Report: Lauren Spierer's Parents Don't Believe Daughter Is Alive
BLOOMINGTON, Ind. (CBSNewYork/AP) -- The parents of an Indiana University student from Westchester who has been missing since June say they want to keep up attention about her disappearance even though they realize she's likely dead.
It's been more than 10 months since 20-year-old Lauren Spierer was last seen. As the one-year anniversary of her disappearance nears, her parents returned to Bloomington for the final weeks of IU's spring semester.
But in an interview with the Journal News, Charlene Spierer said she no longer believes her daughter is alive.
"We always hope there is a possibility, but I don't know," she said.
Robert Spierer said they're trying to be realistic.
"We know that if she had the chance to reach out to us, she would have done it," he told the Journal News.
He says it is frustrating to continue facing the same unanswered questions since their daughter disappeared early June 3 after a night out with friends in downtown Bloomington.
She left without her shoes or cell phone and was later seen on surveillance video stumbling out of an elevator at her apartment.
Spierer was accompanied by a man named Corey Rossman. He has been labeled a person of interest, but Rossman told police they were confronted by several people in the apartment hallway and he was punched so hard, he lost his memory of that night.
"I feel if she never met Corey Rossman, she'd be alive today," Robert Spierer said. "His claim of memory loss is laughable."
In February, the Spierers announced that thanks to a donation, the reward for information that leads them to their daughter has grown to $250,000.
They asked that anyone with information contact Beau Dietl Associates at 1.800.777.9366, www.investigations.com or the Bloomington Police Department at (812)339-4477.
Police say they've received more than 2,400 tips in the case.
For more information, visit www.findlauren.com.
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