Kelsey Smith - Overland Park, KS, Missing

[One2Snoop]

Woman missing from Oak Park Mall area
Kelsey Smith’s family expected her home by 7:30 on Saturday night.
By JOYCE TSAI
The Kansas City Star


Kelsey Smith

Police believe that an 18-year-old Overland Park woman who has been missing since Saturday evening might be in trouble.

Kelsey Smith last was seen about 7:10 p.m. Saturday leaving the Target store south of Oak Park Mall. At 9:15 p.m., police said someone parked Smith’s car at the mall and abandoned it with her purse inside. Her cell phone and ATM card were gone. But the card doesn’t appear to have been used, Overland Park Police Capt. Tom Fredrickson said late Sunday, and investigators aren’t sure where she kept it.

snip....
Smith is white, 5 feet 6 inches tall and about 120 pounds, police said. She has long, brown hair and brown eyes, and was last seen wearing a pink tank top and black shorts.

Smith, who just graduated from Shawnee Mission West High School, last spoke to her family by phone about items she was purchasing while she was in Target, Ingram said. She was expected home by 7:30, and her boyfriend was waiting there so they could go to a graduation party and then out to dinner, Fredrickson said.

Ingram said no one has used Smith’s phone since she was in Target. Police have been unable to find her location through her phone’s signal.

People who know Smith said it is unusual for her not to let her family know where she is, Ingram said. He said although there is always the possibility that she left on her own, “it sure doesn’t look like it.”

“This is a very unusual situation for her. She’s a real straight arrow,” Ingram said.

Anyone with information is urged to call the TIPS Hotline at 816-474-TIPS (474-8477) or Detective Bob Miller at 913-327-6965.

http://www.kansascity.com/115/story/134999.html

[One2Snoop]

Nancy Grace
Aired June 4, 2007 - 20:00:00 ET

THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT.

But right now, we are looking for a missing girl. Tonight, she went to a local Target, a beautiful Kansas girl, just out of high school, had just graduated a few weeks before. Goes to target to buy graduation gifts and is never seen again. Take a listen.


UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Kansas police are searching for 18-year-old Kelsey Smith, who disappeared this weekend while running an errand for her family. Police say Smith was last seen at around 7:00 p.m. Saturday, leaving a Target store across from Oak Park Mall. A little after 9:00 p.m., Smith`s car was found parked outside Macy`s, across the street from Target. Police found the items Kelsey bought and her purse, but her cell phone and ATM card were missing.

GRACE: Where is Kelsey? This girl, incredibly bright, holding down two jobs, goes missing from a local Target. Where is Kelsey Smith, just 18? Ed Miller with "America`s Most Wanted" has the story.

Ed, what happened?

ED MILLER, REPORTER, "AMERICA`S MOST WANTED": Well, to the best of our knowledge, we know that she went into Target to buy this scrapbook and wrapping paper to wrap up this graduation gift, and the scrapbook and the wrapping paper are in the back of the car.

So we can only surmise -- there are some holes, but because of surveillance tape here, and the gifts in the back seat of the car -- we can surmise that she somehow left the Target store, put those gifts in the back seat of the car, and then somehow, between that point and where the car showed up later across the street at Macy`s, she disappeared.

GRACE: Tell me, do we have Chief Douglass with us yet, Elizabeth? Chief John Douglass is with us from Overland Park Police. Chief, thank you very much for being with us tonight.

CHIEF JOHN DOUGLASS, OVERLAND PARK POLICE: Yes, ma`am, thank you for having us.

GRACE: Chief, also with us, Kelsey`s family. You see them all there together. Chief, isn`t it correct -- let me get these facts straight -- she goes to a Target to buy a graduation gift for somebody else, and there is actually video of her leaving the Target on time, correct?

DOUGLASS: That`s correct.

GRACE: She was supposed to be home, her home with her parents, her boyfriend waiting to take her to a graduation party, I believe it`s 7:30, yes, no?

DOUGLASS: Yes.

GRACE: Here`s my question. When she was leaving the Target, she was alone. Take a look at this video, people. There she is. There`s Kelsey, walking out. She`s got her wrapping paper. She`s got her little present in her hands. Does the video show her, Chief, turning the wrong direction out of Target?

DOUGLASS: Once she left or once her car left the Target store and out onto the street, it went the wrong direction to be going home. At that point in time, we determined or felt very strongly that, when she should have been going home, the car was going in the opposite direction.

