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CNN Saturday Morning News

Missing Bride-to-Be a Case of Cold Feet

Aired April 30, 2005 - 09:00   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.


ANNOUNCER: This is CNN breaking news.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: At approximately 4:00 a.m. this morning, Miss Wilbanks informed agents and detectives that she not been abducted as she had originally claimed.

Agents and detectives...

(END VIDEO CLIP)

BETTY NGUYEN, CNN ANCHOR: It has been an amazing turn of events in the case of a bride-to-be, who disappeared Tuesday from Georgia. From the CNN Center, this is CNN SATURDAY MORNING. We are following this story all hour. We want to welcome you back. If you've been watching, boy, has it been a ride.

TONY HARRIS, CNN ANCHOR: And good morning, everyone. Let's get you started this morning with headlines "Now in the News."

A new and dramatic turn in the story of the missing Georgia bride-to-be. Police now say Jennifer Wilbanks was not kidnapped as she had first claimed. Wilbanks, who was due to be married today, disappeared Tuesday. She called her fiance late last night, saying she had been freed by two abductors. Now police say there was no kidnapping. It appears to be have been a case of cold feet. Stay with us. More live coverage coming straight ahead.

Another bloody day in Iraq. Two children are killed and six other people wounded in a suicide car bombing east of Baghdad. Police say the bomb targeted a joint Iraqi-U.S. military convoy. Meanwhile, the U.S. military says four soldiers were killed and two others wounded in an explosion near the city of Mosul.

And the latest fall-out from the Iraq prison abuse scandal, U.S. Private First Class Lynndie England will plead guilty to seven of nine charges connected to the Abu Ghraib scandal. Her lawyer says under the plea deal, she could go to prison for up to 11 years.

NGUYEN: All right. Now more on our top story today. A shocking turn of events in the case of the missing Georgia bride-to-be. I want to give you a snapshot of what's been happening this morning. At 1:00 a.m. Eastern, Wilbanks -- Jennifer Wilbanks -- called home from Albuquerque, New Mexico. 40 minutes later, she then was picked up by police. Now her family reports Wilbanks said she had been kidnapped, but later freed. Well, then at 7:20 Eastern, Albuquerque police say there was no abduction, after all. They say it was a case of cold feet, a bride nervous about her pending marriage. That wedding, which was scheduled for today, has now been postponed indefinitely, as you can imagine.

Correspondent Charles Molineaux is outside the family's home in Duluth with the latest on the reaction there. Charles, I imagine it's been quite a mix of reactions. First, the family was excited that she was alive and now to hear this.

CHARLES MOLINEAUX, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Yes. This is the home of her fiance, John Mason and it has been the scene of a whole series of twists and turns as this case has unfolded. Right now, the family is actually in the process of getting ready, some to head out to Albuquerque for the reunion that will still, of course, be taking place. In fact, Jennifer Wilbanks' father and mother have both left. We understand that they're going to be flying out at about 11:00 Eastern time to get back together with her, of course, after the story has become dramatically different from what we thought it was earlier.

Of course, from Tuesday night until last night, the concern was that she had been kidnapped, or at least had somehow disappeared, and was she going to turn up dead somewhere? Then, in the wee hours of this morning, about 1:45, the call went in to her fiance, John Mason, that she was alive, she was OK, and that she had been kidnapped by two people, a man and woman in a van, who had driven her out to Albuquerque and she called, saying she didn't know where she was and told this story about what had happened to her.

Well, then, of course, a little after 7:00 this morning came news that she had, in fact, not been kidnapped, but had, as one family representative put it, some issues with which the family was not aware of her upcoming wedding, which was to be an enormous affair. 600 invited guests, 14 bridesmaids. There had been a whole series of showers. The entire community was centered around this and two very prominent families coming together, apparently enough to create a sense of inevitability and enough to drive somebody to something perhaps precipitous if she had some problems, which, as we are beginning to understand, may have been what happened.

Again, her family has now been sequestered pretty much in this home, but her parents have both left and are apparently en route now to Albuquerque to get back together with her. Friends and relatives who have spoken to us -- and not very many have -- say that their number one concern is that she is alive and well and they're going to love her and be with her and perhaps it's time for her and her fiance to get together and have some time together.

Very difficult day. This was a time of unqualified joy and excitement and relief about the fact that she was alive and well. Now, obviously, substantially more qualified -- Tony, Betty.

NGUYEN: Charles, I got to ask you this. You say her parents are about to board a plane headed to Albuquerque to pick up Jennifer. But earlier, it appeared that her fiance was going to go, as well. This was when it was understood at the time that she was found alive and it was an abduction case. Now we know that is not the situation. So am I learning -- let's be very clear -- that he will not be traveling to New Mexico to meet with Jennifer?

MOLINEAUX: Not clear on that just yet. As far as we know, he has not yet left. All of a sudden, the situation's looking an awful lot more complicated, and John Mason, this guy, has been through an awful lot and you really got to feel for him at a time like this. He was concerned about his fiance. Then for a while, there were questions about whether he may have somehow been responsible for her disappearance. There were questions about whether he ought to take a lie detector.

Then came the news that she was OK. She called him and told this story about this abduction, and now, of course, we have word that she had some issues about this wedding. Well, the biggest component in the wedding, besides her, would, of course, have been him. And not a very happy situation for him now. We do not know that he is not going to Albuquerque, but our understanding, he has not yet left.

NGUYEN: OK, and quickly, has all of this information split these families into two camps or are they still very much united?

MOLINEAUX: As I understand it, they have been united throughout and are promising to love and care for and welcome Jennifer home. At least that's what we're hearing. I suspect it would not be a bad guess that there are some feelings underneath that that might be a little different from the unqualified joy that we might have expected a little earlier.

NGUYEN: All right. CNN's Charles Molineaux. Thank you. Outside the fiance's home there. John Mason, who lives in Duluth, Georgia. Thanks, Charles.

HARRIS: As you might imagine, Wilbanks' family was stunned when they learned she ran away due to concern about her pending marriage. A family spokesman talked about it just about an hour ago.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

MIKE SATTERFIELD, WILBANKS' UNCLE: In light of additional information the family has received, we would like to make the following statement: We are so proud, first of all, that Jennifer is alive and well. We can't stress enough that is the most important fact that has occurred today. We're so appreciative, also, to all the people who have supported us and supported the family and supported this community in all their efforts.

It has been determined that Jennifer has some issues the family was not aware of. We're looking forward to loving her and talking with her concerning these issues. The family would appreciate some time and space to assist Jennifer concerning these issues. Again, we want to thank everyone, especially everyone -- there are so many people that have helped us during this event. We want to thank all of them. We were a team, we went forward, we accomplished what we sought to do, and that was to bring Jennifer back, and she is alive and well, and that's what means so much to us, and we thank you all so much. NGUYEN: Now Jennifer Wilbanks was a long way from home, a journey that took her from Georgia to New Mexico. Police in Albuquerque say they were able to trace her path after she admitted the truth.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

CHIEF RAY SCHULTZ, ALBUQUERQUE POLICE DEPT: At approximately 4:00 a.m. this morning, Miss Wilbanks informed agents and detectives she had not been abducted, as she had originally claimed. Agents and detectives learned that Miss Wilbanks had become scared and concerned about her pending marriage and decided that she needed some time alone. Miss Wilbanks had traveled from the Georgia area to Las Vegas, Nevada, via bus. Earlier today, she traveled from Las Vegas back to the Albuquerque area, again via bus, arriving this evening. She remained in the Albuquerque area, traveling around the southeast area Heights, until approximately 23:38 hours, when she called 911, at which time officers responded and met her at the 7-11.

Miss Wilbanks is being assisted by the FBI and APD Victims Assistance Unit. We have her presently and later today, we will be rejoining her with her family, who will be flying to Albuquerque. As far as the Albuquerque Police Department goes and the Albuquerque FBI Office, our investigation is closed. We'll be turning this investigation over to the Atlanta FBI Office, as well as the Duluth Police Department in Georgia.

Any questions?

QUESTION: Are there going to be any charges filed in connection with this? Or -- a lot of resources were spent trying to find her...

SCHULTZ: They'll be no charges at this time charged here in Albuquerque or the state of New Mexico. That will be left up to the authorities back in Georgia.

QUESTION: Is she saying she just got a case of cold feet?

SCHULTZ: Basically, she was just very concerned about the pending wedding and very nervous about it, yes.

QUESTION: What's her overall condition (INAUDIBLE)

SCHULTZ: She's just -- she's obviously very concerned about the stress that she's been through, the stress been placed on her family. So she is -- she is very upset.

QUESTION: What about the blue van? (INAUDIBLE)

SCHULTZ: There was no blue van involved. She was on a bus.

QUESTION: Did she initially say she was kidnapped?

SCHULTZ: She originally responded to the 911 dispatchers, as well as to responding officers, that she been, yes.

QUESTION: Is she still here at the substation and is she going to taken to the hospital?

SCHULTZ: She is no longer here at the substation. She in the custody of victims assistance specialists, who will stay with her until her family gets here.

QUESTION: Has she talked to her family?

SCHULTZ: Yes, she has.

QUESTION: How long was she in Albuquerque?

SCHULTZ: We're not exactly sure. She arrived sometime Friday evening or afternoon.

QUESTION: From Las Vegas, Nevada?

SCHULTZ: Yes.

QUESTION: On Greyhound?

SCHULTZ: I believe it was a Greyhound bus, yes.

QUESTION: Did she call her family first or...

SCHULTZ: She did make more than one phone call. We're not exactly sure who she called in which order.

QUESTION: (INAUDIBLE) change her appearance?

SCHULTZ: Her appearance is different, but I'm not exactly sure. I know her hair has been cut.

