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CNN Sunday Morning
Immigrant Community Urges Alleged Murderer Nikolay Soltys to Turn Himself In
Aired August 26, 2001 - 09:05 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.
JEFF FLOCK, CNN ANCHOR: In Sacramento, California, the mother of Nicolay Soltys hopes her son will turn himself in. Soltys is suspected in the stabbing deaths of his pregnant wife, his young son, and his aunt, uncle, and two young cousins. Funeral services for them today.
Soltys has been on the run since the killings last Monday. Police checking now hundreds of tips and reported sightings, and they do hope they'll get more leads from a segment on "America's Most Wanted." That was the top of that show last night. If you think you might have a tip on Soltys whereabouts, punch up their Web site, that is AMW.com.
Police say that it is possible that Soltys hasn't strayed far from his Ukrainian community, leaving fellow immigrants very apprehensive.
We get more on that now from John Fowler. He is with our CNN affiliate KTVU.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
JOHN FOWLER, KTVU CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): In this north Sacramento neighborhood, home to many immigrants from the former Soviet Union, local Russian language radio talks of nothing but the Soltys case.
This woman called in to urge Soltys to give up. "You're possessed by the devil," she said.
At work or at home, many Russian immigrants are tuning in.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Right now, we're just doing talk show. We talk with the people and give away information from law enforcement and ask the people if they have any information to call the number for our sheriff.
FOWLER: But investigators have said despite having Russian- speaking officers, it's been difficult getting information.
Leaders of Sacramento's Russian immigrant community say it is incomprehensible that anyone on purpose would be trying to hide Soltys. But they say it is easy to understand why some may not be eager to cooperate with authorities.
MICHAEL LOTKEFF, SLAVIC COMMUNITY CENTER: This man is obviously diabolical, possessed. So, it's not so much being scared of the police as being scared.
FOWLER: This apartment complex, where the devil caricature hangs, is said to be almost 100 percent Russian immigrant. No one here wished to speak with us on camera. People told us Soltys is crazy, he's Satan.
David Ponomar, who publishes Russian language news on the Internet, on the radio and in a newspaper, says before coming to America, many immigrants lived in fear of the KGB and the militia.
DAVID PONOMAR, RUSSIAN MULTIMEDIA: It's already in the mentality of the people, they don't trust police. And it's really hard to change that in one day.
FOWLER: Slavic Community Center president Michael Lotkeff is trying to do just that, urging everyone he talks with to come forward with information.
LOTKEFF: We want this person to be caught as soon as possible.
FOWLER: This man, he says, is holding an entire community hostage.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
FLOCK: Thanks to John Fowler there of Sacramento affiliate KTVU.
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