Zahra Clare Baker

http://www.cnn.com/2010/CRIME/10/09/north.carolina.amber.alert/index.html?iref=NS1

(CNN) -- An Amber Alert has been issued after a 10-year-old girl was reported missing from her Hickory, North Carolina, home on Saturday.

Zahra Clare Baker was last seen sleeping in her bedroom about 2:30 a.m., according to Clyde Deal, deputy chief of the Hickory Police Department. She was reported missing Saturday afternoon.

"We are conducting interviews now and following up on the leads we have so far," Deal said. "As of right now, we haven't ruled anything out. We're exploring all possibilities."

Zahra is described as white, measuring about 5-foot-1 and weighs 85 pounds. She has a prosthetic device below her left knee and is hearing-impaired.

Anyone with information can call the Hickory Police Department at 828-328-5551.

Chief: Unclear when missing NC girl was last seen

Published October 11, 2010
| Associated Press
HICKORY, N.C. –

Time was running out Monday in the search for a shy but upbeat 10-year-old whose battles with bone cancer left her with a prosthetic leg and hearing aids in both ears, the police chief said. It's unclear when she was last seen alive.
The father and stepmother of 10-year-old Zahra Clare Baker told police that they discovered she was missing on Saturday and that one of them had seen her sleeping in her room hours earlier. Yet Hickory Police Chief Tom Adkins cast doubt on their accounts during an afternoon news conference.

He said investigators were having trouble finding anyone else who had seen the home-schooled girl alive in the last few weeks.

"We don't know the last time anyone saw her," he said. "We're having a difficult time establishing a true timeline."

Zahra's father, Adam Baker, said during an earlier TV interview that it was possible his wife could be involved in the disappearance, which was reported hours after a fire in the home's backyard. Elisa Baker was arrested Sunday on about a dozen charges unrelated to the girl's disappearance.

Adkins said a ransom note and other evidence were found at the house but wouldn't elaborate. A reporter saw what appeared to be remnants of clothes among burned branches from the fire at the scene.

Adkins said the father was cooperating with police, but Elisa Baker wasn't.

"We're running out of time folks," Adkins told the news conference.

Zahra was described by family friends as a girl who was slow to open up to new people, but constantly smiled in spite of her health problems. The stepmother could be short-tempered toward her, two former neighbors said, but the woman also fought tears when a charity fitted her for hearing aids a few months ago.

"I just hope I can get my daughter back. I miss her so much," Zahra's father, Adam Baker, told ABC's "Good Morning America" as he choked up. He was interviewed alongside Adkins.

The girl's stepmother told her husband she last saw Zahra sleeping in her bed at 2:30 a.m. Saturday, about 2 1/2 hours before the fire was reported. Adam Baker said he was panicked after the fire, but didn't immediately check on his daughter.

Investigators have collected surveillance video from businesses near the family's home and used dogs to search the neighborhood. The police chief said he wouldn't rule out any suspects, including Adam Baker.

Adam Baker was asked if he thought his wife was involved and said, "I wouldn't like to think so. On what I've heard so far, it could be possible."

On Monday, several of Adam Baker's friends stood outside his one-story in Hickory, a city of 40,000 residents about 50 miles northwest of Charlotte.

"I just don't have a good feeling about this," said former neighbor Kayla Rotenberry. "She was such a sweet girl. This is just a nightmare."

Rotenberry said she and her fiance were good friends with the Bakers when they lived in the nearby town of Sawmills, and saw Zahra often. The couple was skeptical of the girl's stepmother, in part because she claimed to write songs for musician and "American Idol" finalist Chris Daughtry, and told other far-fetched stories, Rotenberry said. Daughtry's manager said he was unaware of any connection between Elisa Baker and the singer.

"We just got to the point where we didn't believe her. We knew they were lies," said Rotenberry, 23.

The stepmother also had a short temper, Rotenberry said.

Rotenberry said about six months ago she noticed that Elisa Baker's hand was swollen. "She told me that she was trying to spank Zahra, but hit her on her prosthetic leg," she said. "When Adam asked her about the injury, she said she fell and hurt her hand. She didn't want him to know. She knew he would be mad."

Another former neighbor, Brandy Stapleton, 22, of Lenoir, said that Elisa Baker told her the same story about how she injured her hand. "She wasn't the person everyone thought she was."

