The records of the emergency 911 call made by Zahra’s parents were released by the Hickory police on Tuesday. The records show Zahra’s father very calmly reporting his daughter missing. The Bakers called to say that Zahra was missing. They had last seen her in her bed at 2 am. The parents seem to be indicating that she probably had been kidnapped while they had been busy putting out the early morning fire in their backyard. The father had also added that he thought that Zahra had been kidnapped in a case of mistaken identity. They claim that they had not noticed her disappearance till morning because she used to stay in her room for long periods of time and would come out only if she needed something. The kidnappers had apparently left behind a ransom note demanding 1 million dollars for returning his boss’ daughter. It has since come to light that the ransom note was forged by Elisa Baker, Zahra’s stepmother. Elisa Baker is currently under custody for obstruction of justice.
The release of the tapes by the Hickory police came 10 days after the initial report of disappearance. The police officials believe that Zahra is dead. The police investigators have spent the last 10 days combing the countryside and the father’s workplace with police dogs for human remains. So far, they have come up with nothing. The father still remains a suspect. Nobody outside the immediate family has seen her for the past one month. In the past the neighbors have complained of the harsh treatment meted out to Zahra by her stepmother.
Zahra is a 10 year old who had a prosthetic leg following amputation following her battle with bone cancer. The cancer treatment had also left her deaf in both ears. She is a resident of Australia and had shifted to America last year after her father met Elisa on the internet. The Australian papers have been following up her disappearance and following investigations very closely.
