Reported by ABC News:
A girl who was snatched off the street 18 years ago has been found and the man-and-wife team that allegedly grabbed her has been arrested and charged with kidnapping and rape, officials said today.
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Kidnapping mystery that has affected Calif. town since 1991 may come to an end.
The identity of Jaycee Lee Dugard, now 29, was revealed when she accompanied Phillip Garrido for questioning by his California parole officer. Garrido, a convicted kidnapper and rapist, also was accompanied by his wife Nancy and two young children that Garrido said were his.
Undersheriff Fred Kollar said in a news conference that Jaycee was the mother of the two young children who had been fathered by Garrido.
Jaycee, who Garrido had renamed Allissa, was reunited with her mother Terry Probyn today, and the mother told ABC News that her daughter had been held against her will all these years and confined in a box in the back of the Garrido's house.
Kollar said that Jaycee had been held captive at a house in Antioch, Calif., since the day she was abducted and none of their neighbors ever knew.
He described the location as a "hidden back yard" within a larger yard that was arranged in such a way "to isolate the victims from outside contact."
Entrance to the secret yard was guarded by a 6-foot-tall fence, tall trees and a tarp, he said.
Kollar said Jaycee and the two children lived a series of sheds, including one that was soundproofed and that could only be opened from the outside. In addition, there were two tents in the yard.
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"None of the children had ever gone to school, they had never gone to a doctor," Kollar said. "They were kept in complete isolation."
When asked about Jaycee's condition, the undersheriff said, "She is in good health, but living in a backyard for 18 years does take its toll."
Jaycee was with her mother today along with her two children, ages 11 and 15.
Garrido had been called in for questioning by his parole officer after being alerted by University of California-Berkeley campus security that Garrido was acting suspiciously. When Garrido showed up for his grilling, there was difficulty in establishing the identity of everyone with him, said Scott Kernan, undersecretary for operations of California's Department of Corrections and Rehabilitation.
Under questioning, Garrido admitted to having kidnapped Dugard when she was 11 years old.
"There is nothing to indicate this was anything other than a stranger abduction," Kollar said. "No connection to the family. They literally snatched her off the streets."
Officers were convinced that Garrido was telling the truth when he and Jaycee told them details that only the kidnapper and victim would know, Kollar said.
Both Phillip Garrido, who is a 58-year-old registered sex offender, and Nancy Garrido, 54, are being held on $1 million bail, charged with kidnapping to commit rape.
The stunning news that Jaycee was alive and had been found elated Jaycee's parents.
"I had personally given up hope," her step-father Carl Probyn said. "I had just hoped for a recovery" and to find the people responsible.
Instead, he said, "I've actually won the lotto."
But as the day wore on and details emerged of Jaycee's ordeal, Probyn became distraught.
Breaking down in tears, Probyn told ABC News, "My girl has no proper schooling and I don't even know what shape she is in. I don't know if she was treated like an animal. ... This is so horrific, I don't believe it."
Thursday, August 27, 2009
Wednesday, August 26, 2009
Writer Dominick Dunne has died at 83 - On Deadline - USATODAY.com
Writer Dominick Dunne has died at 83 - On Deadline - USATODAY.com: "Writer Dominick Dunne has died, Vanity Fair is reporting. He was 83.
He died of bladder cancer today at home in Manhattan, said his son, actor-director Griffin Dunne.
Dunne was a best-selling author who also spent 25 years as a correspondent and editor with Vanity Fair. He covered some of the most celebrated figures and their legal travails."
He died of bladder cancer today at home in Manhattan, said his son, actor-director Griffin Dunne.
Dunne was a best-selling author who also spent 25 years as a correspondent and editor with Vanity Fair. He covered some of the most celebrated figures and their legal travails."
Wednesday, July 8, 2009
Mark Humphrey, Associated Press - Ap
A flower arrangement with Steve McNair's No. 9 is displayed at LP Field as fans wait in line to sign a book of condolences in Nashville, Tenn., Wednesday, July 8, 2009. McNair, a former NFL quarterback with the Houston Oilers, Tennessee Titans, and Baltimore Ravens, was found dead from gunshot wounds along with a 20-year-old woman in a downtown Nashville condominium on July 4, according to police. The stadium is open to fans to watch a video about McNair, view photographs, and sign a book of condolences.
By LUCAS L. JOHNSON II , Associated Press
Steve and Mechelle McNair in 2001
Christopher Berkey, Associated Press - Ap
More from Vikings
NASHVILLE, Tenn. - Former NFL star Steve McNair was shot dead in his sleep last week by a 20-year-old girlfriend distraught about mounting financial problems and her belief that he was seeing someone else, police said Wednesday.
Sahel Kazemi "was spinning out of control" when she shot McNair four times as he dozed on a sofa early Saturday, then turned the gun on herself, Police Chief Ronal Serpas said.
Interviews with friends revealed that she was making payments on two cars, her rent was doubling and she suspected the married McNair was having a second affair with another young woman.
She told a friend on Friday that "My life is a ball of s--- and I should end it," Serpas said.
Police earlier had labeled McNair's death a homicide, but waited for further tests and the revelations about Kazemi's personal problems before concluding that she pulled the trigger of a 9 mm semiautomatic pistol in a condominium McNair rented with a friend.
McNair, 36, a quarterback for the Tennessee Titans most of his career, met Kazemi six months ago at a sports cafe where she was a waitress and his family often ate. She seemed happy and eager to build a life with him, but something went wrong.
"We do know that she was clearly sending a message during the last five to seven days of her life that things were going bad quickly," Serpas said, though there was no indication she told anyone she planned to harm McNair.
