Amber Alert: 2-year-old Trenton Duckett in Florida

[Jacqueline]

http://www.wesh.com/video/10104722/index.html

[Jacqueline]

LEESBURG - More than 100 tips have been received since a "Team Trenton" headquarters was set up two weeks ago, with a tips hotline and Web site created for Trenton Duckett, the 2-year-old boy reported missing since August.

Trenton's father, Joshua Duckett, said family, friends and neighbors are volunteering to answer phones, monitor e-mails and put tips together.

"We still have no answers, haven't had a big break yet," Duckett said from the office on Tally Road in Leesburg on Wednesday.

Trenton's mother, Melinda Duckett, said she was at home with the child on Aug. 27 when she discovered him missing about 9 p.m. However, she never made it clear to Leesburg Police where she and the child had been in the hours leading to the reported abduction. And several days later, when she committed suicide, suspicion really fell on her.

Trenton's disappearance was in the news every day for a while, especially after Melinda shot herself to death at her grandparents' home in The Villages, but then the news items trickled off.Duckett said he optimistic his son is still alive.

"It's just another way to keep things going and moving forward," Duckett said of setting up the office. "We've had a lot of answers, just not the ones we're looking for."

Leesburg police Capt. Steve Rockefeller said the agency still has two investigators dedicated to the case and is getting help from the FBI and the Florida Department of Law Enforcement.

"We're still looking for Trenton, and we're not giving up," Rockefeller said Wednesday.

Police have been trying to establish a timeline for Melinda and Trenton in the hours leading up to the time Trenton was reported missing.

The department recently got back lab results on the window screen on his bedroom, which had a slit in it. There was no positive confirmation that cutting utensils found in the home made the slit, or whether the slit was made from inside or outside the home.

Rockefeller said investigators are still going through evidence, and there's literally "tons and tons" of information to go through.

"It's a monumental task," Rockefeller said.

The case could be getting some help from CNN talk show host Nancy Grace, who encountered a lot of criticism for grilling Melinda Duckett hours before she killed herself.

Grace has mentioned coming to Leesburg to help look for Trenton.

Rockefeller would not comment on Grace's involvement. "We're not picking sides between the media," he said.

Millard K. Ives may be reached at millard.ives@starbanner.com or (352) 387-2488.



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[Jacqueline]

http://www.orlandosentinel.com/news/local/lake/orl-lbodies1006nov10,0,7621871.story?coll=orl-home-headlines

Thursday's investigation is the latest of several crimes that led detectives to the Ocala forest, most recently the fatal shooting of two college students killed at a remote campsite. In the January slaying, the suspect, Leo Boatman, was charged with two counts of first-degree murder and is awaiting trial in the Marion County Jail. In September, deputies from Marion and Lake counties spent almost a week in the forest searching for missing Leesburg toddler Trenton Duckett.

[sharon]

http://tinyurl.com/v5x4x


Officials Say Missing Boy May Be Alive
His Mother Committed Suicide After TV Interview
By JENNIFER KAY, AP


MIAMI (Nov. 15) - Investigators have renewed their search for a 2-year-old boy whose mother committed suicide days after reporting him missing, saying he may still be alive, authorities said Tuesday.
 
A witness said she saw Trenton Duckett with his mother, Melinda Duckett, hours before his reported disappearance, said Capt. Jimmy Pogue of the Marion County Sheriff's Office. Investigators have not clearly determined the mother's whereabouts in the 24 hours or so before the boy went missing.

Melinda Duckett reported her son missing Aug. 27, telling police she found a cut in his bedroom window screen when she checked on him around 9:20 p.m. Melinda Duckett committed suicide Sept. 8.

Melinda Duckett remains the primary suspect, Pogue said.

"He could still be alive, and we need people to start looking for him and stop assuming he's passed away and that we're not looking for him," Pogue said.
   
The witness reported seeing Melinda Duckett with the boy at a restaurant in Belleview on Aug. 27, Pogue said.

"She believes she saw Melinda and the baby during the time that Trenton is unaccounted for," he said.

More details will be released Wednesday, Pogue said.

Trenton's father, Joshua Duckett, said investigators now share his belief that his son is alive. He also declined Tuesday to release new information about the investigation.

"They're just going on the same theory I've been going on," he said. "I'm still 100 percent confident he's alive and well. It's just a matter of finding him."


11/14/06 22:47 EST

[Jacqueline]

http://tinyurl.com/v5x4x


Officials Say Missing Boy May Be Alive
His Mother Committed Suicide After TV Interview
By JENNIFER KAY, AP


MIAMI (Nov. 15) - Investigators have renewed their search for a 2-year-old boy whose mother committed suicide days after reporting him missing, saying he may still be alive, authorities said Tuesday.
 
