Annie Le Suspect Failed Polygraph, Says Police Source

By: Neil Katz
Topics: Daily Blotter

(Facebook Photo)

Faebook Photo of Annie Le.

NEW YORK (CBS) As police confirm the female body found stuffed behind a wall of a Yale laboratory building is missing graduate student Annie Le, a police source close to the investigation has told CBS News' Crimesider that they have narrowed their investigation down to one suspect and that the person is currently being questioned by police.

Photos: Student Found Dead on Wedding Day

The source told CBS News' correspondent Randall Pinkston that the suspect has failed at least one polygraph lie detector test and possibly more. The suspect has not been formally charged, but is not at large.

The victim, 24-year-old Le, and the suspect may have known each other, says the source.

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

Le worked in a lab in the five-story building's basement. Campus officials have said that the security network recorded Le entering the building by swiping her ID card about 10 a.m. on Sept. 8, and had been baffled that she was not seen leaving. That changed Sunday, when a woman's body was found stuffed into a "chase space" behind a wall where cables could be accessed.

Annie Le's body was found on the very day she was scheduled to marry her fianc? Jonathan Widawsky on Long Island, New York.

The university has planned a candlelight vigil at 8 p.m. Monday at the university.

For more on this story as it develops, watch Randall Pinkston tonight on the CBS Evening News.

Photos: Student Found Dead on Wedding Day

ANNIE LE CASE: FULL COVERAGE

MORE ON CRIMESIDER
September 14, 2009 - Yale Student Annie Le's Body Found, Police Confirm
September 14, 2009 - Yale Student Annie Le: Could Bloody Clothes Catch a Killer?
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

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by carolcape September 16, 2009 11:37 PM EDT: If there was unhappiness, that is not a cause for murder. I worked in an office for years, but would I kill someone, no, I would tell them to back off and stop playing games. There is other ways to get back at people, but murder, OMG, you people are insensitive. This was a young girl trying to make her way in the world. She was going to have it all and obviously, a creepy evil human being took her life. Now if you can say that is okay, you all are in need of some psychiatric help. God bless her parents and her fiance and my prayers will be with them and hope they can find the strength to get through this nightmare. A premeditated act of evil which would cry for the death penalty in this case. Hoping the person is behind bars by the end of the week.; Reply to this comment

by linda1233 September 16, 2009 5:43 AM EDT

Most of her friends in College were jealous of her. She was also really fake. She once re-shelved the books int he science divison of the library (at Uni. of Rhocester NY where she went for undergrad) so that others oculdn't acces them and she would be the only ones doing the report.

She went to great lengths to pretend that people liked her. If you posted on her facebook wall, she would be careful to see if you were someone of prominence or else just delete it. She was great at flirting with nerdy white men to get them to do her lab reports. She was smart enough herself to do it, she just figured it'd save more time.

She was a genius, two faced backstabbing B... SOmebody who would rather give up leisure activity like TV in order to bring down whoever had the next highest grade.
Think "mean girls" mixed with einstein wearing the mask of a cute cuddly Kitten..that folks was annie le....

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by nowhere_yet September 16, 2009 10:09 AM EDT: Wow, linda1233, your comment is beyond inappropiate and makes me nauseous.
Keep your f-ing opinions to yourself. Regardless of whether Annie was manipulative or not is irrelevant. Don't you have any respect for the dead you shameless, insensitive b*tch?


by rsmik September 17, 2009 12:16 AM EDT: She didn't like you, did she?

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by linda1233 September 16, 2009 5:35 AM EDT

ANNIE LE was not just a "pretty, sweet girl"

She just played that role

Collegues keep forwarding me links to news website discussing the Annie Le murder just becuase I knew her in College in New York. I will have to say, each of those emails concludes with, "pray for her, so was so kind, beautiful, and smart." What a wonderful person and a lovely soul etc etc.

I'll tell you the truth about Annie. She was nowhere NEAR as perfect as the Media sources describe her. Annie had this gift, she could read people's emotions and judge them really well. As a result, she cozy-ed up to all the professors, Assistants, people in power or people who might help her succeed. She was the genius brown-noser.

Talking with Annie you go the feeling she was always trying to discreetly size you up, if she felt you had something to offer her (even if it was to improve her social standing, to show everybody, especially the professors that would write her medical school recommendation letters, that she was well-liked) she would treat you nice.

If you didn't have anything to offer her, she would treat you w/o respect or get passive agressive. Motivated and driven people are usually like this, I should have known earlier. She was NEVER afraid to do any of this becuase she was streetsmart, she had a gang of buddies and was somewhat intouchable. She had an extremely calculating personality. She always had a big smile to mask everything. She gave lots of backhanded compliments to people that had no power over her. She took this in stride and didn't think anything of it. people like the teaching assistants would NEVER believe this of her, thanks to her good looks and cheerful persona. IN short, she knew exactly WHO to stuck up to, and who she could treat not as well.

Now, the suspect in custody for her killing already HAD a girlfriend and a WEDDING planned. I DONT think he killed her for that. He was a lab tech and professors and graduate students often treat them condescdingly. This is what i THINK happened. ANnie, being the sharp-witted girl she was, probably got ont his lab tech's bad side. THe Lab tech probably had an unstanble personality and maybe this is why he killed her.

RIP Annie le. I'm sorry she's dead but I'm just tired of Annie being made out to be the perfect, kind, adorable girl in media. THAT DRIVES RATINGS. She was NOTHING like that in real life.

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by rsmik September 17, 2009 12:20 AM EDT: You should tell all this to her fiancee. Maybe he can marry you now!


by disturbedcitizen99 September 17, 2009 4:14 AM EDT: I love how your comment is just pure anecdotal evidence with no other form of support that properly supports your little hypothesis that the suspect didn't do it.

So let's say she somehow got on the lab tech's "bad side." Wouldn't that still make him a serial murderer AND a rapist?

Jesus Christ. