Times, the (Shreveport, LA)

Times, The (Shreveport, LA)

November 10, 2001

Tip leads to body of missing person

Wendi Long's father believes remains belong to missing daughter.

By Vickie Welborn

Times Mansfield Bureau

NEAR WESTDALE - A father's heart tells him his 21-year-old blond-haired, blue-eyed daughter is never coming home again.

"I know in my heart and I know from what I've heard," said Luke Long Friday afternoon, as he stood feet from where investigators and a forensics team - sometimes on hands and knees - searched through a heavy thicket looking for skeletal remains discovered the day before.

Red River Parish Sheriff Buddy Huckabay said it would be at least three days before the badly decomposed remains, scattered on top of the ground, are identified. But it is a possibility, he said, the remains are those of Wendi Long of Martin, daughter of Luke and Karol Long. Wendi Long has been missing since April 14.

Huckabay based his conclusion on "a few items found out there." He would not be more specific.

Neither would Red River Parish Coroner Wyche Coleman. However, Coleman said there is "strong evidence."

Luke Long went a step further and said his belief stems from a clothing description provided to him.

"I know it's her," he said.

Luke and Karol Long last saw their daughter April 13. She left their home to pick up friends in Natchitoches for a shopping trip in Shreveport.

They worried when she failed to return home the next day, but their fears escalated when she still didn't show up April 15 for Easter dinner.

A man who gave Wendi Long a ride from a party in Shreveport reportedly last saw her at a Chevron station at Bert Kouns Industrial Loop and Youree Drive. She's believed to have sought a ride from there to Natchitoches from two other men in a black truck.

Huckabay said the Natchitoches District Attorney's office's investigator recently questioned someone he termed as a "possible suspect" in Wendi Long's disappearance. And though no charges have been filed, Huckabay said that person, whom he would not identify, is "not running around anywhere." He would not confirm whether the man is already in custody on other charges.

"I'm hoping an arrest will be made soon," Huckabay said.

Many people have been questioned through the course of the investigation, which has involved the Red River Parish sheriff's office, the Shreveport Police Department, the Natchitoches Parish sheriff's office and the Louisiana state police. Some people were even hypnotized or given polygraph tests, but none of those efforts have led to an arrest.

A tip from another agency led Red River Parish investigators to the site where the remains were found Thursday afternoon, Huckabay said. He would not disclose specifics of the tip or which agency provided it. The scattered skeletal remains were found less than 100 feet off busily traveled state Highway 1 near the Westdale Community in north Red River Parish about 5 miles south of the Caddo Parish line.

Red River sheriff's deputies secured the scene overnight. Personnel from the Northwest Louisiana Criminalistic Laboratory in Shreveport began their search Friday morning. Before noon, a team from the Louisiana State University FACES (Forensic Anthropology Computer Enhancement Services) Laboratory had arrived and took over the crime scene.

For hours, the team squeezed through the chest-high undergrowth and weeds, placing small flags or tying pieces of reflective tape along the site, which also borders a railroad track.

The team seemingly photographed every inch of the area, using tape measures to chart distances. By afternoon, the remains were removed and numerous undisclosed items were placed in paper bags.

Coleman said investigators have "some clues" as to the cause of death of the victim, but he was not releasing that information. He believes crime lab personnel will work over the weekend to have a positive identification as soon as possible.

Coleman, in addition to being on scene in an official capacity, also had a more personal role: He's a longtime friend of Wendi Long and her parents and had served as the family's doctor.

"This case is very special to us ... because it may involve a person who'd been missing, a person who is a friend of mine," Coleman said. "It is important to make an identification as soon as possible."

The Longs, he said, may find it somewhat of a blessing if the remains are identified, "just to have closure at this point," he said.

Luke Long stayed at the scene through early afternoon. Law enforcement officials periodically conferred with him. Luke Long's sister and brother-in-law, Sharon and George Youngblood, also stood at his side.

Luke Long said wife Karol, who remained at their Martin home, was aware of what was taking place. And though he's possibly facing an official death notice of his spunky college-age daughter, Luke Long's thoughts also turned to others.

"I want to thank everybody for their help. I want to thank the media for all of the coverage a lot of people responded to that," Luke Long said. "It helped to know people were concerned."

Here's a look at events in the Wendi Long case since her disappearance:

April 14: Long is last seen getting into a truck with two men at a Chevron gas station at Bert Kouns Industrial Loop and Youree Drive. She was dropped off there by a man who gave her a ride from a party in Shreveport.

April 21: The Red River Parish sheriff's office releases composite sketches (below) of two men last seen with Long at the Shreveport gas station.

April 23: Composites prompt numerous phone calls to the Red River sheriff's office.

April 25: Long's family offers $20,000 reward for information leading to her whereabouts.

May 21: Man who saw Long getting into truck with the two men undergoes three hours of hypnosis, providing investigators with their descriptions and details of the truck, including a number on its license plate.

July 8: Luke Long, Wendi's father, agonizes over her disappearance. "I sit around wishing that if somebody did something they would just write an anonymous letter like you see on TV where they cut the letters out of a magazine and paste it on paper. Something, please."

Nov. 9: State police, Red River Parish authorities and Shreveport police investigate human remains, believed to be Long's body, that were discovered off state Highway 1 in the Red River Parish community of Westdale.

- Compiled by Don Walker