The 2-year-old Siletz, Oregon, boy who went missing Saturday while playing in his parents’ front yard was most likely by the river bank when he disappeared, the Lincoln County Sheriff’s Office said Tuesday as the fourth day of the search for the toddler came to a close.
The sheriff’s office will now focus “the majority of its resources” searching for Dane Paulsen on the Siletz River, including the water itself and the river bank, sheriff’s officials said at a press event at the Elks Lodge campground across the river from the family property.
“So far, the evidence available indicates Dane was at the river’s edge before his disappearance,” Lincoln County Sheriff’s Office’s Sgt. Jason Spano said, citing “some impressions” they found. The ground search will continue, he added.
Minutes before he spoke, a scuba diver was in the Siletz River between the family’s property and the campground as a sheriff’s office boat floated downstream and a drone hovered overhead.
The sheriff’s office and other agencies that have pitched in deployed dozens of investigators and certified search and rescue personnel after the boy went missing, as well as drones, K9s and boats. They’ve searched through more than 680 acres, the sheriff’s office said, or about one square mile, helped by over 200 volunteers who helped comb through the dense, woody terrain.
“We are committed to finding answers,” Sheriff Adam Shanks said Tuesday. “I want to thank our communities for doing what they do best during the search, which is coming together to support each other.”
The volunteer search operation that was staged at the Elks Lodge campground for several days has been suspended, the sheriff’s office said, though people are welcome to continue searching on their own, provided they stay safe and get permission to go on private property.
Dozens of people from the community gathered at the campground to hear sheriff’s office officials speak. Shanks, Spano and an agency spokesperson spoke for about nine minutes, took a limited number of questions, then left.
Elonka Snowden, a family friend, drove down from Portland just in time for the press conference. She said Dane’s mother had been taking care of her gravely ill father in their home since Thursday. Snowden said the mother, Chamet Jackson, was preparing food for her father at the time her son went missing.
Tuesday morning, Snowden sent Jackson a text message asking if she wanted her to come and support her.
“I’m with you,” Snowden wrote. “If you need me, I’m here.”
“Come please,” Jackson texted back.
Snowden, who lives in Portland and was visiting in-laws in Utah, said she hopped on a plane to Portland the same day and drove down to Siletz, planning to take over for a mutual friend who has been with Jackson several days.
Snowden said she was visiting the Paulsen and Jackson household weeks ago, and remembers Jackson remarking how fast her son was while she sipped coffee.
The family had moved to the property mere months ago — a dream move for the outdoorsy family after living in a duplex in Lincoln City. The family is particularly passionate about fishing, she said, which they do every chance they have. Authorities previously said the boy was comfortable around water but could not swim. The river temperature has been around 44 to 46 degrees, the sheriff’s office said.
Snowden said an FBI agent called her and asked if she had any reason to believe there could have been foul play or a crime committed.
“And the answer is ‘no,’” Snowden said.
Her role, now, will be to support Jackson and communicate to her that whatever happens, she can overcome it.
©2025 Advance Local Media LLC. Visit oregonlive.com. Distributed by Tribune Content Agency, LLC.
