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CNN Live At Daybreak
Police in Kuwait Searching For Two More Suspects
Aired January 24, 2003 - 05:14 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.
FREDRICKA WHITFIELD, CNN ANCHOR: Police in Kuwait are searching for two more suspects linked to Tuesday's ambush of two Americans.
CNN's Martin Savidge is in Kuwait City with more on the prime suspect in the case -- Martin.
MARTIN SAVIDGE, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Good morning, Fredricka.
We are learning more about this suspect, that's 25-year-old Sami al-Mutairi. He is the Kuwaiti social worker. We want to start you off by showing you two photographs, because they tell their own story in a unique way. The first photograph of Mr. al-Mutairi shows him as he looked a couple of years ago, very clean cut. Then, the second photograph shows how he looks today. And you'll note there is a physical change. Not just a physical change, we're told by people who know him, but there was a psychological change. On or around September 11, he became much more a religious fundamentalist or extremist. Now he refers to the United States as the biggest Satan.
We show that to you because, well, it's interesting.
Now, the investigation itself. It is clear that Kuwaitis knew or suspected from very early on after the attack that Mr. Al-Mutairi had a role in it. They didn't have him in custody, but they went to his home, talked to his family, went to his workplace and found three automatic rifles there. At his home they found ammunition. They've done the ballistics check and they say that the bullets that they found in the home match up with the same ammunition exactly that was used in the attack on Tuesday morning that killed one American and severely wounded another.
Also, the Saudis reporting that in the desert, that area where Mr. Al-Mutairi tried to cross the border and escape from Kuwait into Saudi, they've now found the clothes, they say, that he was wearing. So all of the circumstantial evidence is quickly coming into place.
One last thing we leave you with. Last night we were all suddenly summoned to the scene of Tuesday's attack. And in the dark there we waited. We were told by Kuwaiti authorities there was going to be a reenactment of the attack on the two Americans done by the prime suspect himself. Now, you might think that's kind of strange. It is not. Here in Kuwait it is common police procedure in a criminal investigation to have the suspect show exactly how the crime was carried out. It didn't happen, we suspect because of the all the media attention. It's been rescheduled -- Fredricka.
WHITFIELD: All right, Marty, interesting indeed, and bizarre. Thanks very much.
TO ORDER A VIDEO OF THIS TRANSCRIPT, PLEASE CALL 800-CNN-NEWS OR USE OUR SECURE ONLINE ORDER FORM LOCATED AT www.fdch.com
Aired January 24, 2003 - 05:14 ET
THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
FREDRICKA WHITFIELD, CNN ANCHOR: Police in Kuwait are searching for two more suspects linked to Tuesday's ambush of two Americans.
CNN's Martin Savidge is in Kuwait City with more on the prime suspect in the case -- Martin.
MARTIN SAVIDGE, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Good morning, Fredricka.
We are learning more about this suspect, that's 25-year-old Sami al-Mutairi. He is the Kuwaiti social worker. We want to start you off by showing you two photographs, because they tell their own story in a unique way. The first photograph of Mr. al-Mutairi shows him as he looked a couple of years ago, very clean cut. Then, the second photograph shows how he looks today. And you'll note there is a physical change. Not just a physical change, we're told by people who know him, but there was a psychological change. On or around September 11, he became much more a religious fundamentalist or extremist. Now he refers to the United States as the biggest Satan.
We show that to you because, well, it's interesting.
Now, the investigation itself. It is clear that Kuwaitis knew or suspected from very early on after the attack that Mr. Al-Mutairi had a role in it. They didn't have him in custody, but they went to his home, talked to his family, went to his workplace and found three automatic rifles there. At his home they found ammunition. They've done the ballistics check and they say that the bullets that they found in the home match up with the same ammunition exactly that was used in the attack on Tuesday morning that killed one American and severely wounded another.
Also, the Saudis reporting that in the desert, that area where Mr. Al-Mutairi tried to cross the border and escape from Kuwait into Saudi, they've now found the clothes, they say, that he was wearing. So all of the circumstantial evidence is quickly coming into place.
One last thing we leave you with. Last night we were all suddenly summoned to the scene of Tuesday's attack. And in the dark there we waited. We were told by Kuwaiti authorities there was going to be a reenactment of the attack on the two Americans done by the prime suspect himself. Now, you might think that's kind of strange. It is not. Here in Kuwait it is common police procedure in a criminal investigation to have the suspect show exactly how the crime was carried out. It didn't happen, we suspect because of the all the media attention. It's been rescheduled -- Fredricka.
WHITFIELD: All right, Marty, interesting indeed, and bizarre. Thanks very much.
TO ORDER A VIDEO OF THIS TRANSCRIPT, PLEASE CALL 800-CNN-NEWS OR USE OUR SECURE ONLINE ORDER FORM LOCATED AT www.fdch.com
