California murder-kidnap suspect killed in Idaho, girl rescued: police

A California man suspected of killing his longtime friend and her son and abducting her 16-year-old daughter was killed in Idaho on Saturday as authorities were attempting to arrest him, the San Diego County Sheriff said.<br /><br /><br /><a href="http://media2.s-nbcnews.com/j/MSNBC/Components/Photo/_new/g-cvr-130808-dimaggio-4x3-615p.380;380;7;70;0.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="http://media2.s-nbcnews.com/j/MSNBC/Components/Photo/_new/g-cvr-130808-dimaggio-4x3-615p.380;380;7;70;0.jpg" /></a>The girl, Hannah Anderson, was rescued apparently in good health and taken to a hospital, San Diego County Sheriff William Gore said at a news conference.<br /><br />More than 150 law enforcement officers on foot and on horseback had descended on the central Idaho wilderness in search of James Lee DiMaggio, 40, after a group of backcountry horsemen told police that they had spotted the pair on Wednesday.<br /><br />The telecommunications technician is wanted in the killing of Christina Anderson, 44, and 8-year-old Ethan and in the disappearance of Hannah, all of whom were last seen last Saturday, the day before DiMaggio is suspected of setting his house on fire in the Southern California community of Boulevard, triggering a multi-state search.<br /><br />The San Diego County Sheriff confirmed late on Friday that the remains of a second body found at the house were Ethan's. Police declined to say how Christina Anderson or her son were killed.<br /><br /><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiGIXgrLO3pH_9PPs0GKq0iVR1M7lGulVpJ2qUWwzsaxhi5Yx08Ap18Zal4S9ulYVQsQg55tgFLqvEceeR2dWefuDDbBPt7hJs1XVstR07evOuvXZvUvtDwJ22_2Z4aZ8Qe11hExxHxjzo/s1600/01qq.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="360" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiGIXgrLO3pH_9PPs0GKq0iVR1M7lGulVpJ2qUWwzsaxhi5Yx08Ap18Zal4S9ulYVQsQg55tgFLqvEceeR2dWefuDDbBPt7hJs1XVstR07evOuvXZvUvtDwJ22_2Z4aZ8Qe11hExxHxjzo/s1600/01qq.jpg" width="640" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">James Dimaggio's car is towed to the town of Cascade </td></tr></tbody></table><br />

California murder-kidnap suspect killed in Idaho, girl rescued: police

A California man suspected of killing his longtime friend and her son and abducting her 16-year-old daughter was killed in Idaho on Saturday...

