New Hampshire state police returned to 115 Trescott this weekend -- more than seven days after the Zantops were murdered there -- to question passers-by in an attempt to shed new light on the investigation.
Despite this appeal, Senior Assistant Attorney General Kelly Ayotte called the tactic "being thorough," and repeated yesterday in a news conference that investigators are in no way short on leads. Rather, she said they are moving through the leads they receive systematically and methodically.
Although Ayotte remains optimistic and she insists that the murderer will be apprehended, she said yesterday that arrest is still not imminent.
Since the double homicide, which sent shock waves through the community last weekend, investigators have released little information about their progress.
"The commitment of the state of New Hampshire to resolving this case remains steadfast," Ayotte said.
Col. Gary Sloper of the New Hampshire State Police, who came to Hanover to check the progress of the investigation, said in a brief statement that the process is continuing as it has been "from the outset" and will continue "until this matter is solved."
He said that the investigation constituted "a very significant effort," but would not release specific details of the police proceedings.
College President James Wright told The Dartmouth yesterday evening that he was not privy to details of the investigation, but he said, "I accept what they're saying -- that they're continuing to make progress."
He said he understood that police had to interview many people as the investigation progressed, and said authorities had given him no idea of a timeframe for how long this process could take.
On the night of the murder, Hanover police turned responsibility over to the state police right away. Since then, Wright has only been involved to the extent that he is lending his full cooperation to the police's effort.
He also has spoken out to the community -- publicly and in mass BlitzMail (email) messages -- attempting to guide students, colleagues and friends through the difficult period.
"I think the grieving is going to go on for some time," Wright said yesterday. "Individuals will grieve for some time. Yesterday's service did not mark the end of grieving."
But he said, "Even those who are suffering the most are trying to go on with their work."
Wright said the memorial service for Half and Susanne Zantop, which was held Saturday afternoon in Rollins Chapel "provided the community with an opportunity to come together and grieve and really share some reflections on the Zantops."
After the service and the reception following it, Wright said he told reporters "our focus is on the life of these colleagues -- what they had done and what they meant to us."
He said he was not surprised at the video cameras and reporters poised Saturday outside of Rollins: "I think that obviously, there is an interest in this ... The media have a role in trying to report what's happening."
For the past week, Ayotte and State Attorney General Philip McLaughlin have refused to comment on details relating to the actual murders -- including motive, murder weapon, time of death, specifics of the crime scene and where investigators are searching for information.
And although Ayotte maintained today that she was optimistic with the progress, she said news conferences would be held tomorrow, Thursday and Saturday this week, instead of every day.
She said that if arrests are made or any other material information develops, her office would arrange other meeting times to convey the information to the public.
At this point, the FBI continues to be uninvolved in the case, but the bureau might get involved if its expertise is required.
Yesterday, major media outlets reported that the investigation had moved outside of the United States. Today, Ayotte said to the extent that the Zantops knew people outside of the country, this was true. However, she would not comment on whether local authorities in foreign countries were working in conjunction with New Hampshire investigators.
She also refused to elaborate further on the white car that was impounded earlier this week or on the person who allegedly returned it to Thrifty Car Rental at the Manchester Airport, repeating that it was one of many vehicles that was being examined by investigators.
She would not confirm the reports that the driver of the rental car was a middle-aged man with a connection to the University of Arizona.
She also said she would not rank the various vehicles being examined or place more significance on one in particular.
