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Teen found safe in Idaho; alleged abductor killed

Updated: 2013-08-11 14:04
( Agencies)

Teen found safe in Idaho; alleged abductor killed

Hannah Anderson is pictured in this undated handout photo courtesy of the San Diego County Sheriff's Department. James Lee DiMaggio, 40, is wanted in the killing of Christina Anderson, 44, and 8-year-old Ethan, mother and brother of Hannah, all of whom were last seen last Saturday, the day before DiMaggio is suspected of setting his house on fire in the Southern California community of Boulevard. [Photo/Agencies]

CASCADE, Idaho - A harrowing weeklong search for a missing California teenager ended Saturday when FBI agents rescued the girl and shot and killed her apparent kidnapper at a campsite deep in the Idaho wilderness.

Hannah Anderson, 16, appeared to be uninjured and will be reunited soon with her father at a hospital, authorities said. Her suspected abductor, James Lee DiMaggio, 40, was killed after his campsite was found in Idaho's rugged Frank Church River of No Return Wilderness, roughly 40 miles (65 kilometers) from the tiny town of Cascade.

Teen found safe in Idaho; alleged abductor killed

James Lee DiMaggio is shown in this photo released to the media by the San Diego County Sheriff's Department August 6, 2013. [Photo/Agencies]
Hannah was taken to a hospital where crisis counselors and health care providers were assisting her. Her father was expected to arrive in Idaho on Sunday to reunite with her.

"We will make sure she gets as much care as possible, physically and emotionally," said Andrea Dearden, a spokeswoman from the Ada County Sheriff's Department who has been leading the communication team for the interagency effort in Valley County.

The shooting came after officers participating in a massive manhunt for the pair spotted the campsite from the air and an FBI hostage recovery team trekked to the site near Morehead Lake.

"No one really knows where an investigation like this will lead," said Mary Rook, special agent in charge of the FBI's Salt Lake City division. "In this case, our team faced a very challenging situation."

The FBI said it was sending a team to investigate what unfolded before, during and after the shooting. Authorities offered few details Saturday night.

The location wasn't far from what had been the last known sighting of the pair. A horseback rider called authorities Thursday night to report that on Wednesday he had seen two people who resembled Anderson and DiMaggio with camping gear on a trail near the lake. The rider, whose name wasn't released, didn't realize they were subjects of a massive search until he got home and saw news reports.

The case began when the charred bodies of Hannah Anderson's mother, Christina Anderson, 44, and the teen's 8-year-old brother, Ethan Anderson, were found in DiMaggio's burning house outside San Diego, near the Mexico border.

DiMaggio was close to the family. Christina Anderson's husband, Brett Anderson, has described him as a best friend and said the children thought of him as an uncle.

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