GABRIEL JOHNSON - 8 months (2009) - Tempe AZ/Miami Beach FL

SCOTTSDALE, Ariz. -- Wil and Kelli McQueary are
Gabriel Johnson's aunt and uncle. They too are suffering through every
day that the 8-month-old remains missing. But they said the family has been overwhelmed by the outpouring of support from the public, and now they want to give back."There's a lot of family and friends in this area and that's whey we chose this park to do it in," said Kelli McQueary.Every day they comb the Internet news sites looking for any clue as to where Gabriel might be."It's
devastating that a member of our family is missing, and he should be
here with us," Kelli McQueary said as she choked back tears."We believe that Gabriel is alive and, of course, we want to see him back with his father Logan, my nephew. We totally believe that right now. We just hope and pray," said Wil McQueary.The
McQueary's believe in the power of prayer, and that's why they are
asking the public to join them for a candlelight vigil for Gabriel this
Sunday on the south soccer field in Chapparel Park."It's just something that we need to do to give back and just say thank you," Kelli McQueary said.It's
a thank you to the hundreds of people who have sent their support in
every way imaginable. And the planned gathering can only help Gabriel's
father Logan, still struggling for hope."He's a young man and his whole life has kind of been taken away from him, so it's tough on him right now," Wil McQueary said."It's just devastating. Nobody should lose a child like this and not know where he is," said Kelli McQueary.The
McQueary's also hope a mass gathering might spur someone's memory and
provide the pivotal piece of the puzzle that leads to the truth."We
do talk about it, the 'what ifs'. But we just can't go there. Until I
see proof, Gabriel is still alive," said Tammi McQueary.

TEMPE, AZ -- Tempe detectives have processed a GPS device that may have been used by the mother of a missing 8-month-old boy.

Investigators say the information from the GPS, including its origin, cannot be released.

It
has been weeks since baby Gabriel Johnson disappeared while with his
mother, Elizabeth, in San Antonio, Texas after leaving Tempe.

Gabriel Johnson was last seen around December 26.

Detectives
will not say how many people have been questioned involving the search
for the boy, but Jack Smith, who is considered a 'person of interest'
in the case told ABC15 a family member outside Arizona has been
interviewed.

"They (investigators) went to my son's house in
Tennessee and asked him a few questions which is all normal stuff, they
have to do that and that's ok," said Jack Smith Wednesday night.

Smith
went on to say he has no problem being labeled a 'person of interest'
and hopes the investigation continues to move forward.

"We're
hoping it's (investigation) making progress, I mean it needs to be
making progress and we (the Smiths) certainly have faith and hope
that's what is going on," said Jack Smith.

Tempe officers say the number of tips they've received in search of missing baby Gabriel has dropped.

"The tips are not coming in at the volume they were a week ago," said Tempe Lt. Mike Horn.

According
to Tempe Officers, indications that Gabriel is alive are not as strong
as they were earlier in the investigation, however, detectives continue
to hold out hope the boy will be found alive.

According to Elizabeth's MySpace page, it appears Elizabeth was posting messages just days after her son went missing.

On
her MySpace bio, Elizabeth calls herself a "proud parent" and labeled
her mood as "adventurous" on December 29, 2009, and appears to have
last logged-in on December 30, 2009, the same day she was arrested in
Miami.

When asked about the MySpace page and visitor postings,
Tempe Police Sgt. Steve Carbajal said, "Detectives are using any means
necessary to find information and especially Gabriel."

According
to detectives, 23-year-old Elizabeth Johnson refuses to tell
authorities where the baby is or who may have him or what led her to
San Antonio.

Police also confirm to ABC15 there are two, separate, yet parallel investigations involving the disappearance of the toddler.

According
to Horn, a team of detectives is working a missing persons
investigation and a homicide investigation at the same time because it
is unknown if boy's mother gave the child away or possibly killed him.

"It
is a very real possibility that Elizabeth killed Gabriel," Horn said.
"We are holding out hope that he's alive, but we have to look at every
aspect and investigate everything."

Detectives are also looking into the possibility that the missing boy may be disguised as a girl by the people who have him.

"There's one thing we've learned in this investigation and that is that anything is possible," said Carbajal

During a media briefing Monday, Gabriel's father, Logan McQueary, pleaded for help in the search for his missing son.

"This
is about Gabriel and I want to find my son," McQueary said. "I think
about it every single day whether he's dead or alive."

Tempe detectives have also released new photos taken of the baby boy while Gabriel was in a San Antonio motel.

Horn
said investigators believe all the photographs were taken at a Home
Gate Hotel and that the last two photos have a date stamp of December
26.

