Kidnap Suspect Charged // Search Continues for Missing Boy in Kankakee County

Just three months after returning to the Joliet area, convictedmurderer Timothy D. Buss faced new charges Friday, this time inconnection with the disappearance of 10-year-old Christopher Meyer.

The boy has not been found, and police continued to search forhim Friday. They declined to discuss where they were looking.

"It's just like 14 years ago," said Barbara Huffman, the motherof the 5-year-old girl Buss was convicted of murdering in 1981. ButBuss' attorneysaid no evidence links him to the boy's disappearance.

Christopher was last seen Monday fishing along the KankakeeRiver in Aroma Park. He was seen with a man who resembled Buss,authorities said.

Kankakee County Sheriff's Police charged Buss, 27, of the 400block of Morgan Street in Joliet, with two counts of aggravatedkidnapping after discovering a "large quantity of blood" in the trunkof his blue Chevrolet - and after at least two witnesses eitherplaced him with Christopher or in the area where the boy was lastseen.

But Michael Byrne, Buss' lawyer, questioned that evidence Fridayat a probable cause hearing before Kankakee County Circuit Judge JohnMichela.

"There has been absolutely no evidence that anyone saw thedefendant do anything with this boy in an unlawful manner," Byrnesaid.

"Eight witnesses viewed this young boy with a man. . . . Sixcould not identify him (in Friday's lineup). . . . Two (of the six)identified someone else other than Timothy Buss, and a thirdidentified someone else as possibly being the person," Byrne said.

Byrne also said witnesses described the boy as being near a grayOldsmobile, not the blue Chevrolet police believe was involved in thecrime - though another witness identified the blue car.

Buss didn't appear in court; he was hooked up to the courtroomthrough a video teleconferencing system. He said little, onlyanswering the judge's questions on where he has lived since hisrelease from prison two years ago.

However, in court Friday, Kankakee County State's Attorney ClarkErickson detailed some of the evidence that police have against Buss,who returned to the area in May.

Erickson said police had one or more witnesses who said they sawBuss or someone who looked like him along the river with Christopherthe day he disappeared.

Charles Henry, an attorney from Kankakee, told authorities hesaw a man resembling Buss parked by the river that day, Clark said.

And Henry, who picked out Buss from a lineup Friday morning,said he saw Buss and his car on the south side of the river. Thecar's trunk was open, but the man said he didn't see the boy nearby.

After hunting Buss for two days, Erickson said, police found himat a Braidwood motel Thursday when the owner tipped them off. Busshad apparently registered there under a different name.

When police arrived at the motel, Erickson said they observedBuss discarding a pair of boots in the trash, and he was arrested.

Erickson said police found "a large quantity of blood" in Buss'trunk. Preliminary tests showed the blood was that of a human,authorities said. Samples of the blood have been sent to theIllinois State Crime Laboratory and will be compared to the blood ofChristopher's father, James.

Test results could be available as early as Monday.

The judge ruled that there was sufficient evidence to chargeBuss, and he denied bond. Buss is being held at the Kankakee CountyJail.

An arraignment date was set for Aug. 24.

Buss was found guilty in the 1981 murder of Tara Sue Huffman innearby Bradley. Witnesses said they saw Buss, 13 at the time,taking a fiberboard barrel to a dump in a red wagon. A lid with hispalm print was found later at the dump, near a barrel stained withthe girl's blood. Her skull had been crushed.

Huffman, Tara Sue's mother, said in a telephone interview thatshe planned to visit Christopher's family and try to comfort them."I'm going to give Christopher's mom a hug, tell her I love her andto hang in there.

"I know the pain she is going through. He should have neverbeen released from prison."