A witness said she saw Trenton Duckett with his mother, Melinda Duckett, hours before his reported disappearance, said Capt. Jimmy Pogue of the Marion County Sheriff's Office. Investigators have not clearly determined the mother's whereabouts in the 24 hours or so before the boy went missing.

Melinda Duckett reported her son missing Aug. 27, telling police she found a cut in his bedroom window screen when she checked on him around 9:20 p.m. Melinda Duckett committed suicide Sept. 8.

Melinda Duckett remains the primary suspect, Pogue said.

"He could still be alive, and we need people to start looking for him and stop assuming he's passed away and that we're not looking for him," Pogue said.
   
The witness reported seeing Melinda Duckett with the boy at a restaurant in Belleview on Aug. 27, Pogue said.

"She believes she saw Melinda and the baby during the time that Trenton is unaccounted for," he said.

More details will be released Wednesday, Pogue said.

Trenton's father, Joshua Duckett, said investigators now share his belief that his son is alive. He also declined Tuesday to release new information about the investigation.

"They're just going on the same theory I've been going on," he said. "I'm still 100 percent confident he's alive and well. It's just a matter of finding him."


11/14/06 22:47 EST

Thanks, Sharon...
If someone does have this boy for God's sake just give him back.

[MsVada]

I do hope this turns out to be true, that this woman believes she saw them.  

I agree Jacqueline,  Whoever has him,  please just give him back

[Jennifer34]

If some one does have him, maybe they are afraid to give him back because of how long it has been and how much trouble they are going to be in .... so they keep hoping that maybe everyone will eventually quit looking.  

I would hope some ones conscience would eat at them enough that they would return him ...

[Jacqueline]

THE VILLAGES - Information from a restaurant employee who saw missing 2-year-old Trenton Duckett and his mother the day he disappeared has led investigators to believe the boy is still alive, authorities said Wednesday.

Investigators have said there may have been a "conspiracy" between Trenton's mother and another party to keep the boy away from his father. Trenton's mother, Melinda, committed suicide Sept. 8.

Now testimony from an employee at a Wendy's restaurant in Belleview has opened up a new, parallel investigation by the Marion County Sheriff's Office. The employee told authorities she saw Melinda and Trenton at the drive-through window she was working around 11:30 a.m. the day he went missing.

About 30 minutes later Melinda Duckett came back to the drive-through window, and Trenton wasn't with her. Authorities said the witness told them she asked Melinda where the boy was, and Melinda either said at her grandparents', or at a babysitter's, but the witness couldn't remember clearly. Authorities said they don't believe she could have driven the 14 miles to her grandparents' home in Lady Lake and back to the Wendy's in the time frame supplied by the witness.

"We believe that it was possible during this time that she may have left that Wendy's and actually met someone to hand Trenton off," said Capt. James Pogue of the Marion County Sheriff's Office.


Copyright © 1996–2006 Alligator Online and Campus Communications

[Jacqueline]

Missing Boy's Father Credits Nancy Grace After New Developments In Case
POSTED: 1:14 pm EST November 16, 2006
UPDATED: 1:31 pm EST November 16, 2006


LEESBURG, Fla. -- The father of a 2-year-old boy who has been missing since August credited controversial talk show host Nancy Grace after investigators announced they believe the boy is now alive and that his mother may have given him away, according to Local 6 News.

"A lot of people say it is just a ratings scam, but to me, I've met Nancy Grace and I've talked to her personally while a lot of people have not," Trenton Duckett's father, Josh, said. "To me, she is very sincere and wanting to help in any way possible and to me she is showing a great deal of accomplishment with everything she is doing."

Grace came under fire for her aggressive questioning of Melinda Duckett on the day before she committed suicide on Sept. 8. Duckett reported her son missing in August but was a prime suspect in his disappearance.
 

Grace's visit Thursday to Central Florida for a live show about the case coincides with new developments in the search for the boy.A Wendy's worker said she served Melinda and Trenton the day the boy disappeared.

"The first food that Melinda purchased didn't appear to be something that you would feed to a 2-year-old," Marion County sheriff's Detective Rhonda Stroup said.

Police said about 20 minutes after the first purchase, the worker claims Duckett returned to the Wendy's drive-through and purchased some chicken nuggets.

The employee said she thought Duckett apparently forgot to buy her son some food during the first visit. But, when Duckett's silver Mitsubishi approached the window again, the boy was not inside the vehicle.

"(Now) not only do investigators think the 2-year-old is still alive, they believe Trenton's mother Melinda may have gotten rid of him within miles of a Wendy's restaurant in Belleview," Local 6's Mike DeForest said.
 
