Post by admin4laney on Jul 20, 2005 14:01:14 GMT -5
By Julie Ralston, Post staff reporter
After eight days of combing the Ohio River for the body of a Covington police officer who fell from the Clay Wade Bailey Bridge, police on Sunday found a body - but it wasn't Officer Mike Partin's.
The body was identified by Kentucky State Police as that of Alana ''Laney'' Gwinner, a 23-year-old West Chester, Ohio, woman missing since she played pool Dec. 10 at a bowling alley in Fairfield, Ohio.
The woman's body was spotted floating in the Ohio River, about five miles east of Warsaw in Gallatin County, by Kentucky State Police Pilot Sgt. Brian Carlise, who was searching for Partin.
Officers recovered the body around 11:30 a.m. near Sugar Bay, which is where the Ohio River and Sugar Creek meet, at the intersection of U.S. 42 and U.S. 127.
The crew aboard a passing towboat helped authorities bring the body to shore, where it was removed by Gallatin County Sheriff Clifford Higgins.
The body was clad in jeans, a blouse and jewelry. Ms. Gwinner's driver's license was found on the body, said State Police Detective Carey Figg, of the LaGrange post.
The body was taken to the State Medical Examiner's Office at St. Luke Hospital East in Ft. Thomas for an autopsy today.
''We'll be working with Kentucky police and with Fairfield police to supplement the missing-person investigation,'' Figg said.
The 1992 Lakota High School graduate was last seen leaving Gilmore Bowling Lanes in Fairfield about 1 a.m. Dec. 10. Police say Ms. Gwinner called a boyfriend in Fairfield about 12:30 a.m. to say she was coming over.
Witnesses say she left the bowling alley around 1 a.m. in her 1993 black Honda Del Sol. But the boyfriend said she never showed up.
Her car is still missing and no arrests have been made.
''Based on the condition of the body, it appears she was in the river for a considerable period of time,'' said Fairfield Police Lt. Richard St. John. ''We do not know the cause of death.''
The investigation into her disappearance has included interviews with ex-boyfriends, her latest boyfriend and some new acquaintances she made at Gilmore Bowling Lanes the night she disappeared.
''She's an excellent pool player, she likes to shoot pool seriously,'' said a friend, Angie Smith.
She entered the bowling alley with a male companion, described by acquaintances as a ''good friend'' of Ms. Gwinner's. They had driven in separate cars.
''She was attractive and people noticed her,'' recalled Pat Edmondson, co-owner of the bowling alley with her husband, Chuck Edmondson.
''We have a lot of regular customers here, but nobody remembered seeing her before in here.''
Customers estimated it was about 1 a.m. when Ms. Gwinner walked out of the 5595 Dixie Highway business alone.
''I believe someone intercepted her,'' said Suzi Damen, a friend of Ms. Gwinner's.
Meanwhile, Covington police said today that the search for Partin's body will continue, mostly as an airborne effort for now. High water in the Ohio has made it unsafe for rescue crews. When the river falls, a search of the shoreline and drift areas will resume, they said.
Publication date: 01-12-98
www.kypost.com/news/1998/search011298.html
After eight days of combing the Ohio River for the body of a Covington police officer who fell from the Clay Wade Bailey Bridge, police on Sunday found a body - but it wasn't Officer Mike Partin's.
The body was identified by Kentucky State Police as that of Alana ''Laney'' Gwinner, a 23-year-old West Chester, Ohio, woman missing since she played pool Dec. 10 at a bowling alley in Fairfield, Ohio.
The woman's body was spotted floating in the Ohio River, about five miles east of Warsaw in Gallatin County, by Kentucky State Police Pilot Sgt. Brian Carlise, who was searching for Partin.
Officers recovered the body around 11:30 a.m. near Sugar Bay, which is where the Ohio River and Sugar Creek meet, at the intersection of U.S. 42 and U.S. 127.
The crew aboard a passing towboat helped authorities bring the body to shore, where it was removed by Gallatin County Sheriff Clifford Higgins.
The body was clad in jeans, a blouse and jewelry. Ms. Gwinner's driver's license was found on the body, said State Police Detective Carey Figg, of the LaGrange post.
The body was taken to the State Medical Examiner's Office at St. Luke Hospital East in Ft. Thomas for an autopsy today.
''We'll be working with Kentucky police and with Fairfield police to supplement the missing-person investigation,'' Figg said.
The 1992 Lakota High School graduate was last seen leaving Gilmore Bowling Lanes in Fairfield about 1 a.m. Dec. 10. Police say Ms. Gwinner called a boyfriend in Fairfield about 12:30 a.m. to say she was coming over.
Witnesses say she left the bowling alley around 1 a.m. in her 1993 black Honda Del Sol. But the boyfriend said she never showed up.
Her car is still missing and no arrests have been made.
''Based on the condition of the body, it appears she was in the river for a considerable period of time,'' said Fairfield Police Lt. Richard St. John. ''We do not know the cause of death.''
The investigation into her disappearance has included interviews with ex-boyfriends, her latest boyfriend and some new acquaintances she made at Gilmore Bowling Lanes the night she disappeared.
''She's an excellent pool player, she likes to shoot pool seriously,'' said a friend, Angie Smith.
She entered the bowling alley with a male companion, described by acquaintances as a ''good friend'' of Ms. Gwinner's. They had driven in separate cars.
''She was attractive and people noticed her,'' recalled Pat Edmondson, co-owner of the bowling alley with her husband, Chuck Edmondson.
''We have a lot of regular customers here, but nobody remembered seeing her before in here.''
Customers estimated it was about 1 a.m. when Ms. Gwinner walked out of the 5595 Dixie Highway business alone.
''I believe someone intercepted her,'' said Suzi Damen, a friend of Ms. Gwinner's.
Meanwhile, Covington police said today that the search for Partin's body will continue, mostly as an airborne effort for now. High water in the Ohio has made it unsafe for rescue crews. When the river falls, a search of the shoreline and drift areas will resume, they said.
Publication date: 01-12-98
www.kypost.com/news/1998/search011298.html
