Zahra Clare Baker #4 10/22/10 - 10/28/10

[Northern Rose]

The Big Dawg, 92.1FM This news update on the Zahra Baker search: WSOCTV is reporting that Elisa Baker the step mother of Zahra Baker was taken to the site today of where they are searching in Caldwell County. She was there about fifteen minutes and did not get out of the vehicle she was riding in. We'll have more on WMNC News Tuesday morning with CJ Stancil.

http://www.facebook.com/permalink.php?story_fbid=170677219615245&id=94628656805

[Northern Rose]

Zahra's Stepmother Brought To New Search Site (video)

http://www.wsoctv.com/video/25506523/index.html

[mariloo]

I would still like to know what the assault with a deadly weapon is all about.  Who in the world did he try and assault and why.  Wish some of our sleuths can get in there and see the arrest record.    Sure would be enlightening to say the lest.  I still think it is the SM who delivered the death sentence to Zahra.  Boy, would I like to be in the same room with her for about 20 minutes.  She would be singing like an opera star.

mariloo I think the assualt with a deadly weapon charge stems from when he tried to run someone off the road with his car.  It is on here somewhere in one of the earlier threads.

Oh!!  I missed that.  Wonder why he would do that?  Sorry, I come in every week or two.  Have to work and been very busy.  Hard to keep up.  I just want the little girl found, give the perpetraitors a fair trial, then HANG-EM!!!!!

[Brandi]

I would still like to know what the assault with a deadly weapon is all about.  Who in the world did he try and assault and why.  Wish some of our sleuths can get in there and see the arrest record.    Sure would be enlightening to say the lest.  I still think it is the SM who delivered the death sentence to Zahra.  Boy, would I like to be in the same room with her for about 20 minutes.  She would be singing like an opera star.

mariloo I think the assualt with a deadly weapon charge stems from when he tried to run someone off the road with his car.  It is on here somewhere in one of the earlier threads.

Oh!!  I missed that.  Wonder why he would do that?  Sorry, I come in every week or two.  Have to work and been very busy.  Hard to keep up.  I just want the little girl found, give the perpetrators a fair trial, then HANG-EM!!!!!

I could be wrong, but as I understood it, Elisa and Adam were angry that they had not been paid after a drug deal. And they reportedly tried to run someone off the road with their vehicle. I think Brittney Bently or her mother, Kim Drum were the ones who filed charges.

[klaasend]

The arrow marks an area that I think might be a small waterfall and stream off of Dudley Shoals and Burns Rds:

[Tibrogargan]

Zahra Baker's father arrested at airport

Tuesday, October 26, 2010 » 08:13am

The father of missing 10-year-old Australian girl Zahra Baker has been arrested at a North Carolina airport.

Police in the Bakers' home town of Hickory, North Carolina, said they arrested Adam Baker at Charlotte Douglas International Airport on Monday morning, but do not believe he was trying to flee the state or the US.

The charges were not related to Zahra's disappearance.

'We believe he was at the airport picking up relatives who were flying in from Australia,' Hickory Police Department spokesperson Libby Grigg told AAP.

Baker, a former Queensland sugar mill worker who moved from Australia to the US two years ago with Zahra so he could be with his new American wife Elisa, faces five counts of writing worthless cheques, two counts of communicating threats, one count of assault with a deadly weapon, and one count of failure to return rental property.

The disappearance of Zahra, who had the lower part of her left leg amputated five years ago after being stricken with bone cancer, has made headlines across the world.

Adam and Elisa Baker reported her missing on October 9. However, Zahra had not been seen by anyone other than a family member since September 25 and Hickory police believe she was murdered.

Elisa Baker is also in custody.

Adam Baker is being held on $US7000 ($A7116) bond while Elisa was arrested a fortnight ago and is charged with obstruction of justice and other offences. The obstruction of justice count relates to an alleged fake ransom police believe she wrote.

http://bigpondnews.com/articles/TopStories/2010/10/26/Zahra_Bakers_father_arrested_at_airport_530712.html

[Tolerance]

The arrow marks an area that I think might be a small waterfall and stream off of Dudley Shoals and Burns Rds:

Thank you for this, Klaas.

