Police Deliver Third Message to Sniper, Give No Details

CNSNEWS.com ^ | 10/21/02 | Jeff Johnson

[kattracks]

Capitol Hill (CNSNews.com) - For the third time, police have delivered a message to the "Beltway Sniper" through the media.

"The person you called could not hear everything that you said. The audio was unclear and we want to get it right," said Montgomery County Police Chief Charles Moose. "Call us back so that we can clearly understand. Thank you very much."

Moose would not answer any questions about the messages.

"Unfortunately, I will not be able to discuss the issue or answer any questions regarding attempts to communicate," he continued. "It just would be inappropriate and detrimental to our investigation."

Even when asked to acknowledge that the messages were directed to the shooter, who has now taken the lives of nine victims and wounded three others, Moose refused.

Law enforcement first took to the airwaves Sunday night in what is believed to be a response to a note reportedly left by the shooter at the Ponderosa Steak House in Ashland, Va., where the sniper's 12th victim was shot.

"To the person who left us a message at the Ponderosa last night, you gave us a telephone number," Moose said. "We do want to talk to you. Call us at the number you provided."

Monday morning, Moose again delivered a message apparently meant for the shooter.

"We are going to respond to a message that we have received," he said. "We will respond later. We are preparing our response at this time."

The second message came after 10 a.m. (ET) more than an hour and a half after police in Henrico County, Va., took two people into custody and impounded a white Plymouth Voyager minivan with a roof rack.

Chief Moose would not discuss those arrests.

"The work done by the Division of Police in Henrico County, [Virginia], is work done by that agency and you need to contact them," he explained. "They will answer any questions about that work."

The two men who were detained were later revealed to be illegal immigrants - one a Mexican national, the other a Guatemalan national. Both of them were turned over to the INS for deportation on immigration charges.

In the first new piece of information released by authorities in days, other than Moose's messages, Hanover County Sheriff Stuart Cook disclosed that "the ballistics evidence recovered during our investigation has been matched with the other shooting cases."

During the Monday afternoon press briefing, FBI Special Agent Mike Bouchard revealed that an examination by firearms experts had determined that the shell casing found in a rental truck in Fairfax County, Va., was a .223 caliber round - the same as that used by the sniper.

"The shell casing from that truck that was taken in Fairfax, there is no evidence to say that that was linked to any of these cases," he explained.

The .223 round was found Friday night by employees of a rental company after a customer returned a white box truck.

The reward for information leading to the arrest and conviction of the person or people involved in the murder spree in Maryland, Virginia, and the District of Columbia stands at $500,000.

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[John Jamieson]

Sniper's Locations:
HomeDepot= Marcus family
(2)Michaels & (1)Ponderosa = Wyle Family
Four Oil Companies = Obvious
Shopper's Food Warehouse = SuperValu = Michael W. Wright

All W. Bush Supporters to the tune of millions$$$.

The attack is not only on the American Economy, it's on the Bush Family. ==SH/BL

[HitmanLV]

Indeed, you are right. More food for the "international sniper" theory! Great work!

[Steve Van Doorn]

that is an intersting thought

[John H K]

Nobody hates Bush in the US? News to me.

[John Jamieson]

More:

Shooting starts day after Bush "one bullet for Saddam" remark. Sniper uses just one bullet each.

Child shot the day after Congress backs Bush.

The demand will be for the safe return of the Blind Shiek, his son ("God's Sword"), their friends and a little traveling money. The transfers began today.

[bonfire]

You have some inside info or just theorizing?

[John Jamieson]

On which part? I don't think there is any inside information here.

[bonfire]

The demand will be for the safe return of the Blind Shiek, his son ("God's Sword"), their friends and a little traveling money. The transfers began today



That part.

[John Jamieson]

I'm just going by what BL has been saying:

Last year, bin Laden swore in a videotape that "we will work with all-out power to free our brother, Sheik Omar Abdel-Rahman and all our prisoners in America, Egypt and Riyadh (Saudi Arabia)." One of Rahman's sons, Ahmed Abdul Rahman, was in the videotape and urged Muslims to "move forward and shed blood." The northern alliance announced Thursday that it captured Ahmed, who goes by the name "God's sword." Bin Laden and other Islamic militants issued threats as to the consequences of a conviction of Rahman, and more specifically threatened a violent reaction if Rahman ultimately dies in a U.S. prison.

and, the fact Moose is cutting a deal with the snipper and that we moved prisoners from Cuba to Pakastan today. That's all.

[stlnative]

Here is what I have learned tonight while watching replay's of the MSNBC shows.

