Is kidnapping victim Hannah Anderson responding on social media?
SAN DIEGO — The latest chapter in the murder and kidnapping case that jolted the public with an Amber Alert is now playing out on social media.
A person claiming to be 16-year-old Hannah Anderson has answered hundreds of questions on Ask.fm and other social media sites about the six-day ordeal that ended when the FBI killed her captor, 40-year-old James DiMaggio, in an Idaho forest.
Officials from the San Diego County Sheriff’s Department declined Tuesday to confirm or deny that the posts are from Hannah, but added that investigators are aware of them and are in contact with the Anderson family. FBI officials said they too were aware of the social media posts.
Family members have not commented on the Internet postings.
Most of the Ask.fm commenters have offered support for the person claiming to be Hannah Anderson. DiMaggio is suspected of killing Hannah’s mother and brother and setting his home on fire in the rural eastern San Diego County community of Boulevard.
One person posted on the site: “You don’t know me and I’m not sure I should say this because I want you to heal. I never stopped thinking about you this past week. The sheriffs did everything they could and I personally thank them for finding them.”
Questions apparently posted by reporters were rebuffed. “Please leave me alone,” responded the person claiming to be Hannah.
The person told of being scared all the time, rarely sleeping and constantly praying to be rescued.
Of DiMaggio, the person claiming to Hannah was succinct: “I hope he burns in hell.”
Times staff writers Kate Mather, Andrew Blankstein and Samantha Schaefer contributed to this report.
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