Horn said the pictures were found on Elizabeth Johnson's
camera when she was arrested in Miami Beach, Florida nearly two weeks
after the pair went missing.

McQueary believes Gabriel may have been medicated or drugged based on Gabriel's appearance in the photos.

"It didn't look like him (Gabriel), didn't look like he was happy in those pictures," said McQueary.

A group
of investigators from the FBI, San Antonio Police Department, Maricopa
County Attorney's Office and other agencies are actively involved in
the case across the country.

McQueary described to reporters the eerie call he said he received from Elizabeth on December 27.

"I
asked her where she is and she said that I stuffed him (Gabriel) in a
diaper bag, she suffocated him, put him in a diaper bag and put him in
the dumpster," a teary McQueary said. "Then she (Elizabeth) just kept
going on, she said you ruined my life this is what you deserve and
after that I hung up on her."

Johnson has been indicted on
charges of kidnapping, child abuse, custodial interference, and
conspiracy to commit custodial interference.

McQueary said he has not visited Elizabeth in jail, but has thought about it.

"I'm not exactly sure what I would say to her, other than I just want her to be honest," said McQueary.

Well-known TV show America's Most Wanted has now featured the Gabriel Johnson case, but Horn would not discuss any tips generated by the publicity.

Officials say Johnson fled the state with her son during the week of December 22 in an apparent custody dispute.

Last week detectives searched the home of a Scottsdale couple considered 'persons of interest' in the case.

Jack
Smith said police took his laptop computer and made a copy of his
business computer's hard drive. He said they also took brochures they
had for a foster agency.

Jack Smith said he had "a hard time understanding" the timing of the police activity at his home.

"If
they had got here at six in the morning, they could have had coffee
with me and spent the day with me," he said. "But yet, they had to keep
my daughter from going to bed last night until midnight. My daughter is
always in bed before midnight."

He said police arrived around
7:30 p.m. to secure the home until the search warrant arrived. Smith
said detectives began searching around 11 p.m., finishing around 1 a.m.

The Smiths say they offered to allow police to search the home weeks ago.

"Let me tell you how worried I was," said Jack Smith. "I fell asleep on the couch."

The
search warrant came just hours after Tammi Smith voluntarily met with
Tempe detectives for more than two hours last Thursday.

As she walked out of Tempe Police Department Headquarters, Smith could be heard saying, "That was rough."

She
went on to talk to reporters and quickly admitted that she played a
role in manipulating paperwork with Elizabeth Johnson, the mother of
baby Gabriel.

"I made a poor decision back when I met
Elizabeth," said Smith. "I helped her (Elizabeth) file her paperwork
so she could get her child support and things like that. There was
another name put on there and I helped her (Elizabeth) fill out that
paperwork, and because of that it obviously doesn't make me look good."

The
name on the paperwork was apparently Craig Cherry, Tammi Smith's
cousin, which prompted Tempe police detectives to look into the
possibility Cherry was Gabriel's father.

When contacted by
phone Friday, Cherry said he does not blame Tammi Smith for helping
Johnson use his name on the paperwork, suggesting he was a "potential
father" of Gabriel. He said he believed Tammi Smith was trying to
protect the baby from his biological father, based on what Johnson told
her about him.

"Instead of putting a false name there, I helped her (Elizabeth) put another name," said Tammi Smith.

With
her husband, Jack, waiting nearby, Tammi went on to say she and her
husband do not have attorneys, but were considering calling one.

While
the Smiths are labeled "persons of interest" in the case by Tempe
Police, Elizabeth Johnson is considered the prime suspect in her son's
disappearance and is not cooperating with detectives.

McQueary's father, Frank McQueary spoke out about the case as well, asking the public for help finding his grandson.

He
asked people to keep an eye out for, "that next door neighbor buying
stuff for a baby and they didn't have a baby before. Let somebody know."

He said the family is confident Gabriel is alive.

In
the meantime, police say a reward of up to $5,000 is being offered for
the safe return of the Tempe toddler who disappeared with his
23-year-old mother last month.

The reward is being offered through Crime Stoppers in San Antonio, Texas.

Anyone with information about Gabriel can call Crime Stoppers at 210-224-STOP or online at http://www.sacrimestoppers.com.

Police say Elizabeth left Arizona with Gabriel on December 18. There
have been no signs of her child since the day after Christmas.

Police did find Elizabeth in Florida and arrested her for failing to appear at her custodial hearing.

But Gabriel was not with her and detectives said she refused to tell them where he is.

"She
was confronted, arrested and interviewed exhaustively about the
whereabouts of the child," said Wayne Jones, with Miami Beach Police.

Gabriel's father, Logan McQueary, has pleaded to get his son back.

