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American Morning
John Walsh on the Chandra Levy Case
Aired July 13, 2001 - 09:36 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.
DARYN KAGAN, CNN ANCHOR: The chief of police of Washington, D.C. says the investigation into the disappearance of Chandra Levy is one of the most intense cases he has seen in 30 years of police work. The former intern has now been missing for two and a half months. Congress Congressman Gary Condit finds himself in the middle of the Levy case after denying and then later reportedly admitting an affair with Levy.
This is already a high profile case and now it's going to get even more media attention. It will be featured this weekend on the show "America's Most Wanted." And joining us this morning from New York is the host of the show, John Walsh.
John, good morning.
JOHN WALSH, "AMERICA'S MOST WANTED": Good morning, Daryn.
KAGAN: If we could start on a personal note here, I noticed in reading and getting ready for this interview that the end of this month will mark the 20 year anniversary of the disappearance of your own son Adam. When you sat down with the Levys face to face, were you able to talk to them parent to parent, as so few people would be able to?
WALSH: Well, I didn't do the interview face to face, but I had given the Levys some in, you know, insight into what they were going through. I told them that I had been looking for Adam for two weeks and that I was in the hell that they're in right now. But I must say something about the Levys. They are very, very strong and they're very, very focused and they haven't lost sight of one fact. The real victim here is Chandra. And they have kept together. They've made themselves available. They've given us a terrific, passionate interview for Saturday night and my heart goes out to them because I've walked in their shoes. But they have kept the focus that Chandra is the victim here.
KAGAN: And during that interview, they ask, they answer, your show asks and they answer some tough questions like the thought out there did Chandra, perhaps, commit suicide. Let's go ahead and listen into the clip from that interview.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
SUSAN LEVY, CHANDRA LEVY'S MOTHER: I don't think she would harm herself. I've given her, because of my family background, I've given her the reality of how valued life is and how valued living is. And I think that she, if there was a, you know, they're saying a romantic break-up or something, I think she could be very saddened but she would go on because she knew she had a future in Sarah's school and a career. And I don't think she would harm herself as the media have talked about.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
KAGAN: John, when you're a parent in this situation, not only do you have to deal with the misery and the grief of missing your child, you have to answer some tough questions about your own kid and about your family as well, don't you?
WALSH: Well, absolutely, and I agree with the Levy parents. I don't think Chandra killed herself at all. I've talked to a couple FBI experts and they say usually people that commit suicide, it's very easy to find their bodies. They leave notes. This was a girl who was deeply loved by her family and very close to her family and all her friends agree that she was a very upbeat person. And she was on her way home. Her bags were packed. Her I.D. was in her apartment. She was leaving the next day to get a master's degree from college.
This was not a depressed young woman. This is not someone that would kill themselves. And you're absolutely right, there are a lot of tough questions that have been asked of these parents, a lot of speculation and innuendo. One of the questions that we talked to them about was the rumor that what if she was pregnant? And, you know, the dad is a doctor and he said very frankly, we've discussed that with her and she's discussed it with her mother that if she ever got pregnant she could come home and tell us. We would not object to that. We would welcome her to come home and that she would share that with us, and that she was against abortion, that she would never have an abortion.
I don't believe Chandra Levy was pregnant and I don't believe it has, that has anything to do with her disappearance.
KAGAN: But it does lead to her connection and all the speculation of her connection with Congressman Gary Condit, which, frankly, is the reason that this particular missing person's case has received so much information. Police say this is not a crime. They say the congressman is not a suspect because no crime has been committed yet.
Let's listen in to what the Condits -- to what the Levys had to say about putting the spotlight on Gary Condit.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
SUSAN LEVY: I'm not worrying about anybody's political career or anything like that. My focus is to bring my daughter home. And it is important to find out who she's been with in the last few days, that the communication was there and who the relationships she was with and to build an understanding to what might have happened. And so I mean everybody's talking about political things and how it's affecting the rest of the country or whatever, or who individually, or who's going to run for this seat or what. I mean I'm not out to hurt anybody's political causes or anything like that. I am just, my husband and I just, we're parents and we want our daughter home.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
KAGAN: John, in a strange twist, the Levys kind of benefit by Chandra's association with Gary Condit because there's no way they could have bought this kind of publicity in a search for their daughter.
