Posted on 06/23/2002 6:01:27 PM PDT by mdittmar
Salt Lake City authorities trying to solve the kidnapping case of 14-year-old Elizabeth Smart were able to glean "helpful" information from a young drifter hospitalized in West Virginia, police said on Sunday.
But Bret Michael Edmunds, who was the subject of a nationwide search before he turned up at City Hospital in Martinsburg last week, is still not considered a suspect after undergoing two days of questioning in an intensive care unit guarded by U.S. marshals.
"At this time, he's still a witness. All along, that's all we wanted to talk to him about," said Salt Lake City Police Sgt. Fred Louis. "The information was helpful."
Salt Lake City Police Det. Jason Snow and FBI Special Agent James Stefanak, who arrived at Edmunds' hospital bedside to question him on Saturday morning, returned to Utah on Sunday. Louis said they were due to consult with lead detectives on the case before holding a news conference to discuss weekend events on Monday.
There was no word on what Edmunds told investigators, other than giving them his permission to search his car for hair, fibers and cloth. A preliminary examination of the vehicle turned up no sign of Smart.
Edmunds, 26, a transient with a criminal record and outstanding warrants against him, may have been seen by a milk deliveryman near the Smart family's million-dollar home two days before Elizabeth was abducted on June 5.
He disappeared from Utah soon after Smart's kidnapping and became the subject of a nationwide search.
Late last week, Edmunds checked himself into the Martinsburg hospital after an apparent drug overdose. He used an alias, but authorities soon discovered his true identity and impounded his car from the hospital parking lot.
The FBI charged him with the federal offense of unlawful flight to avoid prosecution in the Smart case. Separately, he is wanted on two warrants in Utah, including one for assaulting a police officer.
His condition on Sunday remained serious but stable. Hospital officials were expected to decide on Monday how much longer he would remain at their facility.
Elizabeth's 9-year-old sister Mary Katherine was the only witness to the abduction and has said the kidnapper had a gun and threatened Elizabeth's life. Police had said on Friday that they might record Edmunds' voice and play it for her.
The FBI charged him with the federal offense of unlawful flight to avoid prosecution in the Smart case.
Hmmm,very interesting?
Sounds like sloppy reporting to me. How can he be fleeing from PROSECUTION in the Smart case when he has been neither arrested nor indicted in that case?
Translation: "We didn't get a damn thing but we hope the real perp thinks we did".
Leni
Edmunds is being held on a federal warrant charging him with fleeing to avoid prosecution for a probation violation. The charges are unrelated to the Smart case.
Don't ever take ABC's word for anything.
That can include, he's not involved.
Disclaimer: Opinions posted on Free Republic are those of the individual posters and do not necessarily represent the opinion of Free Republic or its management. All materials posted herein are protected by copyright law and the exemption for fair use of copyrighted works.