On horseback and using all-terrain vehicles, volunteers with the Porter County, Ind. Sheriff's Department on Wednesday searched the perimeter of a pond not far from a missing ophthalmologist's Munster home.
Nothing was found, but police said the investigation into the disappearance of Dr. Promila Mehta Paul is ongoing.
"It's just due diligence," Munster Police Chief Stephen Scheckel told The Times of Northwest Indiana.
Dr. Paul was last seen March 21 at her medical office on Kennedy Avenue, in Highland, Ind. A bank's surveillance camera later recorded her driving her missing gold Toyota RAV4. She didn't show up for work the following day, despite having several appointments.
Munster police said they've talked to the doctors family locally, in California and in her native India. They said they've also followed up on several leads, but none of them have given them any concrete information on where the doctor might be.
"We’ve talked to all the family members," Munster Police Sgt. Steven Kovacik told the Post-Tribune, which detailed the doctor's messy divorce from Dr. Shasha Daman Paul.
Daman Paul was not reachable at his Munster office on Wednesday, but released a statement expressing the hope that no harm had come to his ex-wife.
"Although we were involved in a contentious divorce 20 years ago, I moved on with my life and have been happily married for the past 7 years. As a father, I'm worried about my sons having to deal with the disappearance of their mother. I've cooperated with the investigation and direct all inquiries to the Munster Police Department," he said.
"For the sake of the investigation, I will not reveal the nature of my cooperation with the police and I will not discuss family matters in public. I hope you will both respect my privacy and do nothing to hinder the police investigation," his statement continued.
Scheckel said Daman Paul has been "very cooperative" with the investigation.
One of the couple's sons, 38-year-old Paresh Paul, was pulled over for speeding earlier this month and arrested on a DUI charge. He was previously arrested in 2002 for battery and in recent months had been living with his mother in her Twin Creek Boulevard home.
Police declined to identify any persons of interest in the case.
Police ask that anyone who has seen or has knowledge about Dr. Mehta Paul's whereabouts contact Munster Police at 219-836-6600 or Highland Police at 219-838-3181.
