The search for Lauren Spierer, an Indiana University student that went missing in 2011 after a night out with friends, may have reached a new development Thursday after police and FBI agents searched the former home of a registered sex offender who is believed to be connected to her disappearance.
The FBI and the Bloomington, Ind., police confirmed the potential development, revealing that the federal agency was assisting in the search at a location in Morgan County, about 30 miles north of Bloomington, where she was last seen that fateful day, according to People.
Authorities said the home was the residence of Justin Wagers, 35, unti August 2015 when he was arrested on an indecent exposure charge. Wagers has been convicted for numerous sex-related offenses such as public indecency, public nudity and vicarious sexual gratification.
Wager's attorney, Chris Eskew, has maintained his client's innocence, saying that Wagers "has no knowledge regarding the disappearance of Lauren Spierer or any other missing person," according to NBC News.
In the meantime, Wagers is awaiting a Feb. 18 court appearance in Johnson County on a felony charge of public indecency. A similar charge is pending in Marion County.
Spierer was last seen wearing a white tank top, a white button-down shirt and black Spandex pants as she was leaving a bar on June 3, 2011, at 3 a.m. with a male student.
Surveillance video showed her and the male student entering his building at around 3 a.m. but doesn't show her leaving, reported CNN. However, an unconfirmed report from a neighbor places her outside the building at about 4:30 a.m.
Her purse and some keys were found in a nearby alley.