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Cadaver dogs help in search for missing Southfield woman

Police officers, 40 volunteers and nearly a dozen teams of cadaver dogs searched through a 1,000 acres of snow-covered land in northern Michigan over the weekend, looking for signs of a Southfield woman who has been missing for almost two months. According to WPBN-TV, volunteers split into groups and either walked or drove around pre-designated areas near Honor, a tiny west Michigan village where Adrienne Quintal was last seen. However, Quintal's older sister Jennifer Bryson stated in a Facebook page dedicated to the case that the dogs and volunteers were unable to find the 47-year-old mother. "The trail dogs did pick up her scent (almost 8 weeks later) from the cabin to her hunting blind, but no cadaver dog hits," she wrote Saturday night. "I was very impressed at the methodical searches that took place. Lots of technology, very organized, and super caring search teams. A big thank you to the volunteers and search teams from Alpena County, Kent County, and Ohio that helped search for my sister. They will be searching tomorrow (Sunday) also. Thank you everyone for the prayers and positive thoughts. Please keep praying." Quintal, who is known as Ada, was last heard from Oct. 17. She used her cellphone to make a 4-minute, 27-second-long phone call to a family friend in Warren at 2:34 a.m., saying she heard noises at the family cabin where she was staying, according to Bryson. Bryson said the conversation escalated with Quintal telling the friend there were two men outside, that she had shot one of them in the face, they were shooting back at her and to call police. The friend tried to get Quintal's address and called her back after calling police, Quintal's sister said, but the call went right to voice mail. When police arrived at the cabin, Quintal was nowhere to be found. They found multiple bullet holes in a window, but no blood or any evidence of an injured person, the Benzie County Sheriff's Office said in a news release last month. Police forced entry into the cabin, but found no one inside, other than Quintal's dog, which was unharmed. T hey found no blood or evidence of someone who had been hurt in or around the cabin. But they found evidence suggesting multiple shots were fired from inside the cabin to the outside. Benzie County Detective Lt. Troy Lamerson told the Free Press last month the house was secured from the inside but authorities found some windows at the cabin open — including one with bullet holes in it. He said Quintal most likely got out of the cabin through a small window on the west end of the house. From there, she may have climbed onto the roof, where police later found her boots and cellphone. Her handgun was found on the ground but it's unclear how it ended up there. The car Quintal was using was parked nearby. The bullet holes all appeared to come from shots fired from inside the cabin, police said. Police have said they are looking at three theories: Quintal suffered some kind of medical problem and ran off into the woods where she disappeared; she was abducted and is being held against her will; or the incident was staged. Quintal's family is offering a $10,000 reward to help solve the case. Those with information are asked to call Benzie County Central Dispatch at 231-882-4487 or Michigan State Police Silent Observer at 866-774-2345. Lamerson recently told the Benzie County Board of Commissioners that the reward was “ bringing people out of the woodwork,” with tips offered by psychics and by one person who had a dream about Quintal, the Traverse City Record-Eagle reported . Lamerson told commissioners he had gone to the Detroit area to interview several people, including Quintal’s son and her boyfriend. The boyfriend, who had been helping Quintal winterize her uncle’s cabin, left two days before the Oct. 17 incident. He has been named a person of interest in the case. “We’re learning more every time we talk to them,” Lamerson said. “The family believes she is being held against her will." “There’s so many moving parts to it,” he said. “It’s changing daily — which way we’re going, who’s being investigated.” Free Press Staff Writer Christina Hall contributed to this report.