PIEHL: Smiley Face Update: New Case?

A 2005 disappearance is getting new attention because of the Smiley Face Killer theory. It's a story of another college-aged man walking out of a bar and vanishing. Unlike many of these missing person cases that I've been reporting on and blogging about, this man's body has never been recovered.



Keith Ryan a 22-year-old from Springfield, Illinois was last seen on April 12, 2005. After a night of drinking in Peoria, Ryan told his friends that he needed some fresh air. He never returned. According to reports, surveillance cameras captured him walking alone on city streets.

His father, a retired Decatur Police Department Detective, has always suspected foul play. He is now considering that his son's disappearance is connected to 40 others across the country.

Ryan heard about the Smiley Face Killer Theory that we first reported in a 5 Eyewitness News Investigation in April. Since then, he's searched along the river for signs of a smiley face.

According to a new article in a Peoria newspaper, retired New York Detective, Kevin Gannon is now working with Ryan. The two are trying to gather police reports to piece together new evidence. In the article, Roger Ryan says, "I sent (Gannon) an e-mail the day I saw an article about the 'Smiley' case murders. He's interested in it and is going to try and connect" his son's case with the others.

Peoria detectives also heard about the Smiley Face Killer theory and considered it in the Ryan case. The newspaper reports that the Peoria detectives determined that there is no evidence to suggest a connection.