The investigation into the disappearance of Cindy Song has reached the national level.
Ferguson Township Police Det. Brian Sprinkle, who heads the Song investigation, sent a letter several months ago to the television program Unsolved Mysteries detailing the disappearance of Song. In April, he received a reply that they were interested in filming.
Less than a month later Cosgrove-Meurer Productions filmed for two days, mostly at Toftrees Resort. A crew of four spent the day of May 4 at Toftrees doing interviews. The door to the room was kept shut for taping purposes and confidentiality.
Unsolved Mysteries chooses segment stories to cover in its show from e-mail tips received by fans or from research conducted by a research team.
"We try to be as close to the actual story as possible, right down to the clothes, time of day, almost every detail," Richard Rorabach, the segment associate producer for Cosgrove-Meurer Productions, said.
Rorabach worked on the segment about Song.
Most of the re-creation of the event was done in the Los Angeles area, including the casting of look-a-likes and the re-creation of the Penn State campus. An outline of the story was researched and used by the director to conduct the interviews.
Sprinkle, Bansoon Song, Cindy's mother, and Stacey Paik, the last person to see Song, were all interviewed for the segment. Young Jin Kim, a friend of Cindy's, was asked to be interviewed but it is unclear whether she participated in the filming.
Those who film for Unsolved Mysteries are often personally affected by the cases they cover.
"I've got Cindy's picture pinned up along with a couple of other girls that have disappeared. I film for Unsolved Mysteries for less than the going rate, because of these poor girls that have been found dead or not at all," Artie Glackin, the field producer for the segment said. "I am just trying to get the word out to help these girls. I want to hear that Cindy is OK."
The show will air Aug. 21 on the Lifetime Network. Potential viewers can check local listings for the specific airtime.
"We are just hoping the national coverage will shed some light on the investigation," Sprinkle said. "If someone, somewhere outside of Pennsylvania knows something, hopefully they will let us know."
Song has been missing since the early morning hours of Nov. 1, 2001. She was 21 at the time of her disappearance. Her case is currently under investigation by the FBI, state and township police.
She is described as 5'1" tall and weighs 115 lbs. She was last seen wearing a white skirt, pink top, brown knee-high boots and a red hooded jacket.
Anyone with information regarding Song's whereabouts is asked to call the Ferguson Township Police at (814) 237-1172 or (800) 479-0050 and contact Sprinkle.