Adam Baker was from Australia, and met his current wife over the Internet, Stapleton said. Zahra's mother lives outside the U.S.

Zahra uses two hearing aids, which were left at the house, and a prosthetic left leg from the knee down, police said. She was being home-schooled, but had attended public schools in the past.

The child had lost part of her hearing during chemotherapy for two bouts of cancer, her stepmother told the Independent-Tribune of Concord-Kannapolis in May during a charity event where she got free hearing aids.

Family friends said the girl also had the prosthetic leg because of cancer.

Elisa Baker was arrested Sunday on charges including communicating threats, writing worthless checks, larceny and driving with a revoked license. It was unclear whether she has an attorney.

She has two daughters and a son from a previous marriage. The mother and son don't have much of a relationship, the man said, after he stayed with his father when they divorced. The daughters went to live with their mother.

Still, 22-year-old Douglas Proctor said he had spoken to investigators about his mother and was dismayed over news of the case.

"It's not something that you want to open up a paper and see," he said, adding he'd met Zahra only once.

___

Associated Press Writers Meg Kinnard in Columbia, S.C., and Martha Waggoner and Mike Baker in Raleigh, N.C., contributed to this report.


This reminds me so much of Kiesha Abrahams.
My betting is the child is dead and possibly has been for a while. they need to bring in a cadaver dog to check the house and back yard. it is strange that they were burning childrens clothing.

Police Dogs Smell Remains (sound familiar?)

HICKORY, N.C. – Police dogs detected the smell of human remains on two cars at the home of a missing 10-year-old girl who has bone cancer and a prosthetic leg, a search warrant said Monday.

The document filed in a Hickory court didn't indicate that police found any remains in their Sunday search. The warrant said the dogs detected the smell on a sedan and SUV belonging to the father and stepmother of Zahra Clare Baker.

Earlier Monday, the police chief cast doubt on the couple's accounts. They told police they discovered she was missing on Saturday and that one of them had seen her sleeping in her room hours earlier.

But Hickory Police Chief Tom Adkins said at a news conference that investigators were having trouble finding anyone else who had seen the home-schooled girl alive in the last few weeks.

"We don't know the last time anyone saw her," he said. "We're having a difficult time establishing a true timeline."

Zahra's father, Adam Baker, said during an morning TV interview that it was possible his wife could be involved in the disappearance, which was reported hours after a fire in the home's backyard. Elisa Baker was arrested Sunday on about a dozen charges unrelated to the girl's disappearance.

A reporter saw what appeared to be remnants of clothes among burned branches from the fire at the house.

The search warrant said that police responding to the fire early Saturday found what appeared to be a ransom note addressed to Adam Baker's boss on the windshield of Baker's car.

"Mr. Coffey, you like being in control now who is in control we have your daughter," the note said. It asked for $1 million dollars and said "no cops."

Police went to the boss's house, and found him and his daughter to be fine.

On Saturday afternoon, Adam Baker called to say his daughter was missing.

___

Associated Press Writers Meg Kinnard in Columbia, S.C., and Martha Waggoner and Mike Baker in

http://www.cbsnews.com/stories/2010/10/12/national/main6950497.shtml?tag=exclsv



(CBS/AP) Police said Tuesday they are shifting to a homicide investigation in the case of a missing 10-year-old North Carolina girl whose bone cancer left her with a prosthetic leg and hearing aids.

Zahra Clare Baker was reported missing Saturday, but police said they can't find anyone outside the household who has seen the girl alive in a month. Relatives described the child's life as miserable, saying she was locked in her room for most of the day and was punished over little things.

Hickory Police Chief Tom Adkins said at a news conference that the girl's stepmother confessed to writing a ransom note found at the house where the girl lived, and she has been charged with felony obstruction of justice in the case. Elisa Baker, who was being held on unrelated charges, has also asked for an attorney.

Uncertainty over when the girl was last alive has stymied efforts to search for the girl, the chief said.

"We understand the public wants to help find Zahra. The problem is we cannot confirm with any confidence how long Zahra has been missing," he said at the news conference. "Without this information, we cannot positively select the area to search for her."

Adkins did not take any questions and did not offer further explanation of why the case was being treated as a homicide. A search warrant revealed on Monday that police dogs detected the smell of human remains on cars belonging to the father and stepmother.

