New Equipment Used In Search For Sierra LaMar
MORGAN HILL (KCBS) – Dive teams using new tools were out again at Chesbro Reservoir in Morgan Hill, looking for the body of missing teenager Sierra LaMar.
The crews were equipped with more sensitive sonar equipment, which is designed to give them a much sharper picture of what may be underwater.
"Our old unit was only 900 kilohertz. This one is 1800 kilohertz HD," said Sgt. Dennis Owens with the Santa Clara County Sheriff's Dive Team. "And the return we get now is so much clearer. It's so much easier to make out between a rock, a log or a fishing pole."
KCBS' Matt Bigler Reports:
Officials said they were rescanning the reservoir because they now have access to the improved technology, not because they have any new tips or leads in the case.
15-year-old Sierra LaMar went missing in mid-March.
21-year-old Antolin Garcia-Torres has been arrested for her murder, but a body has not been found.
Meanwhile, another social media hoax in the case is proving to be a distraction for detectives, who have not given up on finding new evidence.
The latest involved someone who created a Facebook account using Sierra's name and photograph, then posting a plea for help.
Santa Clara County Sheriff's Department spokesman Jose Cardoza said these false leads are hurting what is still an open investigation.
KCBS' Matt Bigler Reports:
"It may be funny to them, it may be a game," he said. "What they don't see is the other side, the resources that are being taken away to investigate these bogus activities."
The department has called in the Rapid Enforcement Allied Computer Team (REACT) Task Force, which investigates high-tech crimes, to try and track down the prankster.
In the days following her March disappearance, hackers posted messages from LaMar's Twitter account.
(Copyright 2012 by CBS San Francisco. All Rights Reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.)
