Drenthe excavation planned in search for girl missing since 1992

The Drenthe police are launching a new search for Willeke Dost, a then 15-year-old girl who disappeared from her foster parents' farm in Koekange in 1992. The police will dig in an area near the farm where witnesses say they saw digging around the time of the girl's disappearance, NOS reports.

Over the past years the police and Public Prosecutor carried out various investigations into the girl's disappearance. In 2010 a large-scale investigation was done at her foster's parents home, involving the Netherlands Forensic Institute, an archeologist, ground radar, an excavator and sniffer dogs. But nothing was found.

Earlier this month two men came forward saying they found new information about where Willeke's body can be found in a private search carried out last year. They point to a place 150 meters from the farm where the girl lived.

That information was already known at the end of 2017 and led to further investigation, the police said. Witnesses were questioned and ground radar images were assessed by an expert. At the time the police and Public Prosecutor saw no reason to go digging. This week the information was reassessed and the police spoke to additional witnesses. A person also came forward to say he saw people with a wheelbarrow at the time of Willeke's disappearance.

Based on this, and because of the unrest that has arisen in Koekange and surroundings, the police and Public Prosecutor decided to launch an new search. They plan to start digging in the area within a week.