GRACE: Joining us along with Chief Douglass, Melissa and Greg Smith. These are Kelsey`s parents. They have not given up hope. Tonight, they are asking you for help. Look at Kelsey. She`s leaving, just like she said she was, right on time, leaving a local Target to go home to her mom and dad, her boyfriend waiting to take her to a graduation party. This girl straight out of high school, dreams of being a veterinarian, working with a local vet, trying to make that dream come true. Tonight, we want to help find this little girl.

Out to Melissa. This is Kelsey`s mom. What does it mean to you, Melissa, that she took the wrong turn out of Target?

MELISSA SMITH, PARENT OF MISSING KELSEY SMITH: It means someone was in the car with her, that she would not have turned left. That`s not the way she would have gone to go home.

GRACE: Thank God for the surveillance video. Now, let me ask you this. Did she typically always lock the doors? Do you think maybe she didn`t lock the doors? Could they have been in the car?

M. SMITH: The chief has some information I`d like for him to give out.

GRACE: OK, Chief, Chief, what do you know?

DOUGLASS: Well, Miss Grace, we are, as you might imagine, we have been reviewing videotape all day long, and we have some videotape that would suggest there was another individual in the back of the car with her. Now, it`s very grainy, and it`s very difficult to see, but some who have seen it believe that there is another individual there, and we`re working very hard to substantiate that right now.
snipped


GRACE: I want to help find this girl. Won`t you help us? Joining us tonight are her parents, along with Chief John Douglass, the Overland Park Police chief. He has just told us that, after careful and hours-long review of grainy surveillance video, there may be an indication someone else was in the back of Kelsey`s car when she left that local Target.

And, listen, this girl is scrubbed in sunshine, wanted to grow up to be a veterinarian. Look at this Target video, everybody. She was working not only at a local theater, movie theater, she was also working with a vet to try to make that dream come true. Now, she came out of Target right on time, a little after 7:00 p.m., she was supposed to meet her family, her boyfriend at home, around 7:30 to go to a graduation party.

But, Chief, her car was spotted again, where?

DOUGLASS: Well, it came back to the general area of the Target store, which is by the shopping center, and was parked in the parking lot by the Macy`s store at the shopping center. It was some distance from where it originally started, but it was in the same general area.

GRACE: How do you know this?

DOUGLASS: Well, we have surveillance tape that shows the car leaving, and we have, again, very grainy surveillance tape showing the car returning, but we can`t determine exactly what the condition of the individuals or who it was in the car when it returned.

GRACE: For all we know, this girl could be in some basement somewhere right now, but still alive. She`s only been missing for a short time. And isn`t it true, Ed Miller, that there is a chance to save missing people, especially within those first three or four days?

MILLER: Absolutely, Nancy. You and I have talk about that before several times. We should point out the fact, because we`ve been critical of bad surveillance cameras. Let`s point out the fact and cut to the chase: There was a bad surveillance camera. If there would have been a better one, you could have seen exactly who was in that car. So while Target had a great surveillance camera, the camera outside of Macy`s was not so good.

GRACE: And very quickly to Bill Grady, reporter with KMBZ 980 there in Kansas City, tell me about that video of her car being parked. Wasn`t it around 9:15?

BILL GRADY, REPORTER, KMBZ 980: Well, that`s what we were told. And then, of course, the developments here, Nancy, with regard to how grainy the video was, and whether somebody was actually in the car waiting for Kelsey when she came back, that`s all stuff that is very, very new. And something that I do want to focus on here is, when we talked about Target and Macy`s, I mean, literally if you have a strong pitching arm, you could stand in the parking lot of Target and hit Macy`s. It`s in the same general area, the same shopping complex. And so, whatever happened, it was in a distance of probably 150 yards, maybe less, whatever happened to this young woman.

snipped


GRACE: Take a look at this girl. Won`t you help her come home? 816- 474-TIPS, there`s a $10,000 reward.

http://transcripts.cnn.com/TRANSCRIP.../04/ng.01.html

[One2Snoop]

Originally Posted by BrookLyn

OVERLAND PARK, Kan. — An 18-year-old who has been missing since Saturday was forced into her car at a Target store where she had stopped for an errand, police said Monday after seeing a surveillance video of the store's parking lot.

http://www.foxnews.com/story/0,2933,278054,00.html

Good morning One2Snoop,

I started a thread up in News from the Midwest before I saw they thread you started earlier. Sorry

Brooke

No problem. Thanks for the link.

