Calif. police: 3 possible sightings of missing Ore. boy
YREKA, Calif. - Police are investigating three possible sightings of a missing Oregon boy in Yreka, Calif., including video from a store surveillance camera that captured images of a boy matching his description.
Detective Steve Fahrney of the Yreka Police Department said the sightings were reported this week, days after a psychic in Idaho reported the missing boy might be found there in the small northern California city.
The new, fast-breaking developments come a week after 7-year-old Kyron Horman seemingly vanished from his small grade school located on the outskirts of Portland, Ore., in rolling hills dotted with farms and homes.
Fahrney said the Idaho psychic called a tip line in Sacramento, Calif., and his information was passed along to the Yreka police.
The local police then passed out flyers with a photo of the boy, and in the days that followed they received two tips independently from people in the area.
"Yesterday afternoon I was contacted by a couple that had stayed at our local Motel 6 on Saturday, and they believed, after seeing Kyron's picture, that they saw a boy matching his description staying at the Motel 6 that night," Fahrney said. The couple reported the boy was with an older man, he said.
Then, on Friday morning, Yreka police received another call from a man who said he saw a child matching Kyron's description on Thursday with an older man at the local Walmart store.
Police then were able to obtain surveillance video from the store that clearly showed the boy matching Kyron's description. He was accompanied by an older man and woman.
Still photos from the video were forwarded to the Multnomah County Sheriff's Office, and they will be shown to Kyron's family for identification of the boy.
Authorities also want to know if family members recognize the older man and woman seen with the boy in the surveillance video.
At the same time, police in Yreka have increased their vigilance, Fahrney said.
"We do have heightened concern," he said. "It's coincidental that we get basically these three tips in one week, so all of our officers are familiar with Kyron's picture and they've seen the video."
The possible sightings came as Kyron's family issued an emotional appeal on Friday afternoon for people to contact police with any information about the missing boy.
The family also thanked the community for "the outpouring of love and support" they have received since Kyron vanished.
"It just shows how much impact a little boy's smile can have on a community," said Kyron's stepfather, Tony Young.
Meanwhile, searchers continued combing the area around Kyron's school - from the air and on the ground - for any sign of the missing boy.
"When they search through areas they’re looking for any kind of debris or clothing, or shoes, or shoeprints – something that would indicate that somebody’s been through there recently," said Mike Fulk a volunteer with Mountain Wave Search and Rescue.
He said the search conditions aren't ideal.
"Lots of hills and trees, valleys, gullies - lot of it's pretty overgrown."
Kyron disappeared June 4 after a science fair he attended with his stepmother, who said she last saw him as he walked down a hallway toward his second-grade classroom wearing a "CSI" T-shirt and dark cargo pants.
Authorities said the last confirmed sighting of Kyron was at about 9 a.m. that day, but they have refused to say who made that sighting.
The search began after the boy did not come home on the school bus and his stepmother called 911 at about 3:45 p.m. on June 4.
Detective Steve Fahrney of the Yreka Police Department said the sightings were reported this week, days after a psychic in Idaho reported the missing boy might be found there in the small northern California city.
The new, fast-breaking developments come a week after 7-year-old Kyron Horman seemingly vanished from his small grade school located on the outskirts of Portland, Ore., in rolling hills dotted with farms and homes.
Fahrney said the Idaho psychic called a tip line in Sacramento, Calif., and his information was passed along to the Yreka police.
The local police then passed out flyers with a photo of the boy, and in the days that followed they received two tips independently from people in the area.
"Yesterday afternoon I was contacted by a couple that had stayed at our local Motel 6 on Saturday, and they believed, after seeing Kyron's picture, that they saw a boy matching his description staying at the Motel 6 that night," Fahrney said. The couple reported the boy was with an older man, he said.
Then, on Friday morning, Yreka police received another call from a man who said he saw a child matching Kyron's description on Thursday with an older man at the local Walmart store.
Police then were able to obtain surveillance video from the store that clearly showed the boy matching Kyron's description. He was accompanied by an older man and woman.
Still photos from the video were forwarded to the Multnomah County Sheriff's Office, and they will be shown to Kyron's family for identification of the boy.
Authorities also want to know if family members recognize the older man and woman seen with the boy in the surveillance video.
At the same time, police in Yreka have increased their vigilance, Fahrney said.
"We do have heightened concern," he said. "It's coincidental that we get basically these three tips in one week, so all of our officers are familiar with Kyron's picture and they've seen the video."
The possible sightings came as Kyron's family issued an emotional appeal on Friday afternoon for people to contact police with any information about the missing boy.
The family also thanked the community for "the outpouring of love and support" they have received since Kyron vanished.
"It just shows how much impact a little boy's smile can have on a community," said Kyron's stepfather, Tony Young.
Meanwhile, searchers continued combing the area around Kyron's school - from the air and on the ground - for any sign of the missing boy.
"When they search through areas they’re looking for any kind of debris or clothing, or shoes, or shoeprints – something that would indicate that somebody’s been through there recently," said Mike Fulk a volunteer with Mountain Wave Search and Rescue.
He said the search conditions aren't ideal.
"Lots of hills and trees, valleys, gullies - lot of it's pretty overgrown."
Kyron disappeared June 4 after a science fair he attended with his stepmother, who said she last saw him as he walked down a hallway toward his second-grade classroom wearing a "CSI" T-shirt and dark cargo pants.
Authorities said the last confirmed sighting of Kyron was at about 9 a.m. that day, but they have refused to say who made that sighting.
The search began after the boy did not come home on the school bus and his stepmother called 911 at about 3:45 p.m. on June 4.
Learn about changes coming to commenting