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Aaron Evans [Click to enlarge]

The Corvallis Police Department, in a press conference held Thursday, reaffirmed there are still no confirmed connections between the disappearance of Brooke Wilberger and Aaron Evans, the suspect being held for last week's attempted abduction of a female OSU student.

In a written statement, read by Benton County Sheriff's Office Undersheriff Diana Simpson, the joint task force conducting Wilberger's investigation chided a Portland news station for reporting a story that linked Evans to Wilberger.

In the report by KATU News, Jessica Caywood, Evans' stepsister, indicated she thought Evans was responsible for Wilberger's abduction.

"The task force is very disappointed in KATU's story linking Evans to Wilberger without contacting local law enforcement to verify the information first," the statement said. "This affects the Wilberger family by putting them on an emotional roller coaster, which is very unfair to them."

Caywood said she had observed upturned dirt in the basement of the Evans family home in north Albany, indicating someone may have been buried there. Upon investigation by authorities, the basement floor was found to be concrete; the only dirt found in the basement was potting soil, the statement said. It was also determined that the concrete floor had been in place for an extended period of time; no recent pours had been made.

Caywood also said Evans had returned home with a swollen eye, bloody lip and what appeared to be scratch marks on his chest shortly after Wilberger's disappearance, which was "the nail in the coffin" convincing her of Evans' involvement.

The statement released by the task force said there appears to be no relation to the injuries Evans sustained and Wilberger's disappearance.

"All indications are that Evans received those injuries at a time well before Wilberger's disappearance," the statement said.

Simpson confirmed at the press conference that statements from people who knew Evans confirmed he had sustained those injuries prior to Wilberger's going missing.

The Wilberger Investigation Task Force includes the Benton County Sheriff's Office, Oregon State Police and the FBI, and is led by CPD.

The task force statement thanked the media for its support and coverage of the case, but cautioned the media "to responsibly report any new developments." The task force said such reports as KATU's "results in a tremendous workload" that diverts the force's resources from investigating other possible leads.

There have been over 4,500 tips since Wilberger disappeared on May 24.

The statement said Evans remains a person of interest in the Wilberger investigation, along with three other individuals, including accused panty thief Sun Koo Kim.

Evans is scheduled to appear in court for a preliminary hearing Monday facing charges of attempted kidnapping.

Peter Chee, city editor

city@dailybarometer.com, 737- 2231

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