Reward extended in case of Illinois girl missing since 1996

MOLINE, Ill. (AP) - A reward to help solve the case of a girl who disappeared more than 20 years ago in the Mississippi River community of Moline has been extended.

The (Moline) Dispatch reports the $10,000 reward offered by the family of Trudy Appleby and Crime Stoppers of the Quad Cities has been extended until Dec. 31. She went missing in 1996, when she was 11.

Authorities earlier this year announced the identity of a man they described as a "person of interest." William "Ed" Smith, believed to be the last person seen with Trudy before she disappeared, died in 2014.

An October excavation of a former home site on nearby Campbell's Island didn't produce definitive evidence related to the case, but some uncovered items were analyzed as a precaution.

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Information from: The Dispatch - The Rock Island Argus, http://www.qconline.com