local and Guard officials said.

Areas south and west of Grand Forks are near the Columbia Mall, where Sjodin disappeared and within the 25-mile range of the signal coming off her cell phone, said Dan Hill, sheriff of Grand Forks County.

Hill has been criticized by the Sjodin family and others for saying Tuesday that Sjodin probably won't be found alive. He also said authorities will not stop looking for her.

Hill met with Sjodin's father, Allan Sjodin, at the police station Wednesday morning to explain himself.

"He extended his hand out to me, and I walked up to him and told him I was so sorry that I said what I said," Hill said. "He gave me a big hug and I hugged him back."

PZelda · 12-12-2003, 06:50 PM

You know this is serious when this case makes the cover of People magazine for this week.

Nanny Fine · 12-12-2003, 10:40 PM

Quote:

Originally posted by PZelda: VICKI!!
You know this is serious when this case makes the cover of People magazine for this week.

Hmm, Trista and Ryan are on the cover of my People magazine.

Is it Regional or do you mean last weeks with the Reagan's and Dru's picture in the bottom corner?

12-09-2003, 07:15 PM	#1
PZelda Two Valeries! <3 Forum Addict Join Date: Jul 15, 2002 Location: I'm STILL missing NYC. :( Posts: 78,223	Knife found in Dru Sjodin case Story from http://www.twincities.com/mld/pionee...al/7446776.htm Knife, blood, suspect linked BY BILL GARDNER Pioneer Press A knife stained with the blood of Dru Sjodin was found in the car of the man charged with kidnapping the 22-year-old University of North Dakota student, a source close to the investigation told the Pioneer Press on Monday. DNA testing of blood found on the knife is "very accurate" and indicates that the blood matches that of Sjodin, said the source, who asked not to be identified. "There is a lot of strong physical evidence in that car," the source said, referring to the 2002 Mercury Sable that belongs to suspected kidnapper Alfonso Rodriguez Jr., 50. The four-door maroon sedan was impounded by authorities before Rodriguez's Dec. 1 arrest at his mother's home in Crookston, Minn. An investigative source told the Grand Forks Herald that the knife was found in a pool of liquid household cleaner in the wheel well of Rodriguez's car. The interior of the car and the trunk obviously had been extensively cleaned, that source told the Herald. Authorities have also said a knife sheath was found near Sjodin's car in the parking lot of the Columbia Mall in Grand Forks, N.D., where the Pequot Lakes, Minn., native was last seen Nov. 22 as she left work. The Pioneer Press reported Friday that blood had been found in Rodriguez's car that could very well be Sjodin's. Evidence in the case, sealed by a judge in the wake of Rodriguez's arrest, is expected to be released today. Rodriguez is a convicted rapist who was released from prison in May after serving 23 years for stabbing a woman he tried to kidnap on a Crookston sidewalk in 1980. He was registered as a predatory offender, the classification for those believed to be at the highest risk of committing another sex crime. Rodriguez told his attorney last week that he did not kidnap Sjodin, and he has given authorities no help in locating her. He faces a preliminary hearing Feb. 4 and remains in the Grand Forks County jail on $5 million bail. David Dusek, Rodriguez's court-appointed lawyer, has said Rodriguez prefers to remain in jail for his own safety. WCCO-TV reported Monday that Rodriguez has been driven around the area by investigators but has not provided any useful information. Peter Welte, the North Dakota state's attorney for Grand Forks County, has said repeatedly that his office would not make a deal with Rodriguez in return for information about Sjodin's whereabouts. Welte initially asked a judge to seal the evidence in the case, to protect the investigation and Sjodin's family. But after several media organizations filed briefs to unseal the affidavit of probable cause, Welte said he would not oppose making it public. Dusek said he would decide today whether he would object to the unsealing of the affidavit. District Judge Lawrence Jahnke said Monday that his decision would be made shortly after noon today. Rodriguez's sister Illeana Noyes, of rural Crookston, said she spoke to Dusek for about an hour Monday, but she declined to elaborate. Rodriguez has admitted to investigators he was at the mall about the time Sjodin was last seen, but he denied having any contact with her. Sjodin was talking to her boyfriend on her cell phone from the mall parking lot about 5 p.m. on Nov. 22 when she suddenly exclaimed, "Oh, my God!'' and the connection was lost. Rodriguez drove his car to work Monday, Nov. 24, at a construction site in McIntosh, Minn., about 30 miles east of Crookston, said those who worked with him. Investigators searched the car at the job site a day or two before Thanksgiving and impounded it soon after the search, sources close to the investigation told the Herald. Sjodin's disappearance and efforts to find her have generated more than 1,500 tips for Grand Forks police. Despite more than two weeks of searches by as many as 1,700 people at one time, no trace of Sjodin has been confirmed by police. Relatives, friends and some volunteers resumed the search Monday for Sjodin after taking a day off Sunday. The search Monday focused around Alvarado, Minn., about 20 miles north of Grand Forks. Law enforcement officials said they plan to extend their search to areas south of Grand Forks this week. Authorities will ask North Dakota Gov. John Hoeven for assistance in the searches. "What we're hoping for is personnel and equipment," said Grand Forks County Sheriff Dan Hill. "We're certainly not going to slow down on this thing." Grand Forks Police Capt. Mike Kirby said authorities have no reason to believe Sjodin is dead and they will keep searching. "We are committed to this," Kirby said. "The family is out and we will be out." Sjodin's father, Allan, told the Associated Press on Monday that he was shocked to learn that police recovered a knife from Rodriguez's car. But given Rodriguez's history, he said, the notion of Rodriguez using a knife was not surprising. "You know what? It's probably true," Allan Sjodin said. "That's his modus operandi." The Dru Sjodin case has also become a political issue in Minnesota because Gov. Tim Pawlenty announced he would seek to restore the death penalty. Minnesota is one of a dozen states that does not impose the death penalty. The state abolished capital punishment in 1911, five years after a dramatically botched hanging, and attempts to reinstate it have failed. ----------- IMO, I think Alfonso is definitely the one that did SOMETHING to Dru. He knows something that we don't and whatever it is, he's not letting on. It's very possible that he murdered her and hid her body...Ugh, that makes me sick to my stomach to think about what that monster did.
	__________________ Cheers behind the couch!