The girl's father, Adam Baker, has not been charged in the case, though the chief said previously he hasn't been ruled as a suspect. Police say he's cooperating in the case.

Adam Baker has said it was possible his wife could be involved in the disappearance, and other relatives echoed those remarks.

"I just think this was something for a long time that we knew was going to happen, everybody that was close to the family," relative Brittany Bentley said on CBS' "Early Show" on Tuesday.

Stepmom Beat, Locked Up Missing Girl, Kin Say

Bentley, who is married to Elisa Baker's nephew, said she would have Zahra over for weekends and the girl would get mad when it was time to return home.

Zahra "was locked in her room, allowed five minutes out a day to eat, that was it," Bentley said. "She was beat almost every time I was over there for just the smallest things. Elisa would get mad, she would take it out on Zahra, things the kid didn't deserve. She just had a horrible home life."

Neighbors also feared the worst.

"There were warning signs along the way, but you never want to think the worst," said former neighbor Kayla Rotenberry.

Zahra was reported missing Saturday afternoon after a yard fire at the home. The stepmother said she last saw Zahra sleeping in her room about 12 hours earlier, though Adkins has indicated he doesn't believe the timeline the couple gave him.

Zahra had 'horrible home life': relative
AAP October 13, 2010, 9:54 am


Relatives of a missing 10-year-old Australian girl, feared murdered in the US state of North Carolina, have described the child's life as miserable, saying she was locked in her room for most of the day and was punished over little things.

Zahra Clare Baker was reported missing on Saturday, but police said they have had trouble finding anyone outside the household who had seen the girl alive in the last few weeks. Authorities also cast doubt on what the couple had told them.

They are now treating her disappearance as a homicide.

Zahra, whose bone cancer left her with a prosthetic leg and hearing aids, moved to North Carolina from Australia with her father Adam two years ago when he married an American woman, Elisa, after meeting her on the internet.

"I just think this was something for a long time that we knew was going to happen, everybody that was close to the family," relative Brittany Bentley said on CBS' Early Show on Tuesday.

Adam Baker has said it was possible his wife could be involved in the disappearance and other relatives echoed those remarks.

Zahra was reported missing after a yard fire at the home. The girl's stepmother, Elisa Baker, was arrested on Sunday on about a dozen charges unrelated to her disappearance.

Bentley, who is married to Elisa Baker's nephew, said she would have Zahra over for weekends and the girl would get mad when it was time to return home.

Zahra "was locked in her room, allowed five minutes out a day to eat, that was it", Bentley said.

"She was beat almost every time I was over there for just the smallest things. Elisa would get mad, she would take it out on Zahra, things the kid didn't deserve. She just had a horrible home life."

Neighbours also feared the worst. A search warrant revealed that police dogs detected the smell of human remains on cars belonging to the father and stepmother.

"There were warning signs along the way, but you never want to think the worst," said former neighbour Kayla Rotenberry.

The stepmother said she last saw Zahra sleeping in her room about 2.30am on Saturday, yet Hickory Police Chief Tom Adkins said investigators don't know the last time anyone saw her.

Adkins, the police chief in a city of 40,000 residents about 80km northwest of Charlotte, said the father was co-operating with police, but Elisa Baker wasn't.

Zahra had two hearing aids, which were left at the house, and a prosthetic left leg from the knee down, police said.

She was being home-schooled, but had attended public schools in the past.

Zahra was described by family friends as shy but constantly smiling, in spite of her health problems. The stepmother could be short-tempered toward her, two former neighbours said, but the woman also fought tears when a charity fitted her for hearing aids a few months ago.

The police chief said he wouldn't rule out any suspects, including Adam Baker.

Rotenberry, the former neighbour, said she and her fiance were good friends with the Bakers when they lived in the nearby town of Sawmills. About six months ago she noticed that Elisa Baker's hand was swollen, Rotenberry said.

"She told me that she was trying to spank Zahra, but hit her on her prosthetic leg," she said.

"When Adam asked her about the injury, she said she fell and hurt her hand. She didn't want him to know. She knew he would be mad."

Another former neighbour, Brandy Stapleton, 22, of Lenoir, said that Elisa Baker told her the same story about how she injured her hand.

"She wasn't the person everyone thought she was."
Elisa Baker has two daughters and a son from a previous marriage.