[Tibrogargan]

Father of missing 10-year-old Zahra Baker arrested on unrelated charges

    * From: NewsCore
    * October 26, 2010 3:10AM

    * Zahra's father arrested and released on bond
    * Charges not connected to missing 10-year-old
    * Zahra disappeared on September 25

THE father of a missing 10-year-old Australian girl was arrested in North Carolina today on charges unrelated to his daughter's disappearance.

WCNC-TV reported that Adam Baker was arrested on five counts of writing bad cheques, two counts of communicating threats, assault with a deadly weapon and failure to return rental property.

His bond was set at $7000 and he is expected to appear in court on November 18.

Hickory Police Chief Tom Adkins had said at the beginning of the investigation that Baker had outstanding warrants for his arrest for writing worthless checques.

Baker reported his daughter Zahra missing on October 9, but police in Hickory, North Carolina., announced days later that they were investigating the girl’s disappearance as a homicide.

Investigators, who have said Zahra was last seen on September 25, removed the girl’s mattress from a landfill Friday and have used cadaver dogs to search her family’s car and home.

Elisa Baker, Zahra’s stepmother, was arrested on unrelated charges after reporting the girl’s disappearance.

She later admitted to writing a $1 million ransom note in connection with the case and was charged with obstruction of justice.

Zahra, who has hearing loss and had one lower leg amputated due to cancer, was born in Australia but moved to the US after her father met the woman who would become her stepmother on the internet two years ago.

Read more about US police arrest dad of missing Zahra at  wcnc.com.

http://www.couriermail.com.au/news/father-of-missing-10-year-old-zahra-barker-arrested-on-unrelated-charges/story-e6freon6-1225943508897

The above report is interesting in that it states Adam Baker has been released on bond whereas the story at the link to wcnc.com staes he is being held.

As we all know newspapers never let the truth get in the way of a good story, and I have seen some of the sloppiest reporting that I have ever read in this story.

The Courier Mail is the main paper for the Queensland state capital of Brisbane.  The Townsville Bulletin is the daily paper for the town where Adam Baker lived before moving to USA.

[Tibrogargan]

Zahra's dad arrested on unrelated charges

AAP  |  October 26th, 2010

THE father of missing 10-year-old Australian girl Zahra Baker has been arrested at a North Carolina airport.

Police in the Bakers' home town of Hickory, North Carolina, said they arrested Adam Baker at Charlotte Douglas International Airport on Monday morning, but do not believe he was trying to flee the state or the US.

The charges were not related to Zahra's disappearance.

''We believe he was at the airport picking up relatives who were flying in from Australia,'' Hickory Police Department spokesperson Libby Grigg said.

Baker, a former Giru sugar mill worker who moved from Australia to the US two years ago with Zahra so he could be with his new American wife Elisa, faces five counts of writing worthless cheques, two counts of communicating threats, one count of assault with a deadly weapon, and one count of failure to return rental property.

The disappearance of Zahra, who had the lower part of her left leg amputated five years ago after being stricken with bone cancer, has made headlines across the world.

Adam and Elisa Baker reported her missing on October 9. However, Zahra had not been seen by anyone other than a family member since September 25 and Hickory police believe she was murdered.

Elisa Baker is also in custody.

Adam Baker is being held on $US7000 ($A7116) bond while Elisa was arrested a fortnight ago and is charged with obstruction of justice and other offences. The obstruction of justice count relates to an alleged fake ransom police believe she wrote.

http://www.townsvillebulletin.com.au/article/2010/10/26/180195_news.html

[Tibrogargan]

For any monkeys concerned about what the Australian Consulate may do to thwart any charges against Adam Baker in this case here are the main points on Australians arrested overseas :

Arrested or jailed overseas

Each year almost 1000 Australians are arrested overseas and about 220 are in prisons overseas at any one time. Being detained or jailed overseas, or having one of your relatives or friends arrested and in prison overseas, can be very traumatic, distressing and frightening. Prison conditions in many countries can be significantly harsher than those in Australia.

