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January 16, 2007
Child porn twist in Missouri Miracle kidnap drama
The "Missouri Miracle" kidnapping case that has transfixed America took a new twist yesterday when it was reported that the pizzeria manager accused of abducting two boys had child pornography on his computer.
Michael Devlin, 41, accused of holding one boy for four days and another for four years, could face additional charges stemming from the find, law enforcement sources told the New York Post.
The latest discovery came as it emerged that while his alleged kidnapper was working, teenager Shawn Hornbeck had access to a computer and may have put photos of himself online and posted a message on a site created by his desperate parents. At 1.59am on December 1, 2005, someone using the name "Shawn Devlin" asked on the Shawn Hornbeck Foundation website: "How long are you planing (sic) to look for your son?"
Shawn's parents, Craig and Pam Akers, started the foundation to find him and other missing youngsters.
Investigators refused to comment on the postings. It was not known if they were created by Shawn.
Shawn, 15, was 11 when he was kidnapped in 2002 near his rural home. Ben Ownby, 13, was held for four days after being snatched at a school bus stop in the town of Beaufort, about 80km away.
Police found the two boys on Friday in a St Louis apartment. Shawn's discovery, just one hour from his parents' home, has raised questions over why he did not seek help and how neighbours failed to make the connection between the boy who did not go to school and the high-profile campaign to find him.
As the mystery deepened yesterday, London's Daily Telegraph reported claims that Mr Devlin was abusive towards Shawn.
"For the past six months there's been a lot of banging, a lot of weird sounds, some whimpering and pleading," neighbour Harry Reichard, 33, was quoted as saying by the newspaper. "My room-mate confronted both of them about the banging but they said they were not making noise and we were mistaken."
Tom Garner, 49, said when he complained about the noise, which sounded like "a baseball bat being struck against a wall", Shawn had answered the door. "He said there was nobody there and he was sleeping. There was no non-verbal communication at all," the newspaper reported.
Mr Reichard said he only ever saw Shawn with Mr Devlin together outside the apartment but about a year ago had run into the boy on his own.
"He came up and looked at me as if he was going to say something to me but then Devlin came out and he didn't. It was very strange."
Mr Devlin, now being held on $US1million ($1.27 million) bail, was due in court last night. Lawyer Michael Kielty said he would plead not guilty.
Mr Devlin has been segregated from other prisoners at Franklin County jail in Missouri and placed on suicide watch. Mr Kielty voiced fears his client could be attacked in jail.
Mr Devlin, nicknamed Devo, grew up as one of four adopted boys in a family of six children in Webster Groves, the next town to Kirkwood.
While at school, he got a job delivering for Imo's Pizza and worked there for 25 years, rising to become the manager.
None of his co-workers suspected anything, even when Shawn once came looking for him at the pizzeria.
Bill Romer, his landlord, said: "It's strange because, frankly, he's one of my best tenants. He was a very pleasant, kind of low-key, regular guy."
http://www.theaustralian.news.com.au/story/0,20867,21071977-2703,00.html
Posted by Nealus at January 16, 2007 10:20 AM
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