Ben Roseland

On the evening of February 9, 2008, Ben Roseland left a friend's house in the 400 block of 10th Avenue South, Clinton, Iowa to walk a few blocks to a grocery store.

He never made it to the store.

Ben has brown hair and blue eyes.
He stands 5' 11" tall and weighs 175 pounds.
He was last seen wearing camouflage overalls.
Ben was 19 years old when he disappeared.
He is now 22 years old.

Ben has missed the birth of his niece and nephew,
the wedding of his older sister,
the enlistment of his younger sister in the U.S. Army,
and three years of birthday and holiday celebrations.

Please help bring Ben home.

Anyone with information regarding Ben's whereabouts can contact the Clinton Police Department at (563) 243-1458,
or send an email to info@benroseland.com.

April 24, 2009
Billboard launched for missing man

CLINTON — Ben Roseland disappeared on Feb. 9, 2008, from Clinton after leaving a friend’s home and was last seen near the 400 block of 10th Avenue South, Clinton, to walk a few blocks to a grocery store, but he never arrived.

No one has heard from him since and there has been no activity on his cell phone or bank account. He was last seen wearing camouflage overalls; he was 19 years old at the time he vanished, with brown hair and blue eyes, although slender he weighed 175 pounds and stood 5 foot 11 inches tall.

Roseland’s family contacted the CUE Center for Missing Persons, a national organization for missing persons to aid in their case last year; now a renewed effort is under way, starting with the recent billboard erected that is located at Sixth Avenue North and Second Street in Clinton.

“We hope this effort will provide new information and or tips for the investigators in the case, reaching out in a large form to a community can afford people contact information and reach those who might not be aware of this case,” said CUE’s founder, Monica Caison.

Last September, CUE placed a bill board on a busy highway in North Carolina for a missing woman of 31⁄2 years, hoping for a break. It did just that. A tipster contacted law officials leading them to a recovery of human remains and within days of the discovery an arrest was made, solving the case of the missing woman who left four grieving children behind.

Anyone with information regarding Roseland’s whereabouts can contact the Clinton Police Department at 243-1458 or send an e-mail to info@benroseland.com. Contact CUE Center for Missing Persons at (910) 343-1131, its 24-hour line at (910) 232-1687 or cuecenter@aol.com. Visit the center on the Web at www.ncmissingpersons.org

November 21, 2008
Family will mark missing loved one’s 20th birthday
Community asked to attend vigil for Ben Roseland

By Rebecca Boysen

CLINTON — For the first time since her only son went missing in February, Theresa Roseland made the mistake of getting her hopes up.

After posters of her son, Ben Roseland, were recently placed in locations across the country by 18-Wheel Angels, an organization made up of truck drivers who volunteer their time to help families find their missing loved ones, Theresa received a call at home from a man in Redding, Calif., who thought he might have spotted the missing teen.

According to Theresa, the man was “80 percent sure” that the boy he had seen on the street begging for money was the one he had seen on Ben’s missing poster. The teen has not been seen since Feb. 9, when he left a friend’s home on 10th Avenue South to get something to eat at Hy-Vee.

The Redding sighting resulted in a 10-day manhunt coordinated by Clinton police and authorities in California, but the search came up empty.

“For those 10 days she had such high hopes that maybe Ben was alive and OK,” said Theresa’s sister-in-law, Julie Connell. “It was absolutely devastating when it turned out to be nothing.”

Theresa confirms that she will not make the same mistake again.

“That was the one time since this all started that I let myself get my hopes up, so that was very difficult,” Theresa said. “I need to just stay steady, like I have been, and not get my hopes up about anything until concrete proof is here.”

According to Theresa, the posters placed by the 18-Wheel Angels have resulted in four possible sightings in four different states, but nothing has turned up. She says Clinton police continue to investigate leads, but no real progress has been made in the case.

“It’s not knowing that is the worst,” Theresa said. “Everybody is so upset, family members can’t sleep. Everybody is just hanging in limbo.”

Theresa has begun to accept the fact that Ben may no longer be alive, and says family members are working to bring in teams to the area that could help locate any remains.

“You want to believe that he’s wandering around and doesn’t know where he is, but it doesn’t look that way,” Theresa said. “At least it will give us closure, and we’ll know where he is.”

Theresa feels the last people to see Ben alive may know more than they have reported, and she urges his friends to contact law enforcement with any information.

“We need someone to speak up, because somebody’s got to know something,” Theresa said. “I want them to quit being afraid, and do what they know is right in their heart, and speak up and tell the truth.”

Theresa suggests that anonymous calls can also be made to Clinton County Crime Stoppers at 242-6595.

The family has organized a candlelight vigil for tomorrow in honor of Ben’s 20th birthday, which is Nov. 24. The vigil will take place Saturday at 7 p.m. at Sacred Heart Church, located at 316 S. Fourth St. Community members are encouraged to attend to support the family, and honor Ben on his birthday.

“We’re praying that the vigil is well attended because it makes the family feel like the community cares, and it’s a really good feeling for (Ben’s parents) Jim and Theresa,” Connell said. “We’re very grateful for all the help we’ve gotten from the community, and we want to keep up public awareness.”

