Roanoke Times
Copyright (c) 1995, Landmark Communications, Inc.
DATE: TUESDAY, September 21, 1993 TAG: 9309210210
SECTION: VIRGINIA PAGE: A-1 EDITION: METRO
SOURCE: MIKE HUDSON and CATHRYN McCUE STAFF WRITERS
DATELINE: FINCASTLE LENGTH: Medium
The missing girl, Phadra Dannielle Carter, was not with the suspect when he was arrested - and late Monday authorities still did not know where she was.
William R. Layne, 40, was arrested as he drove through Smyth County and charged with abduction. Layne is the brother of Phadra's stepfather. Late Monday, he was being held in the Botetourt County Jail.
For most of the day Monday, Rockbridge and Botetourt sheriff's deputies searched woods north of Fincastle. Botetourt Sheriff Reed Kelly said they found clothing, what appeared to be scattered blood and "what we believe to be a weapon."
Kelly said investigators believe the girl was brought to Botetourt County sometime over the weekend. It's unclear how long she was in Botetourt and whether she was taken somewhere else later, Kelly said.
"I just think that there's a citizen somewhere that has seen this little girl," Kelly said. "I just think somebody is going to help us. I just keep hoping."
Police gave the following account:
Phadra Carter was taken from her mobile home in the Arnold Valley section of Rockbridge County between 2 a.m. and 3 a.m. Saturday.
"A neighbor saw someone leading a small girl up the road," said Capt. Chris Blalock of the Rockbridge County Sheriff's Department. Witnesses at Johnson's Trailer Park gave authorities a description of a man that fit the suspect, Blalock said.
A warrant was issued for Layne's arrest and the Sheriff's Department alerted other law enforcement agencies to be on the lookout for him.
Monday morning, a citizen saw a vehicle matching the description of Layne's station wagon heading south on Interstate 81 and called state police.
About 8 a.m., Smyth County authorities arrested Layne near Marion. Layne was taken to a hospital for hair and blood samples and other evidence tests, Blalock said.
Authorities spent most of Monday searching just off Virginia 667, in the Flatwoods section of Botetourt, a couple of miles from where Layne had been living with another brother.
Kelly said authorities had been focusing on the area generally around Layne's home, but they zeroed in on the area along the gravel road after two deputies saw what appeared to be "drag marks" going into the woods.
A couple hundred yards from the road, searchers found what appeared to be blood and a weapon, along with bloody clothing. Kelly would not say what the apparent weapon was, though he said it was not a firearm.
The clothes were sent to a state crime lab in Roanoke for tests. He would not say whether the clothing belonged to the missing girl. "We are trying to identify it to somebody," he said.
Kelly said the search - which included a helicopter and deputies from both departments - was called off about 5:30 p.m. after it became clear that "she's not in that immediate area."
Phadra was to have been a flower girl in her biological father's wedding later on the day she disappeared. She lives with her mother and stepfather. Blalock said that Layne had not been staying overnight nor visiting with the family at the time of the girl's abduction.
She is 4 feet 11 inches tall, weighs 78 pounds, has brown eyes and hair, and a fair complexion. She has a scar on her left knee. Anyone seeing a girl matching this description should call his or her local police department.
Layne is on parole after serving eight years for a long series of house burglaries and larcenies throughout Botetourt County. He was released from Bland Correctional Center in December. Authorities said Layne lived with his wife until June, and then moved in with another brother.
The Associated Press contributed information for this story. Photo of Phadra Carter courtesy of WSLS-TV.
by CNB