By David Lohr

(Continued)

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In response to questions from the media asking if Lawrence might have gone AWOL, military spokespersons have said that his record was spotless and that there has been no activity on his credit cards or bank accounts.  For all intents and purposes, Lawrence has vanished without a trace in the juniper-covered hills of Fort Hood.

"We do believe he is somewhere on the installation, and that area abuts up next to several public roads," Battaglia said.  "We believe he may not be right mentally or physically ... I know that medical experts say that you can survive without water for 96 hours, and we don't know he's without water."

Lawrence Sprader

According to military personnel, Lawrence served a tour of duty in Iraq that ended this past September.  Since his return, he has been working in the criminal investigation division of Fort Hood.

Friends of Lawrence have been posting comments on his MySpace.com profile, expressing their hope for his safe return.  A user identified only as Denise left this message on Monday:

"Ren, I am praying that God keeps you safe and that you'll be found soon.  You have lots of love here in Va.  I know that you're a stong [sic] person and you'll make it."

Lawrence Sprader

Lawrence is described as an Asian male with brown hair and eyes, 5-feet-8-inches and 145 pounds and was last seen wearing an Army Combat Uniform with an orange and yellow reflective vest.  Anyone with information as to his whereabouts is asked to call the Army's Mobile Command Post at (254) 681-2532.

UPDATE: Associated Press  Searchers found the body late Tuesday of a sergeant who disappeared for four days after during a training exercise, an Army spokeswoman said.

Col. Diane Battaglia, III Corps spokeswoman at Fort Hood, said the body was found on the rugged Central Texas Army post. The body had been sent for an autopsy and the cause of death had not been determined, she said.

Hundreds of soldiers scoured the rugged hills of the 15,000-acre training range; 800 were walking in marked grid areas Tuesday. Post officials said no other soldier had ever been lost on the heavily used range long enough to prompt such a huge search.

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Contact  David Lohr at           crimewriter74@hughes.net

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