12-31-2011, 08:49 PM
this reporter has done an EXCELLENT job.
wow.
Archie Ingersoll | The Journal Gazette
Michael Plumadore has admitted killing the 9-year-old girl he was baby-sitting, according to court records. Under the American system of justice, he is presumed innocent until proven guilty.
Though if he did repeatedly strike Aliahna Lemmon on the head with a brick outside his mobile home and dismember her body on Dec. 22, then I have never witnessed firsthand a cover-up attempt of such magnitude.
One so evil. One done with such a frightening level of nuance and detail.
On Christmas Day – before Plumadore had told investigators they could find Aliahna's body parts in his freezer and in the trash bin of a nearby business – I sat down with him in an aging but well-kept mobile home, where Aliahna's deceased grandfather used to live.
Aliahna's mother, her grandmother and her grandmother's husband were with us, too.
For about 1 1⁄2 hours, we discussed the disappearance of Aliahna who, at that point, had been reported missing for about 48 hours and had been the subject of a huge search. During our talk, it became clear that Aliahna's family trusted Plumadore like blood.
They pointed to the care he gave Aliahna's ailing grandfather until his death in early December. Aliahna's mother, Tarah Souders, said she considered Plumadore a brother, that he had become a regular baby-sitter for her children and that they called him "Uncle Mike."
Plumadore, 39, showed me a small drawing Aliahna had made on a scrap of paper. It was a heart, and inside was written, "I love u Miek."
"That's one way I spell your name," Plumadore said Aliahna told him. He said this with a smile, the way a proud uncle would.
Aliahna's mother, grandmother and grandmother's husband all insisted that Plumadore had nothing to do with Aliahna's disappearance.
Plumadore, who was the last adult to see Aliahna, said he understood why many others suspected he was involved. But he said he was not taking it personally.
"I have a real massive and bad temper, but I've kept it in check because of Ailey," he said, using Aliahna's nickname.
However, he acknowledged losing his cool while investigators were interviewing him.
"When the FBI and stuff like that did an investigation, they tried that good cop, bad cop. They tried to put me in the category of an evil person," he said with his Southern drawl. "I kind of snapped and went off and jumped out my chair and had words."
Plumadore said he eventually calmed down and offered to let investigators sample his DNA and administer a polygraph test. He said he also gave them his cellphone without hesitation.
On Dec. 23, the day Aliahna was reported missing, Plumadore was watching her and her sisters, both 6 years old. The girls had been staying with him in his mobile home for about a week because Aliahna's mother was ill and her stepfather works nights and sleeps during the day. Plumadore and Aliahna's family both lived in the Northway mobile home park, near North Clinton Street and Diebold Road, just north of Fort Wayne.
During my time with Plumadore, he gave his version of what happened Dec. 23. He told the story calmly and, as far as I could tell, consistently. The relatives of Aliahna who were present had no dispute with what he said.
Plumadore said he had stayed up all night because Aliahna had been having nightmares. At one point, she told him she missed her mother and wanted to leave. "But I said, 'Honey, you know, it's 2, 2:30 in the morning. We'll get with Mommy in the morning,' " he said.
About 6 a.m., Plumadore said he left the three girls in his mobile home and went to buy a cigar at a convenience store about a mile away.
He said he had locked the door to his home, and when he returned about 10 minutes later, the door was still locked and all the girls were there.
He said Aliahna's sisters were asleep on the floor, and Aliahna was sleeping in her grandfather's recliner.
"I brushed the hair back off her forehead and gave her a kiss and sat down and smoked my cigar, and I went to sleep about 6:30," he said. "I sleep on the couch. You know, they're not my kids. I'm not gonna sleep in the same bed as someone else's kids. And they all want to sleep together, so we all just sleep in the living room and watch TV together."
He said he woke up about 10 a.m. when Aliahna's mother called. After that call, he realized the door to the home was unlocked and that Aliahna was gone. Aliahna's sisters told him that Aliahna had left with her mother. Plumadore believed them, so he locked the door and went back to sleep until about 1:30 p.m.
When he woke up, he said he and the two other girls went about their day until about 8:30 p.m. That's when he talked to Aliahna's mother, who told him she did not have Aliahna. He told Aliahna's mother he did not have her either and that they needed to call police.
That was Plumadore's version. But he did more than just recite his story of Aliahna going missing. He subtly showed emotion and acted the way a concerned baby sitter might after losing a child on his watch.
He told about how on Christmas Eve a police dog seemed to follow Aliahna's scent to the school bus stop. "That's why I got my hopes up, and when it wound up being nothing, I mean, it just crushed me again," he said. "It seems like every time you hear something that might be positive, you think you've cried all your tears and then more show up."
He displayed worry about how long it had been since Aliahna had gone missing. "Look how many states she could be through already if someone were to took her off somewhere far away or something. I mean, they had a 10-hour window, at least, before we knew she was missing," he said.
He suggested that the person responsible for Aliahna's disappearance send an anonymous letter saying what happened to her or where she is. He said, "It would take a coward to do something to a child."
Plumadore even admitted to crimes in his own past. "I'm not an angel by any means," he said but added: "I don't hurt children. I don't hurt animals."
At one point during the interview, Aliahna's grandmother, Amber Story, consoled her weeping daughter and made a plea to whoever may have taken or harmed her granddaughter.
"At least let us know where she is, so we can bring her home," Aliahna's grandma said.
Plumadore heard her say this. But instead of ending their agony of not knowing where their little girl was, he brought them a box of tissues.
wow.