"Please don't be afraid of getting into trouble, just drop him off at a fire station, help me get my son back," he said.

McQueary said he had previously received text messages from Gabriel's mother saying she had killed the child.

"She basically said, 'there's no way in Hell you're ever seeing your son again,'" he said.

But
McQueary says he believes Gabriel is still alive, considering he and
Johnson were last seen at a park after McQueary received the
threatening messages.

Elizabeth's twin brother, Robert Johnson, said he doesn't believe his sister's story, but also said he has to support her.

"She's
stubborn and hard headed. If she doesn't want Logan to have the baby,
she will do everything she can to keep Gabriel from Logan."

Elizabeth has a history of erratic behavior.

In September of 2009, police arrested her for criminal damage.

According
to a police report, she broke several of her apartment's windows and
mirrors, destroyed a television, and a video game system.

The report also said she used a knife to cut McQueary's clothes.

Then
in December of 2009, another police report revealed Elizabeth called
police and told them McQueary had taken Gabriel and would no give him
back.

Police later accused her of filing a false police report after learning Johnson herself gave Gabriel to Tammi and Jack Smith.

BEXAR COUNTY, Texas -- Police were at a landfill Friday that officials
previously said they might want to search in connection with the case
of a missing 8-month-old baby.

Gabriel Johnson was last seen in
San Antonio on December 26th. Last week, investigators informed the
operators of the Allied Waste - Tessman Road Landfill located at 7000
IH-10 East about the possibility of a search.

Reporters have
been checking the site each day. When one crew pulled up to the
site Friday, several officers were there along with search dogs.
However, police would not answer any questions.

The picture that has many so worried!

Though the search for Gabriel Johnson
continues, questions have turned to what happens to the missing baby's
mother, Elizabeth, if the child is never found.
"We have to look at: Did Elizabeth kill Gabriel like she said she did?"
said Sgt. Steve Carbajal, a Tempe Police spokesman.
Johnson originally told former boyfriend Logan McQueary 25, the
boy's father, in text messages and phone calls that she smothered the
boy, stuffed him in a baby bag and left him in a dumpster on Dec. 27.
She later said she did not kill the child.
While police initially believed the child was alive, signs
supporting that conclusion have weakened and new tips have slowed,
authorities said.
Elizabeth Johnson has refused to speak to investigators, and without
a body, prosecuting a homicide case is difficult. So far, she has been
charged in Maricopa County with kidnapping, child abuse and custodial
interference.
Suspects have been arrested in only a handful of missing-body cases
in Maricopa County. Some cases have been successfully prosecuted,
usually aided by a confession and extensive forensic evidence. Other
cases never result in charges, even if police believe they know who
committed the crime.
Investigators, including a team from Tempe, have searched dumpsters
in San Antonio, where the child was last photographed. So far, there
has been no luck in finding Gabriel or his body.
Anything else police might have found, they are keeping close to the vest.

Statements of murder

After telling her ex-boyfriend she had killed the child, Johnson
said she was leaving the country, according to court documents. She
said she would call McQueary to tell him where he could find the
"blue-colored" baby.
While those statements give detectives investigative leads, experts consider it debatable whether they would hold up in court.
"Generally, there has to be some sort of corroborating evidence,"
said attorney Dale Baich, with the Federal Public Defender's Office in
Phoenix, who specializes in matters of habeas corpus. "I'm not sure
making those statements by itself would be enough. There may be
explanations and reasons why she would say what she said."
Johnson recanted the statement in an interview with a local
television station, saying she only claimed to have killed the boy to
get back at his father for "ruining my life." She said she gave the
child to a couple she met in a park in San Antonio.
But police keep returning to the possibility that Johnson killed her son,
especially as other leads of him being alive run out.
To corroborate the initial statements, police would need evidence
that could include the child's body before they could pursue homicide
charges. Without his body, the prosecution must somehow prove the boy
is dead.

