Posted on 08/17/2006 5:29:08 AM PDT by varyouga
(Bangkok, Thailand-AP, Aug. 17, 2006 Updated 8:08 AM) _ A former American school teacher said publicly Thursday he was with JonBenet Ramsey when she was killed and called the 6-year-old's death "an accident," a stunning admission that should help answer 10 years of questions in the unsolved murder case. "I am so very sorry for what happened to JonBenet," he told The Associated Press.
John Mark Karr, 41, will be taken within the week to Colorado, where he will face charges of first degree murder, kidnapping and child sexual assault, Ann Hurst of the Department of Homeland Security told a news conference in Bangkok.
"I was with JonBenet when she died," Karr told reporters afterward, visibly nervous and stuttering as he spoke. "Her death was an accident."
Asked if he was innocent of the crime, Karr said: "No."
Later, as he was escorted to his guesthouse to pick up his belongings, he told the AP: "I am so very sorry for what happened to JonBenet. It's very important for me that everyone knows that I love her very much, that her death was unintentional, that it was an accident."
Asked what happened when JonBenet died, he said: "It would take several hours to describe that. It's a very involved series of events that would involve a lot of time. It's very painful for me to talk about it."
Karr also told the AP he contacted JonBenet's mother, Patsy Ramsey, before her death in June and that he wrote her letters about "many things." He said he hoped that she received the letters.
Karr confessed to the killing after his arrest Wednesday at his downtown Bangkok guesthouse by Thai and American authorities, said Lt. Gen. Suwat Tumrongsiskul, head of Thailand's immigration police.
He said Karr insisted his crime was not first-degree murder but that JonBenet died during a kidnapping attempt that went awry.
"He said it was second-degree murder. He said it was unintentional," Suwat said.
"He said he loved this child, that he was in love her. He said she was very pretty, a pageant queen. She was the school star, she was very cute and sweet," Suwat said.
Karr declined to say what his connection was to the Ramsey family. Dressed in a turquoise polo shirt and khaki trousers, he appeared ashen with an expressionless look on his face.
An attorney for the Ramsey family said Wednesday that Karr once lived near the family in Conyers, Ga.
JonBenet was found beaten and strangled in the basement of the family's home in Boulder, Colo., on Dec. 26, 1996.
Wednesday's arrest was a surprise development in one of America's most lurid murder cases, which had left a cloud of suspicion over her family after years went by with no arrests. Some feared the case would never be solved.
Striking video images of the blonde-haired girl in child beauty pageants helped propel the case into one of the highest-profile mysteries in the United States.
A law enforcement source, speaking on condition of anonymity, told the AP that Karr had been communicating periodically with somebody in Boulder who had been following the case and cooperating with law enforcement officials.
A University of Colorado spokesman, Barrie Hartman, said journalism professor Michael Tracey communicated with Karr over several months and contacted police. The university spokesman said he didn't know what prompted Tracey to become suspicious of Karr.
Tracey produced a documentary in 2004 called "Who Killed JonBenet?" A woman who answered the phone at a number under his name said he didn't live there anymore; his office phone mailbox was full.
DNA was found beneath JonBenet's fingernails and inside her underwear, but Lin Wood, the family's longtime attorney, said two years ago that detectives were unable to match it to anyone in an FBI database. It was not known whether investigators had any DNA evidence against Karr.
The Ramseys learned that police were investigating Karr at least a month before Patsy Ramsey's death in June of ovarian cancer, the family said.
In a statement Wednesday, father John Ramsey said that if his wife had lived to see Karr's arrest, she "would no doubt have been as pleased as I am with today's development almost 10 years after our daughter's murder."
Suwat quoted Karr as saying he tried to kidnap JonBenet for a $118,000 ransom but that his plan went awry and he strangled her. Patsy Ramsey reported finding a ransom note in the house demanding $118,000 for her daughter.
Investigators said at one point that JonBenet's parents were under an "umbrella of suspicion" in the slaying, and some news accounts cast suspicion on JonBenet's older brother, Burke. But the Ramseys insisted an intruder killed their daughter, and no one was ever charged.
Over the years, some experts suggested that investigators had botched the case so thoroughly that it might never be solved. The Ramseys moved back to Atlanta after their daughter's slaying.
"It's been a very long 10 years, and I'm just sorry Patsy isn't here for me to hug her neck," said Wood, the family attorney.
"John and Patsy lived their lives knowing they were innocent, trying to raise a son despite the furor around them," Wood told MSNBC.
Suwat said U.S. authorities informed Thai police on Aug. 11 that an arrest warrant had been issued for Karr on charges of premeditated murder. The warrant was sent to Thai police on Wednesday.