~ The bullet removed from the Ponderosa shooting is linked to the other sniper shootings.

~ Police received a call from someone Saturday night (Police think it was the sniper) - The caller informed police that a letter was left at the Ponderosa shooting site. (Media did not say where it was located at the scene, so it may not have been in the woods behind the Ponderosa).

~ Police located the letter at the scene, but did not open it right away as they wanted to process it for fingerprints, etc... ( I would guess that maybe they found the letter before the call came in about the letter being at the scene, maybe the sniper was anxious for them to find it.)

~ Police finally open the letter and read it. It is a fairly long and detailed letter that also includes a "listed" Phone Number and a specific time that police are to call this "listed" number. Police opened the letter too late to meet the specific time the sniper wanted police to call the number.

~ Facts known about the letter... It had 2 phone numbers written down on it, it had specific treats detailed in it, it had instructions meant for the police on what the sniper wants them to do and how to handle the information in the letter when addressing the media, it had some of the same contents as the tarot card that was found at Tasker School.

~ The first announcement from Moose on Sunday night was to let the sniper know that they basically missed the specific time period to make the call and for the sniper to call again. The sniper made the call to police sometime between Sunday night and early this morning. Moose came out this morning to let the sniper know they received the message and are basically reviewing it. Then the second release from Moose was to let the sniper know that the message he left did not come across clearly.

~ It is known now that the sniper may be using a Voice Changing Device and that police could only make out about 25% of voice message or conversation.

~ The pay phone at the gas station was under watch and police believe that he has used this phone to contact police (is the phone he called from to contact police on Saturday night to inform them about the letter being at the Ponderosa scene?...probably and probably is not one of the phones that police had phone numbers for that were written in the letter)

~ The 2 men (the illegals) in the white van were at the wrong place at the wrong time, they just happen to fit some of the sniper scene witnesses accounts (olive skin and driving a white van with a ladder rack). They just decided to use that pay phone.

~ Schools in the area of the last shooting have been shut down again for a second day.

~ Media knows of some things that were written in the snipers letter, they have been told not to release what they know to the public. But some media sources are saying that we could be facing rough times ahead, this is is based on what the media knows about the contents of the letter.

[bonfire]

Thank you, brigette, for the summary.

[stlnative]

Your welcome... I am sorry it is so poorly written, but it was hell today trying to make heads or tails out what people were writing on FR today about the case and then what tidbits I was able to catch on the news today. I was confused on what was fact and false information. So tonight I sat down and watch MSNBC as it seems they give more detail about the case. Nachman explained it well on his show... when the transcript is published I will post it.

I really believe that the call police got Saturday night about the letter being at the crime scene was really the true sniper and that it was really written by him. I am sure the scene was secured right away after the man was shot. I bet he used the pay phane that was on TV today to make that call Saturday night. I don't think the pay phone number was one of the numbers written in the letter. I think those are voice mail 1-800 numbers that the police are to use... but the police have also given the sniper a private contact number just for him to use.

The question is what is it the sniper wants the police to know?

[bonfire]

I agree it's difficult to sift thru all the reports. That is why I am glad you posted! I tend to agree with you about the phone booth. They traced his call, and hoped he would use that booth again.

Sounds like the media knows alot and aren't telling. I'll bet my hat that someone leaks more of the letter tomorrow.

[stlnative]

Below is part of the story from this link

NBC’s David Bloom reported late Monday that authorities now say the seizure of the van and the two men taken into custody was a sideshow. But inside a building near police headquarters in Rockville, Md., two phone numbers known only to the sniper were being routed into the task force headquarters. The sniper called police using a disguised voice, which sources said was only about 25 percent audible. Police apparently have tried to communicate with the sniper three times after reportedly receiving a letter from the gunman following Saturday’s shooting. NBC’s Bloom reports that it was Saturday’s shooting in Ashland, Va., that opened the door to direct talks. That night, the sniper left behind an expansive note in the woods — a letter sources said includes the exact language of the sniper’s earlier tarot card message to police.

[stlnative]

more form the above linked story...

‘A VERY DIFFICULT TIME’ An investigator who read the lengthy message from the gunman told Bloom that the contents indicate “this could be a very difficult time we are about to go through.” The letter was found in woods behind the steakhouse, the Richmond Times-Dispatch reported Monday, quoting unidentified law enforcement sources. The newspaper also said police have found more than one tarot card during the investigation. Only one tarot card, found near the shooting of a student at a school in Bowie, Md., had been reported until now.

[stlnative]

Sources: U.S. to return some detainees to Pakistan

[HitmanLV]

Indeed, true too!