Serpas said detectives learned that Kazemi recently found out about another young woman she thought McNair was romantically involved with and had even followed that woman home, though she did not confront her.
Serpas said police believe McNair was asleep when he was killed because there were no defensive wounds. After shooting McNair in the head, Kazemi apparently shot him twice in the chest before shooting him again in the head.
A flower arrangement with Steve McNair's No. 9 is displayed at LP Field as fans wait in line to sign a book of condolences in Nashville, Tenn., Wednesday, July 8, 2009. McNair, a former NFL quarterback with the Houston Oilers, Tennessee Titans, and Baltimore Ravens, was found dead from gunshot wounds along with a 20-year-old woman in a downtown Nashville condominium on July 4, according to police. The stadium is open to fans to watch a video about McNair, view photographs, and sign a book of condolences.
By LUCAS L. JOHNSON II , Associated Press
Steve and Mechelle McNair in 2001
Christopher Berkey, Associated Press - Ap
More from Vikings
NASHVILLE, Tenn. - Former NFL star Steve McNair was shot dead in his sleep last week by a 20-year-old girlfriend distraught about mounting financial problems and her belief that he was seeing someone else, police said Wednesday.
Sahel Kazemi "was spinning out of control" when she shot McNair four times as he dozed on a sofa early Saturday, then turned the gun on herself, Police Chief Ronal Serpas said.
Interviews with friends revealed that she was making payments on two cars, her rent was doubling and she suspected the married McNair was having a second affair with another young woman.
She told a friend on Friday that "My life is a ball of s--- and I should end it," Serpas said.
Police earlier had labeled McNair's death a homicide, but waited for further tests and the revelations about Kazemi's personal problems before concluding that she pulled the trigger of a 9 mm semiautomatic pistol in a condominium McNair rented with a friend.
McNair, 36, a quarterback for the Tennessee Titans most of his career, met Kazemi six months ago at a sports cafe where she was a waitress and his family often ate. She seemed happy and eager to build a life with him, but something went wrong.
"We do know that she was clearly sending a message during the last five to seven days of her life that things were going bad quickly," Serpas said, though there was no indication she told anyone she planned to harm McNair.
Serpas said detectives learned that Kazemi recently found out about another young woman she thought McNair was romantically involved with and had even followed that woman home, though she did not confront her.
Serpas said police believe McNair was asleep when he was killed because there were no defensive wounds. After shooting McNair in the head, Kazemi apparently shot him twice in the chest before shooting him again in the head.
Melanie Goodwin
A 19-Year-Old College Student's Snack Stop Turns Tragic, On ABC News' "PRIMETIME: CRIME," Wednesday, July 8
Jul 7, 2009 - 3:47:53 PM
On September 25, 2007, Melanie Goodwin was a college sophomore making one last stop at a convenience store before heading back to campus. But her simple stop to pick up a snack for her boyfriend turned horrific when she encountered a stranger who quietly followed her out the door. Later that morning, as Melanie was missing, miles away a body was found in a ditch burned beyond recognition. Melanie would be identified as the victim in the ditch; she'd been raped and strangled before being set on fire. How would authorities find the killer with most of the evidence being destroyed by fire? The suspect seemed to cover his tracks, but what he didn't know was that nearly every step of his crime would be caught on tape. Jim Avila unravels the case on "Primetime: Crime," Wednesday, July 8 (10:00-11:00 p.m., ET) on the ABC Television Network.
A communications major at the University of North Texas, Melanie had a boyfriend, Ale Valencia, with leading-man looks and a heart to match that of the outgoing student actress. The night of her murder, Ale had asked Melanie to stop at the convenience store on her way home from work to get him a late night snack.
The convenience store in Denton, Texas, had four full-time cameras watching customers, the registers and even parts of the sidewalk out front. Cameras would give authorities the first of many surveillance clues to the identity of the alleged culprit, Ernesto Reyes. Not only did video show Reyes following Melanie outside to her car, but other surveillance cameras would later show him purchasing the gasoline he used to burn her body and dragging Melanie's body into the woods and setting her on fire. Avila takes viewers through the events that led to her murder, chronicles the police investigation and dramatically follows the trial that ultimately took the killer off the streets.
Jul 7, 2009 - 3:47:53 PM
On September 25, 2007, Melanie Goodwin was a college sophomore making one last stop at a convenience store before heading back to campus. But her simple stop to pick up a snack for her boyfriend turned horrific when she encountered a stranger who quietly followed her out the door. Later that morning, as Melanie was missing, miles away a body was found in a ditch burned beyond recognition. Melanie would be identified as the victim in the ditch; she'd been raped and strangled before being set on fire. How would authorities find the killer with most of the evidence being destroyed by fire? The suspect seemed to cover his tracks, but what he didn't know was that nearly every step of his crime would be caught on tape. Jim Avila unravels the case on "Primetime: Crime," Wednesday, July 8 (10:00-11:00 p.m., ET) on the ABC Television Network.
A communications major at the University of North Texas, Melanie had a boyfriend, Ale Valencia, with leading-man looks and a heart to match that of the outgoing student actress. The night of her murder, Ale had asked Melanie to stop at the convenience store on her way home from work to get him a late night snack.
The convenience store in Denton, Texas, had four full-time cameras watching customers, the registers and even parts of the sidewalk out front. Cameras would give authorities the first of many surveillance clues to the identity of the alleged culprit, Ernesto Reyes. Not only did video show Reyes following Melanie outside to her car, but other surveillance cameras would later show him purchasing the gasoline he used to burn her body and dragging Melanie's body into the woods and setting her on fire. Avila takes viewers through the events that led to her murder, chronicles the police investigation and dramatically follows the trial that ultimately took the killer off the streets.
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