LOUISVILLE, Ky. (WDRB) -- A group of volunteers from Louisiana that has joined the search for a missing Louisville woman plans to continue its efforts despite having an estimated $3,000 in equipment stolen sometime overnight.
Andrea Knabel has been missing since August. Her family said they last saw her at her in the Audubon Park area.
When the Cajun Coast Search and Rescue K-9 team checked its truck Wednesday morning, thousands of dollars of equipment was missing. The truck had been parked at a hotel overnight.
"For somebody to take it, it not only hurts us, but it hurts missing people out there in America that we're trying to find," said Toney Wade, commander of Cajun Coast Search and Rescue. "It was kind of frustrating. We went out this morning, realized our vehicle had been broken into, a GPS unit stolen, our 2-way radio communications — the radios were stolen — and the truck was just rummaged through."
Wade said he does plan to file a police report but has no plans to stop searching for Knabel, despite the missing gear.
"If anything else, this makes me that much more determined," he said.
Even though there was a recent report that Knabel was spotted at the Youngstown Shopping Center in Jeffersonville, family members said Wednesday they do not believe there are any credible leads in the case, but they do believe this K-9 is proving to be successful.
Wade and his K-9 have been helping crews and family members search for Knabel since arriving in Louisville on Saturday. This round of searches began Monday. The search group is funded solely by donations from the public and has a fund set up for contributions. Now that the group's gear has been stolen, those donations are needed more than ever. In a Facebook post Wednesday morning, the group said it suffered "a great loss" due to the theft.
Knabel's family hopes the group will be able to continue searching at least through Friday. On Wednesday, the group searched the Audubon Park area, Iroquois Park area and southern Indiana. Not all of the exact locations of the search are being revealed, because searchers don't want to give too much away while the investigation into Knabel's disappearance continues.
Click here if you'd like to make a donation to the Cajun Coach Search & Rescue Team.
A $5,000 reward is still being offered for information that leads to Knabel.
If you think you have seen Knabel, you are asked to call (502)-574-LMPD, private investigator Tracy Leonard at 502-618-9337, or dial 911. If possible, please take a picture as well.
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