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CNN Live Today

In Smart Kidnapping, Salt Lake City Police Changing Some Critical Details

Aired June 19, 2002 - 11:07   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.
LEON HARRIS, CNN ANCHOR: OK. Two weeks after the kidnapping of Elizabeth Smart, Salt Lake City Police are changing some critical details about what they believe happened that night.

And our Ed Lavandera has been following this story this morning for us. He checks in now live from Salt Lake City -- Ed, hello.

ED LAVANDERA, CNN DALLAS BUREAU CHIEF: Hello, Leon.

In a couple of hours here, 11:00 AM Mountain Time, we expect another press briefing here with officers in the Salt Lake City area. And we also understand that a federal law enforcement official tells CNN that they are following fairly strong leads in the state of Utah in the case of the missing 14-year-old, Elizabeth Smart, who was abducted two weeks ago, as you mentioned.

Now the details that you were talking about, Leon, is the details, the critical moments of when the abductor entered the Smart family's home and entered the bedroom, where 14-year-old Elizabeth Smart was. And she shares that bedroom with her nine-year-old sister, Mary Catherine.

Now originally we had been told that Mary Catherine had been threatened by the abductor. That she was told not to say anything, not to make any noise. And that would explain why it took her two hours to tell her family and her parents about the abduction.

Now we understand now the police say that that abductor never spoke to her directly. In fact, they say the abductor never knew that Mary Catherine was actually watching her, had gotten a glimpse of who the abductor was.

Now we understand from the details that she has been telling police the description of the suspect is that he is a white male between the ages of 30 and 40, stands between five feet eight inches tall and five feet ten inches tall, with a medium build. Has dark hair, also has dark hair on his arms and on the back of his hands.

Now police also describe the abductor as soft-spoken, polite, calm and that he dressed nicely. All this information we understand coming from nine-year-old Mary Catherine.

We asked a law enforcement official here in Salt Lake City yesterday if part of this information had come through hypnosis of Mary Catherine. They wouldn't answer directly, only to say that it's safe to assume they've tried everything, at this point. So you can read between the lines there, perhaps.

Now police do say that they still suspect that this person is a trusted member of the community and had reason to be in the neighborhood or have come through the neighborhood leading many to believe that perhaps it is someone close to the Smart family. We asked directly if there was any indication that Elizabeth Smart knew who here abductor was, and there was law enforcement officials here kind of duck away from these questions.

They don't feel very comfortable answering those types of direct questions, so they won't take it beyond just saying that they believe it is a trusted member of the community and the neighborhood here -- Leon.

HARRIS: Very interesting. Ed, does any of this change the intensity of the search or the effort to track down this other man they've been looking for there, Bret Michael Edmunds? I know that they've been looking for him and been going through three different states to find this man, they say just for questioning. But does this new revelation in any way affect that search?

LAVANDERA: Well they're still trying to find him because they have reason to believe that he might have been -- or they have reason to think that he might have been a witness to what happened on the night of June 5th, and that's why they want to talk to him. He was on the "America's Most Wanted" program, and apparently from that show they've gotten tips from sightings from Tennessee to Seattle as to where he might be.

They're still looking for him, but they insist and they continue to say that he is not a suspect in this case. They only want to question him, and they continue to say that the person they believe who has committed this kidnapping is a trusted member of this community -- Leon.

HARRIS: Boy. All right. Ed Lavandera, thank you very much. We'll check back with you later on.

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