Alabama police say they have not found any evidence to support claims of a child wandering along a highway when Carlethia “Carlee” Russell mysteriously vanished for 48 hours last week after calling 911.
“The Hoover police department has not located any evidence of a toddler walking down the interstate, nor did we receive any additional calls about a toddler walking down the interstate, despite numerous vehicles passing through that area as depicted by the traffic-camera surveillance video,” police said in a statement late on Tuesday.
Officials also confirmed that Russell stopped at a Target store to buy snacks before arriving at the scene of her disappearance, after she picked up her dinner from a restaurant.
Soon after, at 9.34pm, she called 911 dispatch to report that a child was wandering on the side of I-495, and called her sister-in-law to make a similar claim. During that call, it was later claimed, Russell disappeared.
Police officers arrived on the scene five minutes later to find Russell’s wig, cellphone, and purse along the road, with an Apple watch located inside the bag. The snacks, however, were not there.
“These items were not located in the vehicle or with her cellphone and wig at the scene of her disappearance,” the police statement read.
Russell’s disappearance set off a frantic two-day search. Members of Russell’s family claimed the child on the roadside was used by as bait by traffickers to abduct her. Her boyfriend issued a strongly worded statement in which he asserted that she had to fight off at least one abductor to come back home alive.
“She was literally fighting for her life for 48 hours, so until she’s physically and mentally stable again she is not able to give any updates or whereabouts on her kidnapper at this very moment,” the boyfriend, Thomas Latrell Simmons, wrote on Facebook.
Russell’s mother, Talitha Robinson, also released a statement that did not shed light on what had happened to her daughter during her reported disappearance beyond backing up Simmons’ claim.
“My son’s girlfriend heard her asking the child, ‘Are you OK?’ She never heard the child say anything but then she heard our daughter scream,” Talitha Russell said. “From there, all you hear on her phone is background noise from the interstate.”
“Her car door was open,” her mother said. “They found her phone on the ground, along with her wig and her hat.”
The mystery deepened when Russell returned to her home on Sunday night and someone called police to say she was unconscious. But when emergency personnel arrived, Russell was up and talking. Neighborhood surveillance video reportedly captured Russell walking home.
More than $60,000 in reward-for-information money was raised by Crime Stoppers of Metro Alabama to help locate Russell during her disappearance. Organizers of the fund said they would return the money to donors, but on Monday reversed course, saying that since the investigation was active “there is…
2023-07-19 07:49:55
Post from www.theguardian.com