The search for evidence related to the disappearance of Sebastian Rogers at a Kentucky landfill on Thursday yielded “negative results,” according to the Sumner County Sheriff’s Office.
While the search for Rogers continues, the search at the Hopkins County, Kentucky, landfill is over after “exhaustive efforts” to find any evidence that would help find the missing 15-year-old with autism, the sheriff’s office said in a media release.
Authorities said no leads or evidence pertaining to Rogers’ whereabouts were discovered during the operation. The decision to search the landfill was made “in accordance with ongoing investigative efforts and information gathered in the search for Rogers,” the sheriff’s office said.
Sumner County Sheriff Sonny Weatherford said he is hopeful they will still find Rogers and called their investigation a search and rescue operation, but he is concerned it will become a recovery operation if they are not able to get a solid lead soon.
“While we had hoped for a different outcome, our commitment to finding Sebastian remains unwavering,” Weatherford said. “We will continue to explore all available avenues and resources to bring closure to this case and provide answers to Sebastian’s family and loved ones.”
Weatherford said they did not have a specific tip that led them to the landfill that gets trash from Rogers’ neighborhood. Rather, they were just making sure nothing was missed because garbage trucks went through the community between when he was last seen and reported missing.
J.E. McMurtry Disposal Company collects trash from the Stafford Court neighborhood between 5 and 6 a.m. on Mondays, the company said. The trucks are unloaded at a local transfer station where another company then sends the refuse to certain landfills by tractor-trailer.
Sumner County sheriff’s deputies, Sumner County EMA, Kentucky State Police and specialized members of the Metro Police Urban Search & Rescue Team used backhoes and dogs to sort through the rubble, Weatherford said. They were able to narrow down the search area based on a grid system the landfill uses for each day of the week.
An AMBER Alert was issued on behalf of Rogers, who was last seen nearly two weeks ago. State and local authorities have searched for him using helicopters, drones and search-and-rescue dogs, as well as hundreds of trained professionals on foot.
However, law enforcement announced Monday they are scaling down that search.
Rogers has not been seen on camera or in person since his disappearance. His parents told WSMV it’s been “one constant rollercoaster ride of helpless and hopeless” since the teen went missing.
Law enforcement urges anyone with information regarding Rogers’ disappearance to come forward and assist in the investigation. Anyone with information is urged to contact 615-451-3838, 1-800-TBI-FIND, or TipsToTBI@tbi.tn.gov