Here's a pic of the POI in question....

[One2Snoop]

Webpage for Kelsey....

http://findkelsey.com/

Update: HELP FIND KELSEY!
Family and friends of Kelsey need your help! Whether it's being a part of a search party, passing out flyers, or just being there for moral support, we welcome any help you could offer!
Volunteers are asked to meet in the Target parking lot on 97th street behind Oak Park Mall in Overland Park, KS. Search groups will be sent out at:
10:00AM
2:00PM
6:00PM

Thank you for your support!

snip

[One2Snoop]

Monday, June 04, 2007
Missing: Kelsey Smith, 18
UPDATED: The family is asking as many people as possible to show up at 2 p.m. outside the Target, just south of Oak Park Mall, and help pass out fliers.

UPDATED AGAIN: Police worry that foul play is involved. Smith's dad is a police officer, so she knows to call if she's even being delayed. A lot of the leads so far aren't really panning out.

snip

http://blogs.kansascity.com/crime_sc...g_kelsey_.html

[One2Snoop]

Reward increased - $20,000 reward for information that leads to Kelsey's safe return.

If you were involved in Kelsey's disappearance, please consider that we who love her want her to return home safely. Please find a way to help her return to her family and friends. It's the right thing to do.

If you have something to communicate with us via the internet, please send an email message to one of these 2 email addresses:

info@findkelsey.com or
anonymous@findkelsey.com

http://findkelsey.com/

[Brainstorm]

I saw just the last 15 minutes of NGs show last night about this.My heart just went out to her Mother,sitting there,obviously & visibly just lost without her child. Her Father ,being a trained LE , really presented himself well, IMO.
IMAGINE,because of his occupation,he has seen the worst of the worst,but this IMO is something that he probably NEVER thought about happening.
I can only sit here and pray,but I have and I will continue.I am/have been blessed that my two girls have remained safe,so far,but it is terrifying to know that this is happening more and more to our young women & girls.
jmhho

[One2Snoop]

America's Most Wanted....

Cops: Kelsey Was Abducted
Cops in Overland Park, Kan. say 18-year-old Kelsey Ann Smith was abducted from the parking lot of a Target store. Police say a man pushed her into her car at around 7:09 p.m. Kelsey was supposed to meet her boyfriend at home to go to a graduation party, but when she didn't show up, friends and family knew that something was wrong

snip....
-----------------------------------------

Overview -

Kelsey Smith Taken From Parking Lot

Kelsey had just turned 18 and had just graduated from high school.

Cops in Overland Park say Kelsey Smith purchased a scrapbook and some wrapping paper at a Target located at 97th Quivira Rd. on June 2, 2007. At around 7:09 p.m. she walked to her car, put her purse and the items on the passenger's seat and as she was getting into her car somebody came from behind and forced her in.

Kelsey was supposed to go home and meet her boyfriend to go to a graduation party, but that never happened.

http://www.amw.com/missing_persons/brief.cfm?id=45587

[One2Snoop]

It appears another young lady went missing one month ago. Her name is Kara Kopetsky. These locations are approximately 20 miles apart.

LAST SEEN
MAY 4, 2007
BELTON, MISSOURI

Belton Police believe Kara Kopetsky was seen on Thursday, May 21st in Louisburg, Kan. in the company of a young man. The sighting is unconfirmed.

Police released a composite sketch of the person Kopetsky was spotted with in Louisburg. He has been described as a white man about 19 years old, standing about 5-foot-8 and 130 pounds. He has medium brown hair and brown eyes.

Kara was last seen on May 4, 2007 at Belton High School around 10:30 am. Kara was wearing a blue and white polka dot top. Kara has not been seen or heard from since.

Kara's family and friends are worried given that there has been no cell phone activity or any attempt to access her bank account since she was last seen. Her cell phone is either turned off or the battery has run down according to the Belton Police Department.

Please help us find Kara. Click on one of the links above to find out more information.

http://www.findkarakopetsky.com/

[TuscanDreams]

From what I have read and heard on the news, this case is going to end in tragedy. This is very sad.

The case last mentioned is most likely a runaway, JMO. Belton is a rural community and it's not a bad place, unless you are a bored kid.

[One2Snoop]

Originally Posted by TuscanDreams

From what I have read and heard on the news, this case is going to end in tragedy. This is very sad.

The case last mentioned is most likely a runaway, JMO. Belton is a rural community and it's not a bad place, unless you are a bored kid.

