Officials question time conflict

Marjorie Smith

A change in the time sequence has officials questioning the events between the time Abel Bolanos, whose body was found in Lake LaVerne on Tuesday, left a party where he was last seen early Saturday morning, and the time he attempted access at a residence hall near his.

“People are in error about what time he left the Hyland address,” said Gene Deisinger, commander for ISU Police.

Friends from the party initially told officials Bolanos left the 208 S. Hyland apartment between 4 and 4:30 a.m. Saturday. However, Bolanos’ access card was used to attempt access twice before 4 a.m. into the unoccupied Wilson Hall, which is located west of his dorm building, Wallace Hall.

The two attempts to access Wilson Hall occurred at 3:22:57 a.m. and 3:23:12 a.m. Saturday.

“[Bolanos] had access to Wallace, but not Wilson,” said Mona Wilson, clerk in facilities planning and management. “He used it on Wilson Hall those two times, but he didn’t try it at all at Wallace.”

A card belonging to a different student, whose name was not released, was also used at Wilson Hall shortly after Bolanos. This attempt was made at 3:26:34 a.m. Saturday.

According to activity records on the access pad outside the door of Wilson Hall, this was the only other attempt beside Bolanos’ that was made after 3 a.m., Wilson said.

None of the attempts resulted in successful entry.

Records of activity on the access pad outside Wallace Hall indicated plenty of activity after 3 a.m. Saturday, which suggests people were around.

“There were several [entries] around that time,” Wilson said.

Deisinger also confirmed that Bolanos’ access card was found with the body.

Police are investigating the time discrepancies and have ruled out any confusion of delayed time stamps because of the change in daylight-saving time that occurred March 12.

“[We are] pretty confident that the time stamp is 3:23 [and] that is the correct time,” Deisinger said.

Bolanos’ room showed no signs of entry; however, everything is still being held in place until the investigation ends.

“Right now we’ve asked for the family’s cooperation holding his vehicle [and] his room largely as it is right now as we await further information from the medical examiner’s office for an investigative follow up,” Deisinger said.

“It is a precautionary measure.”

Bolanos’ room was searched Sunday after Bolanos was reported missing.

“We found nothing that caused us any concern,” Deisinger said.

The last time Bolanos was sighted in Campustown early Saturday morning has not changed to accommodate the shifts in time sequence.

“There is at least one [person] that has a very good description of Abel at about 4:30 a.m. [in Campustown],” Deisinger said.