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A former FBI agent is sharing his expert opinion as law enforcement searches near Larkspur for the missing boy from Lorson Ranch.

11-year-old Gannon Stauch has been missing since Jan. 27 and was last seen by his stepmother. Sunday marked the fifth day since deputies with El Paso County have been investigating in southern Douglas County.

"It's not just a random thing," said former agent Pete Klismet. "With some basis of knowledge from prior cases, somebody has told them something about the specific or general location up there where they may want to look and they may find something."

Klismet worked for the FBI for more than 20 years. In that time, he also worked on several missing and endangered children cases.

El Paso County Sheriff's Office has received 555 tips so far, but no person of interest or suspect has been named. People's online rumors and theories have accused the stepmother of being involved in Gannon's disappearance.

People in Facebook groups have also questioned why deputies have not arrested anyone yet. But Klismet says an arrest "doesn't mean a whole lot because they need to have enough information to convict somebody."

Deputies continue to partner with other agencies as the case approaches the three-week mark. EPCSO has stated finding Gannon is its top priority, but that may change with time, according to the former agent.

"Every case is different, but they do reach a point of no return where whatever you do is ineffective," Klismet said. "I'm going to guess that would be probably in a couple of weeks, but not much longer than that."

Spokesperson Jacqueline Kirby with EPCSO says no public volunteers are being used for the search in the Larkspur area. Klismet says that is probably because investigators have "specific information."

"They don't want volunteers who are untrained and don't know how to handle evidence and don't know what to do if they find evidence," he said.

Kirby says they will continue to investigate the Larkspur area before extreme weather conditions arrive.

Anyone with credible tips is asked to call the sheriff’s office’s tip line at 719-520-6666 or email tips@elpasoco.com.