Murder Police Quiz 'Abduction' Dad

1:36pm UK, Wednesday August 06, 2008
Detectives are interviewing Clark Rockefeller - the man accused of kidnapping his seven-year-old daughter - about a suspected double murder.
Clark Rockefeller, at right, who is accused of abducting his daughter Reigh Sorrow Boss

Two murder detectives from Los Angeles County Sheriff's Department are to fly to Boston to speak to Rockefeller about the crime.

Steve Whitmore, a spokesman for the LA County Sheriff Department confirmed Rockefeller was a "person of interest" in the case of Jonathan and Linda Sohus - a couple from San Marino, California who were reported missing in 1985.

According to media reports a man named Christopher Chichester lived on the Sohus property at the time, but also disappeared and was never questioned by police.

Mr Whitmore said: "We want to find out if he (Rockefeller) is indeed Christopher Chichester.

"And if so, if there's anything he can tell us about the disappearance and possible homicide of the Sohuses."

In 1994, three plastic bags containing human remains, found by workers digging a swimming pool in San Marino, were linked to the Sohus case but never identified.

Rockefeller's attorney, Stephen Hrones, denied his client had any link to the California case and said Clark Rockefeller was his legal name.

Rockefeller - who is also known by several other aliases - appeared at Boston Municipal Court on Tuesday on charges related to the July 27 disappearance of his daughter, Reigh Boss.

Suffolk District Attorney Dan Conley said they have no record of him before 1993 and said Rockefeller has claimed he does not remember details ranging from where he is from, where his parents are and even whether he is from the US.

Assistant district attorney David Deakin said in court: "At this point, he provided essentially no biographical data about himself before 1993."

He added that after thousands of hours' work by the FBI, local and state officials and Homeland Security, authorities were still unsure of the details of Rockefeller's real identity.

Police say Rockefeller, 48, snatched his daughter from a Boston street on July 27 in an elaborately-planned kidnapping in which he hired two people to drive them to New York.

He was caught Saturday in Baltimore, where he had bought a home and boat.

Mr Deakin said 300 1oz gold coins and £6,000 in cash also were found in Rockefeller's apartment following his arrest.

In court on Tuesday charges of felony parental kidnapping, assault and battery and assault and battery with a dangerous weapon were read to Rockefeller.

US authorities have no record of anything related to Rockefeller before 1993 and there is no indication he is related to the famous family descended from Standard Oil billionaire John D. Rockefeller senior.