Hundreds of volunteers and law enforcement officials in Oregon searched Tuesday for a Brigham Young University student who has been missing since Monday morning. Police believe the 19-year-old was abducted from an apartment building in Corvallis, Ore., where she worked.
Brooke Wilberger was last seen around 9:30 a.m. by her sister and brother-in-law, who manage the apartment complex. Wilberger was cleaning some walkway lights around the building when her sister and brother-in-law left and had disappeared by the time they returned an hour later.
"We think it was a planned or random abduction," said Corvallis Police Capt. Robert Deutsch, a department spokesman. "We've looked into her background, and she's not in any way the kind of person who would do this (disappear without telling anyone)."
Wilberger worked in Corvallis during the week for her sister and brother-in-law, Stephani and Zach Hansen. She was living at home for the summer with her parents, Greg and Cammy Wilberger, in Veneta, Ore., near Eugene. She completed her freshman year at BYU in April.
Deutsch said a piece of Wilberger's clothing was found in the parking lot, and a bucket of water and cleaning items were left behind in the area where she had been working.
"That's part of what really makes us think it was an abduction," Deutsch said.
He also said Wilberger's purse, keys, cell phone and other items were left in her sister's apartment, and her car was still in the parking lot.
Rachel Woolley, Wilberger's friend and former roommate in a BYU dormitory, said she's pretty certain Wilberger was abducted. "From spending a year with her, I think she'd tell someone where she was going, or take her cell phone," Woolley said.
Deutsch said police have eliminated domestic problems as a possibility. Wilberger's longtime boyfriend is currently serving as a missionary for The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints in South America.
Woolley confirmed that Wilberger was close to her family, and wouldn't have left without telling them. "She lets them know where she's going all the time; they keep tabs on each other," she said.
Michelle Johansen, a friend who lived next door to Wilberger, said she thinks Wilberger would have put up a struggle.
"She's little as far as her body goes, but she wouldn't have gone without a fight," Johansen said. "If something wasn't right, she'd say or do something about it."
Volunteers from LDS congregations in the Corvallis area began searching for Wilberger around 5 p.m. on Monday. By 9 p.m., a search and rescue team had joined the effort.
Upward of 300 LDS Church members and other volunteers canvassed the area until 3 a.m. Tuesday and continued searching and passing out fliers around the city on Tuesday. Some volunteers distributed fliers at various locations along area highways.
"We are determined to do everything we can," said Paul Davis, who serves as a bishop's counselor in the leadership of the Corvallis 1st Ward.
Davis said area residents are a little shocked by the disappearance. "Generally, this is a very peaceful community," he said.
Wilberger's family is doing well, and her parents have returned home, Davis said. "They're obviously going through a difficult time right now, but their hopes remain high," he said.
Deutsch said the chances of finding Wilberger unharmed diminish as time passes.
"They (Wilberger and her alleged abductor) could be halfway across the country by now," he said. "And the longer it goes on, and the more interaction that she has with her abductor, the more threatened and desperate they (her abductor) will become that she can identify them."
Wilberger's friends said they are distressed that they cannot do more to aid in her recovery.
"It's been really rough," said Woolley, who is currently living in Idaho. "I feel helpless; I'm up here, and I can't really help at all."
Johansen, who is in Provo, said Wilberger's friends from BYU called each other throughout the day.
"We're just sick about it," she said. "It's hard to be unable to help her, because that's what we did all year."
Wilberger has shoulder-length blond hair and blue eyes and is 5 feet 4 inches tall, weighing between 105 and 110 pounds. She was last seen wearing jeans, a gray BYU sweatshirt, small hoop earrings and a CTR ring. She also has a scar along her right arm, extending from elbow to wrist, and was likely barefoot, Deutsch said.
Wilberger is registered as a pre-elementary education major but had recently been studying speech pathology. She is enrolled for fall classes at BYU.
E-mail: mdecker@desnews.com