ROANOKE, Va. – The hunt continues for 22-year-old Michael Brown, a Marine wanted for the alleged murder of his mother’s boyfriend.
Local and federal agencies, including the FBI, are assisting in the search, which has spanned from Franklin County to South Carolina to Roanoke.
The FBI returned to the Tillet Road area of Roanoke Thursday night to sweep the area, near where Brown’s grandmother lives and where much of the search efforts have been focused. Brown was allegedly spotted at the house on Thursday morning.
The sweep of Brown’s grandmother’s house on Tillet Road turned up empty. Roanoke city authorities supported the federal raid.
Authorities did not tell 10 News whether the decision to sweep the Tillet Road area was just a precaution for good measure, or whether a tip sparked the raid. Police had already searched the house earlier in the day but didn’t find anything.
With lights trained on the small home on Tillet Road, about a dozen federal agents backed up by Roanoke police screamed orders into the house, hoping Brown would come out.
After three more attempts to get him out, spanning about 30 minutes, they still received no response. That’s when SWAT teams forced their way in.
The officers were visible through the front window as they turned on the lights and swept through the house.
10 News was on the scene and heard the SWAT team say the house was all clear about 20 minutes later. They did not find Brown.
Neighbors started peeking out their windows, wondering what was going on, as police had driven in silently and made their move.
Officers were visible walking back and forth out of the house with their weapons and, at one point, with a box.
After clearing the house, officers eventually searched the rest of the street, talking to neighbors and looking into an empty house that’s currently for sale.
Neighbors declined to go on camera with 10 News but said they’re concerned that Brown has not been captured yet.
The command post at Patrick Henry High School shut down around 10 p.m., and police have released few details about what the search will look like later into Thursday night.