Story seems a bit odd

[peppy]

I wonder what we haven't learned yet?

Police: 'Anything's a possibility' in disappearance of 10-year-old - CNN.com

[masraum]

bummer, seems pretty darn fishy to me. gotta like the immediate family for this one. Hopefully, it turns out to have a happy ending, but I'm not holding my breath.

[Jagshund]

Oh, man. That story has it all. Between the missing leg, hearing aids that were left behind, mother arrested for outstanding warrants and a small brush fire in the backyard- the family had something to do with it.

[peppy]

Originally Posted by 1968Cayman

Oh, man. That story has it all. Between the missing leg, hearing aids that were left behind, mother arrested for outstanding warrants and a small brush fire in the backyard- the family had something to do with it.

Don't forget cancer survivor.

[madmmac]

What about, I saw the kid at 2:30 in the morning????, but noticed she was missing at 2:00 in the afternoon?

[sammyg2]

Wow, who coulda saw this coming?

Stepmom Admits to Writing Ransom Note in North Carolina Missing Girl Case, Police Say
Published October 12, 2010
AP

HICKORY, N.C. – The search for a missing North Carolina girl turned from a missing person's case to a homicide investigation after the girl's stepmother admitted to writing a ransom found at the family's home, police said Tuesday.

Hickory Police Chief Tom Adkins said Elisa Baker confessed under police interrogation to writing a ransom note found on the windshield of one of the family's vehicles.

Adkins said Baker has been charged with felony obstruction of justice in the disappearance of 10 year-old Zahra Clare Baker, who was reported missing by her father, Adam Baker, on Saturday.

A police search of the home a day earlier turned up what appeared to be a ransom note addressed to Adam Baker's boss.

The note, which asked for $1 million, said, "Mr. Coffey, you like being in control now who is in control we have your daughter," WRAL-TV reports.

Police went to that man's house, and found him and his daughter to be fine.

Adkins said at a news conference Tuesday that he "cannot confirm with any confidence how long Zahra has been missing."

"We can't confirm anyone has seen Zahra within the past month," Adkins said. "Without this information, we cannot positively select the area to search for her."

K-9 units detected the smell of human remains on a sedan and SUV belonging to Adam and Elisa Baker during a search of the couple's home on Monday.

Zahra, described by neighbors as an upbeat girl who was battling bone cancer that left her with a prosthetic leg and hearing aids, was reported missing Saturday afternoon -- nearly 12 hours after Elisa Baker said she last saw her sleeping in her room.

Authorities, however, said it's unclear when the girl was last seen alive.

Elisa Baker was already being detained after she was arrested Sunday on a dozen charges unrelated to Zahra's disappearance -- including communicating threats, writing worthless checks, larceny and driving with a revoked license.

Adam Baker said during a morning TV interview on Monday that it was possible his wife could be involved in the disappearance, which was reported after a fire in the home's yard.

"I hate to say it but I don’t feel good about this," said a family friend who spoke to FoxNews.com on condition of anonymity. "I really think Elisa had something to do with it."

The girl's stepmother told her husband she last saw Zahra sleeping in her bed at 2:30 a.m. Saturday, about 2 1/2 hours before the fire was reported. Adam Baker said he was panicked after the fire, but didn't immediately check on his daughter.

Zahra, who is home-schooled, had two hearing aids, both of which were left at the house. Police said the girl also has a prosthetic leg from the knee down.

Family friends described the girl as shy but constantly smiling, in spite of her health problems. The stepmother could be short-tempered toward her, two former neighbors said, but the woman also fought tears when a charity fitted her for hearing aids a few months ago.

The police chief said he wouldn't rule out any suspects, including Adam Baker.

Adam Baker was asked if he thought his wife was involved and said, "I wouldn't like to think so. On what I've heard so far, it could be possible."

Kayla Rotenberry, a former neighbor, said she and her fiance were good friends with the Bakers when they lived in the nearby town of Sawmills, and saw Zahra often. About six months ago she noticed that Elisa Baker's hand was swollen, Rotenberry said.

