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CNN Live At Daybreak

No Sign of Missing Virginia Girl

Aired August 16, 2002 - 05:13   ET

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

ANDERSON COOPER, CNN ANCHOR: Authorities in Virginia are trying to get to the bottom of a family tragedy. A 9-year-old girl is missing and believed abducted after her parents were shot to death.
Juliet Bickford of Roanoke affiliate WSLS is in Bassett, Virginia, and she joins us live -- good morning, Juliet.

JULIET BICKFORD, WSLS CORRESPONDENT: Good morning.

Now, there is still no sign of 9-year-old Jennifer Short. State and local police have been searching this immediate area with ATVs and a helicopter, but they haven't turned up anything yet. It was less than 24 hours ago that a family friend found Jennifer's parents shot in this house behind me.

Investigators say Jennifer was at home when someone shot and killed her parents, Michael and Mary some time Wednesday night. They aren't sure if she was taken or could possibly be hiding somewhere. With so many questions still unanswered, everyone is still hoping for the best.

Now, there have been lots of calls because we've activated the Amber Alert system here. We've been telling everyone to be on the lookout for Jennifer. There have been lots of calls, lots of leads that the police have been following up on. So far they have not turned up anything on the missing girl.

And they're collecting evidence still from the house. They're hoping that might provide them with a few leads as to where she might be and as to who may have killed her parents. And so far they have also talked to her friends and family to see if she's possibly hiding there or if she had shown up there and there's no sign of her. And, also, friends and family say they don't know why someone would have maybe wanted to kill her parents.

The search is supposed to get under way in just a couple of hours with a helicopter again.

Reporting live in Bassett, Virginia, Juliet Bickford.

COOPER: Juliet, let me just ask you, and I know that, you know, it's early in this ongoing investigation and a lot of information isn't yet in, do authorities know or have they given any sense whether this child was the target of this attack or whether it was -- whether the parents were the target and somehow the child was taken in the aftermath? BICKFORD: They're saying that they're, they don't know why the parents might have been killed. They're thinking the parents were the target and originally they thought that maybe she was scared and ran away. They say they do know that she was at home at the time that it happened because there was a family friend who saw her with her family just before midnight that night. But they aren't sure why someone would want to take her or if maybe something bad has happened to her, as well.

COOPER: All right, Juliet Bickford of Roanoke affiliate WSLS, thanks very much for joining us.

Obviously a developing story. CNN will be following it throughout the day and bring you any developments as warranted.

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