Disagreements Divide Child Search Group

Months of agonizing searches for a young girl who disappeared from Vallejo last year have apparently led to a rift among directors of a volunteer center set up in the girl’s name.

Marc Klaas, whose daughter Polly was kidnapped and murdered in 1993, has decided to stop working at the Xiana Fairchild Volunteer Center. Klaas cited disagreements among the center’s directors as his reason for leaving.

“It just seemed as though there were too many chiefs and it seemed to me as though one of the better things I could do was not compete with the other chiefs,” Klaas said, adding that he would be available if ever needed.

Seven-year-old Xiana Fairchild has been missing since Dec. 9.

The volunteer center in her name is run by the Amber Foundation for Missing Children, whose founder is Kim Swartz. Amber Swartz, Kim’s daughter, has been missing since 1988.

Swartz said Klaas’ departure was regrettable.

“I think what happens is, as time goes on it gets much more difficult to keep things going, and Marc is not familiar with longevity; his case with Polly came to closure in six months,” she said.

In a related matter, on Friday, San Jose police questioned a 21-year-old woman who claimed to be Amber Swartz, but further questioning showed the woman was lying.