Missing mom’s home searched again for clues

Husband named person of interest; ‘I think he knows something,’ dad says

Video: Police search missing mom’s home

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>>> while.

>>> but we begin with serious news. on thursday, investigators carried out a third search on the home of the utah mother missing now for 11 days. we're going to talk to her father in a moment, but first, nbc's miguel almaguer has the latest. miguel , good morning.

>> reporter: meredith , good morning. relatives of josh powell say they wouldn't be surprised if he was arrested in the coming days. police say they still want to talk to him as they cover more ground in their investigation. for the third time, police have searched the home of susan and josh powell , looking for leads, clues into the disappearance of the 28-year-old mother of two. it's the last place she was seen alive almost two weeks ago.

>> we served a search warrant at the house to see if there are any physical items there that could shed light on this case. those items are being processed at the state crime lab.

>> reporter: meanwhile, at the same time as the latest search --

>> susan is a mother, a daughter --

>> reporter: -- susan 's family held an emotional press conference. her father shattered by the news josh powell has now been named a person of interest in her disappearance.

>> i think we're concerned that he's been named a person of interest . we have law enforcement background in our family. we know what that means.

>> reporter: police are not calling powell a suspect, and his lawyer says he's cooperating fully with police . powell told detectives he took his boys camping at 12:30 a.m . in freezing conditions the morning susan vanished. investigators can't confirm his account, but we now know they've questioned his 4-year-old son, a potential alibi, who says he did go camping with his father.

>> you have to be very careful with the information you get from them, to be able to ensure that that is not mixed up with another potential incident in that child's mind.

>> reporter: as police continue to canvas the powell neighborhood for leads, new clues may also come from susan herself. police sources say they've recovered a notepad kept at her job that contains new information. pat reevy has covered crime in salt lake city for nearly 20 years.

>> it might be info in that notebook pertaining to a possible threat made against her possibly about a year ago. now, whether this notebook is a full journal, a diary or just maybe something quick she wrote down, that's unclear at this point.

>> reporter: a notepad and a home, possibly offering new clues in a case now 12 days old. family members say josh powell continues to care for his two young children. no word on if or when he'll meet with investigators again. meredith ?

>> miguel almaguer, thank you very much. chuck cox is susan powell 's father. mr. cox, good morning to you.

>> good morning, meredith .

>> mr. cox, when we spoke to you on tuesday, you were still willing to give your son-in-law the benefit of the doubt . now police have named him a person of interest and your family has said they're not surprised by that. so, what, if anything, has changed?

>> after hearing josh's comments to the media, and basically, the lack of information coming forward from him, we've determined at this time, the police named him a person of interest . they don't do that without a reason, and it's time -- we've been trying to be supportive of josh, so we want josh to come forward, please, and tell us the rest of the story, tell us a credible story, please.

>> do you now believe that he may have hurt your daughter?

>> i still have my reservations about if he had any actual physical -- did anything to my daughter, but i think he knows something that he needs to tell us. he needs to help us to find my daughter, and i have not seen that from him, and it's out of character. i want his help to help all of us to find susan .

>> you know, josh's brother-in-law, kirk graves, says he believes josh could be arrested within a week. what's your reaction to that?

>> that's sad that you're -- if your brother-in-law thinks you're going to be arrested in a week. when somebody says something like that, i don't know what evidence or what he may know that i don't know. i'm not a direct part of the investigation. i wouldn't want to be. i haven't heard that from the police . i think that might just be a feeling, i don't know, from his brother-in-law, and it's kind of a sad state of affairs when that's the way people are feeling.

>> have you talked to your grandsons at all? they are staying with family members, including your son-in-law, at this point.

>> i have talked to the grandsons just briefly, and they're staying with joshua, and there's been people asking, am i concerned for them and things, and no. josh has been very good to the boys normally, you know, in the past, very good. and so, i'm not really concerned about that.

>> even if you have suspicions about him?

