What to know about the disappearance of Kiely Rodni, California teen missing since weekend

Dozens of law enforcement personnel, at least three aircraft and numerous volunteers have combed through Northern California’s Sierra Nevada foothills for days in search of Kiely Rodni, a 16-year-old girl missing since early Saturday morning who was last seen at a large campground party with other teens and young adults.

Kiely remains missing three days after she went to a party at Prosser Family Campground just north of Truckee, and authorities continue to search for her and her vehicle – a 2013 silver Honda CR-V with license plate No. 8YUR127, which also hasn’t been seen since Kiely disappeared around 12:30 a.m. Saturday.

Authorities said her phone has not been in service since then.

Placer County Sheriff’s Office spokeswoman Angela Musallam on Monday confirmed the agency is investigating the possibility of an abduction, but wrote in an emailed response that this distinction has been made “ONLY because (authorities) have not been able to locate her vehicle.”

“Numerous resources and agencies” have assisted, including “investigators and search and rescue specialists from across the region,” the Sheriff’s Office said in an update posted to social media Tuesday morning.

Law enforcement personnel spanning local sheriff’s offices, the Truckee Police Department, the California Highway Patrol, the FBI and the Department of Homeland Security dedicated close to 1,500 combined search hours from Saturday through early Tuesday afternoon, Sgt. Dennis Hack of the Nevada County Sheriff’s Office said during a news conference Tuesday afternoon.

Hack said more than 100 volunteers have also assisted in the effort, searching on foot, on motorcycles, on UTVs and using canines.

“We’re also searching on the water using boats,” Hack said.

At least three helicopters – one each from the Placer County Sheriff’s Office, CHP and Washoe County Sheriff’s Office in Nevada – have also taken part in the search. Aerial searches continued Tuesday, Placer sheriff’s officials said.

Detective Sgt. Scott Alford of the Placer County Sheriff’s Office said in Tuesday’s news briefing, held at the Truckee-Donner Recreation and Park District center and live-streamed online, that the last signal from Kiely’s phone came at 12:33 a.m. Saturday.

Alford said authorities found video showing Kiely at a store prior to the party, around 6 p.m. Friday. He said that while this finding did not provide any new information about her whereabouts, it helped “confirm a timeline that we already had.”

A tip line for information about Kiely’s whereabouts has been set up at 530-581-6320.

Sheriff’s officials initially said more than 100 teens and young adults were at Friday night’s party at Prosser Family Campground. Musallam on Tuesday upped that estimate to somewhere between 200 and 300 people, and she called on anyone who was at that party and who may have any information about Kiely to contact the tip line.

“We are urging and pleading with the community to please come forward,” Musallam said. “You will remain anonymous.”

Why hasn’t an AMBER Alert been issued?

Though sheriff’s officials are investigating Kiely’s disappearance as a possible abduction, no AMBER Alert had been issued for the teen as of Tuesday morning.

“AMBER plans require law enforcement to confirm an abduction prior to issuing an alert,” the nationwide alert broadcast system’s website explains. “To allow activations in the absence of significant information that an abduction has occurred could lead to abuse of the system and ultimately weaken its effectiveness.

“At the same time, each case must be appraised on its own merits and a judgment call made quickly.”

CHP, which handles California’s state-level AMBER alerts, also says those alerts can only be activated once an abduction has been confirmed.

CHP on Monday afternoon did issue an “endangered missing advisory” alert for Kiely. The alert covers Alpine, Amador, El Dorado, Nevada, Placer, Plumas, Sacramento and Sierra counties in California.

The agency said anyone who sees the teen should call 911.

Family reportedly offering $50,000 reward

Kiely’s family and friends established a website with information about the teen’s disappearance, findkiely.com.

A flier that includes a QR code linking to the website has been shared widely online. It says a $50,000 reward is being offered “for information that leads to her being found.”

Sami Smith, a close friend of Kiely who said she is the last person who saw her and whose contact information is on the website, said the reward is being offered by family, according to The Associated Press.

The Placer County Sheriff’s Office in Facebook comments said it is not involved with the reward.

Where is Prosser Family Campground?

Prosser Family Campground is located on federal land within the Tahoe National Forest, roughly 10 miles north of Truckee in Nevada County. Placer and Nevada counties’ sheriff’s offices say they are both leading the search effort.

The campground site is on a peninsula along the west edge of the Prosser Creek Reservoir, which is located just east of Highway 89 and north of Interstate 80.

According to its website, Prosser offers recreational activities including “boating, canoeing, paddling, fishing, and abundant hiking, biking, and off-road trails.”

The campground and reservoir are about 15 miles north of Lake Tahoe.