"Through investigation we were able to determine where his residence was and the Thais arrested him," Hurst said. "He did not resist. He did express surprise."
Hurst said Karr has been "very cooperative" with authorities and that he's shown a "variety of emotions."
Suwat said Karr arrived in Bangkok on June 6 from Malaysia to look for a teaching job. It was not clear whether he had gotten a job, the police officer said.
Karr's visa has been revoked as an "undesirable person" given the accusations against him, and U.S. authorities were expected to take him to the United States in the next few days, Suwat said.
Hurst, with the department's U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement in Bangkok, said that Karr had left the United States several years ago and had not returned.
The immigration and customs office had assisted the Boulder County District Attorney's Office and the Royal Thai Police in the investigation.
The suspect, who has been in Thailand five times over the past two years, was being detained by immigration police pending arrival of U.S. officials, Suwat said.
When asked how he could travel for so many years in Asia, and whether he was independently wealthy, Hurst responded, "We're asking the same questions."
Police said Karr had been living in a dormitory-style guesthouse called The Blooms in a neighborhood of massage parlors and travel agents that cater to expatriate residents and sex tourists. The nine-story hotel offers rooms for as short as three-hour rentals.
The district attorney in Boulder, Mary Lacy, said the arrest followed several months of work.
She said Karr, who had traveled extensively across the world, may also be connected to a prior case in Santa Rosa County, Calif. She did not provide further details.
Sonoma County Chief Deputy District Attorney Joan Risse confirmed the child pornography charges and arrest warrant against a John Mark Karr, though she cautioned that she didn't know if he was the same person held Bangkok. State records show Karr lost his teaching credential in 2002.
"I get the feeling this guy is a nutcase looking for 15 minutes of hard-earned fame"
Agreed. I am very skeptical that this perv had anything to do with it.
After having several years with his new roomie, Bubba (you know Bubba, the con who REALLY hates pedophiles)
And Karr's father thought he was dead. There are many conflicting reports from the family.
You got that right. Last night Greta interviewed some of the Ramsey family and they said they had never heard of this guy. How did he know about the $118,000 bonus money that John had received ?
It's going to be interesting to see how this pans out. I suspect it's going to get weird.
y'all need to calm down..just because he confessed doesn't mean he did it..he could be a nutcase lookin for fame..as for me, I'm reserving judgement AND outrage UNTIL his DNA is matched to the speciman that was left..
I don't think anyone wants to villify this guy the way her parents were, and they were, apparently, innocent..
#1 I have a great deal of hesitancy in believing there were "facts that only the killer would know". According to detectives and attorneys nearly all information has been released.
#2 You have a better chance of living in an American jail vs. Thailand's tanks. And yes, I'm aware of the child molestor history ...
It just sounds too much like he wants out of Thailand w/o assuming responsibility for the death (I was with her).
Gotta stay posted ... very skeptical.
Just heard a former FBI profiler suggest that this guy's story doesn't wash.He still thinks it's a family member.
BINGO!
I wonder if anyone will not regret the inhuman harassment of the parents?
Not a lot of people are talking about this, and to me this is a big thing. Apparently Karr was not just "Comparing notes" with Tracey. Something tells me Karr was probably telling Tracey his Theory in the documentary was wrong, and in the process gave Tracey some information that caused Tracey to contact Police.
This, as my old boss says, doesn't pass the smell test.
I heard that this morning. If this is true and can be proved he wasn't there than I think this guy is a sick individual who is so in love with John Benet that he would love to have been her killer, but wasn't.
Personally I think he did it until proved otherwise. His wife could easily be lying.
Can the Police Department and the Media be sued for ruining their reputation? If so, I would think the payoff will be very LARGE!
I hope his new friends in the Joint teach him some long, detailed, excruciating lessons about pain.
He may get a lot of De"tail" work done.
>>>I didn't buy his brother's defense last night that the guy didn't do it. The brother didn't seem to really know much about this guy's life. Didn't even know he was in Asia right now.>>>
He also didn't know if his brother was still married!?!
But he can say without a doubt, even though the guy has had child porn in his possession on multiple times, didn't do it. Uhhh, yeah. ok. Let him go, the brother who doesn't even know he has been out of the country says he didn't do it.
It sure makes you wonder so close to Patsy Ramsey death in June, one might think that the Mom might have been involved too.
"Undesirable" in comparison to the rest of the child molesters in Bangkok?
>>>I read today that the guy's former wife says she was with him in Alabama when the murder occrred....something is still fishy about this whole case.>>>
Yeah and the guy who kidnapped and raped Elizabeth Smart's wife was with him too. Held her down even.
His wife being with him (in or out of Alabama) means nothing as many of stupid women have covered for their stupid husbands.
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