(very) off topic - Chandra Levy / Rep. Gary Condit stuff (from AP News).
July 14, 2001
What's Known About Levy Case
By THE ASSOCIATED PRESS
Filed at 12:27 p.m. ET
WASHINGTON (AP) -- Some questions and answers about the search for former
federal intern Chandra Levy, and her connection to Rep. Gary Condit, D-Calif.:
Q: Who is Chandra Levy?
A: A 24-year-old from Modesto, Calif., who came to Washington last fall as part of her
master's degree program in public administration at the University of Southern California.
She lived in an apartment near Dupont Circle, a fashionable Washington neighborhood,
and worked as a paid intern at the Bureau of Prisons, in the public information office.
Her internship was unexpectedly cut short in late April because her superiors learned she
had finished her college course work in December, making her ineligible to continue.
Q: When did she disappear?
A: Levy was last seen April 30 when she canceled her membership at a health club near
her apartment. She was making preparations for returning to California and attending the
university's graduation ceremony. She sent her parents, Dr. Robert and Susan Levy, an
e-mail on May 1 in which she noted airplane fares for her trip home. Police have said
they have no reason to doubt Levy was the message sender. When her parents could not
reach their daughter over the next five days, they called police. Her mother also
telephoned Democratic Rep. Gary Condit, who represents Modesto, and asked for his
help. Police entered Levy's apartment May 10 and found her partially packed bags,
wallet, cell phone and computer. Only her keys were missing. There were no signs of
foul play.
Q: What do police think happened to Levy?
A: They do not know but are pursuing four theories: She was murdered; she killed
herself; she went into hiding; or she has amnesia. Police have all but ruled out suicide
because so much time has passed without her body being found. They are searching
abandoned buildings in neighborhoods near Levy's apartment and have distributed
simulated pictures of Levy with different hair styles. Police say they still consider the
case a missing persons investigation and not a crime, though they acknowledge that as
more times passes the likelihood of murder increases.
Q: What was the relationship between Condit and Levy?
A: Condit initially put up $10,000 for a reward for Levy's safe return and issued a
statement in which he called her a ``great person and good friend.'' Questions about the
nature of their relationship escalated during the next few weeks amid media reports the
two may have been romantically involved. Condit's aides denied the reports; he remained
publicly silent. Condit did not acknowledge an affair in interviews with police in mid-May
and on June 23, police sources have said. Levy's aunt issued a statement July 6 in which
she said Levy had told her she began an affair with the married Condit last Thanksgiving.
On the night of July 6, in a third police interview, Condit said he and Levy had an
intimate relationship, a police source has said.
Q: What does their relationship have to do with Levy's disappearance?
A: Police do not know if there is a link, but Condit may have been one of the last people
to talk to or see Levy. Investigators say it is important to establish the frame of mind and
movements of a person in the days before they go missing, and the best way to do that is
to interview to people who saw and talked to the person.
Q: Is Condit a suspect in her disappearance?
A: No. Police say there are no suspects because they have no evidence of a crime. Police
did search Condit's apartment late Tuesday and early Wednesday with his consent and
obtained a DNA sample from him Thursday. Condit submitted to a lie detector test
arranged by his lawyer and, according to the lawyer, was found to be truthful when
denying any knowledge about what happened to Levy.
Q: What is the relevance of allegations that other women have had affairs with Condit?
A: It is unclear. Terrance Gainer, Washington's No. 2 police official, said those accounts
have yielded nothing useful in the search for Levy. But federal officials have expanded a
preliminary criminal investigation to determine whether Condit obstructed the
investigation of Levy's disappearance. In particular, flight attendant Anne Marie Smith
alleges Condit asked her to sign a statement denying a 10-month affair she says they had.
Smith, who spent two days answering questions from prosecutors and FBI agents last
week, also claims Condit told her she did not have to cooperate with FBI agents. Condit
has denied asking anyone to lie or encouraging them not to cooperate with investigators.
He has said nothing about Smith's allegation of an affair. Last week, a California minister
told The Washington Post that seven years ago, his then-18-year-old daughter had an
affair with Condit. A signed statement in the daughter's name that was tacked to the
father's front door on the day the report was published denied an affair. A Condit
spokesman also denied an affair.
Copyright 2001 The Associated Press |
