36 Year Old Off-Duty Arcadia Firefighter Michael Herdman Missing Since 6/13/14 While Hiking in Mountains North of Filmore in Ventura County, CA (Update: Dog Matching the Mkie’s Dog Duke Description was Spotted Wednesday)(Update: Mike Herdman’s Dog Duke Found Safe)

36 year old off-duty  Arcadia firefighter Michael Herdman went missing Friday night, June 13, 2014 while hiking in the rugged mountains of Ventura county in the Sespe Wilderness area north of Filmore, California. According to Capt. Mike Franke of the Ventura County Sheriff’s Office, Herdman took off after the dog on Friday while he was hiking with a friend to Tar Creek Trail Head, which is off a dirt road in the Topatopa Mountains. Herdman was barefoot and wearing only shorts and a T-shirt when he was last seen by his friend, Taylor Byars. Herdman also had no food and no water with him.

Missing Michael Herdman - click on pic to watch KCAL 9 VIDEO

UPDATE I: The Search continues for missing Michael Herdman:

Michael Herdman, 36, and fellow firefighter/paramedic Taylor Byars hiked to Tar Creek Trail and set up camp along the Sespe Creek on Friday evening when Herdman’s dog ran away.

Herdman, who was barefoot and wearing shorts and a T-shirt, along with Byars, ran after the dog.

A short time later, the two men became separated, authorities said.

Byars searched for Herdman for nearly two days before he made his way out of the wilderness and reported his friend missing Sunday evening.

Deputies said it took a long time for Byars to report what happened because the camp was so far out.

Investigators said there are no signs of foul play.

Byars made his way back to the campsite, but Herdman, a seven-year firefighter veteran, and his dog, Duke, never returned.

Map – screen grab from KCAL video above

UPDATE II: Missing California Firefighter’s Backpack, Footprints Found.

Rescuers scouring a rugged corner of California hoping to find missing firefighter have found the man’s backpack and footprints leading away from his camp.

Mike Herdman, 34, an avid outdoorsman, was on a weekend camping trip in the Los Padres National Forest with his buddy, fellow firefighter Taylor Byars. Byars told authorities he last saw his friend on Friday chasing after his dog Duke, which had run into a creek.

“We found his backpack. We found footprints in the directions that he was last seen going. So we are starting from there and working our way out methodically, rock by rock and bush by bush,” Buschow said.

UPDATE III: Dog Matching Pet’s Description Seen.

As efforts continued to locate a firefighter who went missing after chasing after his dog during a backpacking trip in the Los Padres National Forest, a canine matching the pet’s description was spotted Wednesday.

The sighting of the dog by search teams offered hope that Michael Herdman, a seven-year veteran of the Arcardia Fire Department, was alive in the mountain about Fillmore.

“We are all expecting to see Mike come over the hill behind us and be surprised to see us all here,” said family friend Mike MacGregor.

UPDATE IV: Helicopter in Search for Missing Firefighter Grounded by Private Drone Interference.

Civilian searchers with good intentions were arriving to aid the professional effort to find Mike Herdman, 36, but were ill prepared for the wilderness,  Ventura County Sheriff’s Office Sgt. Eric Buschow said.

Additionally, a helicopter that had been used in the search was grounded because a private party had launched a drone into the search area, Buschow said.

“It is absolutely illegal to fly anything back here other than our operation that’s going on now,” he said.

It was not clear how long the helicopter was grounded for.

UPDATE V: Searchers Find Dog of Missing California Firefighter.

Search crews have located the dog of missing California firefighter Mike Herdman more than a week after he went missing in a national forest north of Los Angeles.

Officials said the dog, named Duke, was “exhausted” but in good shape. Ventura County Sheriff Geoff Dean said there was no sign of Herdman and that the search would scale down starting tonight.

Duke – Facebook

Update 2:24 p.m.: Search crews find missing firefighter’s dog.

Search crews looking for a missing Arcadia Fire Department say they’ve found the dog he went after when he left his camp ground, shoeless and without his gear. They still haven’t located Herdman himself, however.

The Arcadia Fire Department’s union posted a photo of the dog, named Duke, on their Facebook page Sunday afternoon.

Former GITMO Detainee Lahcen Ikassrien Arrested in Spain Recruiting for ISIS

LOOKS WHAT HAPPENS WHEN YOU LET GITMO DETAINEES GO … YEAH, THEY POSE NO THREAT.

Spanish police arrested eight people in pre-dawn raids in Madrid on Monday against a jihadist recruitment network led by a former Guantanamo Bay inmate, Lahcen Ikassrien.  Authorities suspect the cell of trying to send people to join the Islamic State in Iraq and the Levant (ISIS), an Islamo- jihadist militant group.

