Reward offered for information that leads to different arrest in Bach killing

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Provided mug shot of Dustin McCowan who is being held in the Porter County Jail on suspicion of murder. McCowan was brought back from Bloomington, IN., to face charges in the disapearance and murder of Amanda Bach whose body was found Saturday aftenoon near railroad tracks just south of the town of Wheeler. | Andy Lavalley~Sun-Times Media

Updated: March 17, 2012 10:22AM

VALPARAISO — Some relatives and friends of Dustin McCowan are offering a $10,000 reward for information about the murder of 19-year-old Amanda A. Bach.

McCowan, 19, of the Wheeler area, has been charged with Bach’s murder. Bach was last known to be at McCowan’s home Sept. 15. Her car was found abandoned at a general store on Indiana 130 in Wheeler, and her body was found by nearby train tracks a few days later.

“The information has to lead to an arrest and conviction,” said Elliot McCowan, Dustin McCowan’s father and a Crown Point police officer.

Elliot McCowan said Wednesday the reward is open only until March 18. He said the money came from a person who believes his son did not kill Bach.

“Someone contacted me and wanted to do it, and they wanted to remain anonymous,” the elder McCowan said.

He said he wanted the reward to go through Crimestoppers, but the organization requires information to go to the Porter County Sheriff’s Office.

Porter County Sheriff’s spokesman Cpl. Larry LaFlower said they had heard rumors Wednesday but knew nothing about the reward. “This is nothing that we have sponsored,” LaFlower said.

Sheriff’s Detective Jeff Biggs said he didn’t want the public to be lead into thinking the department was connected to the reward.

“We’ve never closed our doors to anyone who has any information about the case,” Biggs said. “But we don’t want the community to think we’ve got the wrong guy. We are confident in our arrest.”

The elder McCowan said he put the money into an account on Wednesday at Chase Bank and that bank officials could only give out the information that he opened an account. A manager at the bank said Chase was given permission to state there is a bank account open but nothing else.

McCowan’s father declined to talk about the case because he didn’t want to hurt it.

However, he said Florida private investigator Bill Warner was investigating similar crimes in Indiana, Ohio and Kentucky against women with similar builds to Bach.

Warner, when contacted about the reward, said, “I don’t see any reason why they’d do that.”

Although Bach’s murder is listed on his website, he wouldn’t confirm any connections.

Bob Harper, the attorney for Dustin McCowan, declined to talk about the situation.

“Dustin and his family have continually maintained his innocence, and it’s my belief that Mr. McCowan is trying to find more information.”

The trial date for Dustin McCowan is scheduled for Aug. 13.