THE SEARCH FOR IRENE: Local Group Uncovers Clues in Seventh Search for Missing Kenyan
GILLETTE, Wyo.—A raccoon shot out of a pile of thick brush near Stacy Koester’s feet. She screamed and did a pirouette before toppling onto the dirt mound she’d been climbing. Koester looked up at the two women standing over her and laughed.
THE SEARCH FOR IRENE: “Team Irene” Gears up for Next Search as Case Garners More National Attention
GILLETTE, Wyo.—After six days of silence, Stacy Koester’s TikTok videos are back following a judge’s dismissal of a stalking protection order by the fiancé of a missing Gillette resident who Koester has vowed to find.
THE SEARCH FOR IRENE: Judge Dismisses Request for Stalking Order by Fiancé of Missing Gillette Resident
GILLETTE, Wyo. — A judge dismissed a request for a stalking protective order sought by the fiancé of a missing Gillette resident against a local woman he accused of harassment.
THE SEARCH FOR IRENE: Gillette Community Continues Search for Missing Kenyan
GILLETTE, Wyo.—Ashley Means heard about Irene Gakwa weeks ago and kept telling herself she should help with the search. Gakwa disappeared from her Gillette home in late February, prompting local resident Stacy Koester to organize and lead group searches beginning in mid-June.
THE SEARCH FOR IRENE: Fiancé of Missing Kenyan Seeks Stalking Protection Order Against Local Resident Leading Searches
GILLETTE, Wyo.—The fiancé of the missing Irene Gakwa has filed for a stalking protection order against a Gillette resident leading local searches to find her.
THE SEARCH FOR IRENE: Gillette Group Gears up for Next Search as Case Gets National Attention
GILLETTE, Wyo.—The search for Irene Gakwa has gone national after being picked up this week by at least two major news outlets as local organizers in Gillette make plans for their fifth group search on Saturday.
THE SEARCH FOR IRENE: Cadaver Dog Team Joins Search for Missing Kenyan
GILLETTE, Wyo.—Jerry Numon trudged through the knee-high reeds along Burlington Lake with his eyes trained on his cadaver dog Pax. Numon was looking for slight head tips, changes in breathing, a drop of the head or tail and a dozen other indicators that the 6-year-old Czech German Shepherd had detected human remains.
THE SEARCH FOR IRENE: Community Joins Together for Fourth Search to Find Missing Gillette Resident
Gillette, Wyo.—Everything is suspect out here. Debris scattered along the roadway that would normally go unseen was suddenly being scrutinized: discarded plastic Sprite bottles, tattered garbage bags, pieces of burnt wood and a faded running shoe flung behind a barbed-wire fence. Even a pile of sun-bleached bones likely belonging to a deer or antelope warranted a second look.
THE SEARCH FOR IRENE: Gillette Group Ramps up Efforts to Find Missing Kenyan as Her 33rd Birthday Passes With No Answers
GILLETTE, Wyo.—Stacy Koester apologized for her messy car. A squashed can of Bang energy drink and empty plastic water bottle were strewn on the driver’s side floor. A gas receipt was tucked into the center console beside an open box of light blue surgical gloves and half pack of cigarettes.
THE SEARCH FOR IRENE: Strangers Join Family to Search for Missing Kenyan in Gillette
GILLETTE, Wyo.—The overgrown grass and weeds riffled in the light breeze as dozens of volunteers trudged through the irrigation ditches along former Highway 59, near the Dry Fork Mine in northern Campbell County last Saturday. The searchers squinted in the early morning sun under ball caps and straw hats while they poked through the thigh-high brush, looking for clues that might lead to the mysterious disappearance of Irene Gakwa.