BBC – Spain Arrests Eight In Islamofascist Recruiting Cell

EURONEWS

Spanish police arrested eight people in pre-dawn raids in Madrid on Monday against a jihadist recruitment network led by a former Guantanamo Bay inmate, the government said.

The cell found and dispatched recruits for Islamic State of Iraq and Syria (ISIS) militants based in Syria and Iraq, Spain’s interior ministry said in a statement.

“It should be highlighted that the leader of this cell lived in Spain after passing through Guantanamo, having been arrested in Afghanistan in 2001,” it said, without providing further details.

Police have so far launched 12 raids, detaining eight people, and the investigation remains open, the ministry said.

Spain’s government has said it fears battle-hardened Islamist fighters may return to Spain from Syria and other conflict zones under the influence of Al-Qaeda-inspired groups, presenting a threat of attacks.

Twin Tornado Touch down in Northeast Nebraska and Devastaes Town of Pilger & Stanton (Update: Two Killed Including 5 Year Old Child)

WOW … HEAVEN HELP THEM.

Massive tornadoes hit Pilger, Nebraska.

The National Weather Service said the two twisters touched down within roughly a mile of each other. Emergency crews and residents spent the evening sifting through demolished homes and businesses in the community of about 350, roughly 100 miles northwest of Omaha. At least 19 people were injured.

“More than half of the town is gone – absolutely gone,” Stanton County Commissioner Jerry Weatherholt said. “The co-op is gone, the grain bins are gone, and it looks like almost every house in town has some damage. It’s a complete mess.”

PICS of the devastation from The Weather Channel

UPDATE I: At least two people died and 16 were critically injured.

Rescuers found several critically injured people near Pilger’s Main Street, including a 5-year-old who died after being taken to the hospital. Another fatality was confirmed in Cuming County about four miles east of Pilger, he added in a statement. Further details were not immediately available.

Faith Regional Health Services said it had 16 people in critical condition. Three of the injured were taken to Providence Hospital in Wayne. Two were treated and released for lacerations while the third remained under observation in stable condition, according to hospital spokeswoman Sandy Bartling.

“This is a significant storm, and one that I have never seen the likes of, ever. Really,” said Greg Postel, a severe weather specialist for The Weather Channel.

UPDATE II:  Severe Weather Forecast: Tornadoes, High Winds, Hail to Continue Pounding the Plains, Midwest.

Daily Commentary – Tuesday, June 17, 2014 – Legendary Radio Host of American Top 40, Casey Kasem Dead at Age 82

• Sad to see how Casey Kasem’s family was fighting in his last days … Rest in Peace

Search Continues for Missing Charlotte-Mecklenburg School Teacher Bianca Tanner … Son tells Police, “Angelo is Mean to Mommy and Hurt Mommy in the Face.”(Update: Body of Bianca Tanner Found)(Update: Missing Teacher’s Boyfriend charged With Murder)

31 year old Bianca Tanner has been missing since Sunday, June 8, 2014 in Charlotte, North Carolina. The police have elevated the case to a homicide investigation and have released new details of the missing persons case. During the course of the investigation, detectives talked to several family members of Tanner, including her 3-year-old son. The child told police, “Mommy got a spanking with the belt. Angelo kicked mommy’s butt and made her cry. Angelo is mean to mommy and hurt mommy in the face.” Angelo Smith has an outstanding warrant for domestic battery out of Arkansas.

VIDEO

Police said Tanner’s boyfriend, Angelo Smith, reported her missing on June 8. Smith told police the two got into an argument over a text message, the warrant states.

In the warrant, Smith said Tanner left the apartment intoxicated carrying a bag with her. Tanner has not been seen since.

During the investigation, detectives talked to several family members of Tanner, including her 3-year-old son.

Tanner’s son told police, “Mommy got a spanking with the belt. Angelo kicked mommy’s butt and made her cry.” The boy also told police that “Angelo is mean to mommy and hurt mommy in the face.”

The search warrant states police are looking for a belt/paddle, cellphones, clothes worn by Tanner during the alleged assault, evidence of blood, hairs and other bodily fluids.

UPDATE I:  Body of missing Bianca Tanner found.

Charlotte-Mecklenburg police said early Thursday they believe they have found the remains of Bianca Tanner, the former Guilford Co. teacher that went missing in Charlotte June 8.

Charlotte-Mecklenburg Police Chief Rodney Monroe  said detectives believe they have found the remains of Tanner in a wooded area near Shopton Road West and Westinghouse Boulevard, about 16 miles from Smith’s apartment.

UPDATE II: Missing teacher’s boyfriend charged with murder after body found.

Her boyfriend, Angelo Grayson Smith Jr., has been charged with murder. He was initially identified as a person of interest in the case after he told authorities that a drunken Tanner left their home following an argument and never returned. She was last seen June 8.