No Progress In Search For Missing Morris County Teacher

MORRIS COUNTY, NJ — An exhaustive search spanning weeks has turned up little as a third-grade Morris County teacher remains missing.

In late June, Morris County Prosecutor Robert Carroll and Roxbury Police Chief Dean Adone released new information about the investigation, highlighting a new development in the case as the search for Lara Emanuele, 46, became more intense.

Emanuele, who has been missing since June 7, was captured on surveillance footage exiting her car "alone and of her own free will" in a Mount Arlington hotel parking lot, according to authorities.

According to Meghan Knab, a spokeswoman for the Morris County Prosecutor's Office, additional coordinated searches in the Berkshire Valley State Wildlife Management Area have been conducted since the last release, and other investigative leads have been pursued.

Knab could not share the specifics of the investigation.

Ramapo Search and Rescue, a volunteer search and rescue organization that employs air-scenting German Shepherd Dogs, is currently conducting routine searches, which are overseen by Chief Adone.

"Emanuele has not been located as of today," Knab said.

The search for Emanuele has focused on the densely forested Berkshire Valley State Wildlife Management Area and the area around the North Arlington Holiday Inn Express on Howard Boulevard.

On June 8, Emanuele's vehicle was discovered in the parking lot with her cell phone inside of it, police confirmed.

While the investigation was in its early stages, the public was initially asked to refrain from entering the Berkshire Valley State Wildlife Management Area so as not to interfere with the search by officers and K9s.

While the area is no longer off-limits, concerned community members have expressed their intent to enter the wooded property in their own search for Emanuele, but Knab has warned them against doing so.

"The public is advised to exercise caution if they plan to enter the woods, as the terrain and conditions can be inhospitable," Knab said.

The prosecutor's office has stated yet again that Emanuele's disappearance is not considered suspicious, but her well-being remains a concern.

"We know Ms. Emanuele was a special person, evident in the outpouring of support and offers to help this case has generated," Carroll stated in an update. "Regrettably, her disappearance has also spawned rumors and speculation on social media, spread by people falsely claiming to represent law enforcement."

Anyone with information about Emanuele's whereabouts or this investigation is encouraged to contact the Roxbury Police Department at 973-448-2100 or the Morris County Prosecutor's Office Missing Persons Unit On-Call Detective at 973-285-2900 via the Morris County Communications Center.