Where are the Lutzs? Family-of-4 missing since February after addict father told CLOWN 'I have to kill 3 people'
NEWTON, ILLINOIS: A couple and their two young sons have been missing for over two months after being last seen at their home in Newton, Illinois, on February 10. This comes a couple of weeks after the family's drug-addict father Stephen Lutz was released from jail after being charged with several domestic battery offenses. Moreover, it is alleged that the 44-year-old was seen telling a ‘clown mask’ that he needed to kill his family of four that included his wife, Monica, 34, and two sons Aiden, 11, and Nicholas, 9.
Days before their disappearance, Aiden told his grandmother, Mary-Jane, and older sister, Brittany, 20, that he had walked in on his father telling a clown mask in his bedroom that he needed to 'kill three people', according to Gia Wright of the Missing Persons Awareness Network (MPAN). The 11-year-old apparently heard “heard his dad talking to the clown, saying the following (verbatim). ‘I know what I have to do. I have to kill three people. I have to kill my wife first, then Aiden, then Nicholas.’”
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Brittany heard the last from Lutz family on January 14
While Stephen was ordered not to contact his family or go into their home after his court hearing on January 19, a U-Haul was seen at the residence attached to his pickup truck on the afternoon of their disappearance. Notably, the family had not informed anyone that they were leaving. Their mobile phones were unreachable after Richmond, Indiana, as per the Daily Mail.
Their adult daughter Brittany, who chose to cut contact with her father, last heard from Aiden on the day they vanished via text messages where he told her that the family was going on vacation. “On February 14, I did text my father Stephen, and said if they needed to get away, I could take the boys and just get them back to a normal life. He said they have a normal life, they aren’t together and he’s not allowed to be around them,” she recalled, as per OurQuadCities. Stephen sent a lengthy message in response towards the end of which, he said: “There is nothing wrong with our house or the way we raise our children. So thank you for the offer but all we need is love, support, togetherness, and healing.” This was the last time Brittany heard from her father.
What did officers find at their home?
After an inspection of their home by MPAN on April 3, officers found the windows covered in sheets with no one inside. Moreover, their normally "immaculate" home looked as if "a tornado struck every inch" of it. On another visit to the house on April 10, a rifle was located, with a silencer and scope. Stephen, who reportedly had multiple personality disorders, has previous reports of domestic violence in the home, with some still pending. He also did not his wife Monica socialize with neighbors. Moreover, his two sons were homeschooled.
'It’s been challenging'
Illinois State Police and the FBI have joined Newton Police on their search of the Lutz family, who have possibly left the state. Newton Police Chief Riley Britton said that the force will not stop until they have made physical contact with the family. “I will say it’s been challenging having a whole family as missing,” Britton said. “That made it a challenge for us too. How far can we go if the family is on a vacation?” Britton added.