Rundle search moves north

Jen Lawson

Tuesday, Oct. 8, 2002 | 11:08 a.m.

Authorities have expanded their search for William Rundle into Canada, but police say he could be anywhere.

Rundle is wanted in connection with the death of his wife and for questioning in the disappearance of his mother.

Metro Police Homicide Lt. Tom Monahan said detectives notified customs officials after Seattle Police found Rundle's Buick LeSabre in a parking garage in that city.

Police believe that after abandoning his Buick, Rundle rented a silver Ford Escort bearing Washington license plate 425MFV. The car was supposed to be returned Sept. 25, Monahan said.

"He might be in Wyoming, he might be in Rhode Island," Monahan said this morning. "Seattle is near the Canadian border. The fact that he could be in Canada is no more likely a possibility than anywhere else."

Rundle rented a room in a residential hotel in downtown Seattle using his real name, Monahan said. He made no attempt to change his appearance or hide the fact that he was from Las Vegas.

Monahan said he's not sure why Rundle went to Seattle. Rundle has no apparent connection to that city.

"That's a mystery to us," Monahan said.

Seattle Police declined to answer questions Tuesday morning and referred calls to Metro.

Logic suggests that Rundle, 56, moved the body of his wife, Shirley, 63, in the Buick, Monahan said. Investigators are examining the car for evidence to support their theory, he said.

"We believe she came to great harm inside the home. We also know the body is not inside the home, so she must have been moved," Monahan said. "We decided he used the car to move her, but we don't have any specific evidence."

Police haven't started looking for Shirley Rundle's body, which could be anywhere between Las Vegas and Seattle. Their priority is finding her husband.

Rundle withdrew about $18,000 from his bank account before he disappeared, so police haven't been able to trace his movements with credit card records. However, Monahan said, that money can't last forever.

Police are trying to reconstruct Rundle's route from Las Vegas to Seattle. There was a possible sighting of his Buick with the Nevada "HONEYBUN" license plates in mid-September in the San Diego area.

"We're not sure if that was a red herring or not," Monahan said.

An arrest warrant was issued for Rundle after police found blood in the couple's home that matched Shirley Rundle's DNA. The Rundles have been missing since August.

Rundle's 87-year-old mother, Willa, hasn't been seen since 1997, and police also want to ask him about her whereabouts. Rundle had been cashing her Social Security checks and telling family and friends that she is traveling through Europe, but police think that's unlikely because of her age.

"We've not begun to look for her. It's a much lower priority," Monahan said. "There's no indication she died at all."