ELLIS COUNTY —The search for a missing Ellis County man has ended. At 9a.m. Thursday, the Ellis County Sheriff's office reported they located 48-year-old Kurt J. Stecklein lying in the riverbed near a bridge east of the Saline River Road and Codell Avenue. He was airlifted to a hospital in critical condition.
Steckllein's truck was also located along a private lease road about a mile northeast of the bridge.
Stecklein has a long criminal history including convictions for 2nd degree murder and aggravated in 2007. He was also in prison for a drug conviction in 2021, according to the Kansas Department of Corrections.
Ellis County officials continue to investigate his disappearance.
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Ellis County Sheriff
Ellis County deputies are searching for a man who allegedly called a family member for a ride around 4:30 p.m. on Tuesday.
According to Undersheriff Chuck White, Kurt Joseph Stecklein, 48, was last known to be driving around Saline River Road and Codell Avenue in rural Ellis County in a dark-blue 2011 Chevy Silverado pickup when he called a family member to meet him.
Stecklein was believed to be having a medical emergency and asked the family member for a ride.'
The family member could not locate Stecklein or his truck and called the sheriff's office for assistance.
Deputies and KHP aircraft searched the area well after dark and then again this morning, but nothing was found.
Stecklein is a white male, 5'10" and 180 pounds, with brown hair.
Anyone with information about Stecklein's whereabouts or his pickup is asked to contact the sheriff's office at 785-625-1040