Help Needed In Locating A Missing Pine Co. Family
PINE CITY, Minn. (WCCO) – Pine County authorities have issued a crime alert and are asking for the public's help in finding a man and his four children.
On Friday, Peter Kunze disappeared along with his two juvenile children, 16-year-old Sean Hanson and her 12-year-old brother, Joshua Kunze.
That's the same day the children's father failed to appear in family court.
For the past five days their rural home west of Hinckley, Minn. has been strangely quiet. Mail is now piling up and there appears to be no fresh tire tracks in the driveway.
Pine County Sheriff Robin Cole says it appears the family quickly vanished.
"When we went out to the household, there was no one there," Cole said.
Kunze was supposed to be at a custody hearing for the two youngest kids on Friday.
Pine County Circuit Court Judge Krista Martin was ordering the two children into foster care.
That action was taken after Kunze and his former wife, Beth Hanson, divorced and parenting assessments were done to decide the question of parental custody.
The two kids have been living with Kunze since last February.
However, the county's assessment found that Kunze was engaging in "harmful triangulation" with the children over the course of his ongoing marital dispute with Hanson.
The Health and Human Services assessment fears Kunze's actions could be "placing the children at risk of mental illness and other distress."
While it appeared that Hanson would eventually be awarded custody, the matter was set for a disposition hearing on September 12th. When Kunze failed to appear, deputies went out to the family's home and discovered no sign that anyone was in the home.
On Tuesday, deputies were issued a search warrant to enter the home, looking for any evidence of where Kunze and the children may be headed.
"We're concerned for the welfare of the children, but we're not necessarily worried about the welfare of the children," Cole said. "So, we're just looking for help from the public. If you should see this vehicle or see this family, give us a call."
Along with the two younger children, Kunze is believed to be traveling with his two older children, 22-year-old Ashley and 20-year-old Christian. The family also has three large dogs.
All may be traveling in Kunze's 1991 Ford Explorer, with Minnesota license plate 952 MUM.
So far, an arrest warrant has not been issued for Kunze, however, investigators said that could change.
Anyone with information on the family's whereabouts should call their local police or the Pine County Sheriff's Office, at 320-629-8380.