Connell states that candles will be available at the vigil, and the family has chosen songs to be sung by the group. Gerry Herrity will be on-hand to read a special poem selected by the family, and Mayor Rodger Holm is also slated to say a few words.

“We’re praying that wherever Ben is, he is celebrating his 20th birthday,” Connell said. “We’re having this vigil because we’re thinking about him, and wherever he may be, we want him to know that we haven’t forgotten about him.”

June 13, 2008
Still no clues in case of missing teen, Ben Roseland

CLINTON — After four months without a trace of their beloved “Benny,” friends and family of missing Clinton teen Ben Roseland are still desperate for any clues into the disappearance of the young man, who has not been seen since Feb. 9.

“We’re praying all the time,” said Roseland’s aunt, Julie Connell. “It’s never far from our minds.”

Roseland, 19, described by officials as a white male, standing 5 feet 11 inches tall and weighing 175 pounds, with brown hair and blue eyes, was last seen by friends after leaving the 400 block of 10th Avenue South and heading for Hy-Vee. Roseland never arrived at the store, and has not been seen or heard from since.

Loved ones have conducted several searches in the area, one of which turned up a pair of shoes believed to be Roseland’s, but have not had any real leads concerning the case.

“We just are begging anyone who knows anything to come forward and let us know,” Connell said.

Connell stated that a family friend is maintaining a Web site with up-to-date information and pictures of Roseland, at benroseland.com. He was also recently featured in the Missing Persons section of the America’s Most Wanted Web site, at www.amw.com, and is listed on the databases on the Texas EquuSearch site, www.texasequusearch.org, as well as www.missingkids.com, the Web site for the National Center for Missing and Exploited Children.

Roseland’s mom, Theresa, has set up an account at Clinton National Bank, called “Donations for Ben,” to allow community members to make contributions to the family. She noted that the proceeds will be used to help establish a reward, and assist with search costs.

Things have been especially rough for the family recently, with the passing of Ben’s maternal grandmother on Tuesday, and the hospitalization of Jean Roseland, his paternal grandma.

“She kept asking, ‘what happened to Benny? Is he ever going to come home?’” Connell said of Jean. “She was in so much pain, and that was all she was thinking about.”

Family members state that spending Mother’s Day without Ben was extremely difficult, and Ben’s father, Jim, is dreading Father’s Day without his only son.

Connell feels the “Letter to the Unknown,” written by Ben’s aunt, Kathy Roseland, best describes the torturous emotions being felt by the entire family:

“Person unknown, I am not writing this just for Ben, but for that one person who knows where he is and what happened to him. If there was an accident, please find it in your heart to tell us where he is so that we can find him. Not knowing is so painful, everyday that goes by leaves our hearts crying out,” Kathy wrote in the letter she posted on benroseland.com. “Please leave a message with the police about his location.We desperately need to know. Our lives will always be in stress until we find our Ben.”

Those closest to Ben still hold out hope that he will come home safely.

“I see (Ben’s) bedroom from my room with all of his things waiting for him. Our cat, Felix, lays on his bed, missing him, too,” said his younger sister, Helen. “We are praying he comes home every day, and I don’t want to spend his birthday and Christmas without him here, even though I will buy him presents anyway, waiting for his return.” “We can barely function without him,” Theresa said.

NEWS ARCHIVE
Sunday, October 30, 2011

(Clinton) -- On February 12, 2008, a report was filed with the Clinton Police Department that Benjamin Malvin Roseland of 1921 Pershing Blvd., Clinton was missing.

He is described as a white male, age 19, 5’11” tall, 175 lbs, brown hair and blue eyes. He was last seen on February 9th in the 400 block of 10th Avenue South as he headed towards the Hy-vee Store in the 900 block of South 4th Street.

Saturday at 11:15 AM, a large group of volunteers began searching the area east and south of the location where Benjamin Roseland was last seen. At approximately 11:38 AM a shoe was located, sitting in a vacant yard at the corner of 13th Avenue South and 3rd Street. A short time later a second shoe was found sitting on top of snow bank on the east side of the street. The mother of Mr. Roseland indicated that Benjamin wore a pair of shoes that were similar to the make, style, color, and shoe size.

With this information, a more intense search was conducted east of the area of 13th Avenue South and 3rd Street. This involved officers from the Clinton Police Department, Clinton County Sheriff’s Office, the Iowa State Patrol, and the Clinton Fire Department. In addition, the Eko-Sar K-9 Search and Rescue team was activated to assist in the search. ADM security also assisted in the search of their property. The MED FORCE aero medical helicopter responded to Clinton. The helicopter pilot assisted by a Clinton Police Officer as a spotter, flew over the area where Mr. Roseland was last seen. An attempt was made to put a Clinton Fire Department rescue boat in the water but was unsuccessful due to surface conditions at the 5th Street boat ramp to the river.

No additional items were found in the area. Likewise Mr. Roseland was not located and he continues to be listed as a missing person. If any person has information on the location of Benjamin Roseland should contact the Clinton Police Department at 563-243-1458.

Written 3/2/2008 by Nanci Neubauer - KROS News