I was kind of wondering about the Kara Kopetsky case and the only reason I posted it was because I read on another message board that they thought the POI was similar. Don't know if thats true or not.

I'm very familiar with Belton and the surrounding area as well as the area Kelsey Smith was taken from and still have family living in around those area's. Someone has to recognize the picture of this young man in the photo's. I certainly hope this doesn't end in tragedy but we know all to well how things usually turn out. All I can do is pray it turns out for the good this time. For Kelsey.

[One2Snoop]

Posted on Tue, Jun. 05, 2007
Missing woman leads top 200
By LAURA BAUER
The Kansas City Star

The Overland Park police department has received more than 200 leads regarding the disappearance of Kelsey Smith.

But investigators have yet to identify a “person of interest” who they say can provide them needed information. This person was inside Target at the same time as Kelsey around 7 pm. Saturday and was “in close proximity” to the missing teen, said Overland Park Police Chief John Douglass at a news conference this afternoon.

“A lot of calls are coming in from across the country from people who say they recognize this person,” Douglass said. “We’re trying to track down every one.”

More than 50 detectives from surrounding police departments and the Federal Bureau of Investigation are working leads.

Investigators have analyzed local sex offender registries and have identified dozens who live in this area.

Smith, a recent Shawnee Mission West High School graduate, has been missing since Saturday evening when she didn’t return home from running an errand at the Target at 97th Street and Quivira Road. Enhanced surveillance video shows someone running up behind Kelsey as she was getting in her car. The individual pushed Kelsey inside.

Smith’s family announced today that a reward for information in the case has been increased to $25,000 through donations.

snip

http://www.kansascity.com/news/break...ry/136747.html

[accordn2me]

I'm sure the police have already thought of this....but if her daddy is in LE...how many enemies do you think he may have?

One thing about this....if the guy on the video is the perp....he's not very old and probably won't have much of a record, if any. Was Kelsey's dad in juvenile LE?

[One2Snoop]

Originally Posted by accordn2me

I'm sure the police have already thought of this....but if her daddy is in LE...how many enemies do you think he may have?

One thing about this....if the guy on the video is the perp....he's not very old and probably won't have much of a record, if any. Was Kelsey's dad in juvenile LE?

IIRC he's head of Security at the local community college. I don't know if this means he's retired LE and then took that job at the CC or it could be I completely misunderstood it - but thats what I thought I heard on Nancy Grace last night. I'll look around and see what I can find on that.

[One2Snoop]

This is what I heard on the Nancy Grace show last night regarding Kelsey's father....

BILL GRADY, REPORTER, KMBZ 980: snip

And one of the other things that I`d like to point out is that Kelsey`s father is in law enforcement at a very large community college here, and so he is extremely knowledgeable on police procedure. They have done everything, I mean, they have dotted all the i`s and crossed all the t`s, with regard to how they`ve handled these volunteers.

http://transcripts.cnn.com/TRANSCRIP.../04/ng.01.html

[One2Snoop]

According to the following report the reward has increased to $30,000. We all know about Texas Equisearch - a big thank you goes out for their effort to help find Kelsey.
-------------------------------------------------------------------

Late Tuesday, OP police released a photo of a pickup caught on the Target store's surveillance camera. No license plates are visible. Appears to be a 1970s-era model, AP reports. A couple of the local stations were saying it's a Chevy. My colleague, Laura Bauer, has a report on Tuesday's developments here. (Is the truck's driver the same guy as the person-of-interest from the other day? OP police would only say they seem to be dressed similarly, but drew no further connection.)



Other local media have reports here: KSHB, KMBC, WDAF, KCTV.

Texas Equusearch, a mounted search team that can search by air and water, will be joining the search with a 10-plus-person team, the Scared Monkeys blog reports. TES helped find Jodi Sanderholm; Sanderholm's parents, by the way, will also be helping. (Marcus Moore on 9 had this first, though I couldn't find a link Tuesday night.)

Also Tuesday, police released surveillance video of the parking lot. It apparently captures some kind of scuffle, though the action takes place in the distance and is not clear.

Searchers are planning to gather at 10 a.m., 2 p.m. and 6 p.m. at the store. Another media briefing is scheduled for noon at the OP fire department's training center.

