Expert Called In To Help Search For Missing Purdue Student

WEST LAFAYETTE, Ind. -- A nationally renowned expert has been called in to help police search for a Purdue student who has been missing for more than a week.

A former FBI agent and current member of the National Center for Missing and Exploited Children is expected to arrive on campus on Monday to help with the investigation into the disappearance of Wade Steffey, 19, a freshman at Purdue.

Volunteers searched an area between the football stadium and Steffey's residence hall in an effort to find his cell phone, which had been traced to the area after his disappearance. The search was not successful.

The center's help will be very significant," said Purdue police Capt. Tim Potts. "Not only will the agent provide us with an outside perspective, we will be able to tap its extensive database of cases to look for matches."

Steffey, of Bloomington, disappeared on Jan. 13 after attending a party at a fraternity house. Investigators were able to track his cell phone signal until Jan. 17, when the battery is believed to have gone dead.

Wade father, Dale Steffey, asked that anyone who might have heard a ringing cell phone on the northeastern side of campus in the days following his son's disappearance to contact the Purdue Police Department at 765-494-8221 or the anonymous tip line at 765-496-3784.

A reward fund has been established for information that leads to Steffey's whereabouts. Donations to the Wade Steffey Reward Fund can be made at any central Indiana Fifth Third Bank.

Steffey has short, brown hair and brown eyes. He is 5 feet 10 inches tall and weighs about 150 pounds.