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American Morning
Bizarre Murder Plot
Aired September 19, 2003 - 09:10 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.
SOLEDAD O'BRIEN, CNN ANCHOR: Well, we have been telling you this morning about the latest bizarre twist in Kobe Bryant's sexual assault case. A man was arrested yesterday in Los Angeles for allegedly offering to kill Bryant's accuser. L.A. County Sheriff Lee Baca joins us this morning from Monterey Park, California.
Good morning to you, sir.
SHERIFF LEE BACA, L.A. COUNTY SHERIFF: Nice to see you. Good morning, Soledad.
O'BRIEN: Give me a sense of how the letter that had this threat came into the hands of investigators. My understanding was that it was actually mailed to Kobe Bryant's people. Is that right?
BACA: Yes. The suspect mailed a letter that in its own way established that he had a ability to help Kobe Bryant get rid of his problem. Once the letter was opened up by security people, they made contact with this individual, and then more specific things were being told to them by him, the suspect, and at that point they called sheriff's major crimes investigators, and we got into the case.
O'BRIEN: You got into the case. And, in fact, a sting was set up. Give me a few of the details of the sting and tell me what happened.
BACA: The suspect wanted a $3 million fee for him to commit the murder. and we set up a $1 million amount of money in a satchel and put it in a vehicle and had arranged in El Segundo for him to pick up this money. He, in fact, then made his effort to pick up the money, and at that time we moved in on him.
O'BRIEN: Sheriff, I'm curious, you must get letters, or certainly Kobe Bryant's people must get letters all the time for people who are just completely nuts. What was it about the specifics of this letter to the detail that you can reveal to us that made you think that this threat was real? This was a credible threat, as opposed to just another, you know, nutcase weighing in on this case?
BACA: Well, the letter was the trigger point. But the real part of the investigation is when our undercover investigators contacted him directly and personally and met with him on three occasions. This started on September 8th. And so, he revealed to us information about his intended victim's whereabouts, where she lived, and the activities that he was able to monitor. He also specifically explained how he would get this murder accomplished, and that he would use others to help him doing this. And he claimed to be a member of the Russian Mafia. The Man's from Switzerland. He's an immigrant. He's got an extended visa. And so therefore he's here illegally, because it's expired. So he offered a lot of particulars, which gave rise to us setting up the money operation.
O'BRIEN: When you talk about particulars, you're saying then essentially he was stalking this young woman, following her movements so that potentially he'd be able to do some kind of harm to her?
BACA: He gave us the impression that he had the whereabouts, knowledge of where she would go, that he, in fact, had information that was much more specific than just an individual who was listening to news program information. So he really had prepared himself for the ability to do this crime.
O'BRIEN: His name is Patrick Graber, and he is 31 years old. As you mentioned, he is Swiss, living in Los Angeles. Did you -- obviously you did delve into his background. Does he have a criminal record? Is he affiliated with the mob in some way?
BACA: We haven't been able to confirm his alleged mob ties. But we have found out that in Switzerland, he has been arrested for fraud. So we're dealing with a person who apparently is a proven con artist, and at the same time whether he's a con artist or a murderer, he did make all the effort to establish himself as a murder for hire suspect, and that's what he's been arrested for.
O'BRIEN: And he's being charged with?
BACA: Attempted murder for hire.
O'BRIEN: What happens next?
BACA: He'll be arraigned on Monday. The district attorney will establish his case, and then he'll be put to trial.
O'BRIEN: All right, well Sheriff Lee Baca, thanks for joining us with this update on this really bizarre next twist. But of course good news that this has been to some degree resolved for the young woman involved in the case. Thanks for your time.
BACA: Thank you, Soledad.
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 September 19, 2003 - 09:10 ET
THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
SOLEDAD O'BRIEN, CNN ANCHOR: Well, we have been telling you this morning about the latest bizarre twist in Kobe Bryant's sexual assault case. A man was arrested yesterday in Los Angeles for allegedly offering to kill Bryant's accuser. L.A. County Sheriff Lee Baca joins us this morning from Monterey Park, California.
Good morning to you, sir.
SHERIFF LEE BACA, L.A. COUNTY SHERIFF: Nice to see you. Good morning, Soledad.
O'BRIEN: Give me a sense of how the letter that had this threat came into the hands of investigators. My understanding was that it was actually mailed to Kobe Bryant's people. Is that right?
BACA: Yes. The suspect mailed a letter that in its own way established that he had a ability to help Kobe Bryant get rid of his problem. Once the letter was opened up by security people, they made contact with this individual, and then more specific things were being told to them by him, the suspect, and at that point they called sheriff's major crimes investigators, and we got into the case.
O'BRIEN: You got into the case. And, in fact, a sting was set up. Give me a few of the details of the sting and tell me what happened.
BACA: The suspect wanted a $3 million fee for him to commit the murder. and we set up a $1 million amount of money in a satchel and put it in a vehicle and had arranged in El Segundo for him to pick up this money. He, in fact, then made his effort to pick up the money, and at that time we moved in on him.
O'BRIEN: Sheriff, I'm curious, you must get letters, or certainly Kobe Bryant's people must get letters all the time for people who are just completely nuts. What was it about the specifics of this letter to the detail that you can reveal to us that made you think that this threat was real? This was a credible threat, as opposed to just another, you know, nutcase weighing in on this case?
BACA: Well, the letter was the trigger point. But the real part of the investigation is when our undercover investigators contacted him directly and personally and met with him on three occasions. This started on September 8th. And so, he revealed to us information about his intended victim's whereabouts, where she lived, and the activities that he was able to monitor. He also specifically explained how he would get this murder accomplished, and that he would use others to help him doing this. And he claimed to be a member of the Russian Mafia. The Man's from Switzerland. He's an immigrant. He's got an extended visa. And so therefore he's here illegally, because it's expired. So he offered a lot of particulars, which gave rise to us setting up the money operation.
O'BRIEN: When you talk about particulars, you're saying then essentially he was stalking this young woman, following her movements so that potentially he'd be able to do some kind of harm to her?
BACA: He gave us the impression that he had the whereabouts, knowledge of where she would go, that he, in fact, had information that was much more specific than just an individual who was listening to news program information. So he really had prepared himself for the ability to do this crime.
O'BRIEN: His name is Patrick Graber, and he is 31 years old. As you mentioned, he is Swiss, living in Los Angeles. Did you -- obviously you did delve into his background. Does he have a criminal record? Is he affiliated with the mob in some way?
BACA: We haven't been able to confirm his alleged mob ties. But we have found out that in Switzerland, he has been arrested for fraud. So we're dealing with a person who apparently is a proven con artist, and at the same time whether he's a con artist or a murderer, he did make all the effort to establish himself as a murder for hire suspect, and that's what he's been arrested for.
O'BRIEN: And he's being charged with?
BACA: Attempted murder for hire.
O'BRIEN: What happens next?
BACA: He'll be arraigned on Monday. The district attorney will establish his case, and then he'll be put to trial.
O'BRIEN: All right, well Sheriff Lee Baca, thanks for joining us with this update on this really bizarre next twist. But of course good news that this has been to some degree resolved for the young woman involved in the case. Thanks for your time.
BACA: Thank you, Soledad.
TO ORDER A VIDEO OF THIS TRANSCRIPT, PLEASE CALL 800-CNN-NEWS OR USE OUR SECURE ONLINE ORDER FORM LOCATED AT www.fdch.com
