Utah Man Sought in Missing Girl Case

Associated Press ^ | June 12, 2002 | RICH VOSEPKA

[beckett]

Utah Man Sought in Missing Girl Case

By RICH VOSEPKA
Associated Press Writer SALT LAKE CITY (AP) — More than a week after 14-year-old Elizabeth Smart disappeared, police said Wednesday that they want to talk to a man they think may have information about the girl.

They are searching for Bret Michael Edmunds, 26. He is probably living in a 1997 green Saturn with Utah license plate number 266XJH, police said.

Elizabeth was reported taken at gunpoint from her million-dollar home last Wednesday between 1 a.m. to 2 a.m They were not calling Edmunds a suspect, but said they do want to talk to him. They had identified him through a partial license plate number provided by a milkman who had seen a vehicle in the area arround the time of the girl's disappearance.

Authorities said Edmunds is also wanted on two warrants — for fraud and assault on a police officer, Sgt. Fred Louis said. Police said he may have been in the area.

Tuesday, Police Chief Rick Dinse said the investigation was looking at those who had access to the neighborhood or the house, although not necessarily a family member. He said they have received some promising leads in the case.

Officials from the Utah Department of Corrections have given police a list of dozens of names of known sex offenders on probation or parole, but nearly all of them have been cleared, said Jack Ford, an agency spokesman.

[elisabeth]

Regarding the life insurance-- I don't think this family needed extra money. Although this whole sad story is so strange, I don't think the family had anything to do with it.

[beckett]

I see you found it!

Actually MikeJ with his link in Post #9 got it.

[wardaddy]

I read yesterday on this forum that the father buys homes and renovates them or remodels them and that the family lives in them while this is going on until he finishes and resells hopefully at a profit. That might explain the alarm question if the house is under some sort of construction. It simply might have had the window connector sensors turned off and just the doors on or maybe that sector had the alarm off. Just guessing.

[Squantos]

Wonder what the Klass guy did to piss off the family ? He was trying to help alledgedly and was on O'Reilly FOX show and pissed off the entire family ?????

Lot's of questions. The real estate web site stated "alarm system"........must have been street level only or was "off"

As to the 9 year old not alerting her parents that is just the nature of a scared child IMHO. I've interviewed adult victims who have acted in the same manner.....aka too scared to act.

IMHO this poor child is dead and the real animal coward who took her will walk free sadly. They may find some oswaldian loser to pin it on eventually but if they have nothing by now then this trash acted alone and killed the child within hours of taking her and will not be found.

Stay Safe !

[lady lawyer]

He's a lot bigger than the guy described by the little sister.

[NativeNewYorker]

An excellent and plausible explanation that fits the awful facts.

[wheezer]

Shotguns are useful if you're awake and ready.

She's a light sleeper, but we're (me and siblings), trying to push her to get a dog.

[vanna516]

CNN article indicates that this guy doesn't physically fit the description that they had - this guy is taller and larger.

[NativeNewYorker]

Good luck.

[CFW]

What was the license number that the milkman gave? Anyone remember?

[dennis1x]

Is that the Six Million Dollar Man?

[wheezer]

They had identified him through a partial license plate number provided by a milkman who had seen a vehicle in the area arround the time of the girl's disappearance.

Milkman?....don't milkmen usually wear light colored clothing (or am I watching too many Andy of Mayberry, Leave it to Beaver reruns)?

[beckett]

What was the license number that the milkman gave? Anyone remember?

Not me.

[ao98]

Another possible explanation is they had just had Mrs. Smart's mother's funeral 36 hours before the kidnapping. The family was taking it hard and it probably upset their routine. This might have caused them to forget to set the alarm.

[buffyt]

If the nights are cool in Utah like they are here in LA, they may have been sleeping with their windows open. I know my alarm system in Texas has to have the window closed for the alarm to function - goes off if window is opened. If you sleep with windows open, that means you had to turn alarm system off at that window.

[TracyPA]

When my sister first moved to her up-scale neighborhood, they had no alarm system. They did have three dogs. One night someone tried to break in. The dogs went nuts. They almost went through the window. Now they have an alarm system and guns.

[GovernmentShrinker]

Lots of people who have them don't use them regularly, especially with 6 kids and a constant parade of construction/renovation workers going in and out of the house.

[DJ88]

The UNCLE is the one who gives me the creeps. He did not want the youngest sister to give a description so the police so that they could make a composite sketch. Mark Klass brought this up last night on the O'Reilly factor, which ticked off the family (uncle), and he has now been told to stay away from the family.

Now, if you and I were the parents of this girl, would you not want a sketch out as soon as possible???

[twigs]

It was announced several days ago that authorities had found evidence of an intruder and it was to be analyzed. Since they are looking for this Edmunds man and he has a record, maybe they know for certain that he was in the home? I had hoped that someone the family knew was responsible, leading me to believe she was still alive. And I certainly hope that she is!

[freedox]

I'm wondering where this picture came from......is it a photo or a very detailed drawing/painting? It's obviously a pretty nice picture.....and that looks like a nice haircut he's got there. He sure doesn't look like a homeless person who would be living out of his car. I wonder how old the picture is and under what circumstances it was taken......and how accurate is it with regard to how he might look now?