A national search and rescue team is working in Northeast Ohio, looking for a young mother who went missing back in August under very suspicious circumstances.
No one has seen or heard from 27-year-old Christine Slinger of Massillon since August 20. She has an 8-year-old daughter and was last seen with her daughter's father, Steven Stafford, who authorities say committed suicide shortly after Slinger went missing.
On August 21, New Philadelphia police discovered Steven Stafford with the couple's 8-year-old daughter. He was questioned by police and released after agreeing to undergo a polygraph test the next day. When he didn't show up, police went to his apartment and found him dead from a self-inflicted gunshot wound.
Saturday, the Ohio-Midwest Chapter of Texas Equusearch scoured rural and remote areas in and around Massillon. The non-profit organization is based in Houston, but helps locate missing people and bodies across the U.S.
Texas Equusearch has been involved in some high-profile cases like the searches for Caylee Anthony in Florida and Natalee Holloway in Aruba.
They use horses, drones, water sonar, ATVs and trained foot searchers in different cases. This weekend, they chose foot searchers and ATVs to look for Slinger.
"We're going to check brush piles, of course. If something doesn't look right then we'll investigate it a little bit further, but right now we're just concentrating on pieces of land that make the most sense and whatever we come across we'll investigate it as we go," said David Rader of Ohio's chapter of Texas Equusearch.
Texas Equusearch was brought in at the request of the Christine's family who is desperate to find her. The Stark County Sheriff's Department approved of and helped with the search.
There is no charge to the family or law enforcement from the organization.