3 cases, 3 outcomes

"In court, the prosecutor has to tell a story to the jury, and the
problem with not having a body is you're missing part of the story,"
said retired Tempe Police Detective Allen Reed.
Reed was the lead detective in the case of Cookie Jacobson of Tempe,
who disappeared in 1998. The Police Department has long believed her
16-year-old son killed her and enlisted his 13-year-old sister to help
dispose of the body. But no charges have been filed.
Classmates heard the teenager talk about wanting to kill his mother.
Results from a polygraph test suggested the boy had lied to police.
In an interview with police, he said he found his mother dead in her
room and with the help of his younger sister, wrapped Jacobson's body
in a yellow sheet and placed it in a garbage container in an alley near
their home. Police found Jacobson's blood in the garbage can.
It wasn't enough evidence. Police arrested the two siblings, but the
County Attorney's Office ordered their release because of a lack of
evidence. About 32 police and public works employees sifted through
trash at the Butterfield Landfill in Mobile, but never found the body.
The lack of a body, Reed said, meant police could never determine
exactly how she was killed.
In a second, more recent case, prosecutors in 2002 persuaded a jury
to convict David Lamar Anthony of Peoria of killing his wife and her
two children, without a confession or the three missing bodies.
Prosecutors painted Anthony as a cheating husband who molested his
stepdaughter. They also found a 2-by 3-foot stain of his wife's blood
under the carpet in the family's home office.
The verdict was knocked down by the Arizona Supreme Court, which
ruled the molestation accusations should not have been included as
evidence. A construction crew has since dug up the bodies in two
55-gallon drums. It's unclear how evidence from the bodies will be used
in the second trial. The children were unidentifiable, but their
mother's body was intact and showed signs of blunt-force trauma.
In an Ahwatukee Foothills case, a 13-year-old was convicted of
second-degree murder in 1997 for shooting a friend and waiting two
hours for him to die before stuffing him in a trash bin. Police
searched landfills but never found the body. Jeremy Bach admitted
shooting the boy but claimed it was an accident. He was sentenced to 22
years in prison.

Unfazed by accusations

Elizabeth Johnson, however, doesn't seem concerned about the
possibility of being charged with homicide, said her grandfather, Bob
Johnson. He visited Elizabeth in jail on Jan. 14 and has spoken to her
on the phone about every other day since, he said.
"At this point, it's common sense that the longer something like
this drags out, the worse it looks for the victim, in this case
Gabriel," he said. "But I don't think she would have harmed the child,
let alone killed him, and have the attitude she has."
Bob Johnson said his granddaughter seems convinced the most serious
charges she is facing, kidnapping and child abuse, won't be lessened if
the boy is found alive.
"I tell her the easiest way for her to get out of here, the fastest
way for her to get out, is to tell them where Gabriel is at," Bob
Johnson said. "The quicker he shows up alive, the quicker you can get
out of here."

Elizabeth Johnson, the mother of missing 8-month-old Gabriel, is due
before an Arizona judge today when she is expected to plead not guilty
to charges including kidnapping, child abuse and custodial
interference.
Johnson, 23, and the boy's biological father, Logan McQueary,
were in the middle of a custody dispute when she fled Arizona with
Gabriel before Christmas. Johnson allegedly sent text messages to
McQueary saying she had killed their son and left his body in a trash
bin.
She later changed her story and said she gave the baby to a
random couple she met in a San Antonio, Texas, park. Police have been
unable to confirm that the couple exists.
Another Arizona couple who say they were in talks with Johnson
to adopt the baby say they also have no idea of his whereabouts,
although police have named them as persons of interest for potentially
withholding information.
McQueary held a vigil last night in Scottsdale, Ariz., with his
friends and family. He said he still holds out hope that his son, who
has been missing for more than a month, will be found alive and
returned home safely.
"I hope he comes back soon," McQueary said. "I want him back more than anything else."
Johnson has refused to speak to investigators, which has put them and the prosecution in a difficult position.
"It's the dilemma of, you have somebody incarcerated but you
really need their help in finding this baby, and so the real key is
communication between the police and Elizabeth because that
relationship will get you that piece of information that you need,"
Brad Garrett, an ABC News consultant and former FBI agent, said.
Babysitter Says Gabriel Was 'Acting Scared'


Gabriel 's babysitter, Analisa Urias, one of the last-known people to see the missing baby, said he seemed sad and frightened the night she took care of him in a Texas hotel room.
Johnson hired Urias through a Craigs List ad to babysit Gabriel while she was escaping the custody dispute.
"Elizabeth told me if anyone came knocking on the door, not to answer it," Urias said.Tempe, Ariz., police released the photographs of Gabriel taken
by Johnson in the same Texas hotel room in hopes it would help them
find the missing baby.
Although Gabriel appears to be healthy and active, lying on a
bed with toys and a pacifier, investigators fear that Gabriel is
holding a medicine dropper in two of the photos.
"Elizabeth told me to give him a bottle in about an hour and
then her exact words were to, 'Give him more medicine if he started
crying to shut him up,'" Urias said.
"Gabriel wasn't acting like a normal baby," she said. "He was acting scared, he didn't want to play. He acted like he was sad."
The photographs were discovered on Johnson's camera following her arrest Dec. 29 in Miami.
In another claim, Urias said she found a large knife next to the bed in the motel room.
"It looked like a butcher type of knife and, you know, I thought
that was weird because why would she have it next to her bed? It's
something that would belong in the kitchen," Urias said.
The photographs were date-stamped Dec. 26, the last day Gabriel was seen.

