LOUISVILLE, Ky. (WDRB) -- Authorities suspended public searches for a 14-year-old boy missing from Eaton, Indiana, according to a report by FOX 59.
Scottie Morris disappeared Thursday night from Eaton, a small Indiana town north of Muncie. Search parties have been combing the area looking for him.
Members of the Eaton Police Department will meet with representatives of the Indiana State Police, local agencies and the National Center for Missing and Exploited Children to discuss their next moves in the case, according to Eaton Deputy Police Chief Chris Liggett.
As the public searches wind down, the Indiana Department of Natural Resources will utilize boats, sonar equipment and dive teams to search local rivers and ponds.
Liggett told FOX 59 the water searches were simply "due diligence" and said there was no new information to indicate Morris could be in the water.
One search and rescue boat was spotted at an Eaton pond at the corner of South Bash and Bosman streets. The owner of that property said law enforcement used a drone to examine the pond on Monday before returning on Tuesday with boats and sonar equipment.
"I just seen a bunch of trucks and cars lined up around the corner of the street," said Philena Brookshire, who lives a few hundred feet from the pond being searched. "I couldn't really tell who they were — what they were doing — but I assumed it had something to do with this missing boy."
K-9 teams are also being utilized for the search.
"Officers are still investigating and working leads as we receive them," police wrote in an update Tuesday. "We ask that you please refrain from making false statements."
Police said they'd conducted many interviews and searches over the past few days. Those searches have included vacant homes around town, as well as wooded areas. Volunteers have covered several miles of woods along the Mississinewa River Monday without finding any signs of the 14-year-old.
Eaton Police Chief Jay Turner said Monday that police have run out of places to look around town. He added that it's possible someone picked Morris up and he's no longer in Eaton.
According to Turner, investigators have no evidence of any criminal activity surrounding Morris' disappearance. He said Morris' parents were given polygraph examinations, which Turner said was part of the police department's attempts to "check all avenues."
Morris is the subject of a statewide Silver Alert. He is 5 feet, 4 inches tall with brown hair and blue eyes. He was last seen wearing a white shirt and red and black shorts.
If you know anything about his whereabouts, contact the Eaton Police Department at 765-396-3297 or 911.
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