Yale Student Annie Le: Could Bloody Clothes Catch a Killer?

By: Ryan Smith
Topics: Daily Blotter

(AP)

Photo: Annie Le.

NEW HAVEN, Conn. (CBS/AP) Could bloody clothes lead to a suspect in the disappearance and presumed murder of Yale graduate student Annie Le?

Investigators on Saturday said they recovered a "large amount" of evidence from the high-security laboratory building where the 24-year-old Le worked and was last seen alive. On Sunday, a female body, presumed to be Le's, was found stuffed in a wall filled with cable ducts.

Investigators would not confirm media reports that the recovered items included bloody clothing. If true, the blood stained cloth could potentially provide DNA evidence that links the killer and victim.

In a story published Saturday, the Yale Daily News quoted an unnamed New Haven Police Department official as saying bloody clothes were found in a ceiling at the building. The official spoke to the newspaper on the condition of anonymity so the official would be free to discuss an ongoing investigation.

Police found the body around 5 p.m. Sunday, on what was to have been 24-year-old Le's wedding day. An autopsy was underway on Monday to verify the identity of the body.

The building where the body was found is part of the university medical school complex about a mile from Yale's main campus and is accessible to Yale personnel with identification cards. Some 75 video surveillance cameras monitor all doorways.

(Facebook Photo)

Photo: Annie Le and fiance Jonathan Widawsky kissing.

Police have not provided any details on the condition of the body found or how the woman died.

Police are analyzing what they're calling "a large amount" of physical evidence.

They will not discuss suspects, other than to say Le's fiance is not a suspect and has assisted in the investigation.

Le, who worked in a laboratory in the five-story building's basement, was reported missing Sept. 8. Her ID, money, credit cards and purse were found in her third-floor office.

More than 100 local, state and federal police had been searching the building for days, using blueprints to uncover any place where evidence or Le's body could be hidden.

Photos: Missing Yale Student Annie Le and Fiance Jonathan Widawsky

ANNIE LE CASE: FULL COVERAGE

MORE ON CRIMESIDER
September 14, 2009 - Yale Student Annie Le: Body Found Stuffed in Laboratory Wall
September 14, 2009 - Vigil Planned for Yale Student Annie Le
September 14, 2009 - Missing Yale Student Annie Le's Body Likely Found on Wedding Day
September 11, 2009 - Missing Yale Student Annie Le Wrote about Campus Safety
September 10, 2009 - Annie Le: Search Dogs Called In for Missing Yale Student
September 10, 2009 - Yale Grad Student Annie Le Vanishes Five Days Before Wedding