The story about missing Sarasota teen Jabez Spann was featured on Nancy Grace's CrimeOnline.
A national crime-fighting publication has taken up the case of missing Sarasota teen Jabez Spann.
CrimeOnline published a story Thursday about the 15-year-old, written by Atlanta Cold Case Research Institute director Sheryl McCollum, who interviewed the family and a private detective who has volunteered his time to investigate the case.
The online publication describes itself as a "crime-reporting, crime-fighting" outlet that arms its audience with information they "need to know" to fight back against wrongdoing. It is staffed by legal and criminal experts who offer perspectives on cybercrime, addiction, forensic pathology, and crime scene investigation.
They have a section solely dedicated to cold cases.
Spann was last seen Sept. 4 walking on 22nd Street.
While the Sarasota Police Department said it has received about five tips since the reward for information on the whereabouts of Spann was raised to $50,000, they are not calling the investigation a cold case.
McCollum interviewed Spann's mother Tawana Spann and private detective Joseph Randall about the case and its ties to the murder of 31-year-old Travis Combs. The story portrays the missing teen's mother as a hardened, street-wise woman who is honest about her life and the time she spent manufacturing drugs.
Joseph Randall, a local private investigator who is working on Spann's case pro bono, tells McCollum, "No child has ever gone missing from Sarasota — never. This won't happen on my watch."
Randall talked about the "street code of silence" in Newtown, which he said was "misguided." He said there is a "twisted sense of right."
"I believe if someone is making a living and you leave them alone, fine,” Randall told McCollum. “Sell a little weed or fence a TV. But when a 14-year-old child is harmed, all bets are off.”
The story is available at crimeonline.com.
Anyone with information about the case is asked to call Sarasota Crime Stoppers at 941-366-TIPS (8477) or online at sarasotacrimestoppers.com. They may remain anonymous.