12-09-2003, 09:16 PM	#2
Lucylover22 Young and Hopeless Forum Regular Join Date: Aug 15, 2001 Location: She-Town Posts: 769	I just read that on AOL News. It was sick reading that the guy claims he is innocent.
	__________________ My Hopes Are So High, Your Kiss Might Kill Me So Won't You Kill Me So I Die Happy -Dashboard Confessional, " Hands Down" I Tried To Be Perfect, It Just Wasn't Worth It - Sum 41 "Pieces"

12-09-2003, 10:29 PM	#3
Nanny Fine Justine and Holden.. Senior Member Join Date: Jan 01, 2003 Location: Watching The Ellen Degeneres Show and luvin' it Posts: 2,852	This news just devastates me. I was away for work all weekend and I called home just to see if there was any news on Dru. I know that they have not found her yet so there is not a full out reason to be pessimistic but it does not look good. My dear 8 year old daughter is saying prayers for Dru. I hope for a good outcome but I hope as much for some closure for this family. I cannot even fathom the way they are feeling right now. Meanwhile I hope that bastard rots in prison for the rest of his life.
	__________________ * How it all came down to this, only the Devil knows. Retail Rodeo is at the corner on my left. The motel is down the road to my right. I close my eyes and try to peer into the future. On my left, I saw days upon days of lipstick and ticking clocks, dirty looks and quiet whisperings. And burning secrets that just won't ever die away. And on my right, what could I picture? The blue sky, the desert earth, stretching out into the eerie infinity. A beautiful never-ending nothing. ~Justine, "The Good Girl" * Bush for President!

12-09-2003, 10:33 PM	#4
Nanny Fine Justine and Holden.. Senior Member Join Date: Jan 01, 2003 Location: Watching The Ellen Degeneres Show and luvin' it Posts: 2,852	Look at what a beautiful fun person she seems to be... how could anyone hurt her? Attached Images

12-09-2003, 10:34 PM	#5
Nanny Fine Justine and Holden.. Senior Member Join Date: Jan 01, 2003 Location: Watching The Ellen Degeneres Show and luvin' it Posts: 2,852	and another... Attached Images

12-09-2003, 10:48 PM	#6
Brent88 Member Forum Star Join Date: Aug 01, 2003 Location: Alabama Posts: 16,174	I just don't see how anyone could hurt this poor, beautiful, innocent young woman, who had her whole life ahead of her. I hope the suspect gets the book thrown at him!

