Hoover police said Wednesday that Carlee Russell, an Alabama woman who disappeared for two days, looked up a movie about kidnapping, information about issuing Amber Alerts and purchasing a bus ticket days before she went missing.
The 25-year-old nursing student told police that she had been held captive in an 18-wheeler by a man and woman after being lured by a wandering toddler. However, authorities have not been able to verify that there was ever a toddler walking on the busy interstate highway. Yet, they confirmed that Russell traveled the equivalent of six football fields while making the report to 911 dispatchers.
Hoover Police Chief Nick Derzis said during a press conference regarding the case Wednesday afternoon that there is no reason to be alarmed about the possibility of danger to the public.
“There is no reason to believe there is a threat to public safety,” Derzis said.
Russell’s family reported her missing on Thursday, July 13, after they reportedly heard her screams on the other side of her cellphone.
The woman’s mother Talitha Russell told reporters that she was in her home when her son’s girlfriend suspected something was awry. Talitha said the girlfriend was waiting on the other line during the 911 police call about the purported endangered child.
“There’s just a kid just walking by themself,” Russell told a 911 operator calmly. She described the child as a white male, wearing a white shirt and diaper.
Officials said Russell drove about 600 yards during the call. According to Talitha, that’s when Russell clicked back over to continue her conversation with her brother’s girlfriend before disappearing. She left behind her wig, cellphone, Apple Watch, purse, and the food she ordered.
While police are still trying to piece together what happened during the time she was gone. The chief laid out the details they have been able to gather so far through their investigation.
“This investigation is not over. We’re still working this case, and we’re working this case until we uncover every piece of evidence that helps us account for 49 hours that Carlee Russell was missing,” Derzis said.
The police said Wednesday that Russell left her job at a local spa around 8:20 p.m. on the night she disappeared, where surveillance video captured her concealing a dark-colored bathrobe, toilet paper and other items belonging to the business. She then ordered food and drove to pick it up before traveling to a Target store, where she purchased granola bars and Cheez-It crackers before driving onto Interstate 459 at 9:21 p.m., the chief said. She made the 911 call at 9:34 p.m.
Data from Russell’s phone showed she searched for costs associated with an Amber Alert, an emergency alert system to notify the public about abducted children. She also looked up: “How to take money from a register without being caught,” “One-way bus ticket from Birmingham to Nashville,” “Birmingham bus station” and the maximum age for an Amber Alert between July 11 and July 13.
Most notably, Russell also searched for information on the movie “Taken,” a 2008 action thriller film starring Liam Neeson. The plot centers on the kidnapping of Neeson’s character’s teenage daughter.
In Russell’s statement to detectives, she claimed a man emerged from the nearby trees after she approached the toddler. Russell alleged that the man forcibly picked her up, and she recalled screaming before finding herself inside an 18-wheeler. She told authorities her memory about the man was limited but described him as having orange hair with a noticeable bald spot.
“She claimed she was blindfolded but was not tied up because the captors said they did not want to leave impressions on her wrists. She said that they took her into a house and made her get undressed. She believes they took pictures of her but does not remember them having any physical or sexual contact,” Derzis said.
Derzis told reporters that Russell said she managed to escape from the 18-wheeler briefly but was subsequently captured again and placed into a car. The following day, she mentioned being given crackers by a woman before being transferred to another car, from which she managed to escape again in the west Hoover, Alabama, area.
When Russell returned home on July 15, she had a minor injury to her lip and complained of a headache, according to Derzis. Detectives also found $107 in cash concealed in her right sock.
The snacks and the items taken from her workplace have not been located.
Although, the newly released details raised more suspicions about Russell and her family’s account of the disappearance. Derzis said they have not “categorized” the incident and don’t have enough details to determine if a crime was committed. Russell has refused to speak to authorities after giving her initial statement. The family believes she needs time to recover from the “mental trauma,” according to the police chief.
Derzis added that there were no signs of mental illness or concerns about her toxicology report.
Hoover police deployed support and additional resources from the other law enforcement agencies including the U.S. Secret Service. Police dogs canvased the area where Russell abandoned her vehicle after her disappearance searching for Russell and the child she claimed to see.
The story made national headlines as many empathized with the woman’s concerned family. People in nearby communities rallied together to form search parties, but they all turned up empty.
“It sent fear and pandemonium not just through our city, the entire state and the nation,” Hoover Mayor Frank Brocato said during Wednesday’s news conference.
