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CNN Sunday Morning

Police Find Human Remains at Weaver's House

Aired August 25, 2002 - 07:02   ET

THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.

CAROL LIN, CNN ANCHOR: In suburban Portland, Oregon investigators have found human remains in their search for two missing teenage girls. Ashley Pond and Miranda Gaddis, both 13, vanished two months apart while heading for school. Pond was last seen in January. Gaddis disappeared March 8. Investigators say there is no evidence to suggest the girls ran away.
They lived across the street from Ward Weaver, who said the FBI told him he is the prime suspect. He's denied any involvement and is now in jail charged with raping his son's girlfriend. Human remains were found in a shed at Weaver's home. Authorities say identifying them could take several days. Also searchers are digging up a concrete slab Weaver poured the week the girls disappeared. Work will resume at daylight.

ANDERSON COOPER, CNN ANCHOR: Well one of the missing girls, Ashley Pond, was actually a friend of Weaver's daughter and apparently stayed overnight frequently at their house. Weaver's lawyer says Weaver consented to the search behind his house. Last month Weaver commented on the disappearance.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

WARD WEAVER, SUSPECT: I mean I had a lot of contact with both girls. You know, and so I expect to be looked at and you know questioned and background checks and that kind of thing. You know I've got no problem with any of that. I honestly do not see this as a serial kidnapping, as, you know it's been made out to be because I honestly don't think Ashley was kidnapped knowing her family life that I do, having been a part of that life, you know for two and a half years, or two years now minus the six months and very familiar with Laurie (ph) because that little girl took off.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

COOPER: Last night Ward Weaver's ex-wife spoke out about the case. Kristi Sloan lashed out at authorities, saying she suspected Weaver was connected to the girls' disappearance and she said she told him so.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

KRISTI SLOAN, WARD WEAVER'S EX-WIFE: The FBI knew about the suspicions five months ago. I told them about the concrete poured five months ago, and it just seems like I never did any news media with anybody before this, before Ward was put in jail because I emphasized the importance that I did not trust him and that he is capable of killing. He tried to kill me before, and that's why before Thursday I did not interview with anybody whatsoever.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

COOPER: Well, joining us now to discuss these latest developments is Mike Brooks, CNN's law enforcement analyst. It's a bizarre story and especially when you see video of Ward Weaver talking about this case.

MIKE BROOKS, CNN LAW ENFORCEMENT ANALYST: Right, it really is and to hear his wife, Kristi, saying that she told law enforcement, told the FBI months ago, but again, there might have been a slab -- there is apparently a slab on his property, but the FBI just can't go in and dig up this slab. They have to have either a search warrant or in this case, a consent search. But it sounds like from what we're hearing about the case, Anderson, is that there was even enough there for them to get a search warrant, if they need it, and they probably went ahead and got one anyway.

COOPER: So the remains that have been found, they found because they had a search warrant and Ward Weaver apparently consented to the search.

BROOKS: He consented to the search. So you know that gives them the right to go on his property anyway. But the remains were found apparently in a shed, and the remains (UNINTELLIGIBLE) now keep in mind, you know, they're saying he's not a suspect, but they wouldn't be in his backyard if they weren't. And now they -- and it's going to take a couple of days probably to identify the remains. It depends on how badly decomposed that the girls are -- or this particular body, not knowing if it's one of the girls yet.

COOPER: Now are they going to have to do more digging or is there equipment that they can use to just sort of survey the scene without digging?

BROOKS: Well this particular concrete slab -- they're saying that they're going to bring in equipment to look under the slab before they dig it up, and that's what they'll probably do. They'll probably bring in ground penetrating radar. The FBI has the capability of bringing in this ground penetrating radar, which they'll grid off the area and then they'll run this over the -- this concrete slab area and the surrounding areas to see if they're any anomalies or anything that they can see that actually penetrates right through the ground. It's been used in a number of cases very successfully.

COOPER: What -- why would -- I mean I don't (UNINTELLIGIBLE) but why would a guy who -- assuming he -- let's say he is guilty. Why would he consent to a search of his house?

BROOKS: You never know how the criminal mind works. I mean if -- he's probably saying well, fine, I don't have anything to, you know I don't have anything to hide. Go ahead and do it, search my property. Many times people who go ahead and consent, there is evidence there. I mean you know who knows what drives some of these, you know, some of these people to do what they do ...

COOPER: Right.

BROOKS: ... and it should be noted that back in 1982, the same kind of thing was found in his father's backyard. They found a body of a raped woman in the backyard of his father's home in California. In fact ...

COOPER: Ward Weaver's father.

BROOKS: Ward Weaver's father and Ward Weaver's father is still on death row in California.

COOPER: For rape.

BROOKS: For rape and for murder.

COOPER: And now Ward Weaver, himself, is already in jail. We saw him on a video, but that was from several weeks ago. He's in jail for raping his son's girlfriend.

BROOKS: Right, his son's 19-year-old girlfriend and there's -- some stories say that his son told law enforcement that his father told him that he killed these two girls. But you know that remains to be seen, that, but not enough to really go on.

COOPER: Apparently this is determining generally.

BROOKS: Looks like (UNINTELLIGIBLE).

COOPER: Yes, he's unbelievable ...

BROOKS: It is.

COOPER: What comes next? I mean just more searching?

BROOKS: More searching. Again, the ground penetrating radar. They'll probably bring some cadaver dogs in. I don't know how big the area is. They put up a fence. I mean they actually took a fence and put it up around the property so no one can come in and you know, to seal off the whole property during the search. So it just -- it takes time. It's very painstaking -- it's a very painstaking process, takes a lot of time to bring in digging equipment. More agents and more law enforcement will come in to do a search and to assist with the search.

COOPER: All right, Mike Brooks, thanks very much.

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