Local 6 reported that the investigation may include Duckett's ties to the adult entertainment industry.

Local 6 recently uncovered explicit sex videos of Duckett being sold over the Internet before she committed suicide.

Trenton's father, Josh, and private investigators are looking into who purchased or helped create the adult movies.

Detectives are following up on leads in the case Thursday.

[MsVada]

 

[Jacqueline]

 

It just could not get more bizarre.

[mrs. red]

If some one does have him, maybe they are afraid to give him back because of how long it has been and how much trouble they are going to be in .... so they keep hoping that maybe everyone will eventually quit looking.  

I would hope some ones conscience would eat at them enough that they would return him ...

Actually, I disagree... don't give him back. Keep him give him a great life and  don't let him remember any of this.  These two people used that child as a battleground... the father was in reality no better than the mom... so I pray that Trenton is alive, and that if someone has him, they give him the life and love he deserves.

Sorry to sound harsh, but that's my opinion...

[MsVada]

Mrs Red

Your opinion is a great one.  I hadn't thought of it that way until now.

 Just maybe,Can we request,that whoever has him, send a dated picture of him to the media so we know he is out of harms way.

[Jacqueline]

If some one does have him, maybe they are afraid to give him back because of how long it has been and how much trouble they are going to be in .... so they keep hoping that maybe everyone will eventually quit looking.  

I would hope some ones conscience would eat at them enough that they would return him ...

Actually, I disagree... don't give him back. Keep him give him a great life and  don't let him remember any of this.  These two people used that child as a battleground... the father was in reality no better than the mom... so I pray that Trenton is alive, and that if someone has him, they give him the life and love he deserves.

Sorry to sound harsh, but that's my opinion...

Anyone who would associate with Melinda Duckett and agree to kidnap a child and make people go crazy looking for him?  Does not sound like anyone I would want raising a child.

[Jacqueline]

Duckett case returns to National Spotlight:

http://www.orlandosentinel.com/news/local/lake/orl-duckett1706nov17,0,1316644.story?page=1&track=rss

[sharon]

Anyone who would associate with Melinda Duckett and agree to kidnap a child and make people go crazy looking for him?  Does not sound like anyone I would want raising a child.

Especially since they are beginning to link Melinda to porn films

I can't imagine the people she associated with would give this child a good life.

(hi jacquie!)

[Jacqueline]

If some one does have him, maybe they are afraid to give him back because of how long it has been and how much trouble they are going to be in .... so they keep hoping that maybe everyone will eventually quit looking.  

I would hope some ones conscience would eat at them enough that they would return him ...

Actually, I disagree... don't give him back. Keep him give him a great life and  don't let him remember any of this.  These two people used that child as a battleground... the father was in reality no better than the mom... so I pray that Trenton is alive, and that if someone has him, they give him the life and love he deserves.

Sorry to sound harsh, but that's my opinion...

Anyone who would associate with Melinda Duckett and agree to kidnap a child and make people go crazy looking for him?  Does not sound like anyone I would want raising a child.

Also, if it is indeed true that Melinda made porn movies and was involved and associated with that crowd...I shudder to think of that little boy in the care of those kind of people.

Nope, the kid needs to know who he is and needs to be returned.  

Just my opinion.

[Jacqueline]

Anyone who would associate with Melinda Duckett and agree to kidnap a child and make people go crazy looking for him?  Does not sound like anyone I would want raising a child.

Especially since they are beginning to link Melinda to porn films

I can't imagine the people she associated with would give this child a good life.

(hi jacquie!)

Hey Sharon!  

[Carnut]

If some one does have him, maybe they are afraid to give him back because of how long it has been and how much trouble they are going to be in .... so they keep hoping that maybe everyone will eventually quit looking.  

I would hope some ones conscience would eat at them enough that they would return him ...

Actually, I disagree... don't give him back. Keep him give him a great life and  don't let him remember any of this.  These two people used that child as a battleground... the father was in reality no better than the mom... so I pray that Trenton is alive, and that if someone has him, they give him the life and love he deserves.

Sorry to sound harsh, but that's my opinion...

Anyone who would associate with Melinda Duckett and agree to kidnap a child and make people go crazy looking for him?  Does not sound like anyone I would want raising a child.

Exactly what I was thinking, it's a no win situation for the kid if he's still alive.

Wouldn't trust her judgement in picking caregivers and anyone willing to take the kid ain't exactly 'right' either.

Also the caregivers will now have to worry all the time about being tracked down and the consequences of thier acts.

Just not a good possiblity.

[Jacqueline]

http://www.wesh.com/news/10344528/detail.html

Police Say Tip From Wendy's employee is being considered..

Employee passed polygraph