"She told me that she was trying to spank Zahra, but hit her on her prosthetic leg," she said. "When Adam asked her about the injury, she said she fell and hurt her hand. She didn't want him to know. She knew he would be mad."

Another former neighbor, Brandy Stapleton, 22, of Lenoir, said that Elisa Baker told her the same story about how she injured her hand. "She wasn't the person everyone thought she was."

Adam Baker is from Australia, and met his current wife over the Internet, Stapleton said. Zahra's mother lives outside the U.S.

[peppy]

Hell has plenty of room for people like this.

[asphaltgambler]

That *unt will be driving the bus in the HOV lane to Hell...........PLEASE...DO NOT STOP.....DO NOT PASS GO

[peppy]

Zahra Clare Baker's Dad Adam Baker Taunted by Angry Crowd as He's Evicted


(Nov. 3) -- Onlookers standing outside the North Carolina home of Zahra Clare Baker taunted the missing disabled girl's father as his landlord announced he is evicting the Australian native.

"I'm putting him out on the street," Adam Baker's landlord told the crowd Tuesday. "I have no need to have any of his effects in the house and I'm not cleaning it out."

Meanwhile, this afternoon, the Hickory, N.C., police department announced that search teams discovered a bone that may be related to the case. Authorities said in a press release that the bone will be sent to the Medical Examiner's office in Chapel Hill for further examination. No other information was available.

Tuesday's eviction came shortly after an exclusive AOL News report that letters believed to be written by Zahra's stepmother claimed that her husband did something "kinda horrifying" with the young girl's remains.

"We really didn't kill her, but what he did after the fact is kinda horrifying," Elisa Baker wrote in letters to a crime memorabilia dealer who shared them with AOL News. A Hickory, N.C., law enforcement official confirmed that the letters likely were written by the girl's stepmother.

Baker's landlord, who is not identified in local media reports, gave no reason for the sudden eviction. However, he did say that recent searches of the home -- during which police removed flooring, plumbing and sections of the ceiling -- left the home uninhabitable, The Sydney Morning Herald reported.

More than a dozen onlookers watched as Baker gathered some of his belongings inside his Hickory, N.C., home Tuesday afternoon. According to the Hickory Daily Record, some of the crowd stood silent but others reportedly yelled taunts at him, calling him a "murderer."

Adam Baker's attorney, Mark Killian, had accompanied his client to the house. He declined to discuss the case with reporters but did say Baker was having a difficult time, the Herald reported.

"It's just real tough for him, obviously," Killian said.

Adam Baker told police he last saw his daughter sleeping in her bed about 2:30 a.m. Oct. 9. He said that he and his wife slept in that Saturday morning and did not notice Zahra was missing until about 2 p.m.
Adam Baker places his belongings in his truck after being evicted
Robert C. Reed, Hickory Daily Record
Adam Baker, father of the missing 10-year-old Zahra Clare Baker, was evicted from his Hickory, N.C., home on Tuesday.

During the investigation, specially trained dogs detected the scent of human remains on property belonging to the Adam and Elisa Baker. Dogs also detected similar scents during a recent search of property that reportedly belongs to a tree services company that recently employed Zahra's father for about six months.

On Monday, police confirmed that a prosthetic leg found last week belongs to the hearing-impaired girl, who lost her leg to bone cancer.

Tuesday, AOL News published excerpts from letters that were sent to Eric Gein, owner of Serial Killers Ink, one of the top-selling murderabilia websites. Gein told AOL News that he wrote to Baker in the Hickory, N.C., jail shortly after her arrest. He said he received two very telling letters from her. He shared copies of both with AOL News. On Tuesday night, the letters were highlighted on HLN's Nancy Grace.

"What she says about Zahra is that she blames the child," Grace said on her show Tuesday night. "All this -- in other words, the attention focused on Zahra's disappearance -- wouldn't have happened if Zahra had not been a cancer survivor from Australia. She actually blames Zahra for beating cancer. She goes on to whine about having to cover up her tattoos and body piercings, and how much she loves them, how she misses her warm waterbed. It goes on and on."