Mom Describes Mystery Couple Who Supposedly Have Her Baby


Johnson described them as a white couple in their 30s. The man was
tall with short black hair and the woman was 5-feet-3-inches with long
blond hair.
Johnson said the couple looked trustworthy and brought their
own car seat and that they said they could keep baby Gabriel without
anyone noticing.
"Yes I'm sure he's alive," Johnson said in a jailhouse interview.
Investigators recently served a search warrant on the home of
Jack and Tammi Smith, a couple who say they were in talks to adopt
Gabriel before he disappeared and have since been named persons of
interest.
Police believe the couple may be withholding information and took their phone records and laptop.
Tammi Smith still speaks to Johnson and recently met her in the Tempe, Ariz.
"I looked in her eyes, I can tell you that baby is alive," Smith said.
"According to Elizabeth these people are going to try to hide this baby."
Gabriel's grandfather, Frank McQueary, says that is all the more reason to be vigilant.
"That next-door neighbor may be buying stuff for a baby and they didn't have a baby before," he said. "Let somebody know."
Anyone with information about Gabriel Johnson is asked to call the Tempe Police Department at (480) 350-8311.

TEMPE, AZ -- While detectives continue to search for leads in the case
of missing 8-month-old Gabriel Johnson, a large group gathered Sunday
evening to hold a candlelight vigil to show support for the family.

"I
just had to be here, I wake up every morning and check the computer to
find out if this little boy has been returned home," said Katrina
Bratteli, who drove an hour to Scottsdale to attend the vigil.

Others, like Bratteli, have never met Gabriel Johnson, but felt a connection.

"I
think people like me, this case has just gripped them. I have a son the
same age as Gabriel and I can't imagine what this family is going
through," said Bratteli.

A Facebook page dedicated to Gabriel
Johnson, has become an outlet for others like Bratelli to show their
support and hold out hope that the baby boy is alive.

About 100 people attended the vigil Sunday evening at Scottsdale Chaparral Park near Hayden and Chaparral Roads.

"I
just want to thank everyone, the support is great, I'm very thankful,"
said Gabriel's father, Logan McQueary, during the vigil.

Meanwhile, Tempe detectives have processed a GPS device that may have been used by Gabriel's mother, Elizabeth.

Investigators say the information from the GPS, including its origin, cannot be released.

It has been weeks since baby Gabriel disappeared while with his mother in San Antonio, Texas after leaving Tempe.

Gabriel Johnson was last seen around December 26.

Detectives
will not say how many people have been questioned involving the search
for the boy, but Jack Smith, who is considered a 'person of interest'
in the case told the media a family member outside Arizona has been
interviewed.

"They (investigators) went to my son's house in
Tennessee and asked him a few questions which is all normal stuff, they
have to do that and that's ok," said Jack Smith Wednesday night.

Smith
went on to say he has no problem being labeled a 'person of interest'
and hopes the investigation continues to move forward.

"We're
hoping it's (investigation) making progress, I mean it needs to be
making progress and we (the Smiths) certainly have faith and hope
that's what is going on," said Jack Smith.

Tempe officers say the number of tips they've received in search of missing baby Gabriel has dropped.

"The tips are not coming in at the volume they were a week ago," said Tempe Lt. Mike Horn.

According
to Tempe Officers, indications that Gabriel is alive are not as strong
as they were earlier in the investigation, however, detectives continue
to hold out hope the boy will be found alive.

According to Elizabeth's MySpace page, it appears Elizabeth was posting messages just days after her son went missing.

On
her MySpace bio, Elizabeth calls herself a "proud parent" and labeled
her mood as "adventurous" on December 29, 2009, and appears to have
last logged-in on December 30, 2009, the same day she was arrested in
Miami.

When asked about the MySpace page and visitor postings,
Tempe Police Sgt. Steve Carbajal said, "Detectives are using any means
necessary to find information and especially Gabriel."

According
to detectives, 23-year-old Elizabeth Johnson refuses to tell
authorities where the baby is or who may have him or what led her to
San Antonio.

Police also confirm there are two, separate, yet parallel investigations involving the disappearance of the toddler.

According
to Horn, a team of detectives is working a missing persons
investigation and a homicide investigation at the same time because it
is unknown if boy's mother gave the child away or possibly killed him.

"It
is a very real possibility that Elizabeth killed Gabriel," Horn said.
"We are holding out hope that he's alive, but we have to look at every
aspect and investigate everything."

Detectives are also looking into the possibility that the missing boy may be disguised as a girl by the people who have him.

"There's one thing we've learned in this investigation and that is that anything is possible," said Carbajal

During a media briefing Monday, McQueary pleaded for help in the search for his missing son.

