Unsealed portion of search warrant in Huisentruit case made public, provides no useful information

MASON CITY — A portion of a search warrant related to the investigation into the disappearance of former KIMT anchorwoman Jodi Huisentruit was released today.

Attorneys representing private investigator Steve Ridge filed a motion in February arguing that the warrant regarding GPS data for two vehicles connected to John Vansice should be opened since Vansice died in December and any ongoing investigation into his involvement in the matter has now ceased. County Attorney Carlyle Dalen resisted, saying it made no sense and opening the warrant would give the public facts in the case that were not out to the general public.

Cerro Gordo County Senior District Court Judge James Drew late last month ordered that an affidavit filed by Mason City police in support of the application for the search warrant would remain sealed since it contained information that could be harmful to the investigation, but he ordered the unsealing of the application, endorsement, search warrant and return notice since they did not contain compromising information.

The publicly released information shows that police placed a GPS tracking device on the Vansice vehicles that tracked him from Baxter Iowa to Phoenix Arizona from March 2nd through the 6th in 2017 after Vansice had driven from Arizona to comply with a federal grand jury subpoena.

Mason City Police Chief Jeff Brinkley in 2018 had said in an interview with CBS News that the GPS data did not provide any useful information about the investigation.