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The Nemaha County Sheriff’s Office has named Joshua Keadle, 29, as a suspect in the disappearance of Tyler Thomas, a Peru State College student that has been missing since early Dec. 3. According to court records, authorities gained probable cause for Keadle’s arrest from interviews conducted on Dec. 3, 6 and 7.
In an interview with Channel 3 News on Dec. 3 Keadle said, “It really didn’t sink in until, like, I saw her family crying outside the hallway. Then it was like, wow, this could be serious.”
Keadle said that he last saw Thomas half of a block from the Centennial Dorms early morning on Dec. 3 on his way home from the movies. “We were driving back. She was just walking alone,” said Keadle. “The only reason I really noticed her was ‘cause she didn’t have a jacket on and it was pretty cold that night.” Keadle was a Peru State College student during the interview but has since been suspended.
According to court records, Keadle was arrested for two counts of false reporting and one count of tampering with physical evidence. Court records state that Keadle changed his story three times during interviews conducted on Dec. 3, 6 and 7.
Initially Keadle gave authorities the same information as above. According to court records, in interviews conducted Dec. 6 through Dec. 7, Keadle admitted to having Thomas in his motor vehicle and that he had previously lied to peace officers about his contact with Thomas after his initial sighting of her.
Court records further indicate that Keadle admitted to having sexual contact with Thomas followed by a physical and verbal confrontation, during which time he said Thomas threatened to tell everyone that he had raped her. Court records state that later, when Keadle returned to his dorm room, he said he took a shower with the intent of washing off any physical DNA evidence.
Investigators called the Peru Fire Department Thursday morning to assist the Missouri Water Patrol in search of evidence in the Missouri River near a Peru boat ramp 1.7 miles east of town. The firefighters used fire hoses to break up ice that had formed after Thomas was reported missing. Starting Wednesday, investigators searched a square mile of lowlands around the boat ramp. The search Dec. 9 focused on the water near the boat ramp.
The Nemaha County Sheriff’s Office has named Joshua Keadle, 29, as a suspect in the disappearance of Tyler Thomas, a Peru State College student that has been missing since early Dec. 3. According to court records, authorities gained probable cause for Keadle’s arrest from interviews conducted on Dec. 3, 6 and 7.
In an interview with Channel 3 News on Dec. 3 Keadle said, “It really didn’t sink in until, like, I saw her family crying outside the hallway. Then it was like, wow, this could be serious.”
Keadle said that he last saw Thomas half of a block from the Centennial Dorms early morning on Dec. 3 on his way home from the movies. “We were driving back. She was just walking alone,” said Keadle. “The only reason I really noticed her was ‘cause she didn’t have a jacket on and it was pretty cold that night.” Keadle was a Peru State College student during the interview but has since been suspended.
According to court records, Keadle was arrested for two counts of false reporting and one count of tampering with physical evidence. Court records state that Keadle changed his story three times during interviews conducted on Dec. 3, 6 and 7.
Initially Keadle gave authorities the same information as above. According to court records, in interviews conducted Dec. 6 through Dec. 7, Keadle admitted to having Thomas in his motor vehicle and that he had previously lied to peace officers about his contact with Thomas after his initial sighting of her.
Court records further indicate that Keadle admitted to having sexual contact with Thomas followed by a physical and verbal confrontation, during which time he said Thomas threatened to tell everyone that he had raped her. Court records state that later, when Keadle returned to his dorm room, he said he took a shower with the intent of washing off any physical DNA evidence.
Investigators called the Peru Fire Department Thursday morning to assist the Missouri Water Patrol in search of evidence in the Missouri River near a Peru boat ramp 1.7 miles east of town. The firefighters used fire hoses to break up ice that had formed after Thomas was reported missing. Starting Wednesday, investigators searched a square mile of lowlands around the boat ramp. The search Dec. 9 focused on the water near the boat ramp.
