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CNN Live Today

Police Focusing on Finding Philadelphia Kidnapping Suspects

Aired July 24, 2002 - 13:10   ET

THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.

THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
KYRA PHILLIPS, CNN ANCHOR: Now, police in Philadelphia have launched a massive manhunt for two men accused of kidnapping and abandoning a 7-year-old girl. Erica Pratt escaped from her captors yesterday, and is now back home with her family.

CNN's Jason Carroll is following that story in Philadelphia -- warms your heart, Jason.

JASON CARROLL, CNN CORRESPONDENT: It certainly does. And you heard it, Kyra. Just a few moments ago, the two officers who found Erica talked about how brave she was. They also talked about her composure. Erica has a slight scratch on her eye, but other than that, she's doing just fine.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

CARROLL (voice-over): Erica Pratt finally arrived home late Tuesday with a smile and a wave, after being kidnapped for nearly 24 hours.

SERINA GILLIS, ERICA'S MOTHER: She is safe. That's all we're worrying about. She's home!

CARROLL: Two men abducted Erica on Monday night when she was walking home with a friend. Police say they drove up and pulled her into their car. This is where they kept her, an abandoned house about 20 minutes away. Erica was bound with duct tape in the basement, but this determined 7-year-old girl chewed her way through the tape, broke through a door and a window, and screamed for help. Several children heard her calls, and found police.

MICHAEL HARVEY, OFFICER, PHILADELPHIA POLICE: For everything that she had gone through, she had tremendous composure, whether that was from shock or not, I'm really not sure. She did not cry during the whole encounter with the police. She answered our questions clearly, she spoke very normal -- I mean, I give her all the credit in the world. She's a brave little girl.

CARROLL: Police have named two suspects, Edward Johnson and James Burns. Both are from Philadelphia, and both have criminal records, but police refuse to detail them. Detectives say the motive for the kidnapping: money. The family received a call for $150,000 ransom just 20 minutes after Erica was abducted, and several more calls after that. WILLIAM COLARULO, PHILADELPHIA POLICE: Our number one priority was finding Erica. Nothing else mattered up to that point. Today, now, we are going to go after the bad guys, and we are going to put the rest of the puzzle together.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

CARROLL: And, again, police at this point are still searching for those two suspects. Yesterday, a police source told me that he was very confident that they would find Erica alive. That same source also saying he is confident they are going to find these two suspects -- Kyra.

PHILLIPS: Jason, how did they identify these two men? Do they have a rap sheet?

CARROLL: They identified them based partly on information that they received here in the neighborhood from some of those who they had -- some of those who they had interviewed. Both of these men do have a criminal history. They are known to police, and they are also known to some of those here in Erica's neighborhood -- Kyra.

PHILLIPS: Jason Carroll, thank you.

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