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CNN Live Saturday

Tracking Richard Reid's Footsteps in Amsterdam

Aired December 29, 2001 - 17:13   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.
MARTIN SAVIDGE, CNN ANCHOR: The man suspected of trying to set off explosives in his shoes on a U.S.-bound flight will remain behind bars, at least for now. A federal judge in Boston denied bail yesterday after an F.B.I. agent testified that Richard Reid could have blown a hole in the plane. CNN's Jim Boulden in Amsterdam reports on Reid's movements before last Saturday's incident.

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JIM BOULDEN, CNN CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): Suspected shoe bomber Richard Reid is said to have lived quietly in Amsterdam, a Muslim working in restaurants in one of Europe's liveliest and most indulgent cities.

Reportedly, he stayed here from August until early December. So far, little has come out about his time spent here. The quiet loaner Reid keeping a low profile.

It is known that Reid was in Brussels by early December. CNN has confirmed he checked into this hospice on December 5, the Dar Salaam. He stayed in room 13. It is a small hotel in an Arab and North African neighborhood, just meters from Brussels' main train station. People here say Reid kept to himself, did not have any visitor,s and had no phone calls. Reid also drank tea in the hospice tea room, always paying in cash.

On the 5th or 6th of December, Reid told the Belgian police he lost his British passport, and then got a new passport from the British embassy. Reid spent much of his time at Brussels at a local Internet cafe. And then, he checked out of the Dar Salaam on the 15th, a day before French police say he arrived in Paris on the 16th.

That gap in time has fueled speculation about his movements. It is reported he traveled back to Amsterdam, for what could have been a brief but crucial stopover.

(on camera): Dutch investigators are keen to learn whether Reid got the shoes and/or the explosives here before heading to the train station the next day, buying a ticket back to Brussels, and then on to Paris.

(voice-over): The Amsterdam city prosecutors' office has taken the lead in investigating Reid's time spent here. The office received a fax from the FBI on Friday, formally requesting assistance in tracking Reid's movements. But Dutch sources say they have not yet even been able to confirm that he was in Amsterdam as widely reported.

Jim Boulden, CNN, Amsterdam.

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