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Cadaver Dogs Search Pennsylvania Property For Mother Missing Since 2014
Police executed a search warrant using cadaver dogs this week in the case of missing Philadelphia-area mother Amanda DeGuio, last seen in June 2014.
Law enforcement agencies descended onto a rural Pennsylvania property searching for a woman who vanished more than eight years ago.
Amanda DeGuio was 24 when she disappeared from her home in Upper Darby — a western suburb of Philadelphia — on June 3, 2014, according to Fox affiliate WTXF-TV. A mother of two young girls, she reportedly didn't take her credit cards, cell phone or any additional clothing. Her sister officially filed a missing person's report on Aug. 27, 2014, explaining that Amanda was bipolar and was in recovery for a drug problem.
On Wednesday, sources say local, state, and federal officials searched the backyard of a rural property in Nottingham, Pennsylvania — which is on the Pennsylvania-Maryland border about 50 miles west of where DeGuio went missing — apparently in hopes of finding the remains of the missing mother of two.
Sources told ABC Fox affiliate WPVI that the home belonged to a close friend of the DeGuio family.
Authorities executing the search warrant on brought cadaver dogs and other specialized equipment with them.
Investigators shut down neighboring streets, dug around the rural property and even drained a septic tank, according to CBS News. Despite the massive efforts, sources say authorities left without any sign of the missing mother.
Amanda DeGuio’s mother and sister, however, were on the scene, where investigators primarily focused in the backyard, according to WPVI. The family’s private investigator, Kevin Ryan, said it was “by far” the “biggest visible presence” since the investigation began eight and a half years ago.
“They’re very strong. They’ve always been strong with this, but today it brings a whole new sense of feelings,” Ryan said of the DeGuio family on Wednesday. “Once we pulled up, I think reality set in for everybody, including myself.”
DeGuio had returned from a trip to Florida on May 30, 2014 — the Friday after Memorial Day — and, on the morning of June 3, DeGuio’s mother, Joanne, asked her daughter to do her laundry from the trip and bring in the luggage that had been left outside to air that day, the Delaware County Daily Times reported.
Diane DeGuio returned home at around 5:00 p.m. to an empty house, the suitcases outside and dirty clothes. Relatives were unsure as to how Amanda left home, according to the FBI, since DeGuio didn’t drive, and her credit cards and cell phone were still at the house.
DeGuio’s sister, Nicole DeGuio, reported her missing almost three months later. She said her sister lived with bipolar disorder and had a history of drug abuse. According to WTXF-TV, DeGuio became addicted to opioids following surgery and, according to the FBI, she later became addicted to heroin. Amanda was in recovery at the time of her disappearance.
Loved ones desperately searched hospitals and morgues, but to no avail. The few leads in the case were all dead ends, including a possible 2019 sighting on Kensington Avenue in Philadelphia that didn’t pan out, according to the Daily Times.
On Wednesday, Upper Darby Police Superintendent Timothy Bernhardt emphasized the investigation was “active” and declined to comment about the events and information outlined in the sealed search warrant executed in Nottingham.
"We know there are people out there who may have information as to the circumstances behind Amanda DeGuio’s disappearance,” Bernhardt told CBS News. “We ask that anyone that has any information to please contact us.”
DeGuio is described as being 5’2,” weighing approximately 115 pounds, with brown hair and blue eyes. Tattoos included a pair of lips or lipstick on her right buttocks, an outline of Italy and the word “Tommy” on the right side of her torso, writing under one of her breasts, initials on one of her fingers and the letters “MF” inside her lower lip.
She also has a diagonal surgical scar on her upper and lower abdomen and was known to frequent the Upper Darby, Clifton Heights and Overbook sections of Philadelphia.
Anyone with information can contact Upper Darby Police Department, which created a special page about Amanda DeGuio, or call 1-610-734-7669.
