**Police add details to data on abductor**

Deseret News ^ | 6/19/02 | Brady Snyder and Pat Reavy

[MVV]

Police add details to data on abductor

Kidnapper now described as 30 to 40 with dark hair

By Brady Snyder and Pat Reavy
Deseret News staff writers

      Police released Tuesday a new description of Elizabeth Smart's kidnapper based on information from her 9-year-old sister who stealthily observed the abductor unnoticed.

Elizabeth Smart has now been missing for almost two weeks. Everyone has been encouraged to look for her.

Smart Family Photo/Joy Gough

      Instead of talking to her 14-year-old sister's kidnapper, Mary Katherine Smart feigned sleep and told police she didn't think the man noticed she was watching him, Salt Lake Police Capt. Scott Atkinson said Tuesday.
      The 9-year-old also told police she watched the kidnapper in two different locations inside the home.
      "The witness observed the suspect at two different times and two different locations in the house," Atkinson said.
      Police would not say Tuesday in what area besides the bedroom Mary Katherine observed the man.
      The kidnapper appeared calm and concerned about not making any loud noises to wake up anyone, including Mary Katherine, Atkinson said.
      Earlier in the investigation, it was believed that Mary Katherine Smart only saw her sister's abductor in the bedroom, which police said was dark. It was also reported that Mary Katherine Smart waited one to two hours before telling her parents about the kidnapping because the abductor threatened her. Atkinson said Tuesday that the kidnapper never spoke to Mary Katherine directly but rather made a threat to somebody, possibly Elizabeth, that caused the little sister to wait before notifying her parents.

Additional information:

Web sites:

www.elizabethsmart.com

www.findelizabeth.com

Salt Lake City Police

Salt Lake FBI field office

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      Atkinson said the new information released Tuesday is based on interviews with Mary Katherine that needed to take place over a period of days for best results. The interviews also produced other details that detectives are investigating, but Atkinson could not elaborate about those details Tuesday.
      Police also said they believe the kidnapper may have been a "trusted person in the neighborhood or community."
      Police now describe the kidnapper as a white man, 30 to 40 years old, with dark hair and a medium build.
      The man is between 5 feet 8 inches and 5 feet 10 inches tall. He has dark hair on his arms and the back of his hands, Atkinson said. The man was dressed nicely with a Polo brand shirt, tan pants, dark shoes, a light-colored jacket and a golf or English driving-style hat which was similar in color to the jacket, he said.
      The man was carrying a small, dark handgun but spoke in a "nice" voice, Atkinson said.
      Police are also seeking Bret Michael Edmunds, 26, for questioning. A milkman told police that he saw a car with a license plate registered to Edmunds in the neighborhood a couple of days before the kidnapping.
      Meanwhile, area police agencies have racked up large bills searching high, low and everywhere in between for Elizabeth Smart. In total, Utah's local police agencies have amassed more than an $85,000 tab looking for Elizabeth.
      Small expense, police say, when a 14-year-old's life is at stake.
      "Obviously, no amount of money can be spared looking for a child," Salt Lake police detective Dwayne Baird said.
      Baird's department, the lead agency in the Smart case, has spent $44,000 in manpower and resources to find the kidnapped girl. Along with the $44,000 the Salt Lake Police Department has spent on the case, other police agencies aided the effort.
      The Salt Lake County Sheriff's Office has spent $30,000 to pay for 480 to 520 overtime hours for their deputies. Tuesday morning, the Salt Lake County Council said it would allocate $30,000 from the county's general fund to pay for the overtime.
      "My people are starting to drag, and their workload is starting to suffer," Salt Lake County Sheriff Aaron Kennard told the council. "We can't do that, so I had to put people on overtime."
      The overtime became important near the end of last week, when volunteers began dwindling and other cases began needing more attention, Kennard said. Prior to that time, sheriff's investigations were primarily staffed by detectives who volunteered their time.
      Kennard said that if the roles were reversed and a kidnapping had happened in Salt Lake County, he would expect similar help.
      "I would have been asking for help from every city," he said.
      Additionally, the County Council has instructed Mayor Nancy Workman to give employees who wanted to help search up to eight paid hours to volunteer.
      "When something happens like Elizabeth Smart, we need to support the sheriff," council chairman David Wilde said.
      In Murray, four detectives and three officers have logged 170 hours. Murray police detective Rob Hall said the city has not calculated its total costs but in salary only the manpower has cost $3,400.
      Midvale Police Chief Gerald Maughn said his department has run a bill of $2,160 in manpower and other resources in the search for Elizabeth Smart.
      West Jordan has contributed $1,600 in manpower and other resources. Sandy's bill is more than$1,100, West Valley City has spent $500 and South Salt Lake tab is more than $120.
      "We're more than happy to help out with other agencies," said Capt. Gary Cox. "When these kinds of situations occur, we work together really well."
      The Utah Department of Public Safety has contributed the use of its helicopter and manpower to the effort but hasn't totaled its bill, Utah Highway Patrol Sgt. Doug McCleeve said. The department will continue to lend support to Salt Lake, he said.
      Even the Utah Transit Authority has spent money for Elizabeth Smart, to the tune of more than $2,500 running buses and shuttles for volunteer searches.
      While Utah's local police agencies have spent more than $85,000 looking for Elizabeth, that doesn't include the costs to the FBI and other federal agencies involved in the investigation. FBI officials in Salt Lake City didn't return calls from the Deseret News Tuesday seeking cost estimates.
      Tuesday, former Salt Lake Mayor Ted Wilson, who now serves as volunteer coordinator for the ongoing search effort, said he remains encouraged. Search captains, who will organize community searches, have been established in 19 counties across Utah. And similar captains have been set in place in 14 Utah sites, Wilson said.
      "We think almost everybody has the opportunity to be a searcher," the former mayor said.
      Whether jogging, driving to work or gardening the back yard, Wilson encouraged everyone to look for Elizabeth Smart.
      South Salt Lake City Councilman Shane Siwik knows how important volunteer searchers can be. Saturday night, his 7-year-old daughter, Isabelle, was abducted from Harmony Park. Within minutes a "small army" of searchers were scouring the neighborhood, Siwik said. One volunteer spotted the abductor with the girl in a truck, he said.
      After being spotted, the kidnapper let the child go and fled.
      Siwik said without the volunteers his daughter could still be missing or possibly have met a worse fate.
      "She's doing fine now," he said. "She seems to be doing better than Mom and Dad."
      A man has been booked into the Salt Lake County Jail for investigation of child kidnapping, South Salt Lake police officer Darin Sweeten said.

