Elijah Vue: Two Rivers reallocates city funds to support continuing search for missing 3-year-old
TWO RIVERS — Two Rivers has reallocated funds to ensure the Two Rivers Police Department can continue to investigate 3-year-old Elijah Vue's disappearance.
March 18, city council members voted to move funds from several departments to create a $310,000 contingency fund for the police department.
"It's hardly a surprise to anyone that the city is incurring extraordinary costs in our police department with the ongoing search and investigation," City Manager Greg Buckley said at the meeting.
Elijah has been missing since Feb. 20. Since that day, the Two Rivers Police Department has been using all the resources it has, which has racked up a steep bill.
Buckley said in the past four weeks the police department has spent more than $71,000 in overtime alone, which is more than half of the department's yearly allotment.
The city manager told the council there has already been a hold on hiring for two new positions that had been planned for 2024, in case the city needs to siphon that money to the police department.
He also gave a full accounting of the departments that would be contributing to the contingency fund, such as the Streets Department, which has some money left over from how little snow plowing was needed this winter season.
The resolution to amend the budget and create the contingency fund was unanimously passed by the council.
Missing Wisconsin children: Elijah Vue is one of more than 30 missing children in Wisconsin
In the same meeting, Police Chief Ben Meinnert updated the council members on the investigation into Elijah's disappearance and said the department had just received confirmation a red-and-white plaid blanket found by Goodwin Road earlier in the investigation belonged to Elijah.
The police chief also said the department deeply appreciates the level of community support the department and the Vue family have received.
March 20 marked one month since Elijah was reported missing, and law enforcement continues to search for him.
Do you have information about Elijah Vue?
Police describe Elijah as being of Hmong and white ethnicity with dark brown hair and brown eyes. He is approximately 3 feet tall and has a birthmark on his left knee. He was last seen wearing gray pants, a dark-colored, long-sleeve shirt and a pair of red-and-green dinosaur slip-on shoes.
If you have information that could help the Two Rivers Police Department find Elijah Vue, contact their tip line at 844-267-6648 or submit information via the Crime Stoppers app P3.
There is a combined $40,000 reward from the city of Two Rivers, Manitowoc County Crime Stoppers and the Federal Bureau of Investigation for any information that leads to finding Elijah or to the arrest and conviction of those responsible for his disappearance.
Alisa M. Schafer is a reporter for the Herald Times Reporter in Manitowoc. She can be reached by email at aschafer@gannett.com.
This article originally appeared on Manitowoc Herald Times Reporter: Elijah Vue: Two Rivers extends funds in search for missing 3-year-old
