Facebook complicates missing-woman probe: police

Police in Belleville, Ont., are asking people with information regarding the disappearance of a 27-year-old woman to call them instead of posting it to Facebook.

More than 34,000 friends, family and strangers have joined a Facebook group dedicated to finding Jessica Lloyd since her disappearance late last Thursday.

Deputy Chief Paul Vandegraaf told the Belleville Intelligencer on Monday that the online group has become "a double-edged sword."

"It is wonderful how quickly this information got out," he told the paper. "The picture and the description … it's amazing how fast that got around the province. The other angle, though, is that it's gotten so big that nobody is validating the information on that and we're not adding any of our information, obviously, so we're cautioning people about what they read, what they believe and what they post."

Personnel from Canadian Forces Base Trenton and Ontario Provincial Police joined Belleville police over the weekend, using a helicopter to search the area around the eastern Ontario city. In addition, about 150 volunteers took part in a ground search near Lloyd's home.

A family friend was the missing woman's last known contact, receiving a text message from Lloyd's cellphone at 10:36 p.m. Thursday. Lloyd didn't show up for work Friday, and her family told police it is "out of character" for her to be out of contact.

Police aren't commenting on whether there were signs of forcible entry at her home, but it's believed her purse and other belongings were found inside. Her car is still on the driveway.

"We're just taking it day by day," Lloyd's brother Andy said Monday. "I just hope she comes back healthy and safe."