Former Dowagiac police officer Fred Byrne remains missing.

Byrne, 49, who was with the city force in the mid-1990s, around the time Gary Dumeney was chief, has been missing since Feb. 12.

He dropped his son off at Hope College in Holland and visited his mother, telling her he was headed to RiverTown Crossings Mall to buy his wife, Diana, a Valentine’s Day gift.

Byrne’s Chevy Malibu was found Feb. 14 parked along a forest service road near Van Buren, Mo., about 160 miles southwest of St. Louis and 560 miles from where he was last seen in Michigan.

An aerial search of Mark Twain National Forest in southern Missouri failed to find the missing Big Rapids man.

His wallet and keys were found in the car, along with about $4 in the center console.
Big Rapids police executed search warrants into Byrne’s finances and medical records and they have the home computer trying to develop leads.

Investigators also looked at hours of surveillance video from stores at RiverTown Crossings Mall.

Det. Brian Miller of the City of Big Rapids Department of Public Safety Police Division could not be reached for comment Tuesday.