"This
is about Gabriel and I want to find my son," McQueary said. "I think
about it every single day whether he's dead or alive."

Tempe detectives have also released new photos taken of the baby boy while Gabriel was in a San Antonio motel.

Horn
said investigators believe all the photographs were taken at a Home
Gate Hotel and that the last two photos have a date stamp of December
26.

Horn said the pictures were found on Elizabeth Johnson's
camera when she was arrested in Miami Beach, Florida nearly two weeks
after the pair went missing.

McQueary believes Gabriel may have been medicated or drugged based on Gabriel's appearance in the photos.

"It didn't look like him (Gabriel), didn't look like he was happy in those pictures," said McQueary.

A
group of investigators from the FBI, San Antonio Police Department,
Maricopa County Attorney's Office and other agencies are actively
involved in the case across the country.

McQueary described to reporters the eerie call he said he received from Elizabeth on December 27.

"I
asked her where she is and she said that I stuffed him (Gabriel) in a
diaper bag, she suffocated him, put him in a diaper bag and put him in
the dumpster," a teary McQueary said. "Then she (Elizabeth) just kept
going on, she said you ruined my life this is what you deserve and
after that I hung up on her."

Johnson has been indicted on
charges of kidnapping, child abuse, custodial interference, and
conspiracy to commit custodial interference.

McQueary said he has not visited Elizabeth in jail, but has thought about it.

"I'm not exactly sure what I would say to her, other than I just want her to be honest," said McQueary.

Well-known
TV show America's Most Wanted has now featured the Gabriel Johnson
case, but Horn would not discuss any tips generated by the publicity.

Officials say Johnson fled the state with her son during the week of December 22 in an apparent custody dispute.

Last week detectives searched the home of a Scottsdale couple considered 'persons of interest' in the case.

Jack
Smith said police took his laptop computer and made a copy of his
business computer's hard drive. He said they also took brochures they
had for a foster agency.

Jack Smith said he had "a hard time understanding" the timing of the police activity at his home.

"If
they had got here at six in the morning, they could have had coffee
with me and spent the day with me," he said. "But yet, they had to keep
my daughter from going to bed last night until midnight. My daughter is
always in bed before midnight."

He said police arrived around
7:30 p.m. to secure the home until the search warrant arrived. Smith
said detectives began searching around 11 p.m., finishing around 1 a.m.

The Smiths say they offered to allow police to search the home weeks ago.

"Let me tell you how worried I was," said Jack Smith. "I fell asleep on the couch."

The
search warrant came just hours after Tammi Smith voluntarily met with
Tempe detectives for more than two hours last Thursday.

As she walked out of Tempe Police Department Headquarters, Smith could be heard saying, "That was rough."

She
went on to talk to reporters and quickly admitted that she played a
role in manipulating paperwork with Elizabeth Johnson, the mother of
baby Gabriel.

"I made a poor decision back when I met
Elizabeth," said Smith. "I helped her (Elizabeth) file her paperwork
so she could get her child support and things like that. There was
another name put on there and I helped her (Elizabeth) fill out that
paperwork, and because of that it obviously doesn't make me look good."

The
name on the paperwork was apparently Craig Cherry, Tammi Smith's
cousin, which prompted Tempe police detectives to look into the
possibility Cherry was Gabriel's father.

When contacted by
phone Friday, Cherry said he does not blame Tammi Smith for helping
Johnson use his name on the paperwork, suggesting he was a "potential
father" of Gabriel. He said he believed Tammi Smith was trying to
protect the baby from his biological father, based on what Johnson told
her about him.

"Instead of putting a false name there, I helped her (Elizabeth) put another name," said Tammi Smith.

With
her husband, Jack, waiting nearby, Tammi went on to say she and her
husband do not have attorneys, but were considering calling one.

While
the Smiths are labeled "persons of interest" in the case by Tempe
Police, Elizabeth Johnson is considered the prime suspect in her son's
disappearance and is not cooperating with detectives.

McQueary's father, Frank McQueary spoke out about the case as well, asking the public for help finding his grandson.

He
asked people to keep an eye out for, "that next door neighbor buying
stuff for a baby and they didn't have a baby before. Let somebody know."

He said the family is confident Gabriel is alive.

In
the meantime, police say a reward of up to $5,000 is being offered for
the safe return of the Tempe toddler who disappeared with his
23-year-old mother last month.

The reward is being offered through Crime Stoppers in San Antonio, Texas.

Anyone with information about Gabriel can call Crime Stoppers at 210-224-STOP or online at http://www.sacrimestoppers.com.

TomTerrific0420 wrote:The picture that has many so worried!

