Friends of the family are organizing a candlelight vigil to take place Saturday, Oct. 9, in Winsted. Anyone with any information is urged to contact the Winsted Police Department at 860-379-2721.
WINSTED — It has now been more than a month since 16-year-old Rhiannon Smith disappeared from her Winsted home, with no credible trace of her whereabouts. Family and friends are now wondering why more hasn’t been done to locate the girl, who went missing Sept. 1 under suspicious circumstances. The case has gone from being one of a possible runaway to an endangered and possibly coerced disappearance.
On Wednesday, Winchester Police Chief Robert Scannell said he believes Rhiannon may be dead.
Winsted police initially reported Rhiannon left on foot, having no known access to a vehicle or driver’s license, but that she hinted she might be headed for Canada, possibly in the area of Prince Edward Island. One report from a community member shortly after her disappearance noted that a girl matching her description was seen sleeping in a dugout at a local baseball field, but no leads turned up.
Members of the community are now wondering why no police dogs were used to track Rhiannon and why an AMBER Alert was not issued in the case. Rhiannon reportedly has significant psychological issues that put her in danger of bodily harm or death, and an AMBER Alert would have gotten the word out nationwide to law enforcement agencies to search for her.
Rhiannon’s grandmother, Dale Smith, told The Winsted Journal last week that she believed her granddaughter was in danger.
“I am certain she is not out on her own will and is in grave danger,� she said. “I just wish there was a way to find her.�
Family, friends and investigators have been discouraged by the fact that Rhiannon’s cellphone and laptop computer have not been used since she disappeared. A fan of vampire stories, Rhiannon also took all of her vampire books. She was carrying a black duffel bag and did not bring any toiletries, makeup or deodorant.
The only clue Rhiannon left was a cryptic note to her grandparents, in which she suggests that both she and her grandparents may be in physical danger, due to an “ex-lover,� a 20-year-old man in Florida who she said had threatened her. The extent of Rhiannon’s relationship with the man is unknown, but a review of Rhiannon’s online activity suggests an online relationship in which the two exchanged photos and stories and mentioned mutual friends with assumed names Jake, Nick and Sanji.
A key to Rhiannon’s disappearance may lie in this network of friends with assumed names. In her letter to her grandparents, Rhiannon said Jake, Nick and Sanji were helping her to run away and hide. But in online chats and e-mails, there is evidence that Jake, Nick and Sanji were involved in a plot to harm Rhiannon. The identities of these friends have not been determined by police. Rhiannon went by the nickname Wolfe in online conversations, which abruptly ceased when she disappeared.
Sgt. Kevin Kinahan of the Winchester Police Department is the lead investigator in Rhiannon’s case and has said the department is still pursuing any leads that appear credible. But as days have turned into weeks, and now a month, statistically, the likelihood of a tragic result has increased.
Dale Smith said Rhiannon had recently started high school at the Explorations Charter School in Winsted and that she had been very happy to be with new classmates after having difficulties at The Gilbert School, where her grandmother said she was tormented and bullied.
“Rhiannon was so happy. We finally got her out of The Gilbert School,� she said. “She told us about new friends she was making at the school. There was no reason for her to run away. She was happy. She really was.�
Smith also described her granddaughter as an animal lover who is artistically gifted and had been accepted into the Hartford Academy for the Performing Arts. A talented writer, Rhiannon also suffered some psychological issues dealing with perception and separating reality from fantasy. This may have left her vulnerable to the influence of others, her grandmother said.
Members of Rhiannon’s family and community are working with police to find her and are still trying to spread the word of her disappearance. Contributors to a Facebook page dedicated to finding Rhiannon are asking why Rhiannon’s story isn’t receiving more attention at the state and national levels.
Latest Update: September 30, 2010 10:43 a.m.