Burned body ID'd as brother of missing California girl

<h4>A body found in a burning house in Southern California is that of the 8-year-old brother of missing Hannah Anderson, San Diego sheriff's officials said Friday.</h4><br /><br /><br /><br /><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><img alt="Burned bodies, child abduction: A massive search entered a sixth day Friday, Aug. 9, 2013 for DiMaggio, suspected of abducting the 16-year-old family friend." class="image" height="359" src="http://newsbcpcol.stb.s-msn.com/amnews/i/a0/576d16eb7db4313d62e4db84add7/_h353_w628_m6_otrue_lfalse.jpg" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;" width="640" /></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">This combination of photos provided by the San Diego Sheriff's Department shows James Lee DiMaggio, 40, left, and Hannah Anderson, 16</td></tr></tbody></table>SAN DIEGO, Calif. —  A car belonging to a man suspected of killing a California woman and her young son and then fleeing with the 16-year-old daughter was found in the Idaho wilderness on Friday after a horseback rider reported seeing the man and girl hiking in the area two days earlier, authorities said.<br /><br />The discovery came as authorities in California positively identified the charred body of the girl's younger brother five days after its discovery.<br /><br />The rider said he saw two people who matched the description of the pair near Morehead Lake, in an extremely rugged backcountry area 70 miles northeast of Boise sometime around noon Wednesday, Ada County Sheriff's Department spokeswoman Andrea Dearden said.<br /><br />The rider didn't report his encounter with the pair until later, after seeing news reports and realizing they were being sought.<br /><br /><a href="http://newsbcpcol.stb.s-msn.com/amnews/i/85/1eb0e0c1cd85ca285222e213c883/_h0_w295_m6_otrue_lfalse.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img alt="Suspected Calif. abductor's vehicle found: Map showing Cascade, Idaho." border="0" class="image articleimage" data-class="img1" src="http://newsbcpcol.stb.s-msn.com/amnews/i/85/1eb0e0c1cd85ca285222e213c883/_h0_w295_m6_otrue_lfalse.jpg" /></a>Idaho authorities started searching Thursday and the car was found Friday morning and identified through serial numbers as belonging to James Lee DiMaggio, 40.<br /><br /><div><div>There have been no other reported sightings of the pair since Wednesday, but the discovery launched a massive search in the southwest corner of The Frank Church-River of No Return Wilderness.<br /><br /></div><div><span class="media hover"></span></div><div>More than 100 people were searching on foot and on horseback or were on their way to join the search of an area that Ada County sheriff's spokesman Patrick Orr described Friday evening as covering 320 square miles.</div><div><br /></div><div>The rider also told police it did not appear that the girl, believed to be 16-year-old Hannah Anderson, was being held against her will. Both people seemed healthy and were equipped with gear necessary to hike and camp in Idaho's remote wilderness.</div><div><br /></div><div>"There was nothing that was so alarming at the time that he felt threatened or alarmed," Dearden said of the unidentified rider. "But after seeing the Amber Alerts, there was something that made him think, in hindsight, that it all seemed a little odd."</div></div><div><div>Also late Friday, San Diego County sheriff's officials announced that, as expected, they had positively identified a charred body discovered at DiMaggio's home near the Mexican border as the girl's 8-year-old brother, Ethan Anderson.</div><div><br /></div><div>The sheriff's crime lab identified the body found Sunday through DNA extracted from bone marrow, the department said in a brief statement.</div><div><br /></div><div>The children's mother, Christina Anderson, 44, was also found dead at the burning house on Sunday night, and authorities around the west have been looking for DiMaggio and Hannah Anderson ever since.</div><div><br /></div><div>Brett Anderson, Hannah's father, said he was "very happy" that Hannah may have been spotted alive. He said he couldn't explain why his daughter didn't ask the horseback rider for help.</div><div><br /></div><div>"We don't know what kind of frame of mind she was in or what he told her," Anderson said. "Maybe if she acted differently, there would be more dead people."</div><div><br /></div><div>Hannah's grandfather, Christopher Saincome, also was relieved and refused to try to explain the girl's reaction.</div><div><br /></div><div>"He could have strapped something to her and told her it was a bomb. He could have had her tethered to him," he said. "I'm sure she's totally in shock."</div><div><br /></div><div>The car, a blue Nissan Versa, was covered in brush off a road about 5 or 6 miles from the spot where the man and girl had been seen. The license plates had been removed, but the vehicle identification number matched that of the car being sought, San Diego County Sheriff Bill Gore said.</div><div><br /></div><div>Police previously warned that the car might be rigged with explosives. A law enforcement team from San Diego was expected to search and secure the car at the trailhead, sheriff's spokesman Orr said.</div><div><br /></div><div>Morehead Lake is in the southwest corner of a rugged 2.3 million-acre preserve in the heart of Idaho. Because of its wilderness designation, the preserve is not open to motorized vehicles and traffic is limited to hikers and horseback riders — rules that will also apply to searchers.</div><div><br /></div><div>The lake is about 2 miles west of the Middle Fork of the Snake River, a waterway that winds through the wilderness and is extremely popular for recreationists who float and camp for up to a week at a time.</div><div><br /></div><div>The pine-blanketed area is at an altitude of about 7,800 feet and the lake itself is seven miles into the wilderness area. Temperatures at night can fall into the high 30s. Daytime highs can reach the 90s.</div><div><br /></div><div>Police have set up check points in the area where the car was found and near other nearby trailheads, about 60 miles east of Cascade.</div><div><br /></div><div>Gore noted that DiMaggio bought camping gear a few weeks ago.</div><div><br /></div><div>DiMaggio was close to the family. Brett Anderson has described him as a best friend and said his children thought of him as an uncle.</div><div><br /></div><div>Authorities have said DiMaggio had an "unusual infatuation" with the 16-year-old, although the father said he never saw any strange behavior. If he had, he said, "we would have quashed that relationship in an instant."</div><div><br /></div><div>DiMaggio, a telecommunications technician at The Scripps Research Institute in San Diego, was planning to move to Texas and invited Christina Anderson and the children to his home last weekend to say goodbye, said Christopher Saincome, Anderson's father.</div><div><br /></div><div>It's unclear how the two were killed, though police believe the crime was planned.</div><div><br /></div><div>Brett Anderson said his friend is an outdoorsman.</div><div><br /></div><div>"He was very interested in hiking and camping," Anderson said. "Whenever he had the chance and had the funds he would go on a hiking trip."</div><div><br /></div><div>The Cascade area is an outdoorsman's paradise. Perched along the southeastern shoreline of the Cascade Reservoir and The West Mountains, the town is a popular summer getaway for hikers, campers and kayakers.</div></div><div><br /></div>

Burned body ID'd as brother of missing California girl

A body found in a burning house in Southern California is that of the 8-year-old brother of missing Hannah Anderson, San Diego sheriff's...

