LYNNWOOD — Gael Schneider knows there isn’t any amount of money that will bring her daughter back to her.
The grieving mother is hoping some justice can be bought.
Schneider and her husband are increasing the reward for information leading to the arrest and conviction of whoever is responsible for Nicole Pietz’s death.
They are offering $25,000 in addition to $1,000 being offered by Crime Stoppers of Puget Sound.
“We are hoping it just keeps the public’s attention in the case,” Schneider said earlier this week from her Arizona home. “I’m hoping the money will bring in information.”
Pietz, 32, was reported missing from her Lynnwood condominium Jan. 29, 2006. Her body was found about a week later in a wooded area in Burien. She had been strangled.
Her 2003 Volkswagen Jetta was discovered abandoned Feb. 22, 2006, in a parking lot near the University District. A parking ticket left on the windshield was dated Feb. 10.
Detectives searched the car for evidence. They also seized computers from Pietz’s office in Bothell and from the condominium she shared with her husband, David Pietz.
King County sheriff’s investigators refuse to say if they have a suspect in the case.
“We don’t talk about possible suspects or persons of interest,” King County sheriff’s Sgt. John Urquhart said. “I can tell you this is an active and open investigation.”
As time goes on, it can be more difficult for investigators to solve cases, he said.
“It doesn’t mean it’s impossible,” Urquhart said. “The upside is, as time goes on people who have information tend to be more willing to talk. The increased reward may loosen someone’s lips even more so, in theory. We are confident this one can and will be solved.”
Schneider is frustrated and angry that no one has been arrested for her daughter’s death. She and her husband have hired a private investigator.
Schneider worries that someone else could be harmed by her daughter’s killer. She hopes anyone with information will do the right thing and step forward.
Schneider and her husband left their home in Arizona for a short visit to the area to announce their plans to increase the reward.
“It’s very hard to be in the Seattle area right now,” she said. “We’ll only stay long enough to get out our message.”
Diana Hefley is a reporter with the Herald of Everett.
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