transcript-----
Liz: (narrative): the body of a little Australian girl is found dumped in the backrocks of America. Her dad has some suspicious holes in his memory. Her step mother has been locked up, but so far hasn’t been charged with murder. So what happened to 10 year old Zahra baker? It’s a crime that’s fascinated and horrified people on both sides of the pacific. Tonight for the 1st time Zahra’s dad tells his version of events. It’s no wonder police are having so much trouble solving the mystery.
The innocent smile of Zahra baker, doing most things that girls love to do, although Zahra was not your average little girl. Because in her short 10 years she had endured 2 bouts of cancer. Battles that left her with a hearing impairment and a prosthetic leg.
But this gutsy little Australian girl survived it all, until this:
“hickory police 911, what is your emergency?”
“uh, yeah, my daughter is missing”.
“I”m sorry?” your daughter is missing?”
“yes, yeah.”
Zahra baker is now at the centre of one of America’s biggest murder mysteries.
Adam: Zahra’s been my life, you know, and now she’s gone. (pause,sniff) I don’t know what to do. I feel very very empty. (sniff, stares at the floor.)
Liz: Adam baker is a lonely man. He raised Zahra on his own nearly all her life. 2 years ago he brought his daughter here, to hickory in America’s south, after meeting his new wife Lisa on the internet. He now realizes it was a relationship doomed from the start. What was it about Lisa do you think?
Adam: she was very caring—then.
Liz: what were you hoping for? What did you think your life was going to be like?
Adam: happy family, a lot of love. More children, brothers and sisters for Zahra. But (makes a face)--it didn’t turn out that way.
Liz: for Adam baker not only is Zahra gone but everyone here treats him with deep suspicion.
Adam: it’s very hard to see, people on the street, even people in their cars driving, staring, yelling..
Liz: what do they yell?
Adam: um, I need to be locked up, I’m going to go to hell, um---that I’m a murderer.
Liz: are you guilty of-- anything?
Adam: (long pause) no, um...
Liz: (narrative) : Adam baker and his wife Lisa became suspects late last year when Zahra disappeared, it was a case that would take a gruesome turn when her tiny body was found dismembered. This horrific story began last October here at Zahra baker’s family home. In the early hours of one Saturday morning authorities were called to a small grass fire at the back of the house. But then, a ransom note was found in one of the families cars. This would be the 1st in many bizarre twists in a case that would see lives unravelled , a husband pitted against his wife, and a father losing his only child.
Nine hours after finding the ransom note, Adam baker reports his daughter missing. 4 days into the search for Zahra Lisa baker makes an extrodinary admission---she had written the ransom note. And after 2 weeks in custody came another major development. Lisa led police to Zahra’s remains.
Coming here was a gut wrenching moment for everyone, because the little girl that investigators had hoped to find alive was now obviously not. Knowing she was dead was distressing enough but what was truly shocking was that little Zahra’s body had been cut into pieces.
Some buried in plastic bags, some strewn for acres across this bushland. Some of her body parts, still, haven’t been found.
Liz: when you had heard that Zahra had disappeared, can you recall your reaction?
Karen: I honestly believed I’d never see her again.
Liz: really?
Karen: I just, had this feeling, people might think it’s silly but , this little voice said to me “don’t worry Nan, I’m alright”. I didn’t want to believe it, but I think deep down I knew.
Liz: Karen baker is Zahra’s grandmother,(video of Liz,Karen and Adam looking a pics on a table) and her memories of her granddaughter are of a courageous little girl.
Karen: that was after her 2nd lot of cancer, she’d also had a lot of her lung removed. But it didn’t stop her. This one, she was so proud----this was the day that Adam was getting married, and she was just so proud.
Liz: Karen baker has come to hickory not just to support her son, she’s here searching for answers.
Karen: I don’t know if I want to know all of the ins and outs, but I still want to know what happened.
Liz: you need to know?
Karen: I need to know, what happened.
Liz: (narrative) : Lisa baker apparently told relatives that Zahra died of an illness. In these search warrants police allege she says that happened 2 weeks before Zahra was reported missing. Lisa also alleges Zahra baker’s body was dismembered at the family home, and that she And Adam , had disposed of the remains.
Liz: it is a fact that Zahra was dismembered and that is horrifying. Do you have any roots (?) for that?
Adam: it’s um(pause) not something that i like to think about. Ih, ih, it , makes me sick. That somebody could do that.
Liz: Lisa alleges You were involved in that.
Adam: yeah. That’s what she says.
Liz: Lisa alleges that you and she disposed of Zahra’s body. Is that untrue?