Article from CNN: The bit about the wood chipper has given me the creeps.



Pond drained in search for missing girlSTORY HIGHLIGHTS
NEW: Investigators draining pond next to Tuesday search site
District attorney: "We want the best but we fear the worst"
Bond is $40,000 for stepmom on obstruction charge; attorney calls it excessive
Zahra Clare Baker's disappearance is now a homicide probe, police say
WBTV: Search focuses on brush pile
WCNC: Neighbors hope for justice
WSOC: Candlelight vigil planned tonight

Morganton, North Carolina (CNN) -- Sheriff's deputies, police and firefighters began draining a pond Wednesday night as they resumed their search for the body of a missing 10-year-old North Carolina girl.

The pond is next to a site investigators combed overnight in hopes of finding Zahra Clare Baker, whose disappearance is now being investigated as a homicide. The girl's stepmother, Elisa Baker, has been jailed on a charge of obstruction of justice after police said she admitted to writing a ransom note found at the family's Hickory, North Carolina, home.

The search ran until 1 a.m. Tuesday, and between 15 and 25 investigators were working past nightfall Wednesday in cool, damp weather to drain the neighboring pond.

The site under scrutiny Tuesday night is more than 20 miles north of Hickory. Zahra's father, Adam Baker, frequently worked there hauling loads of wood and brush to be fed into a wood chipper and turned into mulch, witnesses said.
Baker was on the scene during the Tuesday night search aimed at finding the girl's body, Burke County Sheriff John T. McDevitt said Tuesday night.

Zahra reportedly suffered from bone cancer and used a prosthetic leg and hearing aids. The hearing aids have been found, but not the prosthesis, Hickory Police Chief Adkins said.

The case is an emotional one for investigators and a high priority, Catawba County District Attorney Jay Gaither Jr., told reporters after Elisa Baker's initial court appearance Wednesday morning.

"The facts are disturbing as we know them at this point," he said, adding, "We want the best, but we fear the worst."

Flanked by two attorneys, Elisa Baker wore a bright pink jumpsuit and was handcuffed and chained at her wrist and ankles at her court appearance. She was informed of the felony charge against her, which carries a penalty of more than two years in prison upon conviction. Asked if she understood, she affirmed that she did in a low voice.

The bond on the obstruction of justice charge is $40,000, in addition to the bond of more than $30,000 she faces on charges unrelated to Zahra's disappearance. Her next scheduled court date is November 3.

Her attorney, Scott Reilly, said he would be filing a motion to get the bond reduced, calling it "excessive." The maximum bond for such a charge is usually $10,000, he said.

Reilly said his client is scared, emotional, upset and worried about her family. Asked what she has said about Zahra, he said he was not at liberty to discuss the girl.

Though Zahra was reported missing Saturday afternoon. Her father and stepmother reported she was last seen sleeping in her bed about 2:30 a.m. Saturday. But Hickory Police Chief Tom Adkins said Tuesday authorities have been unable to find anyone outside Zahra's immediate family who has reported seeing her in the past month, and investigators are not sure how long she has actually been missing.

A search warrant application filed in the case said it began with a call about a burning mulch pile at the family's home about 5:30 a.m. Saturday. Firefighters found a Chevrolet Tahoe with its passenger door open and a power company envelope with handwriting on it on the front windshield, the search warrant said.

I remember Elisa ... saying her hands hurt from spanking Zahra so much.

--Brittany Bentley, relative
Firefighters notified police, who approached the SUV and smelled gasoline coming from inside. The note written on the envelope was addressed to a "Mr. Coffey," identified in the search warrant as Adam Baker's boss, Mark David Coffey.

"Mr. Coffey, you like being in control now who is in control," the note said, according to the search warrant. "We have your daughter and your pot smoking red head son is next unless you do what is asked 1,000,000 unmarked will be in touch soon." In the bottom right, the note said, "no cops," according to the warrant.

Coffey and his only daughter were at the residence at the time of the fire, the warrant said. CNN affiliate News 14 Carolina reported Coffey owns the home.

Adam Baker called police about 2 p.m., saying someone had poured gas in his car and left a note saying they had his boss' daughter, according to the search warrant. Baker told police he believed the person who left the note had kidnapped Zahra.

