A massive search is underway in the remote Idaho backcountry for California murder suspect James DiMaggio and the 16-year-old he's believed to have kidnapped following the grisly murders of her mother and younger brother.
More than 100 law enforcement officials are descending on a 320-square-mile area of the Frank Church-River of No Return Wilderness Area, a mostly roadless, rugged, heavily wooded forest in central Idaho about 70 miles north of Boise where motorized vehicles are prohibited.
Crews are searching the area by foot, horse, and by air. More than 100 people are either working on the search or are on their way to help. Agencies working on the search include the Valley County and Ada Cuonty Sheriff's departments U.S Marshals Service, Homeland Security, FBI, Idaho Army National Guard and Idaho State Police.
DiMaggio's Nissan Versa, covered with brush and missing its California license plates, was found about five miles from a trailhead into the area Friday.
The discovery came about two days after a horseback rider reported seeing DiMaggio and teen Hannah Anderson hiking with backpacks. Idaho authorities say the rider didn't realize the pair were being sought until he got home and recognized them on news reports.
San Diego Police say they believe DiMaggio, 40, kidnapped Hannah after killing her mother, Christinia Anderson, and her brother, Ethan, last weekend. Their bodies were found in DiMaggio's burning California home near the Mexican border Sunday. On Friday night, San Diego County Sheriff's Office confirmed that the remains found in the home matched the DNA of Ethan, 8.
The Frank Church-River of No Return Wilderness Area was named after the late Idaho senator who sought the Democratic nomination for president in 1976. At more than 2.3 million acres, its the second-largest protected wilderness area in the lower 48 states, coursing through mountain ranges, deep canyons and the middle fork of the Salmon River, a popular waterway for rafters and kayakers.
DiMaggio, a friend of the Andersons, is an experienced outdoorsman, according to Hannah's father, Brett Anderson.
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An Idaho State trooper stops traffic on a road 35 miles east of Cascade, Idaho, on Friday.(Photo: Darin Oswald, AP)
More than 100 law enforcement officials are descending on a 320-square-mile area of the Frank Church-River of No Return Wilderness Area, a mostly roadless, rugged, heavily wooded forest in central Idaho about 70 miles north of Boise where motorized vehicles are prohibited.
Crews are searching the area by foot, horse, and by air. More than 100 people are either working on the search or are on their way to help. Agencies working on the search include the Valley County and Ada Cuonty Sheriff's departments U.S Marshals Service, Homeland Security, FBI, Idaho Army National Guard and Idaho State Police.
DiMaggio's Nissan Versa, covered with brush and missing its California license plates, was found about five miles from a trailhead into the area Friday.
The discovery came about two days after a horseback rider reported seeing DiMaggio and teen Hannah Anderson hiking with backpacks. Idaho authorities say the rider didn't realize the pair were being sought until he got home and recognized them on news reports.
San Diego Police say they believe DiMaggio, 40, kidnapped Hannah after killing her mother, Christinia Anderson, and her brother, Ethan, last weekend. Their bodies were found in DiMaggio's burning California home near the Mexican border Sunday. On Friday night, San Diego County Sheriff's Office confirmed that the remains found in the home matched the DNA of Ethan, 8.
The Frank Church-River of No Return Wilderness Area was named after the late Idaho senator who sought the Democratic nomination for president in 1976. At more than 2.3 million acres, its the second-largest protected wilderness area in the lower 48 states, coursing through mountain ranges, deep canyons and the middle fork of the Salmon River, a popular waterway for rafters and kayakers.
DiMaggio, a friend of the Andersons, is an experienced outdoorsman, according to Hannah's father, Brett Anderson.
Follow Strauss on twitter @gbstrauss