Hickory Deputy Chief of Police Clyde Deal acknowledged that the letters likely were written by Elisa Baker. "I think probably these letters were down at the jail," he said after AOL News showed them to him. "I am not a handwriting analyst, but I mean I wouldn't suspect that it didn't [come from her].

Deal told AOL News today that he has been busy with daily briefings and has not yet had time to meet with jail supervisors to get copies of Baker's latest jailhouse letters.

No one has been charged in connection with Zahra's disappearance; both Adam and Elisa Baker have denied any involvement. Killian said he had "no comment" about the letters. Jared Amos, Elisa Baker's attorney, also had no comment.

On Monday, a Catawaba County grand jury indicted Elisa Baker on a felony charge of obstruction of justice. She was charged last month after authorities say she admitted writing a fake ransom note to confuse authorities.

Elisa Baker was arrested previously on charges unrelated to the child's disappearance, including writing fraudulent checks, larceny and failure to appear. She is being held on $65,000 bond.

On Oct. 25, authorities arrested Adam Baker on charges unrelated to his daughter's disappearance. He faces one count of assault with a deadly weapon, one count of failure to return rental property, two counts of communicating threats and five counts of writing worthless checks.

Adam Baker posted $7,000 bond last week and was released from the Catawba County Jail. He is scheduled to appear in court Nov. 18.

Authorities are finished with their search of the Baker family home, according to local newspaper, and are busy today draining a pond near Christie Road. The location is not far from where police discovered Zahra's prosthetic leg last week.

"We're still hard at work on this investigation," Hickory Police Capt. Thurman Whisnant told the Herald. "We're checking every lead, and we've got a lot of evidence to be processed."

[peppy]

They found her.

Zahra Baker Case: Adam Baker Denies He Dismembered Daughter - ABC News

The father of North Carolina 10-year-old Zahra Baker denied that he had anything to do with the dismemberment of his daughter.

"There's no way I would do that to my baby," Adam Baker told CBS News' North Carolina affiliate WBTV. "There's no way in the world I would hurt my daughter."

Zahra, who had lost her left leg in a childhood battle with cancer, was dismembered after her death. Her remains were spread across several different places, Zahra's stepmother, Elisa Baker, told investigators , according to court documents filed as part of a bond reduction hearing.

Elisa Baker's attorneys also claim Baker led searchers to Zahra's prosthetic leg.

The leg, a bone fragment and the girl's remains were discovered in different locations.

Elisa Baker is in jail, being held on charges including felony obstruction of justice after she allegedly admitted to writing a fake ransom note following her stepdaughter's disappearance.

Adam Baker, 33, is currently free on bail after he was arrested on unrelated charges last month. His arrest occurred hours after Elisa began cooperating with investigators. He was later released on bond.

In jailhouse letters, Elisa Baker said her husband, Adam, did something "horrifying" to Zahra after she was dead. Adam Baker's attorney told ABC News Tuesday those claims were nothing more than a "desperate" attempt at distraction.

The case has received intense international media attention in the past several weeks. In part as a result of the public interest in Zahra's story, hundreds of people packed Hickory's Union Square Tuesday evening to remember her on what would have been her 11th birthday.

Elisa Baker's sister, April Fairchild, was at the vigil. She told WSOC-TV that her relationship with her sister kept her from seeing Zahra frequently and that the eintre family has now turned against Elisa.
Related
Zahra's Mom Trying to Believe in Dad's Innocence
Is It Her: Zahra Baker Search Uncovers Human Remains
Zahra Case: Dad Nabbed on Unrelated Charge

"Whether her story that she comes out with now is true, there is no justification even still," she said. "The family does not support her."

Two weeks before police announced they had discovered Zahra Baker's remains, Elisa Baker indicated in a jailhouse letter that the child was dead, but expressed no remorse or guilt -- only self-pity and vague accusations against her husband.

"I was trying to save us both, but why should I? He is letting everyone destroy me," Elisa Baker wrote, referring to Adam Baker.

In an earlier letter Elisa Baker wrote, "We really didn't kill her, but what he [Adam Baker] did after the fact is kinda horrifying."

In the latest letter, obtained exclusively by ABC News, Baker said she "ain't the monster people are saying."

She also said she was frustrated by her lawyer's refusal to allow her to do TV interview requests. "I want a chance to be heard damn it. This is my life and everyone is playing with and I have no control over what is said or done," she wrote.

She sarcastically commented on the negative media attention she's received. "Maybe I should just change my name to Evil, what do you think? LOL."

In the letter, written to crime memorabilia dealer Eric Gein, Baker says she will be living alone when she gets out of prison. In three rambling pages, she never mentions Zahra or any concern for her stepdaughter, who was still a missing person when the letter was written on Oct. 29. She also doesn't cite any remorse for the girl's disappearance.

Gein, who runs the website SerialKillersInk.net, told ABC News he contacted Elisa Baker by letter weeks ago under an assumed name. The most recent letter is the third he received in return.

ABC News has learned that Lisa Dubs, a capital punishment attorney, has been "provisionally appointed for any potential homicide charge" in Baker's defense, according to Baker's primary attorney Scott Reilly.

"Unfortunately, this man, who apparently goes by the false persona of 'Damien' used fraud and deceit with the sole intention of profiting from the disappearance of Zahra Baker," Dubs said in a statement to ABC News. "Ms. Baker unfortunately believed this man's representations that he only wanted to offer friendship and support during her incarceration. Much of the information in these letters is in response to specific questions posed by this man.

"The release of these letters is regrettable and only serves to sensationalize an already complicated situation," she added.

[peppy]

This has taken a long time.

Stepmother charged with murder in N.C. girl's death - CNN.com

(CNN) -- Elisa Baker, the stepmother of 10-year-old Zahra Baker, was indicted Monday on second-degree murder charges in the girl's death, a Catawba County, North Carolina, court clerk told CNN.

Zahra was reported missing from her Hickory, North Carolina, home in October, and some of her dismembered remains were found a month later.

Elisa Baker, 42, "desecrated the victim's body to hinder detection, investigation and prosecution of the offense," the indictment said.

The stepmother already was charged with obstruction of justice after police said she admitted to planting a fake ransom note. She told police the girl was killed two weeks before she was reported missing, according to search warrants.

"The defendant had a history and pattern of physical, verbal and psychological abuse of the victim," the indictment said. The indictment described Zahra as "very young, physically infirm, or handicapped."

The girl lost part of her left leg at age 5 and lost hearing in both ears while being treated for cancer.

"The defendant took advantage of a position of trust or confidence, including a domestic relationship, to commit the offense," the indictment said.

District Attorney Jay Gaither said Monday that the state "has no credible evidence to suggest that anyone other than Elisa Baker" was involved in the killing.
Police: Blood in Zahra Baker's home
RELATED TOPICS

* Zahra Baker
* Elisa Baker

Documents released after Zahra's remains were found in November tell a grisly story.

The stepmother said the disabled girl's body was dismembered and disposed of in various locations, documents said.

A search warrant dated October 27 shows police were looking for latex gloves used to dismember Zahra and trash bags used to store body parts.

Hickory Chief of Police Tom Adkins called the indictment a "milestone" in the case -- "holding someone accountable that members of 'team Zahra' have been working towards since the first words spoken on that 911 call" in October, reporting the girl missing.

Elisa Baker was also charged last month with bigamy. She is accused of marrying the girl's father before divorcing her previous husband, a Catawba County court official said.

[azasadny]

Those investigators are rocket scientists!!

[oldE]

Art,

A good friend who used to be an RCMP officer said several times he knew someone was guilty, but until he had evidence which would hold up in court could say nothing which would prejudice his case.
It may seem at times investigators are blind, or plodding, but consider for a minute they 'know' but need the evidence.

Horrific story.
Les

[masraum]

Wow, the step mom is a real winner. What a nutter.