Search for Robert Manwill Takes Ominous Turn
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Boise Police, FBI retrieve evidence suggesting foul play in eight year old’s disappearance.
Young Robert Manwill disappeared at about 10 PM on Friday July 24, near the southwest Boise apartment shared by his mother Melissa Jenkins and her boyfriend Daniel Ehrlick, Jr. Robert was visiting his mother; his custodial parent is father Charles Manville who lives in New Plymouth, about 45 miles northwest of Boise. AOL News, 7/31/09.
Robert Manwill
Earlier last week, the Boise Police had declared that there was no evidence of foul play in the boy’s disappearance. They set Friday, July 31 for a massive search effort, encouraging Boise residents to volunteer. Yet they were hardly sitting on their hands in the meantime. They interviewed over 100 known sex offenders in the area. HLN, 8/1/09. They also questioned the adults who had regular contact with the boy, including Jenkins, Ehrlick, and Ehrlick’s father. Idaho Statesman, 8/1/09. Then, on the eve of Friday’s planned search effort, investigators for the Boise PD, with the assistance of the FBI, descended on Jenkin’s apartment.
Evidence Changes Manville Case from Missing Person to Criminal Investigation
Boise Deputy Chief Jim Kerns said that the search of the apartment has given investigators new leads: “The evidence we’ve uncovered shows that there are suspicious circumstances (concerning) Robert’s disappearance.” AOL News, 7/31/09. That means this case is now a criminal investigation. Crime News 2000, 7/31/09.
An officer was seen carrying two paper bags from the apartment Thursday night. Idaho Statesman, 7/31/09. Police would not elaborate on what was found, but KIVI Channel Six reported that investigators also towed away Jenkin’s red SUV that same night. The Post Chronicle 7/31/09; Examiner.com, 7/31/09. Deputy Chief Kerns claimed that the evidence “may bring us closer to finding what happened to Robert.” He also said: “Robert may be injured.”
That last statement, coupled with the seizure of Jenkin’s vehicle, leads this writer to believe that investigators found blood in the apartment. Trace evidence of Robert could be expected in his mother’s vehicle, but evidence of injury would be an entirely different matter.
Friday’s Mass Search Goes Forward, but on a More Somber Note
About 2,500 volunteers showed up for Friday’s search, the largest in Boise history. At least one Boise officer hinted that the searchers might find a body: “You need to be on the lookout for any place an 8 year old could be. If something bad has happened, it’s possible you could smell an odor. Don’t start digging. Call one of us.”
Despite the massive volunteer turnout, no one found anything.
A History of Violence
Both Jenkins and her boyfriend have criminal histories. During October of 2008, Jenkins pled guilty to inflicting injury on her infant son “by striking the child’s head on a surface, causing fracture to the child’s skull.” AOL News 7/31/09. This child, which she had by her boyfriend, became a ward of the state. Custody of Robert went to his father Charles following the violent event. Jenkins is still on parole.
Daniel Ehrlick, Sr. said Robert was almost always in trouble with his mother, usually over petty things, and that punishment was inordinately stern compared to the offense.
Jenkin’s boyfriend, Daniel Ehrlick, Jr., has also crossed paths with the law, having been convicted of burglary, battery and possession of drug paraphernalia. Idaho Statesman, 8/1/09. This is far less than a functional household for Robert to visit.
Hopes for Robert’s Survival are Slim
Robert Manwill might still be alive. Night time temperatures near Boise have been in the 60s, warm enough to survive outside. Yet the boy needs food and water, and his case is so well-known that if he sought sustenance from anyone, that person would probably have contacted the police. If Deputy Kerns is correct about the boy being injured, his chances of survival after being missing for eight days are poor. Regrettably, the police are likely looking for a body.
So far no arrests have been made nor suspects named. This writer expects that to change in the not too distant future. Searcher Frances Gutierrez put it this way: “It would be really heartbreaking (to find his body) but at least it would be closure. They could then move on and heal.” Except, that is, for the person or persons responsible.
1 Comment
Another sad case of a mother who shouldn’t have ever been allowed to have children. This is becoming a prevelent cause of death for children. murder by mother!