Missing Idaho Girl Found Alive

An 8-year-old girl who disappeared with her brother six weeks ago from a home where family members were bludgeoned to death was found early Saturday at a Denny's restaurant with a registered sex offender, officials said.

Shasta Groene's 9-year-old brother, Dylan, remained missing and was feared dead, Kootenai County Sheriff's Capt. Ben Wolfinger said.

"Our initial information is that he may be deceased," Wolfinger said, adding that officials were continuing the search for him. He would not elaborate on what kind of information investigators had.

Joseph Edward Duncan III, of Fargo, N.D., was charged with kidnapping and was being held without bond, Wolfinger said. He said more charges could be added.

Authorities are looking into whether Duncan, 42, had a role in the three killings May 16, he said.

Shasta Groene was spotted in her hometown by a waitress who apparently recognized her from photographs in the media.

Shasta seemed well, and was being interviewed by investigators at a medical center. Her father was on his way to Coeur d'Alene to be reunited with her, a relative said.

"She was sitting in a restaurant eating a meal. She's obviously well enough to do that," Wolfinger said.

Authorities do not yet have information about where the girl had spent the past six weeks, he said.

"She's a little girl," Wolfinger said. "Obviously she's been through a pretty traumatic time."

The child's father, Steve Groene, was reported to have returned from visiting relatives in Tacoma, Wash., he said.

Duncan was driving a red 2005 Jeep Grand Cherokee stolen in St, Paul, Minn., on May 4, with stolen plates taken April 27 in Newton County, Mo., Wolfinger said.

Police were seeking a warrant to search the vehicle.

Duncan had an outstanding warrant for failing to register as a high-risk sex offender and had a history of rape, Wolfinger said. He was facing charges of molesting a 6-year-old boy in Minnesota last year but was released on bail in April.

It was not known whether Duncan had a connection with the victims.

"We don't have any idea who Duncan is, other than a very, very sick individual. Sick and stupid to go to a Denny's at 2 a.m. with a child," Bob Price, Shasta Groene's paternal uncle, said by telephone from Tacoma, Wash.

Price said the children's father had just arrived at Price's home early Saturday for the Fourth of July weekend when he received a call saying Shasta had been found.

Wolfinger said he had no information on where Shasta had been held or where her brother may be.

"All we know is that he was not with Shasta and Duncan" at the restaurant, he said.

Dylan and Shasta Groene had been missing since at least May 16, when sheriff's deputies responded to their rural home after a neighbor reported that dogs were barking and the door of one vehicle was open but no one was in sight.

The deputies found the bound bodies of Brenda Groene, 40, Slade Groene, 13, and Mark McKenzie, 37. The victims were bound and then bludgeoned to death.

FBI agents and local officers interviewed hundreds of people, searched through 800 tons of animal carcasses and other trash and devoted thousands of hours to the search.

More than 2,000 tips flowed in, with people offering theories that ranged from alien abduction to a motorcycle gang war, since the children's biological father, Steven Groene, owns a Harley-Davidson.

Brenda Groene and Mark McKenzie had marijuana and methamphetamine in their bodies at the time of their deaths.

Tom Kraus, Brenda Groene's great-uncle in Whitefish, Mont., said family members were elated by the news of Shasta's return and hoping that Dylan also would be found alive.

"Obviously, we were very excited they found Shasta," he said. "We are hopeful they can find Dylan. We're very happy those folks at Denny's recognized her and that they found her."

Police in Fargo were securing his apartment to assist in the investigation, police Sgt. Shannon Ruziska said.

Duncan's address in Fargo was in an older neighborhood where a number of North Dakota State University students live. He enrolled at the university in 2000, majoring in computer science, and made the dean's list in fall 2000 and spring 2001.

More than 300 people attended a community notification meeting for Duncan after his move to Fargo.

Kerstin Haugen, who lives in an apartment building next door, said she had not seen him for several months. Police stopped by looking for him, she said.

"He seemed normal," Haugen said. She said she was not aware that he was a registered sex offender when she first moved in, but found out later from neighbors. She said he kept to himself.