QUESTION: Any indication that she was traveling with anyone else (INAUDIBLE)?

SCHULTZ: She was not with any family members or friends. She did meet some folks, however, while she was on the bus.

QUESTION: Did she maintain the kidnapping story for four hours after she had made the 911 call?

SCHULTZ: There was a period of time before she eventually told us what the true story was, yes, sir.

QUESTION: Can you give us any indication of where she had gone.

SCHULTZ: Las Vegas, Nevada.

QUESTION: No, but here.

SCHULTZ: She was just -- wandered the southeast area. Yes.

QUESTION: Did she make any statements -- once she got to Albuquerque, met people? I mean, you said she made some friends on the bus. Did she just meander around aimlessly, according to her, or (INAUDIBLE) SCHULTZ: No, basically, she just walked around town for a while until she made that 911 call.

QUESTION: Does she have any personal connection to Albuquerque at all or (INAUDIBLE) reason why...

SCHULTZ: No.

QUESTION: Is there any particular turning point that made her decide to tell the truth? Was it under intense questioning? How did she finally tell?

SCHULTZ: I don't know. I just know she was in discussion with detectives and agents and she decided that she needed to do the right thing and tell the right story, the true story.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

HARRIS: Hmm.

NGUYEN: In Jennifer Wilbanks' hometown of Duluth, Georgia, police are confirming it was cold feet -- well, you heard it there, too -- that took her to New Mexico. And they say they are awaiting her return, as are many folks in Duluth.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

CHIEF RANDY BELCHER, DULUTH, GEORGIA POLICE DEPT: As you all know, the last three or four days, we've been looking for Miss Jennifer Wilbanks, who came up missing after she had gone for a jog last Tuesday afternoon. I'm happy to announce that this morning at 2:00 a.m., we located Miss Wilbanks, and she was in Albuquerque, New Mexico. The police, through direction, was able to find her. The FBI, then, took Miss Wilbanks, and took her to their headquarters and, again, talking to Miss Wilbanks to determine what had taken place.

Originally it appeared that she been kidnapped, but after talking to the FBI, it turns out that Miss Wilbanks basically felt the pressure of this large wedding and could not handle it and, therefore, she got on a Greyhound bus, and she went to Albuquerque, New Mexico. So at this point in time, we're just waiting for Miss Wilbanks to come back. The family will be making a statement shortly and right now we expect that when she comes back, her and the family will go through a time where they can try to heal one another and put this behind them. Thank you.

QUESTION: Will there be criminal charges pressed?

BELCHER: No criminal charges.

QUESTION: Who's speaking for the family?

(END VIDEO CLIP)

NGUYEN: And since the chief spoke, Wilbanks' family made a statement saying Jennifer has issues that they were not aware of and they say they want to help her when she does come back to Georgia.

This, of course, is going to be the story that everybody's going to be talking about today. No doubt.

HARRIS: The most popular story at cnn.com?

NGUYEN: I predict it is. Yes.

HARRIS: It's this one. We'll check in with Christina Park in just a couple of minutes.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

NGUYEN: We are still following the case of the runaway bride-to- be. It was not an abduction after all, as we have learned from Albuquerque police today. But Jennifer Wilbanks just got nervous about her wedding and fled Georgia. So what is the latest on this situation? It seems like we were all duped in it, including her fiance.

We want to go now to Chris Molineaux (sic) outside that fiance's home in Georgia -- Charles, that is. Charles, what's the latest there? Have you heard from the fiance at all? What's his reaction to this?

MOLINEAUX: The entire family has been pretty quiet, but our understanding is that while both of Jennifer's parents have left to head out to Albuquerque, her fiance, John Mason, is still here. Does this mean he's not going? Not sure yet, but it's beginning to look like that may, indeed, be the case. What happened? how did we get to this point? Jennifer taking off abruptly and making up this story about being kidnapped.

Well, we talked to someone actually who's been very close to her as she has gotten ready for her wedding. Actually, a good friend of hers who's in the process of preparing for a wedding herself. Melinda Larson has been close to Jennifer on a couple of fronts, a good, longtime friend of both John and Jennifer. We spoke with her when the news came out. A tough time for this whole family. Listen to what she had to say.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

MELINDA LARSON, FRIEND OF GROOM, JOHN MASON: I'm certain that it's just a wave of emotion people are experiencing this right now. It's shocking, it's overwhelming, and it's baffling.

MOLINEAUX: Now, actually, you're a little closer to Jennifer on this than just about every single person involved, because you actually are going to a wedding, too, in just a few weeks and you've been dealing with this together. Can you give us any idea clue about where her head might be?

LARSON: Well, anybody that's planning a wedding knows that it's stressful, there's drama, it's challenging, it's overwhelming. There's so much pressure involved. 95 percent falls on the bride. So the fact that there's stress and concern regarding the pressures involved with the wedding is of no surprise to anyone that has ever planned a wedding.

MOLINEAUX: What would you want to say to Jennifer?

LARSON: We love you. We're glad you're OK. That's all that matters.

MOLINEAUX: What about John? John's got to be having a real hard time as the guy who's suddenly, once again, back in the middle of this after what looked like a break. What about him?

LARSON: John, it's just -- we love you, and whatever you need right now. John and Jennifer are going to take this one day at a time. And at this point, the overriding factor is that Jennifer is alive.

MOLINEAUX: Early on in this investigation from the family and from police, we heard that the idea she might have just had cold feet and taken off was pretty much not in consideration. Where would that have sat with you if the idea was broached?

LARSON: Having cold feet is a joy compared to what the alternative could have been.

MOLINEAUX: What about the idea that it might have that with her? Did you discern anything along these lines as you were doing the same thing together, planning your weddings?

LARSON: No, it did not cross my mind at all.

MOLINEAUX: Was she stressed? Did she look she might have had some deep dread, anything along those lines?

LARSON: No deep dread. Stress, absolutely. Weddings are extremely challenging, overwhelming. A wonderful occasion, but tend to consume your time, your life, and all of your energy in the actual planning. So stress is a definite.

MOLINEAUX: It looks like we are not going to see this great, big wild party, this joyous reunion that we anticipated, but she is OK. What do you think will happen now? What should happen now with this family?

LARSON: Jennifer and John need space, they need time and they need privacy to deal with things at hand.

MOLINEAUX: Can you see how something like this might have materialized as someone a very similar situation?

LARSON: I think Jennifer had no idea that this would turn into a criminal investigation. And had she known, I think that things would have been handled probably a little differently, but sometimes things take a life of their own, just like weddings.

MOLINEAUX: Thank you very much, Melinda Larson. Appreciate your talking to us. A friend of both Jennifer and John's on a day that is turning out to be relieved, happy, but also a little bit more difficult for this...

(END VIDEOTAPE)

MOLINEAUX: Well back now live here, and those insights from somebody who's been there and, of course, keeping in mind that we are dealing with a wedding that was going to be enormous, and if there were any of these issues that anybody might have been concerned about, and people do pull out of weddings all the time, but the circumstances here obviously, dramatically different and unfortunately, splashed all over the front page for all of America to see.

A situation that might be a personal one between a couple has suddenly become a matter for law enforcement, the FBI and now the media, as we look at this unfold, and try to figure out what it was that could have prompted Jennifer to done what it looks like she did. So a tough story for this family, now coming to grips with it. As we understand it, her fiance John Mason, still here, while her parents have gone off on their way to Albuquerque for a reunion.

Again, the fact is, yes, she is OK. She was apparently not abducted. That's the good news. The bad news is that it's a little more complicated than that -- Tony, Betty.

NGUYEN: Charles, it causes me to wonder, looking back -- hindsight, they say is 20/20 -- did anyone that you spoke with today even allude to these wedding jitters that she may have had?

MOLINEAUX: Oh, yes, absolutely and they dismissed it categorically. The only people who entertained the idea were the police, who said early on in this investigation that, well, yes, sometimes you'll have a guy go off for cigarettes and suddenly vanish on the eve of his wedding. That is something the police at least had somewhere in the back of their minds as a possibility, but time and time again, even as we heard the story of Jennifer being kidnapped, the notion that she might have had cold feet, that she might have had misgivings, that she might have just taken off of her own accord, was dismissed yet again. Oh, that could not possibly have happened.

Her mother, who I spoke to earlier, said that she was so excited, so thrilled about it. On Sunday, she got together for the final bridal shower for the wedding, which, remember, was scheduled to be today and the bridesmaids tell us she was thrilled and excited about this upcoming wedding. Part of that was a component of the worry when she abruptly disappeared, because the notion that she might have had some misgivings was so quickly dismissed. So it certainly entertained, but also very quickly dismissed. Nobody, with the possible exception of a few police, thought that this is the way it might have panned out.

NGUYEN: Well, they believe it now. Charles Molineaux outside the fiance's home there in Duluth, Georgia. Thank you for that.

And of course, we are going to continue to follow this story throughout the morning. A lot of unanswered questions. We'll try to find some of those answers for you. Stay tuned. We're going to take a quick break. You're watching CNN Saturday morning.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

NGUYEN: Christina Park from dot-com joins us right now. And Christina, I'm going to make your job easy. This is the number one story of the day, the runaway bride-to-be.

CHRISTINA PARK, CNN.COM CORRESPONDENT: Surprised, Betty?

NGUYEN: No, no, not at all.

PARK: That's right. This is -- this morning, our users are in sync with CNN viewers. The most clicked on story right now, the case of the Georgia missing bride-to-be, as Betty told you, solved on what was supposed to be her wedding day. This is such a bizarre story. It has been one of our most popular stories this week since Jennifer Wilbanks disappeared, this morning, with the surprise turn of events, it hit the number one spot and has stayed at number one on cnn.com as the most clicked on report, beating out other news stories.