The Bakers consented to a search of their home, the warrant said. A cadaver dog indicated the possible presence of human remains in or on the Chevrolet Tahoe as well as a burgundy Toyota Camry on the property, it said. Authorities were testing swabs taken from the Tahoe to determine if blood was also present, according to the warrant.

Brittany Bentley, who is married to Elisa Baker's nephew, told HLN that the girl "wasn't in very good living conditions, not at all for a 10-year-old."

"I remember Elisa coming out of the bedroom one day, saying her hands hurt from spanking Zahra so much," she said. "I know she spanked way too hard, what I consider beating." She said the girl was locked in her room and "I know about letting her out five minutes, just to eat and that was it."

North Carolina social services officials declined to comment on the case.

Elisa Baker's sister, Carrie Fairchild, said she and other relatives were estranged from her sister after a falling-out with their father over money the Bakers owed him. She also told HLN's "Nancy Grace" that her sister frequently made up stories that she was suffering from a variety of illnesses.

"She always had 10 to 20 illnesses that she said were wrong with her," Fairchild said. "You couldn't believe anything she ever said."

HLN's Natisha Lance and CNN's Ashley Hayes contributed to this report.

http://www.aolnews.com/crime/article/zahra-bakers-stepmother-elisa-baker-makes-first-court-appearance/19672889

It seems the cadavers dogs have honed in on the wood chipper and the mulch pile! But of course, as Gerry has stated in his ever so great wisdom, they are totally unreliable.

http://www.examiner.com/crime-in-national/zahra-baker-update-police-remove-evidence-from-home-of-missing-girl





Zahra Baker update: Police remove evidence from home of missing girl

On Friday morning police entered the home of missing North Carolina girl Zahra Clare Baker and left with three pieces of bedroom furniture wrapped in plastic.

The Hickory Record reports that a bed frame, a mattress and box spring were removed from the home after an extensive search was conducted of the yard.

Zahra, 10, was reported missing from her Hickory home on October 9 by her father and stepmother. Adam Baker claims his wife -- Zahra’s stepmother -- Elisa Baker, told him she last saw the girl at about 2:30 a.m. that morning. Police are skeptical of the Baker's story regarding Zahra's disappearance.

To see photos regarding Zahra’s case, click here.

Elisa has been charged with obstruction of justice for writing a ransom note in connection with the case. She is currently behind bars.

When the search was concluded, police reportedly exited the home through the front door, while Zahra’s father left the house out the back door. He got into a white Chevrolet Impala -- the same vehicle he arrived at the house in with an unidentified individual, reports the Record.

Adam was asked by reporters about what was going on and he replied “I don’t know. Everybody knows more than me.”

He then left in the Chevy.

Police have announced they believe someone killed Zahra and have classified the case as a homicide.

Zahra is described as 5-foot-1 and 85 pounds. She has a prosthetic left leg and is hearing impaired -- due to battles with cancer -- thus she requires a hearing aid she does not have with her, according to police.

Anyone with information regarding Zahra is urged to call the Hickory Police Department at 828-261-2600.

Missing in the USA - 10 year old with parents as suspects

A mattress which had been thrown out to landfill has just been found bearing the child's DNA

http://edition.cnn.com/2010/CRIME/10/26/north.carolina.missing.girl/

Zahra Baker update: Prosthetic leg found, thought to be missing girl’s

October 27th, 2010 6:49 pm ET

Zahra Baker update: Prosthetic leg found, thought to be missing girl’s (video)

Wednesday, police announced that a prosthetic leg, thought to belong to missing North Carolina girl Zahra Clare Baker, was found in a brushy air off a Christie Road in Caldwell County.

Zahra, 10 was reported missing from her Hickory home on October 9 by her father, Adam Baker, 33, who claims his wife -- Elisa Baker, Zahra's stepmother -- told him she last saw the girl at about 2:30 a.m. that morning. Elisa, 42, was arrested the next day on unrelated outstanding warrants, subsequently being charged with obstruction of justice for writing a fake ransom note related to the case.

Hickory Police Chief Tom Adkins said the prosthetic leg found is “consistent with” that of Zahra who lost her leg to bone cancer, reports CNN. She obtained the leg in Australia where she and her father are from.

Adam, who was arrested Monday on outstanding warrants unrelated to the case, moved to the states after meeting Elisa on the Internet about two years ago.

