NE NE - Vanderlei, Jaqueline, Chris (fnd dec'd) Szczepanik, 7, Omaha, 14 Dec 2009

OMAHA, Neb. -- Police said they're trying to find the reason why a family of three living and working in Omaha appears to have vanished without a trace and without any sign of foul play.

Vanderlei, Jaqueline and Chris Szczepanik were doing renovations at the Christian Community Center.

"In early January, officers were approached about this family," said Omaha police Officer Michael Pecha. "The reporting party indicated they'd been missing since the middle of December."

The missing person's report listed the center as their last known address.

"We've been contacting family members, members of the church group and following up some leads," Pecha said.

The leads have yet to offer any clues why the three suddenly left. The rest of their family lives in Brazil, but police said those family members haven't heard from them, either.

"There's been no evidence of foul play," Pecha said. "It just looks like they up and left."

Police and the rest of the Szczepanik family must wait until someone with more information comes forward so they can wrap up an unusual missing persons case.

"Anytime you have a whole family like that seemingly disappear, it's unusual and adds to the difficult of locating them," Pecha said.

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Fresh fruit left out on the table had rotted, a sign that something was not right.
Mom never shut down her computer. Dad left at least four checks uncashed, and their son's beloved violin remained in the family residence along with his favorite toys, the couple's Bibles and most of their belongings.
. . .

“He is very responsible,” said Humberto Solano-Costa, a leader of the Florida church that sent Szczepanik, a skilled carpenter, to Omaha. “This is why we are so alarmed and worried. It is very, very strange.”
. . .
Saturday night, they found Vanderlei's gray Nissan pickup, which had been missing from the house, parked on the street near 15th and Vinton Streets. Jaqueline's blue Volvo and a white work van they'd just purchased remain parked near their south Omaha home.

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Carlos Oliviera, who worked under Szczepanik and also lived in the high school building, said he last saw his boss Dec. 17. The crew, including an American man they were training, had toiled way past dark at the Park Avenue property that day, as they had the previous day.

The next day, workers waited and waited for Szczepanik to show up on the job site. “He never came,” Oliviera said

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The crew, including an American man they were training, had toiled way past dark at the Park Avenue property that day, as they had the previous day.

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Crime lab officials Monday were analyzing an abandoned truck found over the weekend to see whether it offered clues as to the whereabouts of an Omaha family that vanished mysteriously 47 days ago.
. . .

While police earlier Monday continued to say they had no evidence of a crime, on Monday night a police cruiser and at least one unmarked car were parked at the Szczepaniks' home near 16th and Center Streets.
The family's home is less than a mile from where the pickup was found parked on the street at 15th and Vinton.
. . . The Szczepaniks' Miami-based immigration attorney, Iara Morton, said the family was in the final stages of making its lawful residency permanent.
Therefore, she said, they would have had no reason — and in fact, would have had a disincentive — to leave the country.
If the couple had left, their yearslong process to obtain permanent residency and U.S. citizenship would have been jeopardized."
http://www.omaha.com/article/20100202/NEWS97/702029939/0/FRONTPAGE

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"Private Broker"
Jacek Szczepański tel. (+48 22) 697 ** **
Director
jacek.szczep*****@dibre.com.pl

Paweł Szczepanik tel. (+48 22) 697 ** **
Sales
pawel.szczep****@dibre.com.pl

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Vanderlei Szczepanik
1722 S 16th St
Omaha, NE 68108-3908

Job: Igit Services Corp, President

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sillybilly said:

In the above pics, I find it odd that Jacqueline's glasses were on the rumpled bed. Not a normal place for a person to leave their eyeglasses.

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sillybilly said:

I see some pattern here in that both Marian Makhniashvili and the missing family were both on the verge of receiving immigration papers.Could it be some kind of strange identity theft thing going on and /or mafia type involvment?
Maybe someone had other plans for that building and of course competition for jobs.Who is the one American and is he from Florida?

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dotr said:

If I may jump in here,I must say that I wear glasses for reading and have been known to toss my glasses(foolishly) on the bed if I am dressing in a hurry because I have to race out somewhere or answer the door.

I wonder if someone lured the family outside with a call or knock at the door saying someone was hurt.

Another thought about the uncashed cheques, is that maybe the funds were not yet available and were being kept until such time they could be cashed.

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dotr said:

I see some pattern here in that both Marian Makhniashvili and the missing family were both on the verge of receiving immigration papers.Could it be some kind of strange identity theft thing going on and /or mafia type involvment?
Maybe someone had other plans for that building and of course competition for jobs.Who is the one American and is he from Florida?

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Omaha Police are looking for a minivan they say belongs to an Omaha family that has not been seen or heard from in more than a month.

Police distributed a description of a beige Dodge Caravan with Nebraska license plate RHX005 and asked that anyone with information about the van call the Omaha Police Department's homicide unit at 444-5656.

The van is registered to Jaqueline Szczepanik. Police also distributed a photo of a vehicle that is similar to the van.

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