Our readers on cnn.com are finding out, as CNN viewers are, learning about 32-year-old Jennifer Wilbanks wasn't abducted after all. Instead, she made up the story of being kidnapped because she got cold feet. Georgia police say Wilbanks couldn't handle the pressure of a large wedding and took off because she needed some time alone.

And you can watch the story unfold from the very beginning at cnn.com and for the rest of your most popular stories of the moment, just log on to cnn.com and click on most popular at the top right-hand side of your screen. Back to you, Betty.

NGUYEN: Definitely the most popular story. We're going to be talking about it for a while this morning. Thanks for that update, Christina.

PARK: Thanks, Betty.

NGUYEN: We appreciate that.

And right now, we're going to take a quick break. We'll continue the coverage, as I just mentioned, of the runaway bride-to-be. Stay with us.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

NGUYEN: ... now it turns out she made up the whole story. Wilbanks apparently had taken a bus first to Las Vegas, then to New Mexico. She was due to be married today.

It's been another bloody day in Iraq, two children are killed, six other people wounded, in a suicide car bombing in eastern Baghdad. Police say the bomb targeted a joint Iraqi-U.S. military convoy. Meanwhile, the U.S. military says four soldiers were killed and two others wounded in an explosion near the city of Mosul.

And the latest fallout from the Iraq prison abuse scandal. U.S. Private First Class Lynndie England will plead guilty to seven of nine charges connected to the Abu Ghraib scandal. Her lawyer says under the plea deal, she could go to prison for up to 11 years.

HARRIS: Let's take a moment now and just sort of recap where we are with this amazing story of Jennifer Wilbanks, the 32-year-old bride-to-be, scheduled to be married this evening in Duluth, Georgia, who disappeared from her home Tuesday evening after telling her fiance she was going for a jog, did not take with her any identification, no cash, no keys, no cell phone, simply left, and at about a couple hours later, her fiance, John Mason, started an individual search for her, could not find her, checked with hospitals, could not find where his fiance had gone, began to call family members to indicate that she was, in fact, missing and had disappeared.

There was an extensive search over two, two-and-a-half days of a five-square-mile-radius area in Duluth, Georgia, that took in part of Sewanee, Georgia, which is a couple of communities very close together. There were a couple of items found, first a couple of sweatshirts, and then a pair of sweatpants. Then there was this clump of hair, this clump of hair that was found and then sent to the Georgia Bureau of Investigation's lab. We found out yesterday afternoon that that clump of hair was consistent with the color of Jennifer Wilbanks's hair.

We eventually learned that Jennifer Wilbanks called her family shortly after 1:00, 1:30, 1:40 this morning, to tell them that she had been abducted, but that she was safe, she was sound, that she had been dropped off, presumably because of all of the media attention connected to this, that she had been dropped off by her kidnappers, who she described as a white woman and possibly a Hispanic male, at a convenience store.

She was picked up there by authorities in Albuquerque, where she finally told the truth of the situation, the real story, that she had, in fact, become nervous, stressed out about this wedding that was planned for this evening, and that she needed some time away, and that, in fact, what she had done is hopped on a bus, a Greyhound bus, first for Las Vegas, and then later, another bus to Albuquerque, New Mexico.

At this point, we know that she is fine, we know that the family is scheduled to leave their home in Duluth to reunite with Jennifer at about 11:00 a.m. We understand, first, from Albuquerque authorities that no charges will be filed on that end, and we learned a short time ago, from the police chief here in Duluth, Georgia, that no charges will be filed on this end as well.

As you might imagine, Jennifer Wilbanks's family was stunned, to say the least, when they learned she had ran away due to concern about the pending marriage. A family spokesman talked about it just about an hour ago.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP) MIKE SATTERFIELD, WILBANKS FAMILY SPOKESMAN: In light of additional information the family has received, we would like to make the following statement.

We're so proud, first of all, that Jennifer is alive and well. We can't stress enough that is the most important fact that has occurred today.

We're so appreciative, also, to all the people who have supported us, have supported the family, have supported this community in all their efforts.

It has been determined that Jennifer has some issues the family was not aware of. We're looking forward to loving her and talking with her concerning these issues. The family would appreciate some time and space to assist Jennifer concerning these issues.

Again, we want to thank everyone, especially everyone. There's so many people that have helped us during this event. We want to thank all of them. We were a team, we went forward, we accomplished what we sought to do, and that was to bring Jennifer back. And she is alive and well, and that's what means so much to us.

And we thank you all so much.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

HARRIS: Family spokesman a short time ago offering us the reaction of the family to this news.

Jennifer Wilbanks apparently called her family home from a pay phone in Albuquerque, New Mexico. A phone call then made to Albuquerque police a short time later. Officers found Jennifer at a convenience store.

Ellen Goldberg joins us now live from Albuquerque affiliate KOAT. She is with the Albuquerque chief of police. Ellen?

ELLEN GOLDBERG, REPORTER, KOAT-TV, ALBUQUERQUE: Yes, we are here at the police substation where Jennifer Wilbanks was questioned overnight.

I'm joined by Chief Ray Schultz, who, I should mention, has only been on the job now for two weeks.

Chief, what can you tell us about the phone call that was made from that 7-Eleven? What did she say, and who did she call first?

CHIEF RAY SCHULTZ, ALBUQUERQUE, NEW MEXICO, POLICE DEPARTMENT: Well, we're not exactly if she called us first or she actually called her family back in Georgia. But the original call that came into 911 is that she had been abducted in Georgia and been held captive for the last four days.

GOLDBERG: And so officers brought her here to this police substation. How many hours was it before she admitted that she had made this hoax up?

SCHULTZ: It was a little bit over four hours. There were several inconsistencies in her stories. And as the story kept being retold and retold, it was a little bit different each time, until eventually she told us that we did not need to look for that blue van, that it was a hoax.

GOLDBERG: And a case of cold feet for a bride-to-be?

SCHULTZ: That's what it looks like. Looks like she was just very stressed out over a very large wedding and series of events that were to occur today.

GOLDBERG: And you had a chance to see Jennifer Wilbanks. How did she appear physically, and how did she seem mentally?

SCHULTZ: Well, she's obviously very, very distressed. She does look different. Her hair's been cut. She was in disarray and disheveled.

GOLDBERG: How long do you think she had been in the Albuquerque area?

SCHULTZ: To all indications, she came into town late yesterday evening, spent a couple hours in the southeast heights, just kind of walking around on Central Avenue, till she just got tired and made that call.

GOLDBERG: OK, and she left here around 12:30 Mountain time, was taken to the victims' assistance unit. Tell us exactly what that is, and how the morning will unfold for she and her family.

SCHULTZ: What's going to happen is, victims' assistance personnel, from both APD and the FBI, will stay with her. We're going to get her cleaned up a little bit, and then we will make sure that she's reunited with her family when they fly into Albuquerque some (INAUDIBLE) later today.

GOLDBERG: And you have been very clear the Albuquerque Police Department does not plan to file any charges against Jennifer Wilbanks?

SCHULTZ: I don't think so. I think most of her problems are back in Georgia. She's got a lot of serious issues she needs to address back there with the authorities and her family. And that's probably the best thing to happen.

GOLDBERG: All right, Chief Ray Schultz, thank you very much.

And again, Jennifer Wilbanks getting showered and cleaned up and will be reunited with her family here in Albuquerque a bit later this morning.

Back to you.

HARRIS: OK. Ellen, is the chief still standing by you? GOLDBERG: Yes, he is still here.

HARRIS: OK, a quick question for you. I'm curious if you could ask the chief, what was the moment in her story where investigators began to feel concerned or began to have questions as to whether or not they were getting the real deal from Jennifer.

GOLDBERG: Chief, at what point in her story did you feel that -- that you became concerned that she wasn't necessarily telling the truth?

SCHULTZ: There were just a lot of holes in her story. She just didn't know a whole lot. There were a lot of unaccounted time. And if she'd been with somebody for four days, I think she would have probably known a little bit more information than she had.

GOLDBERG: OK. Hope that answers your question.

HARRIS: OK.

NGUYEN: Ellen, I have a question for you. Ellen, this is Betty Nguyen. I have a question for you to ask the chief there. Did it appear at any time that she may have had help from somebody else? Because what we knew in the search was that she left with no identification, no monies, no keys. Did she present any information that she may have been helped in any way?

GOLDBERG: OK. Chief, they'd also like to know, she left her house with no money, no keys. Is there any indication she got any help from anyone, any assistance to stay on the road as long as she did?

SCHULTZ: Not at this time in the assistance. But again, there's going to be additional follow-up investigation. We know she did have some money with her, though.

GOLDBERG: OK. But you do believe that she ran out of money? Is that what ultimately caused her to pick up that pay phone?

SCHULTZ: That's what it looks like. Looks like she had enough money to get from Vegas to Albuquerque, and this is just where she ran out and ended up at.

GOLDBERG: All right. Apparently ran out of money and called home.

All right, back to you.

HARRIS: And Ellen, I'm sorry, we just have so many questions on this, and I apologize.

GOLDBERG: OK.

HARRIS: Was she still in that, the sweatsuit? The description of what she was wearing when she went out to jog was a sweatshirt, sweatpants, and New Balance tennis shoes. Was she wearing those items when she was found?

GOLDBERG: All right, chief, the description when she disappeared was that she was wearing a sweatpants and a sweatshirt and tennis shoes. Was she wearing that exact clothing when she was located here in Albuquerque?

SCHULTZ: All I saw was a sweatshirt. She had the sweatshirt on. I believe it was an Old Navy-style sweatshirt.

