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Reddit sleuths who helped with Gabby Petito case join search for Kiely Rodni as cops scale back efforts

A user asked all VanLife members to go through their dashcam footage to see if they were near or close to the campground when Kiely disappeared

TRUCKEE, CALIFORNIA: Online detectives who played a crucial part in the Gabby Petito case have now joined the hunt to find the missing teen Kiely Rodni. After almost two weeks since her disappearance, local authorities are under increased pressure to find the 16-year-old but are yet to come up with solid leads. Police have now moved to a "more limited search-and-rescue effort" while Reddit sleuths seem to be entering the fray. Kiely was last seen near the Prosser Family Campground in Truckee, California around 12.30 am on August 6. 

A call-to-arms was issued on the VanLife subreddit, which was galvanized after Gabby Petito disappeared while on a "dream" road trip with fiance Brian Laundrie. On Monday, August 15, a user posted to the group asking all members to go through their dashcam footage to see if they were near or close to the campground when Kiely disappeared. A flier was shared showing several photos of Kiely, along with her 2013 Honda CRV and a sticker on the vehicle.

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The Reddit user said he planned to share the post with a wider audience after getting off the phone with someone he spoke to about the missing teen. A KielyRodni subreddit was also created with 2,500 members now sharing their latest information on the case. This comes as Nevada County Sheriffs admitted on Monday that they still have no solid evidence as to what happened to Kiely. 

"We are moving into a more limited but continuous search-and-rescue effort," Capt Sam Brown said, according to The Sun. "We are going to have to switch modes and kind of focus on the investigative end and try to figure out, where do we go from there." Police were initially treating her disappearance as a case of abduction since Kiely's Honda CRV is also missing but now they are quite sure it is a missing person case. Kiely weighs about 118 pounds and stands five feet, seven inches tall. She has blonde hair, hazel eyes, and a tattoo on her ribs, her family said. She was last seen wearing green Dickies pants, a black tank top, and jewelry. 

What happened on the night of Kiely's disappearance?

MEAWW previously reported that Kiely got to the wild end-of-school bash attended by up to 300 people near the Prosser Family Campground at 8 pm on August 5. The US Sun exclusively revealed that men in their late 20s were giving out free drugs, including mushrooms and cocaine, to teens at the party. Kiely's friend, Sami Smith, shared footage from the Friday night bash, which took place in the public woodland area surrounding the campsite. The video shows dozens of teens gathered on the land surrounded by trees, with trash strewn around, including what appear to be empty bottles of alcohol. Police revealed that Kiely's phone last pinged near Prosser Lake. Sami said, "The last recording sighting of her was 12.40 am. I was the last person to speak to her at 12.36 am, when she asked me if I still needed a ride home." A surveillance image of the missing teenager was located and shared by the Placer County officials.