If you are arrested overseas, you may face a significant period of detention before your case comes to trial. Legal and administrative processes may be substantially different from those in Australia and slow by our standards.

This brochure is designed to provide information to help you understand what consular staff in Australia and overseas can do to assist prisoners and their families during this difficult time.

When Australians travel abroad, they leave behind Australia’s support systems, emergency service capabilities and medical facilities. The Australian Government will do what it can to help prisoners and their families as much as possible within the local and international legal framework. There may be limitations to what can be done and you should have realistic expectations about this. It is recommended you read the Consular Services Charter, available on smartraveller.gov.au, before you go.
Before you go — be prepared
Local laws

Familiarise yourself with local laws

While you are in another country, you are required to respect and abide by that country’s laws as you are required to respect and abide by Australian laws when you are home.

Be aware that local laws and penalties, including ones that may appear harsh by Australian standards, apply to you. Some countries impose tough penalties including life imprisonment and the death penalty. Age, health concerns or ignorance are not valid excuses.
International laws
The Vienna Convention on Consular Relations

The Vienna Convention on Consular Relations, available at http://treaties.un.org and which many countries are a signatory to, provides the framework upon which a person who has been arrested, detained or jailed overseas is entitled to seek access to consular officers from their country of citizenship. Should you be detained overseas, you should ask to speak to officials from the nearest Australian mission.

Addresses and telephone numbers of Australian embassies, high commissions and consulates can be found at www.dfat.gov.au/missions.
Drugs

Do not use, carry or get involved with drugs.

Do not be fooled into thinking carrying or taking drugs overseas is worth the risk. Australians do get caught and every year, many Australians of all ages are arrested overseas on drug charges. Even the possession of small quantities of so-called ‘soft drugs’ can attract jail sentences or heavy fines.

Avoid getting into trouble with drugs overseas by:

    * obeying the law — do not purchase, take or travel with drugs
    * locking your bags as a precaution against tampering or theft
    * not leaving your bags unattended in public areas or in the care of a stranger
    * never carrying anything into or out of another country for someone else
    * ensuring your medication is not considered illegal overseas by contacting the nearest foreign mission of the country you are visiting before your departure. Contact details are available from www.dfat.gov.au/embassies.html.

In some countries the presence of illegal drugs detected in blood or urine tests is considered possession. You may also be charged with possessing drugs if trace amounts are found on your body, bloodstream, clothes or luggage. Amounts of 0.05 grams or less can lead to a conviction for drug possession and lengthy minimum mandatory prison sentences.
Being arrested overseas

If you are arrested overseas you have the right to contact the Australian Government, but consular assistance cannot override local law, even when local laws may appear harsh by Australian standards.

The Australian Government cannot get you out of jail.
What we can do to assist

We will do everything in our power to assist Australians who are arrested or in prison overseas, but we must also work within the legal and administrative processes that apply in the country.

We can:

    * visit you while you are detained
    * assist you in getting information about visitor procedures or accessing money or telephones
    * provide you with a list of local English-speaking lawyers
    * if authorised, arrange for your next-of-kin to be contacted and informed of your welfare
    * assist you to organise your family and friends to send you money
    * assist you to maintain contact with your family
    * discuss justified and serious complaints about ill-treatment or discrimination with the local authorities
    * raise medical or dental issues with local authorities, should you fail in your attempts to have these issues addressed
    * arrange a small loan from the Australian Government under the Prisoner Loan Scheme (subject to your location and strict eligibility criteria)
    * monitor your court trials and, in some circumstances, attend as an *******
    * where applicable, provide you with information on the International Transfer of Prisoners Scheme
    * support an application for a pardon, if local law and practice allow.

What we cannot do

We cannot:

    * get you out of jail, or give Local Authorities written guarantees to secure your release
    * determine your innocence or otherwise
    * conduct investigations relating to any alleged offence
    * provide you or your family with legal advice
    * make recommendations as to which lawyer you should choose
    * pay your lawyer’s fees, instigate court procedures or interfere in local judicial processes
    * seek better treatment for you than that provided to the host country’s own citizens or other nationals
    * arrange your bail or pay your fines
    * support you financially in prison, except in some circumstances where the country and your circumstances qualify you for the Prisoner Loan Scheme.

