Police Say Man Charged In Girl's Disappearance May Have Had Relationships With Other Girls

Thursday, June 7th 2007, 3:37 pm

By: News On 6

HARTFORD, Conn. (AP) _ A girl who vanished a year ago and was found hidden in a room in a man's home assumed a new identity that made her part of his family, authorities said Thursday, as they investigated whether he had inappropriate relationships with her and other girls.

The man, Adam Gault, 41, was arrested and charged Wednesday in her disappearance after police served a search warrant and found the missing 15-year-old girl locked in a hidden closet-like room in his house. The girl, who had a history of running away from home, vanished a year ago.

Gault, a dog trainer, was arrested with two women who lived in the house, 40-year-old Ann Murphy and Kimberly Cray, 26. The three were arraigned Thursday, charged with conspiracy to commit unlawful restraint, conspiracy to commit risk of injury to a minor and interfering with police.

Gault's bond was set at $1 million. Murphy, who police described as Gault's common-law wife, was held on $750,000 bond. Cray's bond was set at $500,000. It was unclear if Gault had a lawyer.

Cray's attorney, Michael Georgetti, told reporters that before the girl disappeared, she reported to police she had been sexually abused, though he said no arrests were made.

Georgetti did not say who he believed had sexually abused the girl. He said Cray and the others were offering her a safe haven.

She lived in Gault's house for a year, attending school, and owned a cell phone, Georgetti said. He said that she was hiding from police Wednesday but was otherwise free to come and go.

``If you were taking actions to prevent someone from being abused, that is not a crime,'' Georgetti said. ``We can protect animals from abuse. I think we should be able to protect children from abuse.''

But West Hartford police Capt. Lori Coppinger said the girl was not attending school and disputed Georgetti's claim that the teen had been offered safe haven.

``Information that we have would lead us in another direction as to what her welfare was at this time,'' she said.

Investigators believe the girl sometimes traveled out of state and assumed a new identity while living with Gault, of nearby West Hartford, Bloomfield Police Capt. Jeffrey Blatter said.

``She was compelled to use a new name, to assume a new identity,'' Blatter told The Associated Press. ``She did assume a name that would suggest she was part of that family.''

The Associated Press is not identifying her because police are investigating if she was sexually abused. Authorities did not say how she altered her name.

Other girls may have experienced ``something very similar to what's going on right now with this young girl'' found Wednesday, Coppinger said. Police said Gault was associated with at least two or three other girls before police found the girl Wednesday.

The cases involving the other girls have not been prosecuted because the frightened girls were reluctant to give statements necessary to pursue the cases. Police said they will be interviewed and additional charges may be filed against Gault.

``The case is definitely ongoing,'' Blatter said. ``There are obviously greater suspicions that are being pursued.''

The girl's stepfather told WCBS-TV in an interview Thursday that her mother had been allowed to spend a few hours with her Wednesday.

``She's having some issues,'' Hesse said of the girl. ``She didn't even know who she was.''

He said family members, who own a kennel and dog day care in Bloomfield, had limited information about what had happened to the girl in the year she was gone.

``We're just as much in the dark as everybody else is right now,'' said the stepfather.

The teen had no obvious external injuries. Investigators would not speculate on what she might have experienced during the past year or if she was held against her will.

Blatter said the girl remained in protective custody Thursday so investigators could continue talking with her.

Police said they had already established that Gault knew the missing girl, and said he and the girl's parents had some sort of undisclosed business transaction in the year before she disappeared.

Cell phone records showed that Gault and the teen talked often before she vanished, Blatter told CNN.

``There was an inordinate amount of contact via cellular phone and then, during follow ups, there were a lot of other circumstances that led us to believe there was an inappropriate relationship,'' he said.

Officers had questioned Gault several times, but he always denied any involvement in her disappearance. They served a search warrant on his home Wednesday morning, seeking a DNA sample and other evidence.

The girl was held in a locked tiny room, about 3 feet high and 4 to 5 feet deep. The doorway was hidden by a bureau.

Blatter said it did not appear the girl lived in the hidden room, and that police did not find bedding or other items that would suggest it was used as living space.

A 16-year-old boy identified in court documents as Murphy's son was also living at the house. He was placed in the custody of the state Department of Children and Families, which also will decide if the missing girl should be returned to her parents.