Tom, am I going mad? I thought last time I saw this pic there was a different bottle with a blue top??? I can't bare to see this picture. The pupils are very dialated.

kiwimom wrote:

TomTerrific0420 wrote:The picture that has many so worried!

Tom, am I going mad? I thought last time I saw this pic there was a different bottle with a blue top??? I can't bare to see this picture. The pupils are very dialated.

---Perhaps the color was distorted by the transmission you were watching. This is from the Police files. Concern is that it looks like a script as opposed to over the counter meds.

Elizabeth Johnson, the mother of the missing eight-month old baby,
Gabriel Johnson, appeared before a Maricopa County Superior Court judge
this morning, via-video feed from the Maricopa County Jail and pleaded
not guilty to charges relating to the child's disappearance.
Johnson pleaded not guilty to charges of kidnapping, child abuse and
custodial interference stemming from the December disappearance of the
baby.
After not appearing at a December custody hearing, Johnson
disappeared with the baby and went to San Antonio, Texas, where Gabriel
was last seen alive.
While on the run, Johnson sent text messages to the baby's father,
Logan McQueary saying she had killed the baby and put his body in a
dumpster.
She later recanted her claims and said she gave the baby to a random couple she met at a park in San Antonio.
Initially, Tempe police were optimistic that the baby was still
alive but have since changed their tune as tips in the case slowed.
Over the weekend, police in San Antonio -- as well as officers from
the Tempe Police Department -- searched dumpsters and landfills in
Bexar County, Texas, looking for the baby's body. The search turned up
nothing.
So, could Johnson get hit with a murder charge if the baby's body is never recovered? Yes, but it would be difficult.


Over
the weekend, police in San Antonio -- as well as officers from the
Tempe Police Department -- searched dumpsters and landfills in Bexar
County, Texas, looking for the baby's body. The search turned up
nothing.
So, could Johnson get hit with a murder charge if the baby's body is never recovered? Yes, but it would be difficult.
Over the weekend, the Arizona Republic outlined three cases in Arizona where a body was never discovered and only one resulted in a murder conviction. What the Repub
failed to point out is that a murder charge -- if there ever is one --
would likely be filed in Texas -- not Arizona -- where murder charges
being filed without a body may be a bit more likely.
Tempe police would not comment on any potential murder charges in
Texas but referred us to the San Antonio Police Department, where the
investigation is being conducted. They haven't gotten back to us yet
but we'll let you know as soon as they do.
Anyone with information about the case is asked to call the Tempe Police Department or the FBI.

TomTerrific0420 wrote:

kiwimom wrote:

TomTerrific0420 wrote:The picture that has many so worried!

Tom, am I going mad? I thought last time I saw this pic there was a different bottle with a blue top??? I can't bare to see this picture. The pupils are very dialated.

---Perhaps the color was distorted by the transmission you were watching. This is from the Police files. Concern is that it looks like a script as opposed to over the counter meds.

Thanks Tom I'm hoping it's Infants Tylonol, grape flavored, and the bottle still looks full

MESA, Ariz. -- Logan McQueary has had about all he can take of scouring the Internet and staring at the phone."It's been long enough. I just need to get out there and do something," said McQueary.On
Tuesday, he actively joined the search for his son, Gabriel, by
gathering supplies for his own road trip to Texas. He plans to retrace
the GPS route of his former girlfriend, Elizabeth Johnson."If
she would have left Friday night, I don't think she would have driven
through the night, especially with Gabriel," said McQueary.It's been more than a month since Johnson took Gabriel and fled to Texas. That's where Gabriel disappeared.McQueary hopes to get lucky along the way and find someone who saw his missing boy.But
before he can leave, Tempe investigators need his help to build their
case of conspiracy between person-of-interest Tammi Smith and Elizabeth
Johnson.Tempe police made copies of all of McQueary's phone recordings and text messages, including this passage from Elizabeth on Dec. 27.Logan
McQueary showed her text that read: "You will never see Gabriel
again. I made sure of that. And you can spend the rest of of your
pathetic life wondering about him. You will never find me. I'm already
boarding a plane out of the country. When I'm safe, I'll email you the
exact location of dead Gabriel's little blue body, if the garbage don't
come first. This is what liars like you deserve."Despite those words, Logan clings to the hope that Gabriel is alive and well."I
just want to try and keep it alive and keep handing out fliers and keep
everybody, just like everybody else, just praying that he is still
alive," said McQueary.As for Tammi Smith, McQueary turned down her offer for a public apology, and thinks after her phone call with Elizabeth Johnson over the weekend, Tammi is really the one pulling the strings."It
kind of sounded like Tammi kinda said you need to watch your mouth and
be careful what you said. Maybe she said that for a reason," said
McQueary.