More at the website :

http://www.smartraveller.gov.au/tips/gaolos.html

[Brandi]

Tibrogargan, thank you so much for that informative post!

http://www.smartraveller.gov.au/tips/gaolos.html

Answers a lot of questions for us!

[4 Donks]

Tibrogargan or Night Owl

Has the Australian news mentioned AB or Zahras immigration status in the US.

[Gypsy DD]

HI NC Mike..I see you up in the rafters.

What are you hearing locally through the grapevine about this case?
TYIA

[seemeatthebeach]

Sorry if this has already been posted.....

Just read this on thehinkymeter......Zarah's bio mother's comment and comment by someone who knows Zahra's mother.

biomum said: { Oct 24, 2010 – 09:10:50 }
“aussie girl said: { Oct 14, 2010 – 06:10:10 }

i just want to clarify that the bio mother did not know that zahra was in the states… adam some how forged a passport to get her out of australia… u need both parents signature. She loved her little girl with all her heart and was lookign for her.. i have read comments all over the internet saying that the bio mum must not have loved her or gave a shit , but this is far from the truth… adam took off with this lil angel not letting the mother see her…. some one needs to also look into her passport application and find out how she was able to leave australia tpo begin with… if her wasnt invloved in the dissapearance ( doubtful) it his fault she was there to begin with”

aussie girl, i have no idea who you are, but you are obviously someone close to me and I thank you for speaking the truth when I have not been strong enough to have a public voice.

I am the biological mother (only mother) of this beautiful angel. aussie girl has stated the most important point, I have never stopped loving Zahra, and never will. nor did a day go by that I, and my family, didn’t try in someway to find her. I am here to clear up a simple fact while I am having a day that I feel strong enough to.

*I have not stepped up to the media for my “15mins of fame” , as some have referred to it, because the last 11 years of MY life are irrelevant, the truth of Adam and his hurtful and manipulative ways will come out in time.. what IS relevant is finding Zahra and putting her to rest with some dignity.

while i have read some very “interesting” theories about what has happened, i would hope that none of these horrible things are true. I cannot fathom the possibility of my daughter going through things that would never even enter my night terrors, and if i had known where she was, and what was being done to her, I would have taken her away immediately.

i can only send out my greatest appreciation to every single person who has spent so many hours away from their own families to help bring these monsters to justice, and many thanks to all the people who have had such beautiful words to say about a daughter I was never given the chance to know.

please keep praying they find her. I am not not holding onto any hope of her being alive, I have to accept the reality of what these monsters have done. but please pray her body is found and she can be shown respect and dignity by those who really do, and will always, love her.


let each and every one of our tears lead them one step closer to the truth.



http://www.thehinkymeter.com/2010/10/22/zahra-baker-case-landfill-search-ends/#comment-82388

[Brandi]

Investigators search near former home of Zahra Baker's step mom



by MICHELLE BOUDIN / NewsChannel 36
Posted on October 25, 2010 at 7:09 PM

GRANITE FALLS, N.C.-- Dudley Shoals Road was closed to traffic for most of the afternoon Monday as the FBI and SBI worked with local investigators combing the woods for clues in the Zahra Baker case.

Teams have searched the Baker family home in Hickory, a pond in Burke County and the Caldwell County Landfill, all while trying to find any clues to Zahra’s Baker’s whereabouts.

Monday's search focused on  a short road running off Dudley Shoals Road in Granite Falls.

Caldwell County Sheriff Alan Jones said, “Still the same as last week, we’re following up on leads Hickory gets in our county, and we’ll be with them until they run out of leads.  We’ve been all over the place, followed up on leads, get different calls, callers call in.”

Dudley Shoals Road was shut down so investigators could work without interruption.

In searches past, Zahra’s father, Adam Baker tagged along. 