Suspected San Diego kidnapper's car found in Idaho: police

A man and woman believed to match the description of a San Diego kidnapping suspect and the 16-year-old California girl with him were spotted by horseback riders in Idaho on Wednesday, authorities said at a Friday news conference.<br /><br /><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhjoQ67dJAxtm-LLCVfI3LrtZOrTNNF2NW4XZ0HfBytRJS_CU2rk7DPEbd44MK0QF0ka2koZQXvX4gt6E_M-h9bm5HiNMyfuH__GU6QQ-fvZOgAQn-DNp2RxPcDvG_4uzIlptIv-jujQ8k/s1600/compa.gif" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhjoQ67dJAxtm-LLCVfI3LrtZOrTNNF2NW4XZ0HfBytRJS_CU2rk7DPEbd44MK0QF0ka2koZQXvX4gt6E_M-h9bm5HiNMyfuH__GU6QQ-fvZOgAQn-DNp2RxPcDvG_4uzIlptIv-jujQ8k/s1600/compa.gif" /></a>San Diego County Sheriff Bill Gore said a car matching the description of the vehicle driven by James Lee DiMaggio was found in a remote, mountainous area of Idaho, about six miles outside of the city of Cascade.<br /><br />"The people on horseback, the four individuals who were out in that area, they thought it was just unique that they ran across them out there," Gore said. "And then when they came back, they made some inquiry and they found out about the Amber Alert and the information we have on DiMaggio."<br /><div><div>Officials suspect DiMaggio, 40, of setting fire to his own house, killing a woman and a boy inside, and kidnapping 16-year-old Hannah Anderson. Authorities in several states, Canada and Mexico are looking for him.</div><div><br /></div><div>The man and woman were spotted carrying backpacks about six miles from where the car was found, Gore said, adding that DiMaggio had recently purchased camping equipment. Both people spotted on Wednesday appeared in good health, he said.</div></div><div><div>The witnesses notified law enforcement authorities in the area about the sighting on Thursday.</div><div><br /></div><div>"As far as we know, it didn’t look like she was being held against her will,” the sheriff added.</div><div><br /></div><div>A ground search was initiated and a car matching DiMaggio's Nissan Versa was found Friday covered with brush and without any license plates. A check of the car's vehicle identification number on the windshield was performed and confirmed it was DiMaggio's car, the sheriff said.</div><div><br /></div><div>The vehicle was found in a remote section of land that is not easily accessible, Gore added, but said he was confident the girl would be returned safely.</div><div><br /></div><div>“She was alive on Wednesday and we hope that law enforcement will find them up in the mountains there and return them safely,” Gore said.</div><div><br /></div><div>--------------------------------------------------------------------------------</div><div><img alt="Amber Alert issued in California: From left, James Lee DiMaggio, 40; Ethan Anderson, 8; and Hannah Anderson, 16" class="image" src="http://newsbcpcol.stb.s-msn.com/amnews/i/5f/a55548f257b12cf9c8a182a2714e21/_h353_w628_m6_otrue_lfalse.jpg" /></div><div>Hannah Anderson and her 8-year-old brother, Ethan, have been missing since their mother’s death.</div><div><br /></div><div>On Sunday, police discovered the burned remains of Christina Anderson, 44, in a log cabin-style home in Boulevard, Calif. Along with Anderson’s body, police also found the body of a child that has yet to be identified, but authorities believe may be Ethan’s.</div><div><br /></div><div><br /></div><div>Amber Alerts were issued in Oregon and Washington on Wednesday for the two kids after DiMaggio’s car was believed to have been spotted in Northern California. The alert did not say whether DiMaggio or either of the children was in the car. An alert was also posted in Nevada on Thursday. </div><div><br /></div><div>The FBI and various state and local law enforcement agencies are assisting in the investigation. </div><div><br /></div><div><br /></div><div>DiMaggio is described as white, 5 feet 9 inches, 150 pounds, with brown hair and brown eyes. He may have shaved off a mustache and beard, detectives said.</div><div><br /></div><div>Sheriff's officials told NBC San Diego that Christina Anderson had a “close platonic relationship” with DiMaggio. Neighbors told the station had he moved to the area five years ago. A neighbor told The Associated Press that Christina and her husband, Brett Anderson, had recently separated. </div><div><br /></div><div>San Diego sheriff’s officials said DiMaggio has had an “unusual infatuation” with Hannah.</div><div><br /></div><div>“That is kind of a working theory, that it may be something of a motivator,” San Diego County sheriff’s Capt. Duncan Fraser told NBC San Diego. “It’s definitely something that we're looking at.”</div><div><br /></div><div>Marissa Chavez, 15, told The Associated Press that a couple of months ago she had witnessed DiMaggio tell her friend that he had a crush on her and would date her if they were the same age, as they drove home from a gymnastics competition.</div><div><br /></div><div>“She was a little creeped out by it. She didn’t want to be alone with him,” Chavez told the news service.</div></div><div><br /></div>

Suspected San Diego kidnapper's car found in Idaho: police

A man and woman believed to match the description of a San Diego kidnapping suspect and the 16-year-old California girl with him were spotte...