>> yeah, even if i have suspicions. i've just never seen him do anything that i would worry about with the youth, with the boys there.

>> all right, mr. cox. thank you so much and please know that our thoughts and prayers are with you and your family.

>> thank you very much. thanks for all the help, meredith .

>> you're more than welcome. we're going to bring in dan abrams , nbc's chief legal analyst. dan, good morning to you.

>> good morning, meredith .

>> the police have made it clear that they find some of this man's behavior, josh's behavior, suspicious. they believe there may have been foul play or there was foul play at this point. yet, he has not been named a suspect. he's a person of interest . why hasn't he been named?

>> as a practical matter, there's no difference between those. in all high-profile cases now, the police don't want to name someone a suspect until they arrest them. why? because they don't want to get criticized later. so, they say let's just play it safe. we'll call him a person of interest . it's the new term of art, but it effectively means he's a suspect.

>> until we have what kind of evidence do they need then?

>> they need something morning. meaning, it sounds like what they have now is this feels fishy, this sounds fishy. why isn't he helping? if his wife is missing? all of the elements that lead people to say what's going on here, but not quite enough yet to say we're going to arrest him. remember, there hasn't been a body found, there's no confirmation at all that she's died. she could very well be alive. and as a result, they have to be very, very careful about what they do at this point. they're watching him very closely. so they don't want to make any mistakes.

>> dan abrams , thank you very much. now let's get a

Show transcript

TODAY staff and wire

updated 12/19/2009 11:08:47 AM ET

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Police said they have conducted a second search of a missing Utah woman's home as her family expressed sadness, but not surprise, that her husband is a person of interest in the investigation.

“We served a search warrant at the house to see if there are any physical items that could shed light on this case,” West Valley City Police Capt. Tom McLachlan told NBC News. “Those items are being processed at the state crime lab.” McLachlan would not disclose what was taken from the home during the Thursday search.

Susan Powell, a 28-year-old mother of two, was reported missing Dec. 7 after she failed to show up for work. She was last seen a day earlier. Her husband, Josh Powell, said he went camping with the couple’s sons, ages 2 and 4, in subfreezing temperatures about 12:30 a.m. on Dec. 7 and returned that evening.

McLachlan said the 4-year-old confirmed the camping trip in an interview with police, but he cautioned against placing too much importance on any child's statement: “You have to be very careful with the information you get from them to make sure that it’s not mixed up with another potential incident in that child’s mind.”

Stories from

Friday on TODAY, Meredith Vieira interviewed Susan Powell’s father, Chuck Cox, via satellite from Orting, Wash. “After hearing Josh’s comments to the media, and basically the lack of information coming forward from him ... and the police naming him a person of interest — they don’t do that without a reason,” Cox said.

“We have been trying to be supportive of Josh,” Cox added. “We want Josh to come forward, please, and tell us the rest of the story. Tell us a credible story, please.”

When Vieira asked him if he suspected Josh Powell of being involved in his daughter’s disappearance, Cox replied: “I still have my reservations about if he did anything to my daughter, but I think he knows something that he needs to tell us. He has to help us find my daughter ... I want his help to help all of us find Susan.”

‘Abnormal’ behavior
Earlier in the day on Thursday, police said the behavior of Josh Powell — who has refused to cooperate in the search for his missing wife — is not normal.

“[I would] describe him as abnormal under the circumstances,” West Valley City Assistant Police Chief Craig Black said during an interview with TODAY’s Matt Lauer. “This is not normally what we see happen.”

Usually the families of missing persons are eager to help police, Black has told reporters. But after talking to police on Dec. 7, the day relatives reported Susan missing, Powell has hired a defense attorney and declined to talk to authorities further.

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“We feel that Josh, probably more than anyone else, could provide us information and insight into what has happened to Susan, whether it be foul play or not at this point,” Black told Lauer. “We would truly like to visit with him, interview him and, frankly, ask him some questions about things he may even be uncomfortable talking to us about that would help lead us to find her.”

