The story of an Alabama woman who disappeared last week after calling 911 about what she said was a toddler walking alongside an interstate is becoming more confusing as more details are released. Police said yesterday that Carlee Russell made weird internet searches about whether or not you have to pay for an Amber Alert, how to take money from a register without getting caught, and the movie “Taken” which is about a woman who is abducted and the ensuing quest to save her, before she vanished. Police also say she took a robe and towel from her workplace and stopped at a store to buy snacks before vanishing. While her other belongings were found at the scene of her disappearance, the robe, towel, and snacks were missing.
Another aspect of the case that’s puzzling authorities is that cell phone data shows that Russell drove around 600 yards while talking to a dispatcher about the child she was supposedly behind. You can see from the traffic cam below that it would be impossible for her to be following anyone, much less a toddler, at the speed she was traveling. Hoover Police Chief Nicholas Derzis said at a news conference yesterday afternoon that he had children and found it hard to understand how a toddler would walk the length of six football fields beside a busy interstate and never wander into traffic or cry.
After being missing for over two days, Russell returned to her parents’ house and banged on the door to be let in. Aside from an initial statement given at the hospital where she was being checked, police haven’t talked with her yet. Police say she told them that she was abducted by a male with orange hair and forced into a car, then put in the trailer of an 18-wheeler..Russell told police she escaped, but was caught again and put into a car and blindfolded. She said she wasn't tied up, because her captors said they didn't want to leave impressions on her wrists. Russell said she was then taken to a house, where she was undressed. She said photos were taken of her. The next day, she said, the woman fed her cheese crackers and played with her hair.
Russell said at some point she was put back into a vehicle. She claims she was able to escape while it was in the West Hoover area and ran through the woods to get home. When police arrived, she had a small injury to her lip and a tear in her shirt. There was more than $100 in cash in her right sock.
Police say they’ve yet to be able to verify the details of Russell’s story.