Adam: that’s.............the biggest lie she’s ever told. Um, for starters, there’ no way i would do that to my child. For her to sit there and say that i dismembered my child? There’s no way on earth that i could do that.
Liz: do you believe that Lisa had anything to do with the disappearance of Zahra?
Adam: I feel that she uh, (pause) had something to do with this.
Liz: and what do you think that is?
Adam: I’m not, I’m not sure, um, so many things that try to pop into my head that may have happened, um, that I don’t want to think about , thinking about it is just too hard and um, heart breaking. (fake cry)
Liz: is it not possible that Zahra died of an illness?
Adam: no
Liz: you don’t believe that?
Adam: no, I don’t believe that for a second.
Liz: is it not possible that Zahra died 2 weeks before she was reported missing?
Adam: no
Liz: you saw her, not long before she disappeared?
Adam: yeah
Liz: (narrative) : but it’s this question------when Did he last see his daughter?-that raises more questions. At the time of Zahra’s disappearance, Adam claims that he was working long hours, and though he hadn’t seen his daughter, his wife Lisa says that she was ‘in her room’.
At the time of Zahra’s disappearance, you seemed uncertain about when you last saw her.
Adam: yeah.
Liz: are you able to clear that up?
Adam: um (very long pause) it’s hard to.. talk about stuff with the case at the moment. Because it still is an ongoing investigation. Um, I really don’t want to do anything that may-- impede any justice for Zahra.
Liz: I guess it’s the one thing that people have trouble with.
Adam: I know.
Liz: and you understand that.
Adam: I understand that.
Liz: (narrative) : Adam now knows that Lisa is not the woman he thought he’d married. Since being arrested she’s been charged with bigamy. In fact she’s had 7 marriages, at one stage she had 3 husbands at the same time, and was already married when she wed Adam baker. Their marriage was never legal.
Liz: I suppose you’re starting to wonder who this person is?
Adam: oh yeah. I don’t even know this person.
Liz: did you ever see Lisa mistreating Zahra?
Adam: no
Liz: neighbours and relatives claim that they saw abuse, and that Zahra had a black eye. Did you ever see that?
Adam: yes, I saw the black eye.
Liz: and what did you ask about that?
Adam: I asked both Lisa and Zahra how that happened , Lisa started out saying Zahra slipped in the bathroom, she hit her head on the cabinet, and Zahra backed that up.
Liz: why do think she said that?
Adam: right now, what I think is, she was told to.she was scared.
Liz: (narrative) : Hickory had been Zahra’s home for only a short time, but her death shattered the community. They gathered to mourn her death and celebrate what would have been her 11th birthday.
Mayor: Zahra touched us. Her story, her resilience, her” I will not quit” attitude that we could see, the wistful look on her face, it touched us.
Liz: the mayor says the community felt that it had failed Zahra
Mayor: people came to me with tears in their eyes at times. Including, from all walks of life , from all socio-economic stations in life, with tears,crying, saying ‘how did that happen to that little girl?”
Liz: (narrative) : it’s been 4 long months since police began their investigations into this crime. And it now appears that much of the focus has been on Lisa Baker, Zahra’s step mother. She admitted to writing the ransom note, she led police to where some of Zahra’s dismembered remains were dumped, and according to police documents she failed a polygraph test on crucial questions relating to Zahra’s death.
But Adam Baker is far from exonerated. We are still to see whether the DA believes HE, has a case to answer.
Liz: is there anything you haven’t said, that you’re frightened to say?
Adam: oh, no.
Liz: you have no doubts, that you will have no case to answer?
Adam: I’m, uh, I’ve done nothing. You know I had no part in my daughter’s death or dismemberment.
Karen: you can’t watch any child go through all that Zahra did, and think that he could do that. You just can’t, he wouldn’t do it. He just wants to know same as we want to know , what happened? Who did it?
Liz: do you think you know?
Karen: oh yeah. She’s sitting in jail. Oh yeah. That’s my feeling, that’s my opinion.
Liz: what has been, the worst decision you made?
Adam: now—looking back? Bringing Lisa into our lives.
Liz: you believe that was the downfall?
Adam: yeah.
Liz: you believe Zahra would be alive today?
Adam: oh yeah, definitely.
Liz: (narrative) : there will be no peace in this close knit town until someone is held accountable for Zahra’s death. The DA is now examining the evidence collected so far, deciding if charges can be laid.
And when that happens, Adam seems confident about how he’ll be spending his time.
Liz: When this is all over, what are your plans?
Adam: My plans are to take Zahra back to Australia. Back home (pause), you know, move back there--------try to put some pieces of my life back together.