GOLDBERG: An Old Navy. And it did appear that she cut her own hair as well, right?

SCHULTZ: Her hair was cut, and it did look like it was, yes, done by her.

GOLDBERG: OK. Thank you very much.

Back to you.

HARRIS: All right. Ellen, we appreciate it. Thanks for your patience.

GOLDBERG: Thank you.

HARRIS: We're going to take a break, and we're going to continue our coverage of this developing story.

You're watching CNN SATURDAY MORNING.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

NGUYEN: Let's get you up to speed on the case of missing Jennifer Wilbanks, the bride-to-be.

Well, it turns out today, according to Albuquerque police, that it's not an abduction after all, it's a case of wedding-day jitters. She got nervous about the wedding and headed out of town to Las Vegas and then to New Mexico, where she was discovered today, and will be reunited with her family there shortly this morning.

HARRIS: Other stories to tell you about, and one particularly dangerous weather event is beginning to take shape in Alabama.

(WEATHER FORECAST)

HARRIS: We're going to take a break and come back with more of our continuing coverage of this developing story, Jennifer Wilbanks, found alive and well, but the story she's telling, well, that has amounted to one tall tale.

We'll be right back.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

NGUYEN: Let's get you a recap now on today's top stories. A story with several twists and turns in the case of a missing Georgia bride-to-be. Jennifer Wilbanks is alive. It turns out she was not abducted last night, or last Tuesday night, although that's what she told her family very early this morning when she called them. Instead, FBI officials in Albuquerque, New Mexico, where she was found overnight today, she took a bus to Las Vegas and then to Albuquerque. That shocking news came just a little after 7:00 a.m. Eastern. Now, Jennifer Wilbanks is safe. She is alive. The wedding, which was scheduled for 6:30 this evening, that has been postponed indefinitely.

HARRIS: And we're joined now on the phone by Gregory, Dr. Gregory Kuhlman. He is a psychologist. He is also a teacher, a professor, at City University of New York.

Dr. Kuhlman, are you there?

DR. GREGORY KUHLMAN, CITY UNIVERSITY OF NEW YORK (on phone): Yes, I am.

HARRIS: Well, we're going to put you on spot a little bit here. You have the unenviable task of trying to explain for us what Jennifer Wilbanks might have been thinking in these days leading up to what is, was, by all accounts, going to be a huge wedding.

KUHLMAN: Yes. Well, I think she was thinking what a lot of brides are thinking before their wedding. She was, perhaps, worried about some changes in her relationship with her fiance. This is very common. You know, cold feet is the number-one hit on our Web site, stayhitched.com, for premarital couples.

And as couples draw closer to the wedding, they start to encounter differences. When they decide to get married, they're often in the romantic phase of their relationship. And as the wedding gets closer, there's more and more to disagree about. Wedding planning itself is, you know, extremely stressful, and I understand that she had just moved in with her fiance within the last couple of weeks, also a very stressful event.

HARRIS: Yes, and they were making changes to the home. She was ordering new interior designs and things of that sort. So there was a lot of things going on all at the same time, and I know that in -- there's this sense that you can only handle so many major stressors in your life at the same time. And it sounds like moving in together, trying to establish a home together, and all of the events surrounding this marriage and the planning of it, may have joined forces to make this just too much of an event for her to handle.

KUHLMAN: Yes. Just a little too many stress points.

HARRIS: So what...

KUHLMAN: (INAUDIBLE)...

HARRIS: No, go ahead.

KUHLMAN: I was going to say, when all these differences come up, you know, that a lot of couples don't have the communication skills to effectively talk about all of these sensitive differences that are starting to come up for them right before the wedding. And so they get overloaded. The women get overloaded, but the guys get overloaded even more. Guys are more prone to overload by stress.

HARRIS: Do you learn more about your potential spouse during these -- I guess I know the answer to the question I'm about to ask, but I'd love to hear your opinion on it. Do you learn more about your potential spouse during this run-up to what is undoubtedly a stressful, but should be a very joyous and happy occasion in your life?

KUHLMAN: Well, yes. You do learn more about your future spouse during this period, because you're having a lot of interaction. But you learn a lot, but the problem is that a lot of people misinterpret what they learn, you know. They're thinking that a successful marriage for them is based on compatibility. And certainly compatibility is important. But, you know, all couples, even happily married couples, have five to seven areas of unresolvable difference.

And when people find out about these things leading up to the wedding, it worries them a lot, and sometimes unnecessarily.

Of course, there are things that couples should worry about. But a lot of what couples run into are very, very normal things that shouldn't cause them as much concern as it understandably does when they don't understand what's going on.

HARRIS: Well, so it wouldn't surprise anyone to know that perhaps the couple had been going through some difficult moments leading up to all this, and had, maybe, in fact, been arguing about some of the planning, some of the things that were going on leading up to this wedding.

KUHLMAN: That would be very common.

HARRIS: We would expect something like that. But I guess what I'm trying to get at is, because of the pressure of the circumstances, do I hear you saying that we might interpret those arguments differently if all of the stress of this event weren't factored in?

KUHLMAN: Yes, of course. And, you know, when they misinterpret these arguments, they think they've chosen that -- or that they may have chosen the wrong person to get married to, because they think that if they had -- if they've chosen the right person, if this was really their soul mate, people call it nowadays, they -- if they had chosen the right person, that they wouldn't be having these fights and they wouldn't be having these differences.

And it's just not true. You know, most people, I would venture to say, have these kinds of disagreements and upsets before they get married.

HARRIS: But Doctor, let me move it forward a bit. There's one thing to go through this bout of cold feet, nerves, anxiety, over this wedding. There's another thing to disappear the way she did, and to ultimately craft this kind of a story.

What can you tell us about that chain of events?

KUHLMAN: Well, yes, I think that, you know, this is obviously a little bit of an extreme reaction on her part. And we don't -- we're not privy to everything...

HARRIS: Sure.

KUHLMAN: ... that going on in their relationship. But I don't think it's unusual for a bride or a groom, you know, to go off and stay with friends and to tell their fiance that they need a little time alone to think things over, and, you know -- that's not an unusual reaction.

But I think it's unusual that she didn't leave a note or call sooner.

HARRIS: Yes. (INAUDIBLE)...

KUHLMAN: You know, and then, you know, she's probably, she was probably embarrassed and frightened when she realized, you know, what she had -- the situation she had gotten her fiance and her family into. And, you know, her parents, no doubt, have a lot of money riding on the wedding, you know, all these pressures.

HARRIS: Doctor, we appreciate your taking the time to talk to us. hank you.

KUHLMAN: My pleasure.

NGUYEN: Well, many people are trying to understand exactly why she may have ran away. I think folks out there also are wondering, how's her fiance doing? How is he holding up under all of this? What are his plans?

We want to go now to CNN's Charles Molineaux, who is outside Jennifer Wilbanks's fiance's home.

Do you have any idea when we will hear from him or the family again?

MOLINEAUX: That's a tough one to guess. We actually may get something of a clue as to what's going on for this poor guy shortly, actually. Alan Jones (ph) is the Peachtree Corner's Baptist church assistant pastor. Now, he is the guy who was actually going to marry John Mason and Jennifer Wilbanks. And he is the one who has been dealing with them as a couple, as they have been getting ready for their wedding.

Well, we are actually going to be hearing from him, probably in about 10 minutes. We're going to carrying that live, of course, here on CNN, as we get some idea as to what this family is dealing with, perhaps from someone who has a better idea than most as to what this couple was like as they headed towards what was supposed to be this joyous day, which, of course, has now turned into a, well, a real fiasco, and, of course, has been riding with these people as they have gone through this intense situation, one twist after another, Tuesday night she disappears, there's concerns about her well-being, and all of a sudden, he's gone from the guy counseling this family as they head for this wedding to the support as they deal with this crisis.

Then the news that Jennifer is OK, and now the news that perhaps there was a little trouble as she was headed towards this wedding, so eagerly anticipated.

So coming up in a few minutes, we're going to hear from Assistant Pastor Alan Jones, get some idea as to what he might have in the way of thoughts on this, and also to hear from the family and to hear from John Mason, as he deals with the real tough situation that this has turned into, the unqualified relief and joy that we were seeing just a couple hours ago has become very qualified indeed, as we deal with the fact that, for some reason, issues that the family was apparently unaware of, Jennifer decided that she was not quite prepared for this wedding.

We're standing by to hear more about this, but a very tough day, and the situation has obviously gotten a lot more somber than it was a little earlier.

NGUYEN: Charles, are people sticking around? There were so many cars this morning outside that home, people wanting to know, people elated, just celebrating at the fact that Jennifer is alive. And I don't think that's really changed. Very many of them are still very happy that she is indeed alive. But are they starting to leave? What's happening there at the house?

MOLINEAUX: Oh, I would say it is an awful lot quieter than it was a little bit earlier, yes. We saw the whole family and both families here celebrating together in the wee hours this morning when the news came out that Jennifer was OK, and the story was circulating that she had been kidnapped.

Of late, things have cleared out quite a bit. The parking lot over here, or the lawn, it turned into a parking lot over here, that's largely cleared up. And actually, Jennifer's parents and her step- parents have all already left. John Mason and his family are still here. We understand that Jennifer's family is heading to Albuquerque.

So, yes, a little concern, and obviously the climate has changed quite a bit from one of great joy to a lot of concern and a lot of questions.

NGUYEN: Yes, definitely a lot of questions. Charles Molineaux, outside the Mason home there in Duluth, Georgia. Thank you, Charles.

HARRIS: And stay with us. You're watching continuing coverage of this developing story. Jennifer Wilbanks has been found alive, but she has told an incredible story of an abduction that has proven to be completely false.

