Police and FBI conducted a raid at an Indiana home Thursday as part of an ongoing investigation into the disappearance of Indiana University student and Westchester native Lauren Spierer.
The FBI and Bloomington Indiana police would only confirm it was "following up on leads and tips" regarding the 20-year-old Spierer's disappearance. Both agencies declined further comment.
But Indianapolis NBC affiliate WTHR-TV, citing sources, was reporting that the search was taking place at the Martinsville home of a man accused of exposing himself to numerous women, and that the search was connected to the Spierer investigation.
It's not clear how the man, 35-year-old Justin Wagers, be may connected to the probe. Wagers, a registered sex offender, has been jailed since August, when he was arrested for allegedly exposing himself, according to WHTR.
Wagers lived at the home with his mother and stepfather up until his arrest last summer. Cadaver dogs were brought in Thursday, and investigators sifted dirt from a barn near the property, WHTR reported. A white truck was also towed from the property.
Wagers has criminal convictions including public indecency, battery, vicarious sexual gratification, intimidation and invasion or privacy dating back to 2000, according to WHTR.
His attorney, Chris Eskew, said in a statement Thursday that his client "has no knowledge regarding the disappearance of Lauren Spierer or any other missing person" and declined further comment.
Local
There's been no sign of Spierer, a Greenburgh, New York, native, since she disappeared in the early morning hours of June 3, 2011 after a night of partying with friends in Bloomington.
Bloomington police said Spierer went to a friend's apartment after being at a nearby sports bar, then left for her own apartment about 4:30 a.m. Her friend watched her walk to the street corner near his apartment. She has not been seen since.
Investigators have Spierer's purse and some keys, which were found along the route to her friend's apartment. But police have said they aren't sure whether Spierer left them on her way to or from her friend's home. She left her cell phone and shoes in the bar.
Police have conducted searches in years past -- in three lakes, in two nearby woodlands and at landfills -- but nothing was found.
Spierer's parents have sued two former Indiana University students over her disappearance, alleging negligence for giving alcohol to someone who already was intoxicated. The attorneys for the men, Jason Rosenbaum and Corey Rossman, have argued they weren't responsible for the safety of an adult.
Neither has been named a suspect in Spierer's disappearance, and no criminal charges were ever filed in the case.
