BRAYMER, Mo. — The sheriffs from Clinton and Caldwell counties in Missouri recapped the timeline of events Thursday afternoon in a joint press conference as the search for two missing brothers from Wisconsin, Nick and Justin Diemel, continued.
Earlier in the day, helicopter footage showed investigators sifting through piles of dirt at an 80-acre farm in Braymer, Missouri.
The property, which was once the center of a federal cattle fraud investigation, has now become a focal point in the mysterious disappearance of the Diemel brothers.
"They’re working very hard to figure this situation out," the Diemels' cousin, Rob Krull, said.
As law enforcement brought in more resources Thursday, relatives and coworkers of the Diemel brothers stood by at the entrance to the farm on the Southeast Catawba Road and Ayers Road.
"We’re just here if they have any quick questions" Krull said.
He and other relatives and coworkers made the nine-hour drive from Wisconsin with ATVs in tow prepared to search for the Diemel brothers themselves.
The two men, who own a livestock company that keeps cattle on farms in the area, were last heard from on Sunday while in town on business.
"They have cattle in a lot of states that people take care for them," Krull said. "So far as we know, they were down here checking on animals and seeing the progress."
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The search has shaken the tiny town of Braymer, which only has around 900 residents.
“A lot of people are kind of nervous and a little shocked at what’s been going on the last couple of days,” neighbor Rebecca Dare said. “We want our small town to feel safe. Right now, it doesn’t feel safe.”
Dare said that she and other residents were hoping investigators would bring good updates to the friends and family of the two missing men.
“It came out of nowhere,” she said. “I really hope they find the two men and that they get home safely and it’s just all a misunderstanding.”
The Diemel brothers' rental truck was found Monday still running. It was abandoned in a commuter lot in Holt, Missouri.
"In any business or anything that you do where there’s money changing hands, there’s opportunity for bad things to happen," said Rob Chupp, who works for Diemel's Livestock.
For now, loved ones continue to cling to hope.
"We don’t really have information and we don’t want people to just focus on this farm to be honest with you this investigation is much bigger than this farm so if anybody has any information please please call the tips line," Chupp said.
Relatives and coworkers have commended law enforcement for the work they've done thus far in this case.
