http://www.nydailynews.com/front/story/161264p-141393c.html

Horror caught on videotape

By CORKY SIEMASZKO
DAILY NEWS STAFF WRITER

It's a brazen daylight kidnapping with a shocking difference: The
moment a thug grabs 11-year-old Carlie Brucia is all on videotape.
And now FBI agents are working with NASA scientists to enhance what a
car-wash surveillance camera captured in hopes of identifying the man
who vanished with the Florida sixth-grader.

Carlie was taking a shortcut on her way to meet her stepdad when she
was stopped by a man wearing a mechanic's shirt with a name patch on
the chest.

The video shows the man, who is white and appears to be in his late
20s or 30s, briefly talking with Carlie and then taking her arm and
leading her away.

Her distraught Sarasota, Fla., parents said they did not recognize the
man, who had tattoos on both forearms.

Authorities hope the NASA enhancements will give them the break her
parents are so desperately praying for.

As cops checked reports that Carlie was seen struggling with a man
near the central Florida town of Kissimmee, the girl's mom appealed
directly to her daughter's captor.

"Please give me back my baby," her mother, Susan Schorpen, pleaded as
her father, Joe Brucia, begged the public to help in the search for
his blond-haired, blue-eyed girl.

Carlie does not appear to vigorously resist her abductor in the video
but cops are fairly certain that she did not know him.

"We're not overlooking the possibility that he knew who she was," said
Maj. Kevin Gooding of the Sarasota County Sheriff's Department.

Family friend, Chessie Huber, insisted: "Carlie is not the type of
child who would just go off. She's a very responsible child."

The girl was cutting through the parking lot of Evie's Car Wash at
6:20 p.m. Sunday to a spot where her stepfather was supposed to pick
her up.

When Carlie did not show up at the rendezvous spot, stepfather Steven
Kansler drove around looking for her and called the cops at 6:30 p.m.,
Gooding said.

An Amber Alert was declared the next day and a $25,000 reward has been
offered.

"The car wash was closed at the time," its owner, Mike Evanoff, said.
"But the camera has a motion detector that was working and my golf
center next door was open, so we're hoping somebody there saw the
little girl being led away."

Originally published on February 4, 2004


Taco The Pit Bull
http://www.geocities.com/tacopitbull/

If It Was Actually Said, Then It's Neither Libel Nor Slander But The Truth

"Taco The Pitbull" <tacopitbull@yahoo.com> wrote in message
news:m5o320du9jotufj4ofuqkbd4p26bjmfb5b@4ax.com... The girl was cutting through the parking lot of Evie's Car Wash at 6:20 p.m. Sunday to a spot where her stepfather was supposed to pick her up. When Carlie did not show up at the rendezvous spot, stepfather Steven Kansler drove around looking for her and called the cops at 6:30 p.m., Gooding said.


By CORKY SIEMASZKO
DAILY NEWS STAFF WRITER

Is this new? I don't think it's real. Last I heard, the stepfather had no
idea that his [step]daughter was walking alone until someone called and told
him.

Linda

On Thu, 5 Feb 2004 00:29:37 -0600, "Cliff and Linda Griffith"
<grifftex@charter.net> wrote:
"Taco The Pitbull" <tacopitbull@yahoo.com> wrote in messagenews:m5o320du9jotufj4ofuqkbd4p26bjmfb5b@4ax .com... The girl was cutting through the parking lot of Evie's Car Wash at 6:20 p.m. Sunday to a spot where her stepfather was supposed to pick her up. When Carlie did not show up at the rendezvous spot, stepfather Steven Kansler drove around looking for her and called the cops at 6:30 p.m., Gooding said.By CORKY SIEMASZKODAILY NEWS STAFF WRITERIs this new? I don't think it's real. Last I heard, the stepfather had noidea that his [step]daughter was walking alone until someone called and toldhim.Linda
http://www.nydailynews.com/front/story/161611p-141645c.html

Kidnap bust but
no sign of Fla. girl



By TRACY CONNOR and CORKY SIEMASZKO
DAILY NEWS STAFF WRITERS

The desperate search for a tattooed thug who was videotaped kidnapping
11-year-old Florida schoolgirl Carlie Brucia ended last night when
cops found him - in the Sarasota County jail.
But the sixth-grader Joseph Smith allegedly abducted Sunday was still
missing, and her grandparents in Wantagh, L.I., prayed she would be
found.

"We're waiting to hear about Carlie," the girl's grandmother, Andrea
Brucia, said.

Hope appeared to fade last night after investigators called Carlie's
stepfather, Steven Kansler, to a crime scene at the house where Smith
had stayed. Cops refused to say what was inside, but when Kansler came
out, he spoke to the girl's friends, who broke down in tears.

Police were seen removing bags from the home, and a friend of the
family told The Orlando Sentinel investigators believe the girl is
dead.

Smith, 37, a father of three and formerly of Brooklyn, was arrested
Tuesday on cocaine charges. But cops were unaware of his alleged link
to Carlie until a tipster called.

Linda Thompson, who lived next-door to Smith in Sarasota, said he had
a drug problem and was separated from his wife, Luz. "He would be the
last person I would suspect would be involved in kidnapping," she
said. "I mean, I've seen him with his children."

Smith left Brooklyn for Florida in 1993. His rap sheet includes 13
busts for drugs. He also was cleared of 1997 kidnapping and false
imprisonment charges.

Carlie, who left Long Island with her mother, Susan Schorpen, after
her parents divorced in 1994, spent Saturday night at the home of
Connie Arnold, whose live-in boyfriend, Ronald Choquette, knew Smith.

Arnold said before Carlie left her house Sunday, she told her that
Schorpen gave her permission to walk home alone. But Carlie was
fibbing. "I called her mother right after she left and said, 'Well,
she's walking home,' " Arnold said. "She said Carlie never called
her." Kansler said earlier yesterday that a psychic the family hired
feels Carlie is still alive, but is "somewhere dark and tied up."


With Warren Woodberry Jr.


Originally published on February 4, 2004

Bandit The Insult Parrot

On Thu, 5 Feb 2004 00:29:37 -0600, "Cliff and Linda Griffith"
<grifftex@charter.net> wrote:
"Taco The Pitbull" <tacopitbull@yahoo.com> wrote in messagenews:m5o320du9jotufj4ofuqkbd4p26bjmfb5b@4ax .com... The girl was cutting through the parking lot of Evie's Car Wash at 6:20 p.m. Sunday to a spot where her stepfather was supposed to pick her up. When Carlie did not show up at the rendezvous spot, stepfather Steven Kansler drove around looking for her and called the cops at 6:30 p.m., Gooding said.By CORKY SIEMASZKODAILY NEWS STAFF WRITERIs this new? I don't think it's real. Last I heard, the stepfather had noidea that his [step]daughter was walking alone until someone called and toldhim.Linda

Is this new?
I take it you couldn't read the part at the bottom at said "Originally
published on February 4, 2004 "
You must live in a cave since the story is on several news outlets:
http://www.cnn.com/2004/US/South/02/04/missing.girl/index.html

Suspect arrested in Florida missing girl case
Security camera tape shows man leading away 11-year-old girl
Thursday, February 5, 2004 Posted: 3:41 AM EST (0841 GMT)


SARASOTA, Florida (CNN) -- A suspect is in custody in the
disappearance of 11-year-old-Carlie Brucia, who went missing while
walking home from a friend's house Sunday, authorities said Wednesday.

Joseph P. Smith, 37, was arrested on drug possession charges Tuesday
after telephone tips identified him as a possible suspect in the case,
Sarasota County Sheriff Bill Balkwill told a press conference. The
girl has not been found.

"Please consider this as a focus, to find Carlie and bring her home,"
said Capt. Jeff Bell, the lead detective in the case.

A law enforcement source told CNN that Smith was not cooperating with
investigators.

Late into the night, police were seen searching Smith's home, as well
as a field with tall grass behind the residence.

Carlie's disappearance led to an Amber Alert issued by the Florida
Department of Law Enforcement on Monday. The story was broadcast
nationally because the girl's abduction was recorded by a surveillance
camera in the parking lot behind a car wash.

Smith is suspected of abducting Carlie Sunday night, although he has
not been charged.

"We have strong evidence to suggest he is the perpetrator," Bell said.

Smith was arrested on charges of possessing cocaine and drug
paraphernalia.

He has a criminal history dating to 1993 in the Sarasota area,
including numerous arrests on drug charges, and charges of
kidnapping/false imprisonment, felony aggravated battery and domestic
violence.

According to the Florida Department of Corrections, Smith has served
time for a number of drug-related crimes, including heroin possession.
He was released from prison in January 2003 and is on probation as a
drug offender, according to the department's Web site.

Authorities also are searching Smith's car, a tan 1992 Buick Century
station wagon they believe was used in the suspected abduction.

Officials pleaded for continued help from the community to locate
Carlie, asking people to call in with information that might indicate
where Smith traveled between Sunday and Tuesday.

In the videotape, recorded Sunday night just after 6:20, Carlie is
seen being approached by a white man in some kind of a work uniform.
He briefly speaks to her as she hesitates, then takes her by the
forearm and leads her away.

Investigators said Tuesday they believed the suspect planned the
kidnapping.

"If you look at that video and you look at her reactions, you look at
his mannerisms and what he does ... there is a possibility that he was
aware that she was there and had every intent of confronting her in
that location," said Maj. Kevin Gooding of the Sarasota County
Sheriff's Office.

Initial enhancement of the digital images by NASA and the FBI yielded
some clues, said Carl Whitehead, special agent in charge of the FBI's
Tampa office.

Along with tattoos on the man's forearms, investigators saw a name
patch on his uniform. "It appears to be a short name, maybe three or
four letters," Whitehead said. Smith has multiple tattoos on his
forearms, chest and back, officials said.

Before the announcement, Florida Gov. Jeb Bush said he had spoken to
Carlie's mother, Susan Schorpen, "to say that the resources of the
[Florida Department of Law Enforcement] are being brought to bear to
find her child."

Callers have phoned in "well over 400 leads," Balkwill said.

Balkwill made a plea Wednesday morning to anyone who might be holding
Carlie hostage. "Please turn Carlie over to the nearest convenience
store, bank, any location. On behalf of the family, please let her
go."

Whitehead said the bureau had added $25,000 to the original award,
raising it to $50,000 for anyone who provides information "for a
successful resolution of this matter."

Schorpen sent out an emotional message to her daughter at an early
evening news conference.

"Carlie, I love you. If you can call, I have this phone on me at all
times, call home," she sobbed, clutching her mobile telephone and a
large gray cat. "I'm begging and pleading, please bring my daughter
home."

A family friend addressed the abductor. "If you have anything in your
heart ... please let that child go and let her come home. You're
destroying this family," she said.

Authorities asked anyone with any information, no matter how trivial,
to share it with investigators.

CNN's Susan Candiotti in Miami and John Zarrella in Sarasota
contributed to this report.



http://www.foxnews.com/story/0,2933,110405,00.html

Suspect in Fla. Girl's Abduction in Custody

Suspect in Fla. Girl's Abduction in Custody

Thursday, February 05, 2004

SARASOTA, Fla. — A suspect in the abduction of an 11-year-old Sarasota
girl has been taken into custody, though the whereabouts of missing
sixth grader Carlie Brucia (search) are still not known.


Joseph P. Smith, 37, is a drug felon and has been in custody since
Tuesday on unrelated charges, which were not specified. He was still
being questioned, and his Buick Century station wagon was being
searched by investigators for clues connecting him to the girl, who
has been missing since Sunday evening.

"We have strong evidence that he is in fact the perpetrator," said
lead investigator Capt. Jeff Bell in a Wednesday evening press
conference.

Col. Terry Lewis of the Sarasota County (search) sheriffs office
called it an "ongoing, dynamic investigation." He said his
investigative team will continue working through the night, but would
not have further comment until a press briefing at 9 a.m. Thursday.

Meanwhile, Chuck Chambers, a private investigator hired by the girl's
family, said late Wednesday that he had a "possible lead" to her
whereabouts based on an anonymous tip.

Several people — including Carlie's stepfather, Steven Kansler — went
late Wednesday night to a home where Smith had recently been living,
but no information was released on what clues, if any, were at the
scene.

Sheriff's officials would not comment. Officers had the area cordoned
off with yellow tape for several hours and removed some bags.
Reporters were kept well away from the immediate area until the yellow
tape was removed.

Smith has been arrested at least 13 times in Florida since 1993,
according to state records. He was arrested May 7, 1997, by Manatee
County officials on kidnapping and false imprisonment charges, but was
acquitted a year later, records show.

Other arrests range from misdemeanor battery to felony drug possession
charges, records show, with Smith placed on probation for cocaine
possession last March.

Sheriff Bill Balkwill said investigators were led to Smith after a tip
was phoned in by a citizen. Authorities were chasing more than 400
leads, Balkwill said.

