Posted on 06/06/2002 4:59:30 AM PDT by HAL9000
The FBI is investigating a man who called himself an Army captain and looked through a briefcase and laptop computer belonging to a victim of last month's deadly interstate bridge collapse.The man, wearing fatigues and a beret, showed up within two hours of the Interstate 40 collapse and told the mayor he was in charge. He identified himself as Capt. William Clark.
Mayor Jewell Horne said Wednesday that the man told her Army Capt. Andrew Clements had died in the river and that his briefcase and laptop were in the water. A fisherman found the items the day of the collapse and gave them to a Webbers Falls police officer.
The officer gave the items to Clark, who took them and went through them, the mayor said. He brought the briefcase and computer to city hall later that day and asked the mayor to lock them in a safe.
He wanted the key, but Horne said she refused to give it to him.
"He kept trying to say that he was in charge," Horne said. "I finally looked at him and said, 'No, you're not. Until the governor declares martial law, you are not in charge in this town.'"
The mysterious man left Webbers Falls on Monday night, she said.
The mayor said it was eerie that the man knew Clements was among the victims even before his body was recovered.
"But he was correct," she said. "There was a Capt. Clements. There was a briefcase and there was a computer."
Clements, 35, of Woodbridge, Va., was among 14 people killed May 26 when a barge hit the Interstate 40 bridge, causing it to topple into the Arkansas River.
Horne said she was so busy answering phones and directing rescuers that she "didn't have time to think a lot" or check the man's credentials. Two volunteers from the Tulsa medical examiner's office eventually called authorities to check on him, she said.
The FBI, the Army and police in Van Buren and Fort Smith, Ark., are looking for the man, said FBI spokesman Gary Johnson. He said the man obtained goods and services by impersonated a rescue worker.
"It's certainly a very intense investigation," Johnson said.
Authorities are looking into whether the man stayed at a hotel in Van Buren, Ark., free under the auspices of taking part in the rescue operation.
The man also told an Associated Press reporter his name was Capt. William Clark and that he was from Fort Carson, Colo. The fort has no record of the man, said spokeswoman Kim Tisor.
Is this a Mothman Prophecy story or what?
Police in Van Buren, Ark., said the man showed up at a Super 8 motel on May 28, saying he was helping with the bridge collapse and needed eight rooms. The man put "Do Not Disturb" signs on seven of the rooms, which were never occupied, and slept in an eighth room for one or two nights, police Lt. Brent Grill said.He told police he was a captain with U.S. Special Forces and was on leave from Pakistan.
The man said the hotel rooms were for other rescuers and Clements' father.
"He tells a pretty good story," Grill said. "It's just pathetic that he would take advantage of a situation like this."
The man skipped out on the $900 bill for the hotel rooms, Grill said.
Grill said police were interviewing hotel employees and are "99 percent sure" they know the man's identity. He will be charged with theft of services, a felony.
The man also told an Associated Press reporter his name was Capt. William Clark and that he was from Fort Carson, Colo. The fort has no record of the man.
Worthy of note.
I'm afraid the enemies of America are many and deeply entrenched.
We are now back in Tom Clancy world. Here are some questions I have:
What was Captain Clements's specialty? What value was in the briefcase and computer? How did this person KNOW that Clements was in the water?
This is very, very weird.
Probably a underemployed Arkansian, left over from the Clinton era. Back in the good'ol days when Bubba was governor and then "Pres" work was plentiful ... what with Mena, drugs, Vince Foster, Kathleen Wiley, etc., etc., etc., a red neck good'ol boy could keep plenty busy.
Other guesses....
ROFL!!! That is a classic!
I can't stop laughing, thanks! :)
hmmmmmm ....
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.