New Twist in Case of Missing Tennessee 5-Year-Old, Officials Now Looking for Driver of Red Truck with a Bed Full of White Buckets
The Tennessee Bureau of Investigation is looking for help as the search for a missing 5-year-old girl goes on.
Summer Wells disappeared from her Hawkins County home on June 15. An AMBER Alert was issued for her the next day.
Since then, multiple police agencies have been seeking the girl, without success.
It’s been one week since Summer Wells went missing from her home in Hawkins County.
As of Tuesday morning, we’ve received 221 leads. Agents and detectives continue to investigate each one.
Have info that could help us locate Summer? Call 1-800-TBI-FIND. #TNAMBERAlert pic.twitter.com/mR8NcwB7ox
— Tennessee Bureau of Investigation (@TBInvestigation) June 22, 2021
On Saturday, the TBI issued a request for help.
“As we’ve previously mentioned, we have been working around the clock to identify anyone who may have been in the area around the time 5-year-old Summer Wells disappeared to determine what they may have seen or heard, no matter how insignificant it may have seemed to them at the time. Every detail is important,” the TBI said in a statement.
“‘In the process of doing this, we received information that a Toyota pickup truck was seen in the area of Beech Creek Road and Ben Hill Road in the late afternoon to early evening on either Monday, June 14th, or Tuesday, June 15th. The pickup is possibly a 1998-2000 maroon or red Toyota Tacoma, with a full bed ladder rack along with white buckets in the truck bed,” the bureau said.
“We have been unable to identify the driver of this truck. Due to this, we are asking this driver to contact us at 1-800-TBI-FIND. We would like to speak with you to confirm this information and ask what you may have heard or seen at the time. If you are the driver of this truck, please contact us,” the TBI said.
“We want to stress that this individual is not a suspect, but is a potential witness who may have heard or seen something that may help us in our search for Summer,” it said.
The TBI said the girl has blonde hair, blue eyes, is about 3 feet tall and weighs approximately 40 pounds. When she was last seen, she was wearing grey pants and a pink shirt.
The bureau said that “the circumstances of Summer’s disappearance remain unclear.”
As of Sunday afternoon, authorities have received 137 tips related to the #TNAMBERAlert for Summer Wells.
Please continue to share her photo.
She was reported missing at approximately 6:30 p.m. on Tuesday, June 15th.Call 1-800-TBI-FIND with info! pic.twitter.com/zhevrG6NMS
— Tennessee Bureau of Investigation (@TBInvestigation) June 20, 2021
On Sunday, Incident Commander Tim Coup said crews were “scaling back search operations,” according to WJHL-TV.
With more than 100 agencies collaborating, over 3,000 acres have been searched.
Don Wells, the girl’s father, told WJLH that he believes Summer was abducted.
“She would never leave our hill. I think that someone snuck up on her and grabbed her,” he said.
“I don’t think she’s in the area because the dog goes down to the road and that’s the end of the trail, but I don’t know that for a fact. The way that she just disappeared, she would never do that,” he said.
“We know that there’s people praying all around the world praying for her safe return. So many people love her,” Wells said.
Candus Harer, Summer’s grandmother, gave a statement to the media, according to WIHG-FM.
“Bring my grandbaby home,” Harer said. “She is a lovely baby, and we’re so thankful for everyone looking for her. We yelled and looked for her as much as we could. She’s just gone. It’s devastating.”
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