Elizabeth Johnson May Suffer from a Mental Disorder but that Isn't Helping to Find Baby Gabriel

As
the search for Baby Gabriel Johnson continues in San Antonio, Texas,
and Logan McQueary, Baby Gabriel's father, readies to retrace the
GPS-recorded route that Elizabeth Johnson took to Texas, Maricopa
County (Arizona) Sheriff Joe Arpaio surmised that
Elizabeth Johnson may have a dual personality. Johnson,
the 23-year-old mother who disappeared with her 8-month-old baby,
Gabriel, last month and reappeared in Miami
Beach without the child, has been kept isolated in the Estrella Jail
after being extradited from Florida. She has not cooperated with
authorities since she recanted a text message she sent to her
ex-boyfriend, McQueary, that she had killed the baby and offered a
story wherein she claims to have given Baby Gabriel to a couple of
strangers in a park in San Antonio.

Sheriff Arpaio said Elizabeth Johnson showed a completely different persona inside his jail
than she did to the public. "She's been quiet, cooperative, not a
problem in our jail. Maybe she's got a dual personality," he said.

"She hasn't been causing any problems, but you never know."

Dual personalities -- or multiple personalities (disassociative identity
disorder) -- might explain some of Elizabeth Johnson's erratic behavior
or perhaps all of it. It could explain why she is seen as cooperative
in the Estrella Jail and why she would send a vicious text message to
her ex-boyfriend from San Antonio: "You will never see Gabriel again. I
made sure of that. And you can spend the rest of of your pathetic life
wondering about him. You will never find me. I'm already boarding a
plane out of the country. When I'm safe, I'll email you the exact
location of dead Gabriel's little blue body, if the garbage don't come
first. This is what liars like you deserve." Having distinct
personalities or identities could explain the diverse behaviors, but
multiple personalities are extremely rare.

Of course, Elizabeth Johnson could be more suited to the borderline personality
disorder type, which is characterized by volatility of self-image,
goals, and internal preferences, where the subject endures chronic
feelings of emotional emptiness and engages in intense, unstable
interpersonal relationships and self-destructive behavior.
She has certainly exhibited the unstable relationships
and self-destructive aspects of the disorder.

Still, she might suffer from a bipolar disorder, where she would exhibit a
manic state followed by a depressed state. This could explain her
sudden irrational actions followed by periods of seemingly normal
behavior or low periods, like when she was found crying in an airport
and enlisted the help of Jack and Tammi Smith, hoping to get these
total strangers to adopt Baby Gabriel (plans which ultimately fell
through).

Elizabeth Johnson also seems to suffer from
narcissistic tendencies, an extreme self-loathing where a person's
actions are ultimately detrimental to themselves. Her use of the child
as leverage indicates an objectification, a tendency to see Baby
Gabriel as a means to a desired end.

It is difficult to truly
say whether or not the 23-year-old mother actually suffers from any or
none of these disorders, but if Baby Gabriel is never found, it is
certain that post-partem depression
will be used or at least considered as a defense, as will various other
mental disorders, including one or several of the aforementioned.

One thing seems certain: Elizabeth Johnson will have to undergo psychiatric examination.

But somewhere in all this, Gabriel Johnson went missing due to the actions
of his mother, regardless of her mental state. Unfortunately for
Elizabeth Johnson, her future may not hinge on whether or not they find
the child or the child's body. Her reticence may soon begin to hurt her
case.

When asked about her case going to trial, Sheriff Arpaio
said, "You know, I think there's only about four cases in history, and
we have two of them. The David Anthony case where he's on death row. We
have another one right now, waiting to be extradited, that we
investigated here, without the body."

But what Sheriff Joe Arpaio and many others seem to overlook is that,
if Baby Gabriel was indeed killed, he was most likely killed in Texas --
in or around San Antonio,
which is where Elizabeth Johnson was when she sent her hurtful text
message to Logan McQueary saying she had killed the baby. And if a body
is ultimately found in the landfills being searched in Texas, then the
point is moot. Jurisdiction for a murder trial would then fall to
prosecutors in Bexar County, Texas.

All other charges, kidnapping and custodial interference would still be adjudicated in Arizona.

Does Elizabeth Johnson suffer from some form of disassociative identity
disorder or some other mental disorder that could explain her behavior?
Did she murder her own child, or did she really effect a
transfer of the baby to an anonymous couple in a park
in San Antonio.
Can her state of mind be determined in either set of circumstances?

Does it really matter?

It could to a jury.

I found some interesting photo's on Photobucket

The poster says this is a medicine dispenser. They also say that these were taken at a SA Hotel. They note there may be family pics on the dresser.