Some good news for once
'Bouncing off the walls,' grandmother says
Courtesy of Virginia State Police
Police are looking for 12-year-old Brittany Mae Smith and Jeffrey Scott Easley.
Ongoing coverage
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From today's paper
Update 6:43 p.m.
Brittany Smith and Jeffrey Easley have been found safe outside Virginia, said Roanoke County spokeswoman Teresa Hamilton Hall.
Roanoke County police have scheduled a news conference for 8 p.m.
"She's safe," said Liz Dyer of South Boston, Brittany's grandmother. "We're so glad. We're bouncing off the walls."
Brittany has talked to her father, South Boston Police Officer Benny Smith, Dyer said. She said the police asked her not to say where Brittany was found.
Check back at roanoke.com for more.
Update 3:50 p.m.:
The grim-faced Roanoke County police chief, concerned that the week-cold trail to missing 12-year-old Brittany Easley means bad news, released the Salem Walmart videotape, her last confirmed sighting, showing "a very small space" between the girl and her accused abductor, Jeffrey Easley.
Chief Ray Lavinder said Brittany "appears to be following him" as they shopped through the store, "always remaining very close to him." Easley, 32, was the boyfriend of Brittany's slain mom, Tina Smith, 41.
"We're really not sure what that situation is," Lavinder said today at a news conference, referring to the store video. "You just can't evaluate what's been said -- if threats have been made, that sort of thing -- from a video."
Electronic billboards with Brittany's description are up in Virginia, West Virginia, North Carolina and Tennessee, Lavinder said, and more than 700 people have called or e-mailed tips. An Alabama convenience store video taken Thursday showed a man who fit Easley's description, but it wasn't him, Lavinder said.
Update 3:32 p.m.: Roanoke County police have released the surveillance video from the Salem Walmart where Brittany Smith and Jeffrey Easley were last seen Friday evening. Find the YouTube video here.Chief Ray Lavinder said Brittany "appears to be following him" as they shopped through the store, "always remaining very close to him." Easley, 32, was the boyfriend of Brittany's slain mom, Tina Smith, 41.
"We're really not sure what that situation is," Lavinder said today at a news conference, referring to the store video. "You just can't evaluate what's been said -- if threats have been made, that sort of thing -- from a video."
Electronic billboards with Brittany's description are up in Virginia, West Virginia, North Carolina and Tennessee, Lavinder said, and more than 700 people have called or e-mailed tips. An Alabama convenience store video taken Thursday showed a man who fit Easley's description, but it wasn't him, Lavinder said.
Posted: 3:05 p.m.:As of noon, Roanoke County police report they have received 660 tips in the search for 12-year-old Brittany Smith and Jeffrey Easely, but none have been confirmed sightings.
Police have confirmed that Brittany Smith's photo is being displayed on electronic billboards in North Carolina and Tennessee.
The next news briefing is scheduled for 3:30 p.m.
Police have confirmed that Brittany Smith's photo is being displayed on electronic billboards in North Carolina and Tennessee.
The next news briefing is scheduled for 3:30 p.m.
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