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CNN Live At Daybreak

The Search for Chandra: Investigation May Be Scaled Back

Aired July 30, 2001 - 07:56   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.
CAROL LIN, CNN ANCHOR: Well, if there are no breaks in the Chandra Levy case in Washington by the end of the week, D.C. police will have to scale back their search for her.

So joining us right now to talk about the latest in this investigation is assistant Chief Terrance Gainer. He is, of course, with the D.C. Metropolitan Police Department.

TERRANCE GAINER, D.C. METROPOLITAN POLICE DEPARTMENT: Good morning.

LIN: Good morning, Chief.

GAINER: Good morning, Carol.

LIN: All right, it has been three months since this young woman disappeared. You have searched parks, you have interviewed a congressman, as well as his staff, some hundred people, do you have any leads as to her whereabouts?

GAINER: Unfortunately, we do not. We still have a lot of area to search this week and we think we'll conclude that. As you know, we searched all the abandoned buildings and two of the seven districts in the District of Columbia. But aside from eliminating possibilities, we just don't know where she's at.

LIN: Well, Congressman Condit's description of her, he was working with the D.C. police and the FBI to try to give a portrait of her mindset and her personality. What personality and mindset has emerged from that interview?

GAINER: Well, the agents of the FBI and detectives form the Metropolitan Police Department are still putting that together so we have nothing publicly to broadcast. It is some information that may help us narrow our strategies but there's nothing that's been earth shattering or case breaking in any of the interviews or evidence we've looked at.

LIN: Have you been able to narrow or at least confirm in your own mind exactly what Congressman Gary Condit was doing the day that Chandra Levy disappeared? He says he was in his office making phone calls and doing paperwork from the hours of one to four in the afternoon. Have you checked his phone records? GAINER: Carol, you have to understand that we've gathered a lot of information in this, a lot of electronic information, telephone records, banking records and nothing has led us to Chandra Levy. And I really think it's important to point out that the congressman, although interesting to a lot of people, is not the central figure in this, nor is his wife.

LIN: Someone central to our coverage at this network is Bob Franken.

GAINER: Yes.

LIN: He's been working this case.

Bob, you've got a few questions for the Chief.

BOB FRANKEN, CNN NATIONAL CORRESPONDENT: Well, I do, and I want to get back to Congressman Condit. As you know, Chief Gainer, just about any time you or your boss, Charles Ramsey, says that Congressman Condit is not a suspect, you add it's because this is not a criminal investigation. Knowing what you know now, can you characterize your belief in whether he had anything to do with the disappearance of Chandra Levy?

GAINER: Well, first off, Bob, the way we say that is not an indication or hiding behind the fact that it's still a missing case report. There is no suspects in this, and we don't believe he or anybody else, to our knowledge, has been involved in her disappearance.

FRANKEN: OK, so are you in a position now knowing where, you know -- and, of course, you've been investigating for three months, that you would say that he is somebody, knowing what you know now, would not be -- would you -- you'd eliminate?

GAINER: Well, I can't put him in because -- or put him out because I never put him in. He's simply not a suspect. As you have indicated in your coverage, we've talked to hundreds of people in this, many of them more than several occasions, and that doesn't make them more a suspect than someone else. Our interest in the congressman has been because of an obvious relationship that he could give insight into Chandra Levy. And the agents of the FBI and detectives of the MPD are taking that information and we'll analyze it and see where we go on our strategy.

FRANKEN: Now our sources are telling us that the examination of the contents from the congressman's apartment and this dumpster and the aide -- the car of an aide have produced nothing that points to anything untoward. Can you confirm that?

GAINER: Well, I can say this, that the forensic work that we've done has not yielded us any insight as to where she's at.

FRANKEN: Can I push you a little bit further and talk specifically about the search of the apartment? Does that include the search of the apartment? GAINER: Well, we're not commenting on specifics other than to say the fact that we don't know where she's at and nothing has been, as we say, a smoking gun in this investigation.

FRANKEN: And what about the role of Mrs. Condit?

GAINER: She cooperated with the Metropolitan Police Department, was interviewed and she, like her husband, is not a suspect in this.

LIN: Chief Gainer, have you asked Mrs....

FRANKEN: So...

LIN: Have you asked Mrs. Condit whether in fact she did call her husband's apartment and that Chandra Levy answered the telephone and that they entered a heated argument?

GAINER: Carol, I wouldn't discuss publicly what we do confidentially with people we interview. But again, there's been no indication from any of the interviews that we have done or evidence we've looked at that would lead us to find where Chandra is at.

FRANKEN: One of the early -- one of the early myths that came out of this, Chief, was the contention that there was a flurry of phone calls from Chandra Levy to Congressman Condit right before she disappeared. Can you comment on that?

GAINER: Yes, I would -- I would like to knock that down. And frankly, we spent an awful lot of time trying to disprove rumors and innuendoes and people's theories of this case. We've tried to remain steadfast and focused on the facts, even when others have not.

FRANKEN: And that one is just not true?

GAINER: That one is not true, Bob.

FRANKEN: Carol.

LIN: Chief Gainer, are you going to be asking Mrs. Condit or Gary Condit or any of his staff members to take a polygraph test?

GAINER: I don't anticipate that.

LIN: None of those, including the congressman?

FRANKEN: When you say...

GAINER: I don't think that's going to happen. You know we talked about wanting to do that before. We all know the story about how his attorney had him give one and we weren't, in law enforcement, able to adopt that. I think we're really past the polygraph stage now. It would be nice to have, but I don't think it's going to happen.

LIN: Chief Gainer, Bob Franken, I'm sorry, we are completely out of time. Thanks to both of you for joining us this morning. GAINER: Thank you.

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