A Bartholomew County Sheriff deputy located a missing 14-year-old boy Sunday night using the department’s new Project Lifesaver technology.
Chief Deputy Maj. Chris Lane found the teen unharmed in the Walmart parking lot on Merchants Mile on Columbus’ west side. Lane had joined the search around the retail complex several hours after the teen was reported missing at 10:30 p.m. Sunday.
Jacob Peden, 14, who deputies said is prone to wander, was equipped with a Project Lifesaver bracelet that allows searchers to use a tracking device to locate his last known location, deputies said. The technology can locate one of the bracelets within three miles of a Project Lifesaver receiver.
A signal from the bracelet was picked up near Walmart on Merchants Mile which is about one mile from the juvenile’s home in the 900 block of Garden Street, deputies said.
Surveillance footage showed Peden entering the store, entering the bathroom, where his Project Lifesaver bracelet was found, then running from the store.
Officers from the county, city and Indiana State Police, along with Bartholomew County and city firefighters, went to the Walmart area to search for the teen. Firefighters were preparing to use a drone to search for the teen when he was found, deputies said.
When Lane arrived at the area, the teen had missing for a couple hours, he said. Lane drove around the Walmart parking lot, and using a description of the teen, located him in the lot.
“I pulled around and saw him walking through the lot,” Lane said Monday. “I said, ‘Hey, what are you up to — did you run away from home?’ “
When the teen said he that was the case, Lane asked him to go ahead and have a seat in the sheriff’s car, and the teen complied. Lane estimated it was after midnight when he located the teen in the parking lot.
Although the teen had removed his Project Lifesaver bracelet inside the store, the technology was still instrumental in responders being able to quickly narrow the search area, deputies said.
The teen had used scissors in the store to cut off the bracelet and then threw it into a trash can in the store’s bathroom before leaving the store, with his movements being captured on store surveillance video, Lane said.
Deputies said a new band will be added to the teen’s bracelet so that a special tool will be required to remove it.
TRIAD, a branch of the Bartholomew County Sheriff’s Office, and Sergeant Jim Stevens applied for and used a $29,000 grant from the Custer Nugent Foundation to get the Project Lifesaver program up and running locally.
Sheriff Matt Myers has appointed a retired mechanical engineer, Dave Coffman, as special deputy in charge of TRIAD.
Interested persons should contact Triad at triad@bartholomew.in.gov.
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Project Lifesaver is the search and rescue program operated internationally by public safety agencies and is designed for individuals who are prone to the life-threatening behavior of wandering.
TRIAD, a branch of the Bartholomew County Sheriff’s Office, and Sergeant Jim Stevens applied for and used a grant from the Custer Nugent Foundation to get the Project Lifesaver program up and running.
Initially, 50 transmitters were purchased and are being assigned to clients. Six receivers that can pinpoint the location of the transmitters were also purchased. The transmitters can detect bracelet signals up to three miles away.
Three of the receivers are kept at the Bartholomew County Sheriff’s Department and three are assigned to the Columbus Fire Department.
Currently four deputies and three Columbus Fire Department personnel are certified to train others as electronic search specialists. At this time, there is no cost to the client, however there are a few guidelines that must be met in order to become a client.
Interested persons should contact Triad at triad@bartholomew.in.gov or call 812-447-4054.
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Five people have been selected who will work with individuals and caregivers in the new Project Lifesaver program in Bartholomew County.
President – Dave Coffman
Vice President – Kim Bowden
Secretary – Stacey Goffinet
Treasurer – Leah Boas
Columbus Fire Department – Mike Wilson
These five will serve as liaisons between searchers and family members when a person with certain mental conditions wanders off. They will also make visits to the families to ensure the transmitters are working property.
Project Lifesaver is the main service being offered through TRIAD, a branch of the Bartholomew County Sheriff’s Department.
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