AURORA, Colo. -- Two cadaver dogs from the National Center for Missing and Exploited Children in Texas are combing through Aarone Thompson's home, looking for her body, the Aurora police chief said Friday.

"They will only be in the state for a period of 24 hours but we also have access to them at some future time if we come up with a location where we should be looking for Aarone," said Acting Aurora Police Chief Terry Jones during a Friday afternoon press conference.

He said that half of the children who were removed from the home that Aarone shared with her father and her father's girlfriend have been interviewed.

"Detectives last night and throughout the evening talked to those children and we were able to obtain information that at least lends itself to us that we're on the right track," said Jones.

Jones said that the kids acknowledged that it's been a long time since Aarone lived in that home on East Kepner Place.

All seven children, who ranged in age from 8 to 15, have been placed in foster homes since being removed from their home for their safety.

"The kids appear to be extremely relaxed at this point in time," said Jones. "The environment that they are in is comfortable, it's safe, and their mannerisms exhibit that."

The "persons of interest" in the case -- Aarone's father, 38-year-old Aaron Thompson, and his girlfriend, 32-year-old Shely Lowe -- have not yet talked to police, Jones said.

They have obtained legal counsel, 7NEWS reported.

Jones said that the couple have not been named suspects because police do not have enough probable cause to make an arrest. He said that an arrest isn't imminent just yet because the homicide investigation could be a long, difficult process.

"Everytime we conduct an interview, everytime we eliminate something, or we may be adding something, I think we are a step closer. I just don't know how many steps it will take before we have this investigation completely wrapped up," Jones said.

"We will remain in this house until we are fully satisfied that we have looked at everything that we believe may be connected to an investigation pertaining to a homicide," said Jones. "Every square inch of this property is going to be thoroughly investigated, from our standpoint, as long as we have that search warrant in place."

He also warned that further details in the case might not be released publicly as quickly as it has been.

"Unless something earth-shattering happens ... I think the information out at this point (forward) will be very, very limited because we're going to keep things very close to the vest because we've got a tremendous obligation in front of us and that is to bring justice for this little girl," Jones said.

Aarone's Biological Mom Wants Son Back

The girl's biological mother, Lynette Thompson, told 7NEWS Friday that she is crushed to learn what may have happened to Aarone.

"I am very hurt. I am very upset. I don't know what better way to explain that. This has been a tremendous, heavy load on me," she said. "How can I possibly help anybody to understand it when I don't myself? A beautiful baby girl like that? ... All kinds of things going through my head. What could of happened? What did happen? Who snapped? Who did what?"

She blames both her estranged husband and Lowe for what police are saying is Aarone's murder.

"I feel both of them is responsible. If she did it, he shouldn't have protected her. I find them both (responsible), not just one the other," she said. "For them to wait a year later and to do this JonBenet -- carrying on, acting like they are going to get away with something ... "

Now that her Aarone's biological brother has been removed from the home, Lynette said she wants her son back. Her two children, Aaron Jr. and Aarone, moved with their father to Denver when he moved out with his girfriend from Detroit.

"For now, let me hear my son's voice that was taken away from me. Let (him) hear momma again. That's what I want most," Lynette Thompson said from the shelter she was living in Detroit. "He's my son. I carried him for 9 1/2 months. He came out weighing 9 pounds, 10 ounces. Yes, I want my son back! He never should have been taken in the first place."

Lynette said that she hasn't seen her children in four years and had no idea where her husband had taken them.

"He left no number. He left no address. And he told his mother, 'If you give her the address or anybody you are not going to see your grandkids again.' I (would) call that kidnapping," Thompson said.

Thompson admits her separation with her husband has not been amicable but she said he will have to face the music, eventually.

"That fool is going to have to talk sooner or later, cause everybody want an explanation why did he do it. Evidently, what went on, it got to his conscience. As to why he had to lie Monday and say she was missing, he know what happened to that baby and she do too."

Dad Denies Involvement

Sam Riddle, a spokesman for the family, said that Aaron Thompson has denied any involvement in his daughter's disappearance.

Riddle said before he agreed to help speak for the family, "I asked him if he had anything to do with his daughter's disappearance, and he said no."

Riddle said that Aarone's grandmother and grandfather stand by their son and were shocked by the chief's announcement Thursday night.

Riddle said he has "grave concerns" about the police handling of the case and questioned why the search was called off.

"This police chief better ... have a substantial body of evidence to back up this statement that Aarone was murdered," he said.

Police would not say how they know for certain that the girl has been dead for more than a year. What's more puzzling is that not many people noticed.

Aarone had never been enrolled in school.

Neighbors told 7NEWS that the family kept to themselves and many said that they never saw all seven kids together.

Veronica Boivin, who lives a few houses away, said she rarely saw any children outside the home, except for going to and from school or doing yard work.

"I don't ever remember seeing that little girl. I remember older kids," she said. "They're always cooped up into their home."

The picture of Aarone that the family provided to police is more than 18 months old and it was snapped when the family took a trip to the Grand Canyon.

Police do have a history with the Thompson home. Aarone's brother, Aaron, was reported missing from the home one month ago. He came back a day later.

7NEWS has learned that the family had been renting the home.

Thompson is a security guard and was assigned to work at the Denver distribution center for Safeway, the Rocky Mountain News reported.

Aarone would be 6 years old if she were alive today but Jones said the girl may have been dead for a year and a half, according to information they received from a close family friend who lives in Colorado. That means Aarone would have been 5 when she was killed.

Jones said that the father's report that the little girl ran away was a "fabrication" and he doesn't know what prompted the father to call police with a missing children's report on Monday. However, he said that Aarone's birthday was Nov. 30 and "something triggered, and this information was brought forward as a missing child when, in actuality, it doesn't appear to be anything of the sort."

There was perhaps suspicion all along. First, when the girl was reported missing the father never stated her age. He just said that his daughter had run away. It was about 90 minutes later that police learned that they weren't dealing with a teenager but with a young girl. Even then he had said that he believed his daughter was about 7 years old.

Then, as the frantic search continued into three frigid days and nights, the family failed to cooperate, police said.

Also, when officers first arrived to search the home, they found a bed frame inside Aarone's room, but no mattress or sheets, the Rocky Mountain News reported. Aarone's family told detectives that one of Aarone's brothers was using the mattress, but police were never able to confirm that, the newspaper said.

"Over a period of days, of course you always have concerns, some of those things had to do with the family -- the demeanor, the inability to get things accomplished that we'd thought a family would want to get accomplished upon reporting a missing child. We were very, very fortunate that someone's conscience prompted them to call us with a piece of information that enabled us to get a search warrant for the home," said Jones.

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