5 years later, police say Lauren Spierer investigation not ‘a cold case’

Nearly five years, 3,500 tips and 2,500 hours of overtime later, the Bloomington Police Department still hasn’t given up on Lauren Spierer.

Spierer, a 20-year-old Indiana University student, vanished in June 2011 after partying with friends. National media shined a spotlight on the case, but official and private searches turned up nothing. Still, authorities want the public to know they haven’t stopped looking.

“Even though it has been over 4.5 years since Lauren disappeared, the case continues to be a priority for the investigators assigned and there is work being done on the case literally every day,” a police statement issued Tuesday said. “The investigation into Lauren’s disappearance has never been considered or labeled a 'cold case' by the Department.”

Spierer was last seen walking to her apartment at 4:15 a.m. on June 3, 2011. Immediate search efforts were made all the more urgent by a heart condition that required Spierer to take daily medication.

Bloomington police said Tuesday they had “explored possible connections to a number of criminal suspects arrested in other jurisdictions for heinous crimes against female victims.” Officials also had contacted counterparts in other states in an effort to match Spierer to uncovered human remains. But nothing has hit so far and the investigation continues.

“Remember,” the statement said, “anything small could be big.”