Bill Garcia
Posted on 03/05/2003 5:28:01 AM PST by runningbear
Private investigator tells police of cement patch Modesto police are interested in checking out his find near the Delta Mendota Canal, he says.
By Patrick Giblin
The Modesto Bee
(Published Wednesday, March 5, 2003, 4:45 AM)
MODESTO -- A private investigator looking into the Laci Peterson disappearance case said police plan to look at a patch of spilled cement he found near the Delta Mendota Canal.
Bill Garcia said he found the concrete Monday and alerted police to it after he videotaped the scene.
"I was contacted by investigators [Tuesday] and they said they are going to take a closer look at it," Garcia said.
He said the spot, which looks to be less than 3 months old, looks like a half bag of cement concrete was spilled from the back of a trailer or truck that was backed up against the canal. The spot, on the edge of the canal about 20 feet off the road, has a track in it that looks like it's from a trailer tire, Garcia said.
Detective Doug Ridenour, spokesman for the Modesto Police Department, said he could not comment about any aspect of the investigation. He said he became aware that Bill Garcia was in the area through calls from reporters.
Bill Garcia Investigative Services mainly looks into family law cases, Garcia said.
However, his firm also has been involved in several high-profile missing persons cases in the past few years.
He worked on the case of 2-year-old Jahi Turner last year.
The boy disappeared from a park while his father was buying a soda from a machine.
A team of volunteers he put together found Danielle van Dam's body last year.
In January, Garcia found Philip Salcedo Jr., an armored car driver accused of stealing $3 million from his company and fleeing to Mexico. Garcia was working for Salcedo's family, who hoped to persuade the accused man to come back to the United States and surrender.
Laci Peterson's stepfather reported the 27-year-old pregnant woman missing Dec. 24.
Her husband Scott Peterson said he went fishing that day and last saw her at 9:30 a.m. as he left the house.
Garcia said he has spoken to the families of Scott and Laci Peterson but neither has hired him. Instead, he's in the area to see if he can make a dent in the case.
"We are here because we are just nosy people," Garcia said.
Of course, he added, he's also a businessman. If his investigation does help solve the missing case, he said he would be interested in some type of compensation.
"We are here for the long haul," Garcia said. "But it will all be based on our finances and how quickly we can cover these areas."
SAN DIEGO DETECTIVE AIDS IN LACI PETERSON CASE
Bill Garcia
And I can't let this one go
Mother-in-law thinks baby is likely motive Jackie Peterson writes of two e-mails from men whose pregnant wives were abducted
By FROM STAFF AND WIRE REPORTS
MODESTO -- With few clues to a missing woman's whereabouts, Scott Peterson's mother thinks her daughter-in-law may have vanished because of her baby.
In an e-mail to a newspaper, Jackie Peterson said that while she worked at the Laci Peterson volunteer center, she received two e-mails from men who said their pregnant wives had been abducted, and learned of three cases in the San Francisco Bay Area and one in Fresno. Modesto police will not comment on details of the case, but have said they have received 8,000 leads since Laci Peterson disappeared.
She was reported missing on Christmas Eve by her husband and was due to give birth to the couple's first child, Connor, Feb. 10.
Though he has not been named as a suspect in the case, suspicion has surrounded Scott Peterson after he revealed that he had an affair with a Fresno woman. Peterson told authorities he went fishing at the Berkeley Marina the day his wife vanished.
But Jackie Peterson pointed to three other missing-person cases in California. Two involved pregnant women and the third a woman who had just given birth. Two of those women were found dead. The third has been missing for two years.
The case in Fresno was not an abduction of a pregnant woman, news reports showed, but rather the abduction of a newborn child from Kaweah Delta Hospital in Visalia.
According to reports, police believe the female infant was abducted in December by her mother, Marcy Duarte, who had tested positive for drugs while she was in the hospital. Social workers took over care of the baby.
The baby's father later found her and returned her to authorities. Duarte was arrested in De- cember and is awaiting trial on child concealment and child endangerment charges.
Last year, a San Francisco man reported the abduction of his pregnant girlfriend, Evelyn Hernandez, 24, and her son Alex, 5. The report was filed in May, one month after the woman had disappeared.
Her wallet was later found with money still in it. Her remains were found in the San Francisco Bay in July. Police concluded she, her son and her unborn child were killed. The case still is under investigation.
A pregnant Fremont woman was reported missing in October 1999. Michelle Chan was believed abducted, but returned home a week later and said she needed time alone. She disappeared again a week after that. Fremont officials said Thursday that she has not been found. Her case is under investigation.
In November 1999, 21-year-old Alice Sin disappeared. Sin was four months pregnant and left behind a 1-year-old son. Her body was found in January 2000 in the Nevada desert. She was found dead from multiple gunshot wounds. That case is still unsolved.
Scripps-McClatchy Western Service contributed to this report.
(Excerpt) Read more at fresnobee.com ...
Sources: Peterson Investigation 'On Track'
POSTED: 10:40 a.m. PST March 3, 2003 UPDATED: 1:12 p.m. PST March 4, 2003
PI's discovery piques interest
By PATRICK GIBLIN
BEE STAFF WRITER
A private investigator looking into Laci Peterson's disappearance said police plan to look at some spilled concrete mix he found near the Delta- Mendota Canal. Bill Garcia said he found the concrete Monday and videotaped the scene. "I was contacted by investigators (Tuesday) and they said they are going to take a closer look at it," Garcia said.
The spot, which looks to be less than three months old, looks like a half bag of concrete mix was spilled from the back of a trailer or truck that was backed up against the canal, he said. The spot, on the edge of the canal about 20 feet off of the road, has a track in it that looks like it's from a trailer tire, Garcia said.
Detective Doug Ridenour, spokesman for the Modesto Police Department, said he could not comment about any aspect of the investigation. He said police did not seek Garcia's help and became aware he was in the area through calls from reporters.
Peterson's stepfather reported the 27-year-old pregnant woman missing Dec. 24. Her husband, Scott, said he went fishing that day and last saw her at 9:30 a.m. as he left the house.
Bill Garcia Investigative Services mainly looks into family law cases, Garcia said. However, his firm also has been involved in several high-profile missing persons cases in the past few years.
He worked on the case of 2-year-old Jahi Turner last year. The boy disappeared from a park while his father was buying a soda from a machine.
A team of volunteers he put together found Danielle Van Dam's body last year.
In January, Garcia found Philip Salcedo Jr., an armored car driver accused of stealing $3 million from his company and fleeing to Mexico. Garcia was working for Salcedo's family, who hoped to convince the accused man to come back to the United States and surrender.
Garcia said he has spoken to the families of Scott and Laci Peterson, but neither has hired him. Instead he's in the area to see if he can make a dent in the case.
"We are here because we are just nosy people," Garcia said.
Of course, he added, he's also a businessman. If his investigation does help solve the missing case, he said he would be interested in some type of compensation.
"We are here for the long haul," Garcia said. "But it will all be based on our finances and how quickly we can cover these areas."
Bee staff writer Patrick Giblin can be reached at 578-2347 or pgiblin@modbee.com.
CHP DOG TACKLES CHASE SUSPECT ON I-15
Video clip
Photographer was lucky enough to catch SP showing up to destroy evidence of a crime. Police have impounded all of his other vehicles.
It matches the concrete that was poured recently in construction project.
What do you think cement trucks do with excess concrete after a pour? They don't leave it in the trucks. This is mostly likely just a spot where the truck was washed out. Move along, nothing to see here...
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