We'll be right back.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

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Aired April 30, 2005 - 09:00   ET
THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
ANNOUNCER: This is CNN breaking news.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: At approximately 4:00 a.m. this morning, Miss Wilbanks informed agents and detectives that she not been abducted as she had originally claimed.

Agents and detectives...

(END VIDEO CLIP)

BETTY NGUYEN, CNN ANCHOR: It has been an amazing turn of events in the case of a bride-to-be, who disappeared Tuesday from Georgia. From the CNN Center, this is CNN SATURDAY MORNING. We are following this story all hour. We want to welcome you back. If you've been watching, boy, has it been a ride.

TONY HARRIS, CNN ANCHOR: And good morning, everyone. Let's get you started this morning with headlines "Now in the News."

A new and dramatic turn in the story of the missing Georgia bride-to-be. Police now say Jennifer Wilbanks was not kidnapped as she had first claimed. Wilbanks, who was due to be married today, disappeared Tuesday. She called her fiance late last night, saying she had been freed by two abductors. Now police say there was no kidnapping. It appears to be have been a case of cold feet. Stay with us. More live coverage coming straight ahead.

Another bloody day in Iraq. Two children are killed and six other people wounded in a suicide car bombing east of Baghdad. Police say the bomb targeted a joint Iraqi-U.S. military convoy. Meanwhile, the U.S. military says four soldiers were killed and two others wounded in an explosion near the city of Mosul.

And the latest fall-out from the Iraq prison abuse scandal, U.S. Private First Class Lynndie England will plead guilty to seven of nine charges connected to the Abu Ghraib scandal. Her lawyer says under the plea deal, she could go to prison for up to 11 years.

NGUYEN: All right. Now more on our top story today. A shocking turn of events in the case of the missing Georgia bride-to-be. I want to give you a snapshot of what's been happening this morning. At 1:00 a.m. Eastern, Wilbanks -- Jennifer Wilbanks -- called home from Albuquerque, New Mexico. 40 minutes later, she then was picked up by police. Now her family reports Wilbanks said she had been kidnapped, but later freed. Well, then at 7:20 Eastern, Albuquerque police say there was no abduction, after all. They say it was a case of cold feet, a bride nervous about her pending marriage. That wedding, which was scheduled for today, has now been postponed indefinitely, as you can imagine.

Correspondent Charles Molineaux is outside the family's home in Duluth with the latest on the reaction there. Charles, I imagine it's been quite a mix of reactions. First, the family was excited that she was alive and now to hear this.

CHARLES MOLINEAUX, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Yes. This is the home of her fiance, John Mason and it has been the scene of a whole series of twists and turns as this case has unfolded. Right now, the family is actually in the process of getting ready, some to head out to Albuquerque for the reunion that will still, of course, be taking place. In fact, Jennifer Wilbanks' father and mother have both left. We understand that they're going to be flying out at about 11:00 Eastern time to get back together with her, of course, after the story has become dramatically different from what we thought it was earlier.

Of course, from Tuesday night until last night, the concern was that she had been kidnapped, or at least had somehow disappeared, and was she going to turn up dead somewhere? Then, in the wee hours of this morning, about 1:45, the call went in to her fiance, John Mason, that she was alive, she was OK, and that she had been kidnapped by two people, a man and woman in a van, who had driven her out to Albuquerque and she called, saying she didn't know where she was and told this story about what had happened to her.

Well, then, of course, a little after 7:00 this morning came news that she had, in fact, not been kidnapped, but had, as one family representative put it, some issues with which the family was not aware of her upcoming wedding, which was to be an enormous affair. 600 invited guests, 14 bridesmaids. There had been a whole series of showers. The entire community was centered around this and two very prominent families coming together, apparently enough to create a sense of inevitability and enough to drive somebody to something perhaps precipitous if she had some problems, which, as we are beginning to understand, may have been what happened.

Again, her family has now been sequestered pretty much in this home, but her parents have both left and are apparently en route now to Albuquerque to get back together with her. Friends and relatives who have spoken to us -- and not very many have -- say that their number one concern is that she is alive and well and they're going to love her and be with her and perhaps it's time for her and her fiance to get together and have some time together.

Very difficult day. This was a time of unqualified joy and excitement and relief about the fact that she was alive and well. Now, obviously, substantially more qualified -- Tony, Betty.

NGUYEN: Charles, I got to ask you this. You say her parents are about to board a plane headed to Albuquerque to pick up Jennifer. But earlier, it appeared that her fiance was going to go, as well. This was when it was understood at the time that she was found alive and it was an abduction case. Now we know that is not the situation. So am I learning -- let's be very clear -- that he will not be traveling to New Mexico to meet with Jennifer?

MOLINEAUX: Not clear on that just yet. As far as we know, he has not yet left. All of a sudden, the situation's looking an awful lot more complicated, and John Mason, this guy, has been through an awful lot and you really got to feel for him at a time like this. He was concerned about his fiance. Then for a while, there were questions about whether he may have somehow been responsible for her disappearance. There were questions about whether he ought to take a lie detector.

Then came the news that she was OK. She called him and told this story about this abduction, and now, of course, we have word that she had some issues about this wedding. Well, the biggest component in the wedding, besides her, would, of course, have been him. And not a very happy situation for him now. We do not know that he is not going to Albuquerque, but our understanding, he has not yet left.

NGUYEN: OK, and quickly, has all of this information split these families into two camps or are they still very much united?

MOLINEAUX: As I understand it, they have been united throughout and are promising to love and care for and welcome Jennifer home. At least that's what we're hearing. I suspect it would not be a bad guess that there are some feelings underneath that that might be a little different from the unqualified joy that we might have expected a little earlier.

NGUYEN: All right. CNN's Charles Molineaux. Thank you. Outside the fiance's home there. John Mason, who lives in Duluth, Georgia. Thanks, Charles.

HARRIS: As you might imagine, Wilbanks' family was stunned when they learned she ran away due to concern about her pending marriage. A family spokesman talked about it just about an hour ago.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

MIKE SATTERFIELD, WILBANKS' UNCLE: In light of additional information the family has received, we would like to make the following statement: We are so proud, first of all, that Jennifer is alive and well. We can't stress enough that is the most important fact that has occurred today. We're so appreciative, also, to all the people who have supported us and supported the family and supported this community in all their efforts.

It has been determined that Jennifer has some issues the family was not aware of. We're looking forward to loving her and talking with her concerning these issues. The family would appreciate some time and space to assist Jennifer concerning these issues. Again, we want to thank everyone, especially everyone -- there are so many people that have helped us during this event. We want to thank all of them. We were a team, we went forward, we accomplished what we sought to do, and that was to bring Jennifer back, and she is alive and well, and that's what means so much to us, and we thank you all so much. NGUYEN: Now Jennifer Wilbanks was a long way from home, a journey that took her from Georgia to New Mexico. Police in Albuquerque say they were able to trace her path after she admitted the truth.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

CHIEF RAY SCHULTZ, ALBUQUERQUE POLICE DEPT: At approximately 4:00 a.m. this morning, Miss Wilbanks informed agents and detectives she had not been abducted, as she had originally claimed. Agents and detectives learned that Miss Wilbanks had become scared and concerned about her pending marriage and decided that she needed some time alone. Miss Wilbanks had traveled from the Georgia area to Las Vegas, Nevada, via bus. Earlier today, she traveled from Las Vegas back to the Albuquerque area, again via bus, arriving this evening. She remained in the Albuquerque area, traveling around the southeast area Heights, until approximately 23:38 hours, when she called 911, at which time officers responded and met her at the 7-11.

Miss Wilbanks is being assisted by the FBI and APD Victims Assistance Unit. We have her presently and later today, we will be rejoining her with her family, who will be flying to Albuquerque. As far as the Albuquerque Police Department goes and the Albuquerque FBI Office, our investigation is closed. We'll be turning this investigation over to the Atlanta FBI Office, as well as the Duluth Police Department in Georgia.

Any questions?

QUESTION: Are there going to be any charges filed in connection with this? Or -- a lot of resources were spent trying to find her...

SCHULTZ: They'll be no charges at this time charged here in Albuquerque or the state of New Mexico. That will be left up to the authorities back in Georgia.

QUESTION: Is she saying she just got a case of cold feet?

SCHULTZ: Basically, she was just very concerned about the pending wedding and very nervous about it, yes.

QUESTION: What's her overall condition (INAUDIBLE)

SCHULTZ: She's just -- she's obviously very concerned about the stress that she's been through, the stress been placed on her family. So she is -- she is very upset.

QUESTION: What about the blue van? (INAUDIBLE)

SCHULTZ: There was no blue van involved. She was on a bus.

QUESTION: Did she initially say she was kidnapped?

SCHULTZ: She originally responded to the 911 dispatchers, as well as to responding officers, that she been, yes.

QUESTION: Is she still here at the substation and is she going to taken to the hospital?

SCHULTZ: She is no longer here at the substation. She in the custody of victims assistance specialists, who will stay with her until her family gets here.

QUESTION: Has she talked to her family?

SCHULTZ: Yes, she has.

QUESTION: How long was she in Albuquerque?

SCHULTZ: We're not exactly sure. She arrived sometime Friday evening or afternoon.

QUESTION: From Las Vegas, Nevada?

SCHULTZ: Yes.

QUESTION: On Greyhound?

SCHULTZ: I believe it was a Greyhound bus, yes.

QUESTION: Did she call her family first or...

SCHULTZ: She did make more than one phone call. We're not exactly sure who she called in which order.

QUESTION: (INAUDIBLE) change her appearance?

SCHULTZ: Her appearance is different, but I'm not exactly sure. I know her hair has been cut.

