SALT LAKE CITY — Elizabeth Smart's father is desperately hoping that an unsigned letter he received in the mail on Tuesday may help lead to the safe recovery of his kidnapped 14-year-old daughter Elizabeth.Smart said Wednesday that he suspects the letter may have come from someone with knowledge of his daughter's June 5 disappearance.
But he also said he could not say whether the letter was credible. It lacked any solid information that would indicate it came from a person with specific information about his daughter, Smart said.
"I received a letter, and basically the letter was written by another person on behalf of the abductor," he said. "I really don't know how credible it is.
"I want to be able to hear from him, to tell me, what is it he wants? Why? I truly do not know that.
"I'm just anxious to do whatever it's going to take to get her back," Smart said at a news conference.
He said police have a copy of the letter.
Tom Smart, Ed Smart's brother, said the family has received "thousands" of letters since Elizabeth disappeared. But Ed Smart said this one was the first that seemed to be from someone willing to negotiate.
"It was from a person they had talked to the abductor," he said, and it indicated the abductor was looking for a safe way to resolve the kidnapping.
The unsigned, typewritten letter postmarked July 3 bore no return address. Ed Smart said the police received a faxed copy before he received the original letter. He would not say whether the letter was mailed to his home.
Police have "absolutely nothing" to do with his decision to disclose it publicly, Smart said.
I just hope it isn't someone trying to scam them out of some money and add to their pain and suffering ..... there are some really crummy people in the world ..... *sigh*