By 11 p.m. Tuesday, the reward stood at $30K, according to the family's Web site. Anyone with information is asked to call the OP police at (913) 895-6300 or the Crime Stoppers TIPS Hotline at (816) 474-TIPS (474-8477). Again, if you visit the family's site, there are also email addresses available to send in tips.

http://blogs.kansascity.com/crime_sc...n_kelse_1.html

[One2Snoop]

Originally Posted by BrookLyn

Good morning, One2Snoop,

I hope this case doesn't end in tragedy. I hope and pray the perp realizes how precious Kelsey's life is. I just have a bad feeling about this case. JMVHO.

For Kelsey and her family

Good morning to you too Brook -

Here's the latest updates....

Breaking News
Posted on Wed, Jun. 06, 2007

Texas group helping in search
Tim Miller, founder of Texas EquuSearch, has come to Overland Park to help in the search for Kelsey Smith, who was last seen at a Target store over the weekend.

EquuSearch has been active in the search for Natalee Holloway, who went missing while on vacation in Aruba in 2005. EquuSearch also took part in the search for Jodi Sanderholm, who went missing in Arkansas City in January.

A crew of about six other members of EquuSearch is also headed for the area with boats, all-terrain vehicles and sonar equipment.

Pleas for Kelsey Smith’s return also were made on national television this morning.

snip
http://www.kansascity.com/news/break...ry/138680.html

[One2Snoop]

The Kelsey Smith kidnapping | Parking lots can carry risks

Abduction points up security limitations
People can do several simple things to keep from becoming the victim of a predator.

By DAVID KLEPPER and BENITA Y. WILLIAMS
The Kansas City Star

Fliers of all sizes are blanketing a broad area around the Target store parking lot in Overland Park where Kelsey Smith, 18, was abducted Saturday evening.
Video: Look under red 'v' at left for distant view of teen's abduction VIDEO
Police seek 'person of interest' in abduction VIDEO
Parents, police chief discuss Kelsey Smith case VIDEO
Photos: The search for Kelsey Smith
New Web site for missing teen
Security videos offer hope
“No place is immune to bad things happening.”

Independence Police Officer Tom Gentry

Easy access to highways. Traffic moving in and out. Shoppers fumbling for keys while juggling purses and purchases. Lots of victims to choose from.
Parking lots of malls and shopping centers are much more likely to be the scene of fender benders and purse snatchings than abductions and carjackings.

But as police and security experts point out, retailers’ parking lots also can offer the perfect hunting grounds for predators.

snip
http://www.kansascity.com/105/story/138348.html

[One2Snoop]

NANCY GRACE

Surveillance Video Shows Kansas Teen Abduction

Aired June 5, 2007 - 20:00:00 ET

THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.


NANCY GRACE, HOST: Tonight, breaking news in the disappearance of a Kansas girl who just graduated high school, shopping at a local Target store. Tonight, we learn new surveillance video just released in the search for 18-year-old Kelsey Smith. A beautiful Kansas girl scrubbed in sunshine, vanishes into thin air, Kelsey caught on video leaving Target for the parking lot on her way home. Did a person of interest follow Kelsey inside the store, then out to the parking lot, the person of interest on video? Tonight, that reward to find Kelsey climbing to $25,000.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Police are working to enhance a surveillance videotape that shows an 18-year-old girl being abducted. Police say a man forced Kelsey Smith into her car on Saturday night in the parking lot of a Target store. She has not been seen since. Her car, though, was found just a couple of hours later abandoned, with both her purse and keys inside. Police are looking for a young man who was seen in the store at about the same time. They are calling him a person of interest.

Rest of the transcript at the link...
http://transcripts.cnn.com/TRANSCRIP.../05/ng.01.html

[One2Snoop]

‘We're not going to stop until you are home’
Kelsey Smith's family pleads for safe return of the missing Kansas teen

NBC News video


Search continues for Kelsey Smith
June 6: The Kansas teen was last seen Saturday evening walking out of a Target store. NBC's Ron Mott reports on the latest.
Today show



By John Springer
TODAYShow.com contributor
Updated: 5:56 a.m. PT June 6, 2007
Investigators looking for Kelsey Smith are working to digitally enhance a grainy store security video that captured the moment the 18-year-old Kansas woman was forced into her car, Smith's father said during an interview Wednesday.

“It's a longshot. It's far away and details aren't that clear yet, but I know there are at least two or three crime labs working on enhancing the tape,” said Greg Smith, appearing on TODAY by satellite from his family's home in Overland Park, Kan. “I'm confident that tape will clear up and we’ll see what is going on.”