WALSH: You're absolutely right. It's a double-edged sword. Number one, they would have never gotten this publicity. There are literally tens of thousands of women that are missing that are listed in the FBI national crime information computer that have never received this kind of publicity. (AUDIO GAP) And if his victims were listed as either runaways or voluntarily missing, they weren't voluntarily missing, they weren't runaways, they were women that were kidnapped by Ted Bundy and murdered. The project...
KAGAN: Well, on that note, I know you discussed the, you do discuss the serial killer theory in your show. I want to listen to one more clip from your show and then we'll end with that. So let's listen in.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
UNIDENTIFIED REPORTER: In August of 1998, Christine Murgayan's (ph) body was found in a wooded area of the posh Georgetown section of Washington, D.C. Like Chandra Levy, Christine came to D.C. as part of an internship program. She was last seen walking on a Georgetown street after leaving a friend's barbecue. Police say that Christine was bludgeoned to death with a blunt object. Christine Murgayan's murder remains unsolved. So does another case with eerie parallels to Chandra's story. Joyce Chung (ph) was last seen in January of 1999 at a Starbuck's in Dupont Circle, the same neighborhood where Chandra lived. Joyce had come to D.C. to be an intern for a California congressman. At the time of her disappearance, Joyce was a lawyer for the Immigration and Naturalization Service.
Only days after she disappeared, Joyce's I.D. and clothing were found near the Anacostia River. The community prayed for Joyce's safe return. But three months and three weeks after she vanished, her body was found in the Potomac River. The medical examiner did not rule on Joyce's death. There was no way to tell how she died.
Police insist the three cases are not related. But there are undeniably a lot of similarities. Each woman was last seen on the streets of Washington, D.C. Christine, Joyce and Chandra all came to D.C. as college interns. They were each in their '20s, petite with dark hair. Each woman has ties to Capitol Hill.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
KAGAN: That's a clip, that's the theory bringing up the serial killer. As you mentioned in that clip, though, you say police don't think that that's a viable theory at this point.
WALSH: Well, police always say that. I mean when the Green River killer in northwestern United States, 33 women were missing out there, police said oh, we don't think it's related. They always say that. That's something that they do because they don't want to create hysteria. But you've got to look at the fact that here are three accomplished young women. Ted Bundy said he always kidnapped women between the ages of 20 and 30 with dark hair. That was his preference. Here are three young women, so, the circumstances are so similar. All of them walking home or leaving their homes. All of them about the same build, the same color hair. All of them accomplished young ladies. You know, police, I believe, should have been looking at this in a parallel investigation.
I think Gary Condit did the wrong thing. He should have come forward the first day and said I had a sexual relationship with this woman and cooperated with police. He made some mistakes. He didn't want his wife and his family to suffer, or his constituents. But he wouldn't be in the hot water he is now if he'd have come forward that first day. I don't think he had anything to do with Chandra Levy's disappearance.
I think there is someone in the Dupont Circle area of Washington, D.C. who tracks and stalks young women and kills them.
KAGAN: Remind us again...
WALSH: We're hoping...
KAGAN: I'm sorry, remind us again when the show is on, John.
WALSH: The show will air this Saturday night at 9:00 and 8:00 Central Time and I'm just praying, lots of people call "America's Most Wanted" because they're afraid to call the police. We've caught 674 fugitives. I'm praying this girl is alive. Somebody knows something about this and I hope somebody has the guts to end this family's misery and make that call on Saturday night.
KAGAN: Well, good luck helping out. And once again, on a personal note, I do realize it's the 20th anniversary of Adam's disappearance. Our thoughts are with you on that day, as well.
WALSH: Thank you so much.
KAGAN: John Walsh from "America's Most Wanted." Thank you, John.
WALSH: Thank you, Daryn.
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