After the discovery of the prosthetic leg, investigators returned to the Baker home to resume searching for evidence.

“We’re looking for any piece of evidence that can help in that investigation," said Adkins.

Late Tuesday afternoon a mattress was found that is believed to be Zahra’s. In addition, authorities announced that DNA was found on the mattress.

According to family members and friends, Elisa treated Zahra badly and abused her in front of them. Police say she is now cooperating with the investigation into Zahra's disappearance.

Zahra is described as 5-foot-1 and 85 pounds. Besides wearing a prosthetic leg, she is hearing impaired -- due to battles with cancer -- thus she requires a hearing aid she does not have with her, according to police.

Anyone with information regarding Zahra is urged to call the Hickory Police Department at 828-261-2600.

http://www.examiner.com/crime-in-national/zahra-baker-update-prosthetic-leg-found-thought-to-be-missing-girl-s-video

This poor little girl must have had a dreadful life, having had to cope with cancer and its after effects and then, according to friends, being abused too.

Stepmum allegedly points finger at husband

04 November 2010 | 01:57:09 PM | Source: AAP

North Carolina police have found a bone they believe could be missing Australian girl Zahra Baker's while her US stepmother has allegedly confessed in a jailhouse letter that something "horrifying" happened to the 10-year-old.

The bone discovery came as US authorities revisited bushland and drained a pond where Zahra's prosthetic leg was discovered a week ago.

The area is a site where hunters dump deer carcasses, but the bone was deemed significant enough by police to be dispatched to North Carolina's Medical Examiner's Office for identification.

The case has taken another bizarre twist with Eric Gein, the proprietor of a US website with a history of communicating with prison inmates, releasing what he says are letters written by Zahra's stepmother, Elisa Baker, from jail.

Hickory police say the letters appear to match Elisa's handwriting, but are yet to publicly confirm if they are authentic.

In the letters the writer claims to be innocent, but points to Zahra's biological father, Adam Baker, as being involved in the disappearance of the young bone cancer survivor, declaring: "He knows what's happened to Zahra."

"We really didn't kill her but what he did after the fact is kinda horrifying. Makes me scared of him," the handwritten letter says.

At another point, the letter writer implicates Adam Baker again: "The cops know where she is and what he has done. That's right. What he has done."

In both letters no concern is shown for Zahra, who had her lower left leg amputated five years ago due to the bone cancer.

The letter writer also describes safety fears and complains "98 per cent of the media stuff is lies. That's why everyone wants me dead."

Elisa Baker is charged with writing a fake ransom note connected with the October 9 disappearance of Zahra from the rented family home in Hickory. The 42-year-old self-described pagan and gothic who met Adam Baker on the internet, has been locked up in jail unable to make bail since October 10.

Adam Baker was arrested last week on charges unrelated to Zahra's disappearance, including assault with a deadly weapon and writing worthless cheques.

He was released on bail several days later.

The Hickory Daily News reported the landlord of the Bakers' rented home had evicted them.

Adam Baker and his mother and brother, who flew in from Australia to be with him, were heckled by locals when they arrived at the house to gather belongings.

"I'm putting him out on the street," the landlord told the newspaper.

Adam Baker's lawyer, Mark Killian, said his client, who left the house with his head bowed and with a suitcase, was struggling.

"It's just real tough for him, obviously," he told the Hickory Daily News.

Adam met Elisa, married in Queensland and moved with Zahra to Elisa's home state of North Carolina two years ago.

http://www.sbs.com.au/news/article/1402636/Stepmum-allegedly-points-finger-at-husband

No real comment to make on this, other than why don't they just tell the whole truth instead of these hints? Zahra deserves truth and justice, as does Madeleine, as does Kiesha. I hope whoever is responsible for Zahra's death, if she really was murdered, spends the rest of their life in jail.

In seven years, Elisa Baker had no fewer than 42 different addresses

Elisa Baker, the stepmother 10-year-old Zahra Clare Baker was indicted in January 2011 on a bigamy charge involving her marriage to Zahra Clare Baker's father, Adam Baker, and another man, but AP found documents at a half a dozen county courthouses that showed at one point she was married to three men at the same time, calling into question the single charge.
By MITCH WEISS, TOM BREEN
updated 2/3/2011 3:26:44 PM ET

HICKORY, N.C. — Elisa Baker had an uncanny ability to stay ahead of bill collectors, police, social workers and her multiple husbands, The Associated Press discovered in an investigation of the woman who led authorities to the dismembered remains of her disabled, 10-year-old stepdaughter.