QUESTION: Any indication that she was traveling with anyone else (INAUDIBLE)?

SCHULTZ: She was not with any family members or friends. She did meet some folks, however, while she was on the bus.

QUESTION: Did she maintain the kidnapping story for four hours after she had made the 911 call?

SCHULTZ: There was a period of time before she eventually told us what the true story was, yes, sir.

QUESTION: Can you give us any indication of where she had gone.

SCHULTZ: Las Vegas, Nevada.

QUESTION: No, but here.

SCHULTZ: She was just -- wandered the southeast area. Yes.

QUESTION: Did she make any statements -- once she got to Albuquerque, met people? I mean, you said she made some friends on the bus. Did she just meander around aimlessly, according to her, or (INAUDIBLE) SCHULTZ: No, basically, she just walked around town for a while until she made that 911 call.

QUESTION: Does she have any personal connection to Albuquerque at all or (INAUDIBLE) reason why...

SCHULTZ: No.

QUESTION: Is there any particular turning point that made her decide to tell the truth? Was it under intense questioning? How did she finally tell?

SCHULTZ: I don't know. I just know she was in discussion with detectives and agents and she decided that she needed to do the right thing and tell the right story, the true story.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

HARRIS: Hmm.

NGUYEN: In Jennifer Wilbanks' hometown of Duluth, Georgia, police are confirming it was cold feet -- well, you heard it there, too -- that took her to New Mexico. And they say they are awaiting her return, as are many folks in Duluth.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

CHIEF RANDY BELCHER, DULUTH, GEORGIA POLICE DEPT: As you all know, the last three or four days, we've been looking for Miss Jennifer Wilbanks, who came up missing after she had gone for a jog last Tuesday afternoon. I'm happy to announce that this morning at 2:00 a.m., we located Miss Wilbanks, and she was in Albuquerque, New Mexico. The police, through direction, was able to find her. The FBI, then, took Miss Wilbanks, and took her to their headquarters and, again, talking to Miss Wilbanks to determine what had taken place.

Originally it appeared that she been kidnapped, but after talking to the FBI, it turns out that Miss Wilbanks basically felt the pressure of this large wedding and could not handle it and, therefore, she got on a Greyhound bus, and she went to Albuquerque, New Mexico. So at this point in time, we're just waiting for Miss Wilbanks to come back. The family will be making a statement shortly and right now we expect that when she comes back, her and the family will go through a time where they can try to heal one another and put this behind them. Thank you.

QUESTION: Will there be criminal charges pressed?

BELCHER: No criminal charges.

QUESTION: Who's speaking for the family?

(END VIDEO CLIP)

NGUYEN: And since the chief spoke, Wilbanks' family made a statement saying Jennifer has issues that they were not aware of and they say they want to help her when she does come back to Georgia.

This, of course, is going to be the story that everybody's going to be talking about today. No doubt.

HARRIS: The most popular story at cnn.com?

NGUYEN: I predict it is. Yes.

HARRIS: It's this one. We'll check in with Christina Park in just a couple of minutes.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

NGUYEN: We are still following the case of the runaway bride-to- be. It was not an abduction after all, as we have learned from Albuquerque police today. But Jennifer Wilbanks just got nervous about her wedding and fled Georgia. So what is the latest on this situation? It seems like we were all duped in it, including her fiance.

We want to go now to Chris Molineaux (sic) outside that fiance's home in Georgia -- Charles, that is. Charles, what's the latest there? Have you heard from the fiance at all? What's his reaction to this?

MOLINEAUX: The entire family has been pretty quiet, but our understanding is that while both of Jennifer's parents have left to head out to Albuquerque, her fiance, John Mason, is still here. Does this mean he's not going? Not sure yet, but it's beginning to look like that may, indeed, be the case. What happened? how did we get to this point? Jennifer taking off abruptly and making up this story about being kidnapped.

Well, we talked to someone actually who's been very close to her as she has gotten ready for her wedding. Actually, a good friend of hers who's in the process of preparing for a wedding herself. Melinda Larson has been close to Jennifer on a couple of fronts, a good, longtime friend of both John and Jennifer. We spoke with her when the news came out. A tough time for this whole family. Listen to what she had to say.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

MELINDA LARSON, FRIEND OF GROOM, JOHN MASON: I'm certain that it's just a wave of emotion people are experiencing this right now. It's shocking, it's overwhelming, and it's baffling.

MOLINEAUX: Now, actually, you're a little closer to Jennifer on this than just about every single person involved, because you actually are going to a wedding, too, in just a few weeks and you've been dealing with this together. Can you give us any idea clue about where her head might be?

LARSON: Well, anybody that's planning a wedding knows that it's stressful, there's drama, it's challenging, it's overwhelming. There's so much pressure involved. 95 percent falls on the bride. So the fact that there's stress and concern regarding the pressures involved with the wedding is of no surprise to anyone that has ever planned a wedding.

MOLINEAUX: What would you want to say to Jennifer?

LARSON: We love you. We're glad you're OK. That's all that matters.

MOLINEAUX: What about John? John's got to be having a real hard time as the guy who's suddenly, once again, back in the middle of this after what looked like a break. What about him?

LARSON: John, it's just -- we love you, and whatever you need right now. John and Jennifer are going to take this one day at a time. And at this point, the overriding factor is that Jennifer is alive.

MOLINEAUX: Early on in this investigation from the family and from police, we heard that the idea she might have just had cold feet and taken off was pretty much not in consideration. Where would that have sat with you if the idea was broached?

LARSON: Having cold feet is a joy compared to what the alternative could have been.

MOLINEAUX: What about the idea that it might have that with her? Did you discern anything along these lines as you were doing the same thing together, planning your weddings?

LARSON: No, it did not cross my mind at all.

MOLINEAUX: Was she stressed? Did she look she might have had some deep dread, anything along those lines?

LARSON: No deep dread. Stress, absolutely. Weddings are extremely challenging, overwhelming. A wonderful occasion, but tend to consume your time, your life, and all of your energy in the actual planning. So stress is a definite.

MOLINEAUX: It looks like we are not going to see this great, big wild party, this joyous reunion that we anticipated, but she is OK. What do you think will happen now? What should happen now with this family?

LARSON: Jennifer and John need space, they need time and they need privacy to deal with things at hand.

MOLINEAUX: Can you see how something like this might have materialized as someone a very similar situation?

LARSON: I think Jennifer had no idea that this would turn into a criminal investigation. And had she known, I think that things would have been handled probably a little differently, but sometimes things take a life of their own, just like weddings.

MOLINEAUX: Thank you very much, Melinda Larson. Appreciate your talking to us. A friend of both Jennifer and John's on a day that is turning out to be relieved, happy, but also a little bit more difficult for this...

(END VIDEOTAPE)

MOLINEAUX: Well back now live here, and those insights from somebody who's been there and, of course, keeping in mind that we are dealing with a wedding that was going to be enormous, and if there were any of these issues that anybody might have been concerned about, and people do pull out of weddings all the time, but the circumstances here obviously, dramatically different and unfortunately, splashed all over the front page for all of America to see.

A situation that might be a personal one between a couple has suddenly become a matter for law enforcement, the FBI and now the media, as we look at this unfold, and try to figure out what it was that could have prompted Jennifer to done what it looks like she did. So a tough story for this family, now coming to grips with it. As we understand it, her fiance John Mason, still here, while her parents have gone off on their way to Albuquerque for a reunion.

Again, the fact is, yes, she is OK. She was apparently not abducted. That's the good news. The bad news is that it's a little more complicated than that -- Tony, Betty.

NGUYEN: Charles, it causes me to wonder, looking back -- hindsight, they say is 20/20 -- did anyone that you spoke with today even allude to these wedding jitters that she may have had?

MOLINEAUX: Oh, yes, absolutely and they dismissed it categorically. The only people who entertained the idea were the police, who said early on in this investigation that, well, yes, sometimes you'll have a guy go off for cigarettes and suddenly vanish on the eve of his wedding. That is something the police at least had somewhere in the back of their minds as a possibility, but time and time again, even as we heard the story of Jennifer being kidnapped, the notion that she might have had cold feet, that she might have had misgivings, that she might have just taken off of her own accord, was dismissed yet again. Oh, that could not possibly have happened.

Her mother, who I spoke to earlier, said that she was so excited, so thrilled about it. On Sunday, she got together for the final bridal shower for the wedding, which, remember, was scheduled to be today and the bridesmaids tell us she was thrilled and excited about this upcoming wedding. Part of that was a component of the worry when she abruptly disappeared, because the notion that she might have had some misgivings was so quickly dismissed. So it certainly entertained, but also very quickly dismissed. Nobody, with the possible exception of a few police, thought that this is the way it might have panned out.

NGUYEN: Well, they believe it now. Charles Molineaux outside the fiance's home there in Duluth, Georgia. Thank you for that.

And of course, we are going to continue to follow this story throughout the morning. A lot of unanswered questions. We'll try to find some of those answers for you. Stay tuned. We're going to take a quick break. You're watching CNN Saturday morning.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

NGUYEN: Christina Park from dot-com joins us right now. And Christina, I'm going to make your job easy. This is the number one story of the day, the runaway bride-to-be.

CHRISTINA PARK, CNN.COM CORRESPONDENT: Surprised, Betty?

NGUYEN: No, no, not at all.

PARK: That's right. This is -- this morning, our users are in sync with CNN viewers. The most clicked on story right now, the case of the Georgia missing bride-to-be, as Betty told you, solved on what was supposed to be her wedding day. This is such a bizarre story. It has been one of our most popular stories this week since Jennifer Wilbanks disappeared, this morning, with the surprise turn of events, it hit the number one spot and has stayed at number one on cnn.com as the most clicked on report, beating out other news stories.