‘Saddened, but not surprised’
At a press conference Thursday afternoon in Puyallup, Wash., Susan Powell’s family said they are saddened but not surprised that her husband has been named a person of interest in the investigation.

Shelby Gifford, a spokeswoman for the family, said they weren’t surprised authorities named Josh Powell a person of interest “given the events and his reactions to them in the past week.”

“We know that Susan is an excellent mother and would not have tolerated her children being taken out of the home after midnight to go camping in dangerously cold conditions,” Gifford said.

Video: Search intensifies for missing Utah woman Josh Powell said he went camping with the couple’s boys — Charlie, age 4, and Raden, age 2 — at about 12:30 a.m. on Dec. 7 and returned home the following afternoon. He said he and his sons camped in the west desert on the old Pony Express trail, sleeping in their minivan. He told police that Susan didn’t feel well and stayed home.

When the boys didn’t show up at day care the next day and Susan didn’t show up for work, police were notified. They broke into the house, where they found Susan’s cell phone, keys and purse and two fans trained on a wet spot on the living room carpet.

When Josh Powell returned later that afternoon with the boys, he said he did not know what happened to Susan. Because of an overnight snowstorm and Powell’s vague description of where he was, police said they have not even been able to locate the campsite.

TODAY

Craig Black, assistant police chief in West Valley City, Utah, said that police have questions they would like to ask Joshua Powell about his wife’s disappearance.

“Where he described he went camping is just a vast area. It covers desert terrain and mountain terrain,” Black said.

Clues in a notepad?
Utah newspapers have reported that police in West Valley City, a Salt Lake City suburb, have taken a notebook from Susan’s desk at work as evidence. The papers have reported that the notebook may contain clues about marital problems the couple is said to have been experiencing. But Black declined to talk about any evidence that his department may have collected, instead continuing his public request that Josh Powell submit to questioning.

Meanwhile, Susan’s family continues to refrain from publicly suspecting Josh of being involved in Susan’s disappearance.

Susan’s brother, Kirk Graves, also talked with Lauer Thursday. Speaking from his home in Las Vegas, Graves said the family hopes that Josh will speak to police to help their investigation. At the same time, though, Graves said, “We understand his desire to get an attorney.”

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TODAY

Joshua Powell told police he last saw his wife before taking their sons on a late-night camping trip.

Lauer said it’s hard to imagine a husband who would not want to give police every bit of information he could to find a wife at a moment when time is of the essence.

“I would agree with that,” Graves said without elaboration.

Graves said he has seen Josh and spoken to him, but has not had a chance to ask him specific questions. “He’s quiet. We haven’t had a chance to have any conversations on specific questions, such as where is Susan?” he told Lauer. “He’s just very stressed, he’s concerned, but nothing more than that.”

‘I just pray no’
Local newspapers have reported that Josh had become more controlling after he and his wife moved to Utah from Washington state. The couple had filed for bankruptcy in 2007, and money may have been a problem.

Graves said that his wife, Jennifer, and Susan were close and talked about the state of the marriage.

TODAY

Asked if he thought Joshua Powell had anything to do with Susan Powell’s disappearance, her brother, Kirk Graves, said, “I just pray no.”

“Josh is an interesting person,” Graves said. “He’s a little different personality. I think ‘controlling’ is a safe word to use, but I also don’t think it should be overused.”

Lauer ended the interview by asking Graves, “In your heart of hearts, do you think Josh had anything to do with Susan’s disappearance?”

“Wow,” Graves said before continuing. “I’ve very carefully avoided analyzing that question. On my part, there’s too many emotions, too many family members. I just pray no.”

At the press conference in Puyallup, Susan Powell’s relatives cried and appeared stunned to be sitting in front of reporters and television cameras. Susan’s father, Chuck Cox, responded to a question about whether he believes his daughter is still alive.

“That’s a tough question. I believe she is. I have nothing to say she isn’t,” he said. “As a father, I can’t give up the hope that she’s alive.”