This time he’s in jail, arrested on unrelated outstanding warrants.

Investigators had said they would serve those warrants at an “appropriate” time.

The sheriff says the search for his daughter will go until they find her.

“We always like to be hopeful.  In a case like this we’re not gonna rest until we Find this little girl, whether in this county or another county, were gonna continue to look,” says Jones.

http://www.wcnc.com/news/local/Investigators-search-near-former-home-of-Zahra-Bakers-stepmom-105726938.html

[pfaubush]

Sorry if this has already been posted.....

Just read this on thehinkymeter......Zarah's bio mother's comment and comment by someone who knows Zahra's mother.

biomum said: { Oct 24, 2010 – 09:10:50 }
“aussie girl said: { Oct 14, 2010 – 06:10:10 }

i just want to clarify that the bio mother did not know that zahra was in the states… adam some how forged a passport to get her out of australia… u need both parents signature. She loved her little girl with all her heart and was lookign for her.. i have read comments all over the internet saying that the bio mum must not have loved her or gave a shit , but this is far from the truth… adam took off with this lil angel not letting the mother see her…. some one needs to also look into her passport application and find out how she was able to leave australia tpo begin with… if her wasnt invloved in the dissapearance ( doubtful) it his fault she was there to begin with”

aussie girl, i have no idea who you are, but you are obviously someone close to me and I thank you for speaking the truth when I have not been strong enough to have a public voice.

I am the biological mother (only mother) of this beautiful angel. aussie girl has stated the most important point, I have never stopped loving Zahra, and never will. nor did a day go by that I, and my family, didn’t try in someway to find her. I am here to clear up a simple fact while I am having a day that I feel strong enough to.

*I have not stepped up to the media for my “15mins of fame” , as some have referred to it, because the last 11 years of MY life are irrelevant, the truth of Adam and his hurtful and manipulative ways will come out in time.. what IS relevant is finding Zahra and putting her to rest with some dignity.

while i have read some very “interesting” theories about what has happened, i would hope that none of these horrible things are true. I cannot fathom the possibility of my daughter going through things that would never even enter my night terrors, and if i had known where she was, and what was being done to her, I would have taken her away immediately.

i can only send out my greatest appreciation to every single person who has spent so many hours away from their own families to help bring these monsters to justice, and many thanks to all the people who have had such beautiful words to say about a daughter I was never given the chance to know.

please keep praying they find her. I am not not holding onto any hope of her being alive, I have to accept the reality of what these monsters have done. but please pray her body is found and she can be shown respect and dignity by those who really do, and will always, love her.


let each and every one of our tears lead them one step closer to the truth.



http://www.thehinkymeter.com/2010/10/22/zahra-baker-case-landfill-search-ends/#comment-82388

Not sure what to think of this.

[StarMonkey]

Reply with quote

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=aGfNeVsv9OI

OCT 25

Police cut out a large piece of a mattress Behind the old trailer Adam and Elisa baker moved from. the same area where the nieghbor saw them that night.

here is a link where a witness said they saw them behind their old trailer near a manhole. LE says Adam baker threw out Zahra's old mattress DAYS before she was said to be missing.

http://www.wbtv.com/Global/story.asp?S=13297637

[StarMonkey]

Im thinking Adam Baker was trying to flee. My guess since it was 3:15 AM he thought maybe cops wouldnt be following him at that time? maybe they noticed he snuck away? he could have gotten a ticket to go anywhere in the US, I dont think he had his passport? and if he was Really picking up family, he would have just said who and it would have been cleared up.

[no rose colored glasses]

Im thinking Adam Baker was trying to flee. My guess since it was 3:15 AM he thought maybe cops wouldnt be following him at that time? maybe they noticed he snuck away? he could have gotten a ticket to go anywhere in the US, I dont think he had his passport? and if he was Really picking up family, he would have just said who and it would have been cleared up.

I tend to agree with you, by now I think we would have heard who he was suppose to pick up at the airport IMO

[luvmyboys]

Did you guys just hear that zahra body was found. I think I just saw that on NG