Few saw her pattern because when she abandoned a relationship, she usually severed all ties. In seven years, she had no fewer than 42 different addresses. During a different three-year stretch, she was married to three men at the same time.

In interviews with three dozen people, and a review of hundreds of court and police documents, AP unraveled a life of deception described by friends, family and the vulnerable men she wed, including some with disabilities. At times, they said, she was physically abusive.


Elisa Baker is charged with obstructing the investigation of the disappearance of Zahra Baker, the freckle-faced girl who fought bone cancer, but no one has been charged in Zahra's death.

The stepmother has been the center of the investigation, though, and the details of her strained relationships and early family life help explain why.

Neither Elisa Baker, 42, who is jailed, nor her attorneys, responded to repeated requests for comment. Other members of her family, including her daughters, declined to speak with the AP.

Those who knew Elisa described an attractive high school student who became manipulative, cunning and insecure, struggling with obesity. Even as she got older and gained more weight, men were drawn to her.

At other times, she detached herself from society, immersed in the online world. There, she made herself over as E'lesa, a darkly glamorous woman whose allure reached Zahra's father, Adam Baker, an Australian who lived far from her economically depressed corner of Appalachia.

"This is a woman who thought she could talk her way out of anything, that she was smarter than everybody else. But she never told the truth," said Andrew Harris Jr., her third husband. "She hurt a lot of people."

Born Elisa Fairchild, she grew up as the middle child of three girls whose parents worked in the western North Carolina textile mills and furniture factories in the late 1960s. She was a pretty, chubby-cheeked girl with jet-black hair.

Her father doted on her while her mom was the disciplinarian. As she approached her teenage years, she began talking back, swearing at her mother, who would slap her, said Elisa's aunt, Bonzetta Winkler.

"That was just the way people around here disciplined their children," her aunt said.

In school, Elisa was popular.

"We went to football games. School dances — she was a good dancer," said Jerry Allen Winkler, who dated her off and on in high school. Winkler is not related to Elisa's aunt.
Image: Darrell Putnam, Elisa Baker
AP
Darrell Putnam poses with his then-wife, Elisa Baker. Putnam eventually had the marriage annulled in 1999.

Elisa and Jerry Winkler both dropped out of school and lost touch for about a year before he ran into her at a local gas station. She was with her newborn, Amber, and told Winkler the baby's father had left her.

Jerry Winkler asked her out, and a week later, he proposed.

Since they were both under 18, they needed their parents' permission. They lied to Winkler's parents and told them he was the father. To prove it, they forged a copy of a blood test.

They were married Sept. 14, 1985. Within days, Winkler was overwhelmed. "I was 17 and married with a kid. It just hit me all at once and I wanted out," he said.

Winkler's father was upset, too, because he was tricked into giving permission. The father asked a judge to annul the marriage, which was done less than four months after it began.
Advertise | AdChoices

A rocky marriage
Nearly a year later, she met Joseph Proctor, who walked with a limp from a near-fatal car accident. They dated for months, and when she told Proctor she was pregnant, he proposed.

They were married Sept. 5, 1987. She was 19; he was 28. Their son, Douglas, was born a few months later. A year later, they had their second child, Brittany.

The marriage was rocky. The couple lived in a home owned by Proctor's mother, Levirtis White. In April 1989, White asked a judge for a restraining order, claiming Elisa was stealing and destroying property in the home.

According to the mother-in-law, Elisa said: "If I have to get out of here, I'll burn the house down. I'm going to kill this baby. I'm going to wreck this car. I'll kill those kids."


Two months later, the couple reconciled. Proctor's mother dropped the complaint.

Their divorce wasn't final until 1992, but the relationship ended Christmas Day in 1990 when Elisa walked out. She gained custody of Amber and Brittany; Douglas went to live with Proctor.

http://web.orange.co.uk/article/news/father_of_murdered_girl_deported_back_to_oz

I'm fairly new to this case. The bit where the father admitted he didn't notice for two weeks that his daughter was missing has left me temporarily speechless.