Webster County Sheriff’s Deputy Nick Dunbar was so affected by a case he covered 11 years ago that he became certified in the FBI’s Child Abduction Response training and also achieved his drone pilot’s license to be able to search for missing individuals.

WEBSTER COUNTY — In his 23-year law enforcement career, Nick Dunbar has investigated hundreds of cases. But one specific case affected him so deeply that it changed the trajectory of his career.

Eleven years ago, Dunbar was the chief of police in Dayton when Kathlynn Shepard was abducted and murdered. Dunbar led the local search and manned the incident command center for days throughout the search for Shepard and her abductor.

Shepard was kidnapped on May 20, 2013, while walking home from school, then was sexually assaulted, and murdered. Her assailant, Michael Klunder, took his own life before police were able to apprehend him. A second girl who was abducted with Shepard was able to escape.

“I remember every detail like it was yesterday,” said Dunbar. “I’ve been present for the investigations of homicides, fatalities, child abuse cases, sex abuse cases, and many other traumas, but I will never forget what happened in Dayton. That incident changed how I perceive my job.”

After Shepard’s case, Dunbar focused on education and spending time in the schools with students in hopes of raising situational awareness and preparedness.

“I would talk about stranger danger, emergency plans, and various ways of getting help,” said Dunbar. “That grew into a larger program which is now Southeast Valley’s school resource officer program.”

Dunbar also focused on additional education and training for himself, though hoping that he’d never again need to put it to use.

In 2020, he participated in the Child Abduction Response Training taught by the Federal Bureau of Investigation. Dunbar was one of a handful of law enforcement officers from around the state who participated. The course focused on specific interview and neighborhood canvas questions and procedures.

“The FBI’s class was very thorough and well put together,” said Dunbar. “In the scope of an abduction investigation what I learned will save valuable time. In a folder in my patrol car, I keep all of the forms at the ready, but I pray that it only collects dust.”

Dunbar also went through the process of earning his UAS drone pilot’s license so that he would be able to help with search and rescue, as well as investigations in missing person’s cases.

“After the Dayton abduction, I had learned a lot, and knew that there were opportunities to learn more,” he said. “My hope was that should I find myself on another abduction call or if another agency calls for assistance with an abduction or missing person, I would be able to bring resources and start the mechanisms needed to begin an investigation and organize a search without wasting any time.”

Now a member of the Webster County Sheriff’s Department and highly trained, Dunbar was asked again to use his skills to search for a missing teenager when he was called in to aid in the search for Michele “Luna” Jackson in late September.

Dunbar searched the Farnhamville area three times using his drones before his flights were terminated as Jackson’s body had been located.

“I was mission focused,” said Dunbar. “I knew there was a missing girl and I was doing my part in assisting the Calhoun County Sheriff’s Office in trying to locate her.”

Unlike the search for Shepard, Dunbar was able to be on the ground searching with others, whereas 11 years ago he was in the command center most of the time.

“While I was enroute to Farnhamville I ran a checklist in my head to make sure I had all of my equipment and gave thought about what would be needed should the search go later into the day,” said Dunbar. “I was focused on finding Luna but didn’t draw a parallel because circumstances were different and my role was going to be different. I will say while near the crime scene in Farnhamville I did think about the citizens of Farnhamville and the state of shock and insecurity they were likely in after hearing about the tragedy there. I recall the reactions from Dayton and knew Farnhamville was just beginning to feel that. Speaking from being a resident in a small rural town, you never think any big city crimes would happen in your community and when it does, it is an innocence lost.”

Now a father himself, Dunbar also thought of his wife and daughter and how he would explain the circumstances to his young child.

“Sadly, these things do happen in small rural areas, too,” said Dunbar. “That is why I’ve always encouraged everyone to remain vigilant and if they see something to say something. As a deputy, I’ve never been upset or annoyed about checking out suspicious vehicles or persons even when it turns out to be nothing, only because people were watching and took the time to call us. Communities can be safer places, but it takes law enforcement and the citizens working together. I have had some people approach me over the years saying they had seen the Dayton abductor out-of-place in Dayton the day of the abduction and how much they regretted not calling it in.”

Dunbar says that he hopes to never receive another call like the abduction of Shepard and the search for Jackson, but if he does, he will gladly put his training and experience to use to aid in the search.