Police Hunt for Missing Family

April 3, 2009— -- Police in two states who were trying to piece together what led to the disappearance of a family of four and whether the husband was holding his wife and two children hostage in the snow-covered wilderness of South Dakota now believe the family has returned to its home state of Nebraska.

Matt and Rowena Schade, both of whom are on probation, and their two young children were last seen March 20, the day police say they responded to a domestic violence call at their Creighton, Neb., home.

Acting on a tip from someone in the family, police in Pennington County, S.D., began searching the Black Hills National Forest, where Matt Schade, 26, had attended a church-sponsored survival camp six years in a row, and where the couple had camped during their honeymoon. Creighton is about 350 miles from the forest.

Sheriff's deputies found Schade's black Ford Taurus Tuesday near the forest, but there has been no sign of the family and there's a possibility they may not even be in the area anymore, authorities say.

Authorities in Nebraska said they received a call Thursday afternoon from the husband's father, Chet Schade, who told them he had made phone contact with all four members of the family. Matthew Schade told his father the family was prepared to wait out the next storm and asked to be left alone, the father told Nebraska authorities.

But that wasn't enough at first to satisfy the Pennington County Sheriff's Department in South Dakota, where officials say they want to see the wife and kids before deciding whether to call off the search. "We're relieved that Matthew made that call," Maj. Brian Mueller said. "Now, we need to confirm that they're all there on their own free will."

Today, however, based on the Nebraska Knox County Sheriff's Office belief that the Schade family used a stolen pickup truck to return to the county area, "all search efforts in the Black Hills [of South Dakota] have been cancelled at this time," according to a statement from the Pennington County Sheriff's Office.

Police said the pickup truck had been reported stolen in Silver City, S.D., Thursday and was found abandoned this morning in Antelope County, Neb., about 35 miles from the Knox County seat.

The Knox County Sheriff's Office today urged Matthew and Rowena Schade to contact authorities immediately to resolve the situation.

Meanwhile, family relatives are distraught. "I just want them to come home," said Sandy Epstein, Rowena Schade's mother, who lives near the Schades. "I hope they're OK."

Epstein said that it's unusual for her daughter not to check in regularly. Her cell phone goes directly to voice mail, she added.

Also suspicious, she said, is the batch of cookies that were left on a cookie sheet in the Schade's house. "They just dumped everything and left," she said Thursday.

A news release issued by the Pennington County Sheriff's Department indicated that the couple were both on probation stemming from a 2006 burglary. A warrant has been issued for Matt Schade for failure to report a change of address and for failure to report to his probation officer.

So far, Mueller told ABCNews.com Thursday, the couple is not facing other charges, although that could change if and when they are found, depending on the circumstances.

"At this point, it is unclear whether the wife and kids are with him willingly," Mueller said. "We believe that when Matthew came out here, his intention was not to be located."

In Nebraska, Knox County Sheriff Jim Janecek Thursday said that there was no cause for arrest when his deputies responded to the domestic violence call March 20. He said his office was investigating abuse allegations, but declined to identify the source of those claims.

Epstein said she doesn't know if her son-in-law has or would hurt her daughter, 29, and grandchildren. "I don't want to speculate on that," she said. "All I want is my kids home."

Members of Schade's family could not be reached for comment.