John Matthews
WMAL.com
WASHINGTON — (WMAL) D.C. Police have resumed their search for a homeless girl who disappeared from a shelter 21 months ago.
Relisha Rudd was 8 years old in March of 2014, when she was last seen in the company of a janitor who worked at the homeless shelter where she lived with her family. That janitor was found dead in a park in Northeast D.C., not long after the girl was reported missing. Police later determined that Khalil Tatum, 51, killed his wife, then committed suicide.
Speaking in Northeast Thursday morning, D.C. Police Chief Cathy Lanier told reporters that investigators have spent the past several months following leads that continue to come in in the case, and have identified two sites where detectives are hopeful to find the girl’s body, or clues to her whereabouts.
Police cadets and officers with K9 search dogs began searching the first site, a construction areadirectly across the street from the police Fifth District headquarters on Bladensburg Road, on Thursday morning. 60 to 80 police officers and other personnel are taking part in today’s search, and Lanier said similar sized groups will conduct any future searches for Relisha. After the search is completed at the first site, Lanier said the search will continue at a second undisclosed location.
Lanier told reporters both the FBI and the Center for Missing and Exploited Children have continued to work the Rudd case, and she urged members of the community to continue to call with tips or any information that can help them close the case.
Copyright 2015 by WMAL.com. All Rights Reserved. (PHOTO: Homeless Children’s Playtime Project)