Click here for the Amber Alert.

Brucia was apparently kidnapped Sunday while taking a shortcut behind
a closed car wash on her way home from a friend's house.

The man appeared to be in his late 20s or early 30s in a mechanic's
shirt with a name patch on one breast. Investigators said he also had
tattoos on both forearms.

Smith has many tattoos on his body, including on both arms, officials
said.

The FBI (search) worked with a NASA image lab to enhance the images.
Balkwill did not say Wednesday night whether those enhanced images
helped lead them to Smith.

"I think it's helping them out quite a bit and giving them details
they need to solve this case," said Armando Oliu, who is overseeing
the image lab.

From the tape, Carlie did not appear to know him, and the girl's
parents said they did not recognize him.

Meanwhile, after speaking with a psychic, Carlie's family hired a
private investigator to assist in the search. Chuck Chambers, a
private investigator from neighboring Bradenton, said Carlie's family
hired him Tuesday after consulting with an "investigative psychic" who
"provided them with addresses and clues."

Chambers said he was trying to see if there was any connection to the
addresses provided by the psychic and urged anyone with information to
contact him if they didn't want to talk with police.

"Our main concern is the safety and recovery of the girl," Chambers
said.

Steven Kansler, Carlie's stepfather, said the family was encouraged
because the psychic feels Carlie is still alive, but is "somewhere
dark and tied up," according to the psychic, who Kansler did not
identify but said was from Nashville, Tenn.

Carlie's family is frustrated at times, but remains hopeful that the
girl is coming home, Kansler said.

"I know Carlie is a strong-willed person," he said. "She's full of
life and she's not going to give up."

Gov. Jeb Bush said he spoke to the child's mother, telling her "the
resources of the (FDLE) are being brought to bear to find her child."
Bush also spoke with FDLE Commissioner Guy Tunnell about why it took
the sheriff's office 24 hours to issue an Amber alert.

FDLE spokeswoman Kristin Perezluha said all procedures were followed
leading up to the issuing of the Amber alert.

Friends from the girl's former Girl Scout troop took a day off from
school Wednesday to pass out fliers at shopping centers, canvass
neighborhoods and distribute pink ribbons adorned with Carlie's name.

"I don't feel too good about this, knowing my best friend is out there
with a stranger," said Tiffany Meeks.

Bruce Meeks, Tiffany's father, said the parents of Carlie's friends
were trying to offer their support, "just be there for them."

Many potential volunteers pulled up to the site of the abduction,
rolled down the windows of their cars and asked deputies how they
could help. Sheriff's officials were creating "a database of volunteer
support" to try to locate the girl.

David McClellan, 32, of Bradenton, signed up to help and picked up
fliers to distribute in the community.

"I've got a 10-year-old niece and I can't imagine what they're going
through," McClellan said.

The girl's father, Joe Brucia, looked exhausted when he appeared on
national television Wednesday morning.

"I'm doing OK. I have to be for Carlie's sake," he said on ABC's "Good
Morning America." "I always have hope. I maintain that. I have to. I
look forward to my daughter's safe return."

The sheriff's office is working with the FBI, Florida Department of
Law Enforcement and the Center for Missing and Exploited Children.
Calls from the public have poured in. A reward fund of $50,000 was
offered for information leading to the arrest and conviction of the
person responsible.

A national hot line — 1-888-382-6237 — has been established to gather
information. The Center for Missing and Exploited Children sent two
experts to assist, distributing 16,000 flyers with Carlie's picture
throughout the region.

The Associated Press contributed to this report.



Taco The Pit Bull
http://www.geocities.com/tacopitbull/

If It Was Actually Said, Then It's Neither Libel Nor Slander But The Truth

On Thu, 05 Feb 2004 01:22:51 -0500, Taco The Pitbull
<tacopitbull@yahoo.com> wrote:

} http://www.nydailynews.com/front/story/161264p-141393c.html
}
} Horror caught on videotape
}
} By CORKY SIEMASZKO
} DAILY NEWS STAFF WRITER
}
} It's a brazen daylight kidnapping with a shocking difference: The
} moment a thug grabs 11-year-old Carlie Brucia is all on videotape.
} And now FBI agents are working with NASA scientists to enhance what a
} car-wash surveillance camera captured in hopes of identifying the man
} who vanished with the Florida sixth-grader.
}
} Carlie was taking a shortcut on her
No way. It's a girl. ^^^^^^