July 22, 2002
Prescott Sigmund of River Falls left his home on Monday, July 15 in the morning, with plans to go to a seminar in Rockville, then to meet his father, Donald Sigmund.
The elder Sigmund and Prescott Sigmund, 34, had planned to go to the hospital to visit Prescott’s half brother, Wright Sigmund.
Prescott Sigmund has been missing since then. His wife, Bradey Sigmund, called police at 9 p.m. July 15 to report him missing after he failed to meet her for dinner as planned around 6:30 p.m. She had last seen her husband at 8:30 a.m. when he left the house, said Lucille Baur of the Montgomery County Police.
The only sign of Prescott Sigmund since then has been the recovery of his black 1990 BMW, the vehicle he was driving on the day of his disappearance. The car was found Sunday on the fourth level of the Vienna Metro station in Virginia.
PRESCOTT SIGMUND'S disappearance is of concern because his half brother, Wright Sigmund, was critically injured when a pipe bomb exploded in a parking garage on Wisconsin Avenue in Northwest D.C. According to police, Wright Sigmund, 21, was getting into his father’s Chevrolet Blazer when the bomb exploded.
"Prescott Sigmund is not a suspect; he’s a witness, and we’re concerned about his well-being,” said Harold Scott Jr., spokesman for the federal Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco and Firearms.
Police used a dog to check for explosives before moving the BMW from the Vienna, Va. garage. A dog trained to find explosives gave no alert for explosives, Scott said.
ATF agents searched the car, but results of the search are sealed. Baur, of Montgomery County Police, said that the ATF and the Metropolitan Police had not passed along any information from the search of the car that could help in the missing persons investigation.
Police searched the Sigmunds' home in the 8300 block of River Falls Drive last Wednesday, July 17, removing a computer among other items.
“Our computer fraud section is now going through the computer methodically looking for any information about why he left, plans made, connections to meet any person,” Baur said. “It’s a lengthy process.”
While there were no specific reasons to suspect explosives in either Prescott Sigmund’s car or home, it was a factor taken under consideration during the searches, said Scott and Baur. The ongoing investigation into the pipe bomb explosion and missing person case is a joint investigation with Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco and Firearms, the D.C. Metropolitan police, the Metro Transit Police and the Montgomery County Police.
Prescott Sigmund is not a suspect for any crime in Montgomery County, Baur said.
“Prescott Sigmund has the right to come and go as he pleases and the right not to notify his friends and family of his location,” Baur said. But police have more concern over his status as a missing person because he is a relative of a victim of a crime, she said.
Montgomery County investigators have been interviewing Sigmund’s family and friends. They would like to hear from anyone who might have information about Sigmund’s disappearance or places he would be likely to go, Baur said.
Anyone with information should call the Montgomery County Police non-emergency number, 301-279-8000.