Police secured clearer images of Kelsey Smith leaving the Overland Park Target store Saturday at 7:10 p.m.

snip
http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/19066025/

[One2Snoop]

Breaking News
Posted on Wed, Jun. 06, 2007

Law officers searching south KC
More than 200 law enforcement officers are searching a 900-acre area in south Kansas City after Kelsey Smith’s cell phone signaled a tower in that vicinity Saturday night.

The phone signaled the tower at 8 p.m. Saturday. Kelsey’s car was last seen at 7:10 p.m. leaving the Target store at 97th Street and Quivira Road in Overland Park, which is about 20 miles from the search location.

Overland Park police said an analysis of cell phone data showed that the phone passed through telephone cells located on Interstate 35 to Interstate 435, then east to U.S. 71 south, and from there to an area in the vicinity of Longview Lake park.

According to a police department news release: Cell phone signals, known as “pings,” occur when a phone is in use, either receiving a call or message, or sending a call or message. Family and friends were attempting to contact Kelsey on Saturday night.

FBI spokesman Jeff Lanza said about 240 officers will be involved in the search. Officers will conduct the search by a grid.

The officers are from the FBI, the Drug Enforcement Administration; police departments from Overland Park, Kansas City, Grandview and Lenexa; and police academy students from Johnson County Regional Police Academy, Kansas City, Kan. and Kansas City.

Searchers have been at the location since about 11 this morning. At this point the search is being conducted on land.

snip
http://www.kansascity.com/news/break...ry/138680.html

[One2Snoop]

KCTV5 News
Lead Prompts Massive Search for Kelsey Smith
June 6, 2007 10:31 AM


OVERLAND PARK, Kan. (AP) -- The search for missing Overland park teenager Kelsey Smith has moved to an area around Longview Lake Park south of Kansas City, Missouri.

Police said at a noonhour news conference that experts are analyzing signals from the girl's cell phone on Saturday night after she was abducted outside an Overland Park Target store. A police spokesman estimated the signals -- "pings" -- sounded about 15 miles from the store.

He said the signals show that Kelsey's phone passed through certain sites along a route that led to an area around the park. The last signal was recorded at about 8 p-m Saturday. The signals are believed to be Kelsey's family trying to reach her.

snip
http://www.kctv.com/Global/story.asp?S=6606183

[One2Snoop]

Please take a moment to offer a prayer for Kelsey and her family. You can go to the following link and light a candle if you like....

http://www.gratefulness.org/candles/...fm?l=eng&gi=KS

[imanewsjunkie]

I really hope for the best in this story.

[One2Snoop]

Breaking News just now on HeadLineNews....

Body found in the area LE was searching today. The body has not been identified yet.

[One2Snoop]

Body Found Near High Grove, Raytown Roads
Smith Disappeared Saturday From Target Parking Lot

POSTED: 11:22 am CDT June 6, 2007
UPDATED: 2:25 pm CDT June 6, 2007



KANSAS CITY, Mo. -- A body has been found in the area of High Grove and Raytown Roads Wednesday afternoon, police said.

It is an area north of the area where more than 200 federal agents, police officers and police academy students focused their search efforts for missing teen Kelsey Smith.

The area investigators are searching is east of U.S. 71 Highway and north of Missouri Highway 150.


Authorities have not confirmed whose body it is.

snip
http://www.thekansascitychannel.com/...l.html?cnn=yes

[Zoey]

Oh no. It is hard to say that you hope it is not her, but then at least the parents know where she is. If it is not her, that means they have found the body of someone else that was murdered, and that is just sad. This is all so sad.

[Zoey]

Originally Posted by BrookLyn

http://www.foxnews.com/story/0,2933,278338,00.html

This just came over Fox News. Will it ever end?

OH..that is so horrible.

[One2Snoop]

KMBC Live feed....

http://www.thekansascitychannel.com/...247/index.html

[accordn2me]

How devastating! Prayers and deepest sympathy for Kelsey's family.

[adnoid]

Just damn. Why why why?

I hope they find this SOB and forcibly separate his head from his shoulders. In front of his family.

[Zoey]

My thoughts and prayers are with the family at this sad time. I just can't believe that another senseless murder has occurred. This beautiful, young girl had just graduated; she had so much more to live. I will never understand why things like this happen.

[One2Snoop]

Originally Posted by BrookLyn

http://www.postchronicle.com/news/or...21284935.shtml

LE thinks they have their perp and are already considering the DP. I still want to know, why?

