04-27-2011, 06:39 AM
NOLA.com
The disappearance of two 13-year-old boys from eastern New Orleans remained a mystery Tuesday even though the second day of searching came with more resources, including dozens of volunteers.Well-wishers gathered under a tent near Bass Street and Hayne Boulevard for a candlelit vigil Tuesday afternoon expressing concern about Aaronne 'Lil Rony' Mitchell and Aaronne 'Baby Rony' Russell.
New Orleans police -- who on Tuesday were joined by firefighters, the Louisiana Search and Rescue Dog Team and others -- were no closer to locating the brothers, Aaronne "Lil Rony" Mitchell and Aaronne "Baby Rony" Russell, than the day before.
Relatives fretted. Their father, Aaronne "DJ7" Simmons, scrunched his face and said he prays they are alright. Karalynn Russell, the mother of Aaronne Russell, worried aloud about the terrible things that may have happened to the boys since they were last seen on Easter at 11 a.m. walking an adult mixed-breed pit bull and a pit bull puppy.
Angela Kinler, a former St. Bernard Parish resident who now lives in eastern New Orleans, said the boys told her they were going for a swim at Lincoln Beach, one of the historic swimming areas along Lake Pontchartrain. And they wanted to know if she would allow them to take Buddy, her dog, and the puppy, a dog that once belonged to a relative of the boy's father. She said she said yes in the spirit of trying to be neighborly.
Kinler said she was troubled after the boys failed to return soon and began to seek help. She said their father arrived at her home and told her not to worry because he was going to find the dogs and the boys.
After the sun set Monday, the father of the boys found a pair of shorts that belonged to one of the boys and the chain collar of Buddy in the shallow water of Lake Pontchartrain. He said the spot was not far from the railroad tracks near where the levee and Paris Road intersect, which is east of Lincoln Beach and about six blocks east of Kinler's residence.
"When he showed me the collar he said 'Please don't tell me this was your dog's chain,' " Kinler said.
"It was."
She said she didn't know what to think. One of the stories circulating is that there was a large arranged dogfight in the neighborhood in December, but she did not have any first-hand knowledge of this.
Information from secondary sources has been rampant, authorities said. According to other accounts, a boat was taken from one of the homes on pilings along the beach about a mile east from the Paris Road and Hayne Boulevard intersection. Another story circulating throughout the day had a ladder lowered into the water in same area.
"There's no solid information," said Eddie Selby, commander of the New Orleans Police Department's Special Operations Division.
None of the tales has been confirmed, Selby said.
Efforts by the state's Fish and Wildlife Service, firefighters walking along the shoreline and dogs searching for scents failed to uncover any new information.
The family turned to prayer late Tuesday afternoon. The father and Aaronne's mother spoke to many well-wishers gathered under a tent near Bass Street and Hayne Boulevard for a candlelit vigil.
Karalynn Russell and DJ7 said they did not know what to make of the disappearance of the boys.
Both were living in eastern New Orleans, they said. One had recently moved from Lafayette.
"They were always joined at the hip," said the mother of Aaronne Russell. "They did everything together."
"They are easy-going," said their father. "They like to skateboard. They like basketball, football, talking on the phone."
The boys, he said, had been spending time with him on Emory Road and his mother on Bass Street, two block or so away.
The disappearance is a mystery, they said.
And a private company from Texas may soon take a swing at solving it, said police and Project NOLA, which has been coordinating search efforts among volunteers.
Representatives of Texas Equusearch, which specializes in finding missing people, are en route, Selby said.
The company's Web site notes that Tim Miller, the company's founder and director, will begin searching Wednesday. New Orleans Police and family members asked for Miller's assistance.
http://www.nola.com/crime/index.ssf/2011...still.html
The disappearance of two 13-year-old boys from eastern New Orleans remained a mystery Tuesday even though the second day of searching came with more resources, including dozens of volunteers.Well-wishers gathered under a tent near Bass Street and Hayne Boulevard for a candlelit vigil Tuesday afternoon expressing concern about Aaronne 'Lil Rony' Mitchell and Aaronne 'Baby Rony' Russell.
New Orleans police -- who on Tuesday were joined by firefighters, the Louisiana Search and Rescue Dog Team and others -- were no closer to locating the brothers, Aaronne "Lil Rony" Mitchell and Aaronne "Baby Rony" Russell, than the day before.
Relatives fretted. Their father, Aaronne "DJ7" Simmons, scrunched his face and said he prays they are alright. Karalynn Russell, the mother of Aaronne Russell, worried aloud about the terrible things that may have happened to the boys since they were last seen on Easter at 11 a.m. walking an adult mixed-breed pit bull and a pit bull puppy.
Angela Kinler, a former St. Bernard Parish resident who now lives in eastern New Orleans, said the boys told her they were going for a swim at Lincoln Beach, one of the historic swimming areas along Lake Pontchartrain. And they wanted to know if she would allow them to take Buddy, her dog, and the puppy, a dog that once belonged to a relative of the boy's father. She said she said yes in the spirit of trying to be neighborly.
Kinler said she was troubled after the boys failed to return soon and began to seek help. She said their father arrived at her home and told her not to worry because he was going to find the dogs and the boys.
After the sun set Monday, the father of the boys found a pair of shorts that belonged to one of the boys and the chain collar of Buddy in the shallow water of Lake Pontchartrain. He said the spot was not far from the railroad tracks near where the levee and Paris Road intersect, which is east of Lincoln Beach and about six blocks east of Kinler's residence.
"When he showed me the collar he said 'Please don't tell me this was your dog's chain,' " Kinler said.
"It was."
She said she didn't know what to think. One of the stories circulating is that there was a large arranged dogfight in the neighborhood in December, but she did not have any first-hand knowledge of this.
Information from secondary sources has been rampant, authorities said. According to other accounts, a boat was taken from one of the homes on pilings along the beach about a mile east from the Paris Road and Hayne Boulevard intersection. Another story circulating throughout the day had a ladder lowered into the water in same area.
"There's no solid information," said Eddie Selby, commander of the New Orleans Police Department's Special Operations Division.
None of the tales has been confirmed, Selby said.
Efforts by the state's Fish and Wildlife Service, firefighters walking along the shoreline and dogs searching for scents failed to uncover any new information.
The family turned to prayer late Tuesday afternoon. The father and Aaronne's mother spoke to many well-wishers gathered under a tent near Bass Street and Hayne Boulevard for a candlelit vigil.
Karalynn Russell and DJ7 said they did not know what to make of the disappearance of the boys.
Both were living in eastern New Orleans, they said. One had recently moved from Lafayette.
"They were always joined at the hip," said the mother of Aaronne Russell. "They did everything together."
"They are easy-going," said their father. "They like to skateboard. They like basketball, football, talking on the phone."
The boys, he said, had been spending time with him on Emory Road and his mother on Bass Street, two block or so away.
The disappearance is a mystery, they said.
And a private company from Texas may soon take a swing at solving it, said police and Project NOLA, which has been coordinating search efforts among volunteers.
Representatives of Texas Equusearch, which specializes in finding missing people, are en route, Selby said.
The company's Web site notes that Tim Miller, the company's founder and director, will begin searching Wednesday. New Orleans Police and family members asked for Miller's assistance.
http://www.nola.com/crime/index.ssf/2011...still.html