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Contact: Edie Smith, Spokesperson
Maine Department of Inland Fisheries and Wildlife
284 State Street
41 State House Station
Augusta, ME 04333


Telephone: work (207) 592-4348

Fax: (207) 287-6395

January 5, 2010

Maine Warden Service: Search Continues for Missing Snowmobiler

Augusta, Maine - The Maine Warden Service continues its ground and air search for an 18-year-old snowmobiler who has been missing since Friday night, Jan. 1, 2010, in the South China area.

Game wardens and warden pilots, too, continue to search snowmobile trails and China Lake from the ground and from the air. Two airboats and warden divers are on the water.

On Monday night, Jan. 4, the Maine Warden Service located snowmobile tracks that lead into the west cove of China Lake where the water is open, according to MWS Col. Joel Wilkinson.

At this time, there is NO indication that the tracks were made by the snowmobile driven by the missing teen, Richard Jackson, 18, a junior at Erskine Academy, according to Col. Wilkinson.

“We’re not certain those are his tracks near the cove,” Wilkinson said. “But this is an area of concern and we are putting resources there, and we are continuing to search in other areas as well.”

Mr. Jackson was last seen between 8 and 9 p.m. Friday heading back to his home from Pinkham Fuel, where he had work done on his black Yamaha snowmobile. It still is not known whether he was taking a snowmobile trail or crossing China Lake to get to his house.

The Maine Warden Service was notified at 6 a.m. Saturday that Mr. Jackson failed to arrive home, and more than a dozen game wardens since then have been joined by local law enforcement officials and volunteers from 13 area snowmobile clubs to search for the teen.

Anyone who may have seen Mr. Jackson after 9 p.m. Friday is asked to call the Maine State Police in Augusta at 624-7076.