Thanks for posting the updates Brooklyn. This is just so incredibly sad.

For Kelsey and her family.

[One2Snoop]

Share your condolences with Kelsey's family....

http://forums.ibsys.com/viewmessages...sageorder=DESC

I had hoped and prayed Kelsey would be found safe, thinking the perp decided not to harm her, fearing he'd been caught on the Target video surveillance tape. I am so sorry Kelsey fell victim to this selfish savage murderer.

In Memory of Kelsey

My thoughts and prayers are with Kelsey's family

[One2Snoop]

Wednesday, June 06, 2007
Update on Kelsey Smith: "The case is not over"

UPDATED, from the 4 p.m. news conference: OP Police Chief John Douglass is the chief speaker, though FBI, Jackson County Sheriff, Grandview police and other agencies will be represented. (Not sure if JoCo DA Phill Kline will participate or not, but we've heard he's been to the scene.) It's being held at the OP fire training center. Will live-blog as it happens ...

Body was found about 1:30 p.m. Police believe it's Kelsey. Douglass expresses his condolences to the family, vows to solve the case. Thanks other jurisdictions.

"The case is not over." Says police still need tips, help from the public. Call the TIPS Hotline at 816-474-TIPS. I missed the OP number,

snip
http://blogs.kansascity.com/crime_sc...n_kelse_1.html

[Zoey]

One very important thing I learned from this tragedy. Keep your cell phone on your person at all times when you go out. I sometimes leave mine in my vehicle when I run in the store. I will not do that anymore. I knew nothing about cell phone pings, but after watching Nancy Grace tonight, I have learned a lot.

[layton59]

Yes, I never knew about the cellular pings until this story. I am so glad that they have stuff like this to help victims, if nothing more than to locate them and bring recovery and justice for the survivors.

I bet the pings will save others, in other cases down the road. Sorry Kelsey's pings were too little, too late.

I have been studying the Target video as played on a Kansas City TV website. It is tiny but it looks like he pushes her into the passenger seat of her car. He then he runs around the back and gets in the drivers seat and backs the car out to drive off. If the video were a clock this all happens in what would be 10 or 11 on the clock dial. You can just make out a few pixels of her pink top as she is pushed into her car.

http://www.kctv5.com/Global/story.asp?S=6606183

Women, please do not go with anyone under threat of force. And do not walk yourself. Drop to the ground become a kicking mass. It is better to be hurt in a public place like Target than in a remote location. Of course, I know I am preaching-to-the-choir on this site.

[layton59]

I think the Kelsey kidnapper and murderer is very raw and unsophisticated. And Thank Goodness he was too. It will lead to his being captured and stopped.

A Few Mistakes He Made:

Cameras in Target store parking light show abduction and truck.
Daylight 7:00 pm.
Entered Target store and thus seen in close-up videos.
Exited Target store without making a purchase.
Other people coming and going in parking lot.
Cellphone pinging.
No disguise used.
Ran around the vehicle instead of having Kelsey slide over.
Took Kelsey to within two miles of his home (news reported).
Returned car instead of burning it to get his truck.

I am sure many other mistakes will surface like ........ lack of gloves

This should be a slam dunk for law enforcement.

And yet Kelsey lost her life. Soo very sad.

************************************************** ******************

One of my favorite lines from the movie Body Heat (1981)

William Hurt and Mickey Rourke talking in jail:

"...any time you try a decent crime, you got fifty ways you're gonna f*ck up. If you think of twenty-five of them, then you're a genius... and you ain't no genius..."

http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0082089/quotes

I am not meaning that Kelsey's or any crime is "decent". I just love the quote and its implications for getting caught.

[One2Snoop]

I'm so glad they found their POI....

UPDATED, from the 11:30 p.m. news conference: Chief John Douglass, again, is the first speaker. Introduces representatives from several agencies.

Edwin R. Hall, 26, of Olathe has been arrested in the case. Charges will be filed early Thursday morning. In custody at the JoCo jail. Douglass won't talk about the evidence. Arrest made middle of the afternoon. He's the guy from the video, shown leaving the store, Douglass says. Can't say what led them to him. Won't say where they found him.

Say they believe they've located the truck. Hall has a lawyer, though we don't have a name.

Still unclear whether this involves the Belton case.

snip

http://blogs.kansascity.com/crime_sc...n_kelse_1.html