Archie Ingersoll | The Journal Gazette
Michael Plumadore has admitted killing the 9-year-old girl he was baby-sitting, according to court records. Under the American system of justice, he is presumed innocent until proven guilty.
Though if he did repeatedly strike Aliahna Lemmon on the head with a brick outside his mobile home and dismember her body on Dec. 22, then I have never witnessed firsthand a cover-up attempt of such magnitude.
One so evil. One done with such a frightening level of nuance and detail.
On Christmas Day – before Plumadore had told investigators they could find Aliahna's body parts in his freezer and in the trash bin of a nearby business – I sat down with him in an aging but well-kept mobile home, where Aliahna's deceased grandfather used to live.
Aliahna's mother, her grandmother and her grandmother's husband were with us, too.
For about 1 1⁄2 hours, we discussed the disappearance of Aliahna who, at that point, had been reported missing for about 48 hours and had been the subject of a huge search. During our talk, it became clear that Aliahna's family trusted Plumadore like blood.
They pointed to the care he gave Aliahna's ailing grandfather until his death in early December. Aliahna's mother, Tarah Souders, said she considered Plumadore a brother, that he had become a regular baby-sitter for her children and that they called him "Uncle Mike."
Plumadore, 39, showed me a small drawing Aliahna had made on a scrap of paper. It was a heart, and inside was written, "I love u Miek."
"That's one way I spell your name," Plumadore said Aliahna told him. He said this with a smile, the way a proud uncle would.
Aliahna's mother, grandmother and grandmother's husband all insisted that Plumadore had nothing to do with Aliahna's disappearance.
Plumadore, who was the last adult to see Aliahna, said he understood why many others suspected he was involved. But he said he was not taking it personally.
"I have a real massive and bad temper, but I've kept it in check because of Ailey," he said, using Aliahna's nickname.
However, he acknowledged losing his cool while investigators were interviewing him.
"When the FBI and stuff like that did an investigation, they tried that good cop, bad cop. They tried to put me in the category of an evil person," he said with his Southern drawl. "I kind of snapped and went off and jumped out my chair and had words."
Plumadore said he eventually calmed down and offered to let investigators sample his DNA and administer a polygraph test. He said he also gave them his cellphone without hesitation.
On Dec. 23, the day Aliahna was reported missing, Plumadore was watching her and her sisters, both 6 years old. The girls had been staying with him in his mobile home for about a week because Aliahna's mother was ill and her stepfather works nights and sleeps during the day. Plumadore and Aliahna's family both lived in the Northway mobile home park, near North Clinton Street and Diebold Road, just north of Fort Wayne.
During my time with Plumadore, he gave his version of what happened Dec. 23. He told the story calmly and, as far as I could tell, consistently. The relatives of Aliahna who were present had no dispute with what he said.
Plumadore said he had stayed up all night because Aliahna had been having nightmares. At one point, she told him she missed her mother and wanted to leave. "But I said, 'Honey, you know, it's 2, 2:30 in the morning. We'll get with Mommy in the morning,' " he said.
About 6 a.m., Plumadore said he left the three girls in his mobile home and went to buy a cigar at a convenience store about a mile away.
He said he had locked the door to his home, and when he returned about 10 minutes later, the door was still locked and all the girls were there.
He said Aliahna's sisters were asleep on the floor, and Aliahna was sleeping in her grandfather's recliner.
"I brushed the hair back off her forehead and gave her a kiss and sat down and smoked my cigar, and I went to sleep about 6:30," he said. "I sleep on the couch. You know, they're not my kids. I'm not gonna sleep in the same bed as someone else's kids. And they all want to sleep together, so we all just sleep in the living room and watch TV together."
He said he woke up about 10 a.m. when Aliahna's mother called. After that call, he realized the door to the home was unlocked and that Aliahna was gone. Aliahna's sisters told him that Aliahna had left with her mother. Plumadore believed them, so he locked the door and went back to sleep until about 1:30 p.m.
When he woke up, he said he and the two other girls went about their day until about 8:30 p.m. That's when he talked to Aliahna's mother, who told him she did not have Aliahna. He told Aliahna's mother he did not have her either and that they needed to call police.
That was Plumadore's version. But he did more than just recite his story of Aliahna going missing. He subtly showed emotion and acted the way a concerned baby sitter might after losing a child on his watch.
He told about how on Christmas Eve a police dog seemed to follow Aliahna's scent to the school bus stop. "That's why I got my hopes up, and when it wound up being nothing, I mean, it just crushed me again," he said. "It seems like every time you hear something that might be positive, you think you've cried all your tears and then more show up."
He displayed worry about how long it had been since Aliahna had gone missing. "Look how many states she could be through already if someone were to took her off somewhere far away or something. I mean, they had a 10-hour window, at least, before we knew she was missing," he said.
He suggested that the person responsible for Aliahna's disappearance send an anonymous letter saying what happened to her or where she is. He said, "It would take a coward to do something to a child."
Plumadore even admitted to crimes in his own past. "I'm not an angel by any means," he said but added: "I don't hurt children. I don't hurt animals."
At one point during the interview, Aliahna's grandmother, Amber Story, consoled her weeping daughter and made a plea to whoever may have taken or harmed her granddaughter.
"At least let us know where she is, so we can bring her home," Aliahna's grandma said.
Plumadore heard her say this. But instead of ending their agony of not knowing where their little girl was, he brought them a box of tissues.