CHEYENNE, Wyo. (AP) A Fremont County Sheriffıs investigator said Steve Bechtel called and wanted to resume talking about the 1997 disappearance of his wife, Amy Wroe Bechtel.
Bechtel told reporters Monday he wants to discuss the case in an open setting involving law enforcement, members of his wifeıs family and the media.
Investigator Roger Rizor said whether a meeting takes place depends upon whom it is Bechtel and authorities want to attend. The press will not be invited, he said.
Iım hoping that the purpose will be to get questions answered that we have of Steve and weıll either be able to say yes, he is a prime suspect,ı or no, heıs been cleared,ııı he said.
Bechtel said he hopes that bringing everyone together will be a step forward in the investigation.
Iım willing to try to help out, and I always have been,ıı he said. Egos and emotions and different ideas always get in the way of progress, especially in a case where things are so emotionally charged and difficult.ıı
Amy Bechtelıs parents, Duane and JoAnne Wroe of Powell, said they were encouraged by the news.
Their investigation is just a giant jigsaww puzzle, and they need all the pieces,ıı JoAnne Wroe said.
Amy Bechtel was 24 when she was last seen southwest of Lander on July 24, 1997. She was believed to have gone running on the Loop Road between Sinks Canyon and South Pass. A massive search failed to find substantive clues.
Steve Bechtel at first spoke with investigators but has stopped cooperating, claiming he has been unfairly targeted as a suspect.
Investigators have not ruled Bechtel out as a suspect and want him to answer more questions. They also want him to take a lie-detector test, which Bechtel has refused to do on the advice of his attorney, Kent Spence of Jackson.
In a two-page statement released to the public last week and sent to Bechtel, Amy Bechtelıs family ask him to take the polygraph, stop criticizing police and cooperate with the investigation.
Amy Bechtelıs brother, Nels Wroe, acknowledged it will be hard for Bechtel to answer some questions.
Theyıre probably going to ask him the hardest questions of anyone because heıs the husband and a lot of the questions will revolve around their relationship,ıı Wroe said.
On Friday, the Wroe family hung a banner with Amy Bechtelıs picture on it from a Lander grain mill. Itıs time to break the silence,ıı the banner read.
Someone stole the banner during the night.
Wroe said the message tied in with the national campaign to stop violence against women and was also a reminder.
We think there are other people out there somewhere who have more information about what happened that day,ıı he said.