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Contributing: Steve Speckman, Josh Loftin and Zack Van Eyck
E-MAIL: preavy@desnews.com; bsnyder@desnews.com

[MVV]

Where oh where is Elizabeth?

[MVV]

South Salt Lake City Councilman Shane Siwik knows how important volunteer searchers can be. Saturday night, his 7-year-old daughter, Isabelle, was abducted from Harmony Park. Within minutes a "small army" of searchers were scouring the neighborhood, Siwik said. One volunteer spotted the abductor with the girl in a truck, he said. After being spotted, the kidnapper let the child go and fled. Siwik said without the volunteers his daughter could still be missing or possibly have met a worse fate. "She's doing fine now," he said. "She seems to be doing better than Mom and Dad." A man has been booked into the Salt Lake County Jail for investigation of child kidnapping, South Salt Lake police officer Darin Sweeten said.

Gee, it sounds like this is a real dangerous place to raise children! And was this man a serial kidnapper of children, was he questioned about the Smart case?

[MVV]

FYI!

[homeschool mama]

Thanks for the ping.

Continued prayer and hope for Elizabeth.

[PoisedWoman]

Already posted and discussed here: http://www.freerepublic.com/fo cus/news/702107/posts

[MVV]

I did a search and nothing came up with this title. Sorry for the double post.

[Utah Girl]

I"m sure the police questioned the Sunday kidnapper about Elizabeth Smart. (My guess) I think the other little girl was taken from a park, I don't know which one, but there are some parks in downtown SLC that I wouldn't let my kids go to alone. SLC is beoming a big city (almost a million inhabitants), and there are safe areas, and very dangerous areas.

[tippytoes]

I'm still curious about the attempted abduction of a girl who lived across the street from the Smart's a few years ago. Anybody have any info?

[Myrddin]

Gee, it sounds like this is a real dangerous place to raise children!

The violent crime index for Salt Lake City is 160 where 100 is the national average. My old stomping grounds in the Mira Mesa area of San Diego has a violent crime index of 144. My current town in Idaho has a violent crime index of 44. This information is available under the "Neighborhoods" tab on http://www.realtor.com for zipcode 84104.

The non-violent crime index is 191. Almost twice the national average. Big cities attract crime.