Name: Vanderlei Szczepanik
Case Classification: Missing
Missing Since: December 14, 2009
Location Last Seen: Omaha, Douglas County, Nebraska
Date of Birth: March 7, 1973
Age: 36 years old
Race: White
Gender: Male
Height: 6'0"
Weight: 160 to 170 lbs.
Hair Color: Brown
Eye Color: Blue
Nickname/Alias: Unknown
Distinguishing Marks/Features: Unknown
Dentals: Unknown
Fingerprints: Unknown
DNA: Unknown
Clothing: Unknown
Jewelry: Unknown
Additional Personal Items: Unknown
Vanderlei, his wife, Jacqueline, and their son, Christopher, were last seen in mid-December. They had been renovating a former high school into a missionary school near 16th and Center Streets. Missing persons reports were filed on the family on January 6, 2010, when relatives had not heard from the family in weeks.
While searching the home, police found all the family's personal items. Authorities did not believe the family had planned on being gone for an extended amount of time.
The family's truck was found abandoned blocks from their home days after they were reported missing. In February, the family's minivan was also located.
In 2011, three men who worked for Vanderlei were arrested for murdering the family. According to testimony, the family were killed and thrown into the Missouri River. Christopher's body was discovered in the river in October 2011. Vanderlei and Jacqueline's remains have yet to be recovered.
Agency Name: Omaha Police Department
Agency Contact Person: Det. Jim Reisinger
Agency Phone Number: 402-444-4127
Agency E-Mail: N/A
Agency Case Number: 84144-X
NamUs Case Number: MP4786
NamUs
NE State Patrol
World-Herald News (Omaha, NE) - Jul. 20, 2010 & Mar. 6, 2011
WAND-TV 17/NBC
Added: 12/5/21; Last Updated: 12/5/21 - By: hb
Questions or comments? Please contact appropriate member of the Area Team
** Listed information is from the time of disappearance.
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