Our readers on cnn.com are finding out, as CNN viewers are, learning about 32-year-old Jennifer Wilbanks wasn't abducted after all. Instead, she made up the story of being kidnapped because she got cold feet. Georgia police say Wilbanks couldn't handle the pressure of a large wedding and took off because she needed some time alone.

And you can watch the story unfold from the very beginning at cnn.com and for the rest of your most popular stories of the moment, just log on to cnn.com and click on most popular at the top right-hand side of your screen. Back to you, Betty.

NGUYEN: Definitely the most popular story. We're going to be talking about it for a while this morning. Thanks for that update, Christina.

PARK: Thanks, Betty.

NGUYEN: We appreciate that.

And right now, we're going to take a quick break. We'll continue the coverage, as I just mentioned, of the runaway bride-to-be. Stay with us.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

NGUYEN: ... now it turns out she made up the whole story. Wilbanks apparently had taken a bus first to Las Vegas, then to New Mexico. She was due to be married today.

It's been another bloody day in Iraq, two children are killed, six other people wounded, in a suicide car bombing in eastern Baghdad. Police say the bomb targeted a joint Iraqi-U.S. military convoy. Meanwhile, the U.S. military says four soldiers were killed and two others wounded in an explosion near the city of Mosul.

And the latest fallout from the Iraq prison abuse scandal. U.S. Private First Class Lynndie England will plead guilty to seven of nine charges connected to the Abu Ghraib scandal. Her lawyer says under the plea deal, she could go to prison for up to 11 years.

HARRIS: Let's take a moment now and just sort of recap where we are with this amazing story of Jennifer Wilbanks, the 32-year-old bride-to-be, scheduled to be married this evening in Duluth, Georgia, who disappeared from her home Tuesday evening after telling her fiance she was going for a jog, did not take with her any identification, no cash, no keys, no cell phone, simply left, and at about a couple hours later, her fiance, John Mason, started an individual search for her, could not find her, checked with hospitals, could not find where his fiance had gone, began to call family members to indicate that she was, in fact, missing and had disappeared.

There was an extensive search over two, two-and-a-half days of a five-square-mile-radius area in Duluth, Georgia, that took in part of Sewanee, Georgia, which is a couple of communities very close together. There were a couple of items found, first a couple of sweatshirts, and then a pair of sweatpants. Then there was this clump of hair, this clump of hair that was found and then sent to the Georgia Bureau of Investigation's lab. We found out yesterday afternoon that that clump of hair was consistent with the color of Jennifer Wilbanks's hair.

We eventually learned that Jennifer Wilbanks called her family shortly after 1:00, 1:30, 1:40 this morning, to tell them that she had been abducted, but that she was safe, she was sound, that she had been dropped off, presumably because of all of the media attention connected to this, that she had been dropped off by her kidnappers, who she described as a white woman and possibly a Hispanic male, at a convenience store.

She was picked up there by authorities in Albuquerque, where she finally told the truth of the situation, the real story, that she had, in fact, become nervous, stressed out about this wedding that was planned for this evening, and that she needed some time away, and that, in fact, what she had done is hopped on a bus, a Greyhound bus, first for Las Vegas, and then later, another bus to Albuquerque, New Mexico.

At this point, we know that she is fine, we know that the family is scheduled to leave their home in Duluth to reunite with Jennifer at about 11:00 a.m. We understand, first, from Albuquerque authorities that no charges will be filed on that end, and we learned a short time ago, from the police chief here in Duluth, Georgia, that no charges will be filed on this end as well.

As you might imagine, Jennifer Wilbanks's family was stunned, to say the least, when they learned she had ran away due to concern about the pending marriage. A family spokesman talked about it just about an hour ago.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP) MIKE SATTERFIELD, WILBANKS FAMILY SPOKESMAN: In light of additional information the family has received, we would like to make the following statement.

We're so proud, first of all, that Jennifer is alive and well. We can't stress enough that is the most important fact that has occurred today.

We're so appreciative, also, to all the people who have supported us, have supported the family, have supported this community in all their efforts.

It has been determined that Jennifer has some issues the family was not aware of. We're looking forward to loving her and talking with her concerning these issues. The family would appreciate some time and space to assist Jennifer concerning these issues.

Again, we want to thank everyone, especially everyone. There's so many people that have helped us during this event. We want to thank all of them. We were a team, we went forward, we accomplished what we sought to do, and that was to bring Jennifer back. And she is alive and well, and that's what means so much to us.

And we thank you all so much.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

HARRIS: Family spokesman a short time ago offering us the reaction of the family to this news.

Jennifer Wilbanks apparently called her family home from a pay phone in Albuquerque, New Mexico. A phone call then made to Albuquerque police a short time later. Officers found Jennifer at a convenience store.

Ellen Goldberg joins us now live from Albuquerque affiliate KOAT. She is with the Albuquerque chief of police. Ellen?

ELLEN GOLDBERG, REPORTER, KOAT-TV, ALBUQUERQUE: Yes, we are here at the police substation where Jennifer Wilbanks was questioned overnight.

I'm joined by Chief Ray Schultz, who, I should mention, has only been on the job now for two weeks.

Chief, what can you tell us about the phone call that was made from that 7-Eleven? What did she say, and who did she call first?

CHIEF RAY SCHULTZ, ALBUQUERQUE, NEW MEXICO, POLICE DEPARTMENT: Well, we're not exactly if she called us first or she actually called her family back in Georgia. But the original call that came into 911 is that she had been abducted in Georgia and been held captive for the last four days.

GOLDBERG: And so officers brought her here to this police substation. How many hours was it before she admitted that she had made this hoax up?

SCHULTZ: It was a little bit over four hours. There were several inconsistencies in her stories. And as the story kept being retold and retold, it was a little bit different each time, until eventually she told us that we did not need to look for that blue van, that it was a hoax.

GOLDBERG: And a case of cold feet for a bride-to-be?

SCHULTZ: That's what it looks like. Looks like she was just very stressed out over a very large wedding and series of events that were to occur today.

GOLDBERG: And you had a chance to see Jennifer Wilbanks. How did she appear physically, and how did she seem mentally?

SCHULTZ: Well, she's obviously very, very distressed. She does look different. Her hair's been cut. She was in disarray and disheveled.

GOLDBERG: How long do you think she had been in the Albuquerque area?

SCHULTZ: To all indications, she came into town late yesterday evening, spent a couple hours in the southeast heights, just kind of walking around on Central Avenue, till she just got tired and made that call.

GOLDBERG: OK, and she left here around 12:30 Mountain time, was taken to the victims' assistance unit. Tell us exactly what that is, and how the morning will unfold for she and her family.

SCHULTZ: What's going to happen is, victims' assistance personnel, from both APD and the FBI, will stay with her. We're going to get her cleaned up a little bit, and then we will make sure that she's reunited with her family when they fly into Albuquerque some (INAUDIBLE) later today.

GOLDBERG: And you have been very clear the Albuquerque Police Department does not plan to file any charges against Jennifer Wilbanks?

SCHULTZ: I don't think so. I think most of her problems are back in Georgia. She's got a lot of serious issues she needs to address back there with the authorities and her family. And that's probably the best thing to happen.

GOLDBERG: All right, Chief Ray Schultz, thank you very much.

And again, Jennifer Wilbanks getting showered and cleaned up and will be reunited with her family here in Albuquerque a bit later this morning.

Back to you.

HARRIS: OK. Ellen, is the chief still standing by you? GOLDBERG: Yes, he is still here.

HARRIS: OK, a quick question for you. I'm curious if you could ask the chief, what was the moment in her story where investigators began to feel concerned or began to have questions as to whether or not they were getting the real deal from Jennifer.

GOLDBERG: Chief, at what point in her story did you feel that -- that you became concerned that she wasn't necessarily telling the truth?

SCHULTZ: There were just a lot of holes in her story. She just didn't know a whole lot. There were a lot of unaccounted time. And if she'd been with somebody for four days, I think she would have probably known a little bit more information than she had.

GOLDBERG: OK. Hope that answers your question.

HARRIS: OK.

NGUYEN: Ellen, I have a question for you. Ellen, this is Betty Nguyen. I have a question for you to ask the chief there. Did it appear at any time that she may have had help from somebody else? Because what we knew in the search was that she left with no identification, no monies, no keys. Did she present any information that she may have been helped in any way?

GOLDBERG: OK. Chief, they'd also like to know, she left her house with no money, no keys. Is there any indication she got any help from anyone, any assistance to stay on the road as long as she did?

SCHULTZ: Not at this time in the assistance. But again, there's going to be additional follow-up investigation. We know she did have some money with her, though.

GOLDBERG: OK. But you do believe that she ran out of money? Is that what ultimately caused her to pick up that pay phone?

SCHULTZ: That's what it looks like. Looks like she had enough money to get from Vegas to Albuquerque, and this is just where she ran out and ended up at.

GOLDBERG: All right. Apparently ran out of money and called home.

All right, back to you.

HARRIS: And Ellen, I'm sorry, we just have so many questions on this, and I apologize.

GOLDBERG: OK.

HARRIS: Was she still in that, the sweatsuit? The description of what she was wearing when she went out to jog was a sweatshirt, sweatpants, and New Balance tennis shoes. Was she wearing those items when she was found?

GOLDBERG: All right, chief, the description when she disappeared was that she was wearing a sweatpants and a sweatshirt and tennis shoes. Was she wearing that exact clothing when she was located here in Albuquerque?

SCHULTZ: All I saw was a sweatshirt. She had the sweatshirt on. I believe it was an Old Navy-style sweatshirt.