12-09-2003, 10:48 PM	#7
dandelion wine ~ Forum Superstar Join Date: Jul 20, 2003 Location: Behind the Couch Posts: 34,967	I just read about this too, and I also feel that he's keeping information to himself. If he is, he needs to cut the crap and OPEN UP NOW.. All this time, I've been trying to keep hope that she'd be found alive and now this.
	__________________ Fans of Jon-Erik Hexum Merry Christmas!

12-09-2003, 10:51 PM	#8
Nanny Fine Justine and Holden.. Senior Member Join Date: Jan 01, 2003 Location: Watching The Ellen Degeneres Show and luvin' it Posts: 2,852	PS I got those photo's from Find Dru Sjodin!

12-09-2003, 11:57 PM	#11
Brent88 Member Forum Star Join Date: Aug 01, 2003 Location: Alabama Posts: 16,174	I just hope they find her if she is dead(which I think she is) it'll at least give some closure to the family. There's nothing worse than not knowing what happened to your family member.

12-11-2003, 07:26 PM	#13
PZelda Two Valeries! <3 Forum Addict Join Date: Jul 15, 2002 Location: I'm STILL missing NYC. :( Posts: 78,223	UPDATE From http://story.news.yahoo.com/news?tmp...ng_student_141 Dru Sjodin's Mother Calls Suspect's Mom Thu Dec 11, 6:00 AM ET Add U.S. National - AP to My Yahoo! GRAND FORKS, N.D. - While officials and friends searched without success for Dru Sjodin, her mother went looking for help from the mother of the man charged with kidnapping the missing college student. AP Photo Slideshow: N. Dakota Missing Student Case Sheriff: Missing Student Search Expands (AP Video) Related Links • Missing Person: Dru Sjodin (Grand Forks Police Dept.) • FindDru.com "I asked her to reach out to her son and please ask him to lead us to Dru," Linda Walker told the Grand Forks Herald for its Thursday editions. "I asked mother-to-mother." Alfonso Rodriguez Jr., 50, of Crookston, Minn., is being held on $5 million bond. Rodriguez has said through his attorney that he had nothing to do with the Nov. 22 disappearance of Sjodin, who is enrolled at the University of North Dakota. Walker said Dolores Rodriguez did not respond to her request when they spoke Saturday. But she said Dolores Rodriguez and her daughter, Illeana Noyes, were compassionate, expressing concern about Sjodin's safety and the family's well-being. Dolores Rodriguez and Noyes visited Alfonso Rodriguez for 45 minutes Tuesday, but the topic of their conversation wasn't known. Authorities say a small amount of blood found in Rodriguez's car tested against DNA from Sjodin's toothbrush, and a knife found in Rodriguez's trunk matched a sheath found near her car, which was found at the mall where she disappeared. Meanwhile, National Guard soldiers from North Dakota and Minnesota will help scour the countryside for Sjodin beginning Friday. Minnesota expects to send 150 soldiers to cover roughly 500 square miles of Polk County in northwestern Minnesota after Sheriff Mark LeTexier asked Gov. Tim Pawlenty for help. Up to 90 North Dakota soldiers will help about 55 Highway Patrol troopers, Crime Bureau agents and state conservation officers go over 275 to 300 square miles, local and Guard officials said. Areas south and west of Grand Forks are near the Columbia Mall, where Sjodin disappeared and within the 25-mile range of the signal coming off her cell phone, said Dan Hill, sheriff of Grand Forks County. Hill has been criticized by the Sjodin family and others for saying Tuesday that Sjodin probably won't be found alive. He also said authorities will not stop looking for her. Hill met with Sjodin's father, Allan Sjodin, at the police station Wednesday morning to explain himself. "He extended his hand out to me, and I walked up to him and told him I was so sorry that I said what I said," Hill said. "He gave me a big hug and I hugged him back."

12-12-2003, 06:50 PM	#14
PZelda Two Valeries! <3 Forum Addict Join Date: Jul 15, 2002 Location: I'm STILL missing NYC. :( Posts: 78,223	You know this is serious when this case makes the cover of People magazine for this week.