The search continues for the elderly couple who disappeared last Friday while picking mushrooms in Boxholm.
During the night, the police will continue to search – but with fewer patrols.
– We have not found anything that brought us closer to the couple, says Martina Gradian, press spokesperson for Region Öst to TV4 Nyheterna.
The man and woman, natives of Mjölby, have now been missing for five days after they disappeared on a forest excursion northeast of Boxholm.
– They must have known the area and been out picking mushrooms there before, says Mats Pettersson, press spokesperson at the police.
Home Guard soldiers support the police
During Tuesday, the police have no new information about the whereabouts of the woman or the man. Large resources have been linked to the search, where the entire area is now completely cordoned off.
The police use drones and have connected dog handlers and the home guard. Missing people are also involved.
– We have been working on scanning the immediate area and have now expanded this area and divided it into sections to be able to work in a systematic way, says Martina Gradian, press spokesperson for Region East to TV4 Nyheterna.
“No bargain”
At least thirty police officers are now actively looking for the couple in the forest with both flashlights and drones with thermal imaging cameras. But at midnight the patrols will be reduced slightly – to resume at full strength again on Wednesday morning.
– We need to let the patrols rest and plan for a long-term effort, says Martina Gradian and adds that there is a risk with the patrols working in the dark:
– It is clear that it will be more difficult to search at night. That is why we are discontinuing some patrols, because we have to assess the danger we can expose the patrols to compared to the benefit we do, says Martina Gradian.
What are the chances of finding them alive?
– I can’t speculate on that. We haven’t found anything that brought us closer to the couple, but our hopes are to find them as well preserved as possible, says Martina Gradian.