GOLDBERG: An Old Navy. And it did appear that she cut her own hair as well, right?

SCHULTZ: Her hair was cut, and it did look like it was, yes, done by her.

GOLDBERG: OK. Thank you very much.

Back to you.

HARRIS: All right. Ellen, we appreciate it. Thanks for your patience.

GOLDBERG: Thank you.

HARRIS: We're going to take a break, and we're going to continue our coverage of this developing story.

You're watching CNN SATURDAY MORNING.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

NGUYEN: Let's get you up to speed on the case of missing Jennifer Wilbanks, the bride-to-be.

Well, it turns out today, according to Albuquerque police, that it's not an abduction after all, it's a case of wedding-day jitters. She got nervous about the wedding and headed out of town to Las Vegas and then to New Mexico, where she was discovered today, and will be reunited with her family there shortly this morning.

HARRIS: Other stories to tell you about, and one particularly dangerous weather event is beginning to take shape in Alabama.

(WEATHER FORECAST)

HARRIS: We're going to take a break and come back with more of our continuing coverage of this developing story, Jennifer Wilbanks, found alive and well, but the story she's telling, well, that has amounted to one tall tale.

We'll be right back.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

NGUYEN: Let's get you a recap now on today's top stories. A story with several twists and turns in the case of a missing Georgia bride-to-be. Jennifer Wilbanks is alive. It turns out she was not abducted last night, or last Tuesday night, although that's what she told her family very early this morning when she called them. Instead, FBI officials in Albuquerque, New Mexico, where she was found overnight today, she took a bus to Las Vegas and then to Albuquerque. That shocking news came just a little after 7:00 a.m. Eastern. Now, Jennifer Wilbanks is safe. She is alive. The wedding, which was scheduled for 6:30 this evening, that has been postponed indefinitely.

HARRIS: And we're joined now on the phone by Gregory, Dr. Gregory Kuhlman. He is a psychologist. He is also a teacher, a professor, at City University of New York.

Dr. Kuhlman, are you there?

DR. GREGORY KUHLMAN, CITY UNIVERSITY OF NEW YORK (on phone): Yes, I am.

HARRIS: Well, we're going to put you on spot a little bit here. You have the unenviable task of trying to explain for us what Jennifer Wilbanks might have been thinking in these days leading up to what is, was, by all accounts, going to be a huge wedding.

KUHLMAN: Yes. Well, I think she was thinking what a lot of brides are thinking before their wedding. She was, perhaps, worried about some changes in her relationship with her fiance. This is very common. You know, cold feet is the number-one hit on our Web site, stayhitched.com, for premarital couples.

And as couples draw closer to the wedding, they start to encounter differences. When they decide to get married, they're often in the romantic phase of their relationship. And as the wedding gets closer, there's more and more to disagree about. Wedding planning itself is, you know, extremely stressful, and I understand that she had just moved in with her fiance within the last couple of weeks, also a very stressful event.

HARRIS: Yes, and they were making changes to the home. She was ordering new interior designs and things of that sort. So there was a lot of things going on all at the same time, and I know that in -- there's this sense that you can only handle so many major stressors in your life at the same time. And it sounds like moving in together, trying to establish a home together, and all of the events surrounding this marriage and the planning of it, may have joined forces to make this just too much of an event for her to handle.

KUHLMAN: Yes. Just a little too many stress points.

HARRIS: So what...

KUHLMAN: (INAUDIBLE)...

HARRIS: No, go ahead.

KUHLMAN: I was going to say, when all these differences come up, you know, that a lot of couples don't have the communication skills to effectively talk about all of these sensitive differences that are starting to come up for them right before the wedding. And so they get overloaded. The women get overloaded, but the guys get overloaded even more. Guys are more prone to overload by stress.

HARRIS: Do you learn more about your potential spouse during these -- I guess I know the answer to the question I'm about to ask, but I'd love to hear your opinion on it. Do you learn more about your potential spouse during this run-up to what is undoubtedly a stressful, but should be a very joyous and happy occasion in your life?

KUHLMAN: Well, yes. You do learn more about your future spouse during this period, because you're having a lot of interaction. But you learn a lot, but the problem is that a lot of people misinterpret what they learn, you know. They're thinking that a successful marriage for them is based on compatibility. And certainly compatibility is important. But, you know, all couples, even happily married couples, have five to seven areas of unresolvable difference.

And when people find out about these things leading up to the wedding, it worries them a lot, and sometimes unnecessarily.

Of course, there are things that couples should worry about. But a lot of what couples run into are very, very normal things that shouldn't cause them as much concern as it understandably does when they don't understand what's going on.

HARRIS: Well, so it wouldn't surprise anyone to know that perhaps the couple had been going through some difficult moments leading up to all this, and had, maybe, in fact, been arguing about some of the planning, some of the things that were going on leading up to this wedding.

KUHLMAN: That would be very common.

HARRIS: We would expect something like that. But I guess what I'm trying to get at is, because of the pressure of the circumstances, do I hear you saying that we might interpret those arguments differently if all of the stress of this event weren't factored in?

KUHLMAN: Yes, of course. And, you know, when they misinterpret these arguments, they think they've chosen that -- or that they may have chosen the wrong person to get married to, because they think that if they had -- if they've chosen the right person, if this was really their soul mate, people call it nowadays, they -- if they had chosen the right person, that they wouldn't be having these fights and they wouldn't be having these differences.

And it's just not true. You know, most people, I would venture to say, have these kinds of disagreements and upsets before they get married.

HARRIS: But Doctor, let me move it forward a bit. There's one thing to go through this bout of cold feet, nerves, anxiety, over this wedding. There's another thing to disappear the way she did, and to ultimately craft this kind of a story.

What can you tell us about that chain of events?

KUHLMAN: Well, yes, I think that, you know, this is obviously a little bit of an extreme reaction on her part. And we don't -- we're not privy to everything...

HARRIS: Sure.

KUHLMAN: ... that going on in their relationship. But I don't think it's unusual for a bride or a groom, you know, to go off and stay with friends and to tell their fiance that they need a little time alone to think things over, and, you know -- that's not an unusual reaction.

But I think it's unusual that she didn't leave a note or call sooner.

HARRIS: Yes. (INAUDIBLE)...

KUHLMAN: You know, and then, you know, she's probably, she was probably embarrassed and frightened when she realized, you know, what she had -- the situation she had gotten her fiance and her family into. And, you know, her parents, no doubt, have a lot of money riding on the wedding, you know, all these pressures.

HARRIS: Doctor, we appreciate your taking the time to talk to us. hank you.

KUHLMAN: My pleasure.

NGUYEN: Well, many people are trying to understand exactly why she may have ran away. I think folks out there also are wondering, how's her fiance doing? How is he holding up under all of this? What are his plans?

We want to go now to CNN's Charles Molineaux, who is outside Jennifer Wilbanks's fiance's home.

Do you have any idea when we will hear from him or the family again?

MOLINEAUX: That's a tough one to guess. We actually may get something of a clue as to what's going on for this poor guy shortly, actually. Alan Jones (ph) is the Peachtree Corner's Baptist church assistant pastor. Now, he is the guy who was actually going to marry John Mason and Jennifer Wilbanks. And he is the one who has been dealing with them as a couple, as they have been getting ready for their wedding.

Well, we are actually going to be hearing from him, probably in about 10 minutes. We're going to carrying that live, of course, here on CNN, as we get some idea as to what this family is dealing with, perhaps from someone who has a better idea than most as to what this couple was like as they headed towards what was supposed to be this joyous day, which, of course, has now turned into a, well, a real fiasco, and, of course, has been riding with these people as they have gone through this intense situation, one twist after another, Tuesday night she disappears, there's concerns about her well-being, and all of a sudden, he's gone from the guy counseling this family as they head for this wedding to the support as they deal with this crisis.

Then the news that Jennifer is OK, and now the news that perhaps there was a little trouble as she was headed towards this wedding, so eagerly anticipated.

So coming up in a few minutes, we're going to hear from Assistant Pastor Alan Jones, get some idea as to what he might have in the way of thoughts on this, and also to hear from the family and to hear from John Mason, as he deals with the real tough situation that this has turned into, the unqualified relief and joy that we were seeing just a couple hours ago has become very qualified indeed, as we deal with the fact that, for some reason, issues that the family was apparently unaware of, Jennifer decided that she was not quite prepared for this wedding.

We're standing by to hear more about this, but a very tough day, and the situation has obviously gotten a lot more somber than it was a little earlier.

NGUYEN: Charles, are people sticking around? There were so many cars this morning outside that home, people wanting to know, people elated, just celebrating at the fact that Jennifer is alive. And I don't think that's really changed. Very many of them are still very happy that she is indeed alive. But are they starting to leave? What's happening there at the house?

MOLINEAUX: Oh, I would say it is an awful lot quieter than it was a little bit earlier, yes. We saw the whole family and both families here celebrating together in the wee hours this morning when the news came out that Jennifer was OK, and the story was circulating that she had been kidnapped.

Of late, things have cleared out quite a bit. The parking lot over here, or the lawn, it turned into a parking lot over here, that's largely cleared up. And actually, Jennifer's parents and her step- parents have all already left. John Mason and his family are still here. We understand that Jennifer's family is heading to Albuquerque.

So, yes, a little concern, and obviously the climate has changed quite a bit from one of great joy to a lot of concern and a lot of questions.

NGUYEN: Yes, definitely a lot of questions. Charles Molineaux, outside the Mason home there in Duluth, Georgia. Thank you, Charles.

HARRIS: And stay with us. You're watching continuing coverage of this developing story. Jennifer Wilbanks has been found alive, but she has told an incredible story of an abduction that has proven to be completely false.

We'll be right back.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

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