5 killed in Idaho home fire after electrical short

<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhnB1aXehU9d61VyHP6rVLKv9SwHnS6It0rXhb4b-tFcB_xJ__pTEi0HTJ3psz2qon2Y4Nh_MwGvUZKOpE81aFWiwhwbdi7735tzV303XVvTQLPIQjkD8ve8qy38jvXbnz8JmGeB98SxEWl/s1600/p1.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhnB1aXehU9d61VyHP6rVLKv9SwHnS6It0rXhb4b-tFcB_xJ__pTEi0HTJ3psz2qon2Y4Nh_MwGvUZKOpE81aFWiwhwbdi7735tzV303XVvTQLPIQjkD8ve8qy38jvXbnz8JmGeB98SxEWl/s1600/p1.jpg" /></a>An Idaho home fire that killed five Saturday morning was caused by a short in an extension cord connected to an electric grill, according to the local fire chief.<br /><br />OROFINO, Idaho — An extension cord hooked to an electric grill on a porch shorted out and started a house fire that killed five people Saturday morning, a northern Idaho fire official says.<br />Orofino Fire Chief Mike Lee said the house was fully engulfed in flames when firefighters arrived after a neighbor reported the fire at 1:38 a.m.<br />He said smoke inhalation likely killed the two adults and three teens whose bodies were also badly burned in the blaze. He said the dead were a family of four plus a teenage friend who was sleeping over to help celebrate a birthday. He said he didn't know the genders of the teens who died.<br />Lee said two of the teens attended the local school that houses 7th through 12th grade, and that one was home schooled. He declined to release names.<br />Autopsies are planned Monday, but he said there was no sign of foul play.<br />"It was an extension cord," the chief said. "They had it plugged into an appliance and it wasn't heavy enough to pack the load of the appliance and the cord shorted out."<br />He said the house, a rental, didn't have smoke alarms. He said three of the victims were found in bed.<br />He said neighbors reported the family using the electric grill at about 10 p.m. Friday, and that the family appears to have gone to bed by the time the fire started. He said he wasn't sure if the electric grill was the type that had an off switch or heated up just by being plugged in.<br />"I would unplug it regardless," he said.<br />Orofino is a town of just more than 3,000 people next to the Clearwater River in a mountainous part of the state known for its rugged beauty. The house where the fire took place is just a few blocks from the river.<br />Lee said the fire department has been in existence since 1911 and the only fire fatalities he could find in all that time occurred in 2007 in separate fires, so the five deaths are a big shock to the community.<br />"It's sad," he said. "I was just at the scene. There are already some teddy bears and flowers and things, a memorial put up there by some of the townspeople."

5 killed in Idaho home fire after electrical short

An Idaho home fire that killed five Saturday morning was caused by a short in an extension cord connected to an electric grill, according to...

Idaho boy detained after list, weapons found

An Idaho police chief says a boy's parents called authorities when they found a list of students and police officers they believe the boy was planning to kill.<br /><br /><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhrky7ZUImKQKym9O9HZeqHYloJr4B5G4JjJq5gWCRVwBj9hRfBnh6x5dmQc2r7XfGUAnGZXk1X_qOSHzReQSSDBXA81lkosRrIQl7CLQYuFQ4BybBf5qihaFPkDRDFSPKzDVb3TpVctf92/s1600/%2540publimetro.png" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhrky7ZUImKQKym9O9HZeqHYloJr4B5G4JjJq5gWCRVwBj9hRfBnh6x5dmQc2r7XfGUAnGZXk1X_qOSHzReQSSDBXA81lkosRrIQl7CLQYuFQ4BybBf5qihaFPkDRDFSPKzDVb3TpVctf92/s1600/%2540publimetro.png" /></a>IDAHO FALLS, Idaho — Authorities have detained an Idaho junior high school student who compiled a list of students and police officers they believe he was planning to kill.<br />Rigby Police Chief Keith Hammon says the boy's parents called police Monday when they found the list on an electronic tablet.<br />The Post Register reports officers found a bag of weapons at the boy's home, including multiple knives, handguns and ammunitions.<br />Hammon says bullying at the boy's school, Rigby Junior High, was a factor. The parents of the students on the list have been notified, and the police officers on the list were not identified.<br />Hammon didn't say how many people were targeted or how many weapons were in the bag.<br />Police planned to take the boy to the Behavioral Health Center in Idaho Falls for a mental-health evaluation.`

Idaho boy detained after list, weapons found

An Idaho police chief says a boy's parents called authorities when they found a list of students and police officers they believe the bo...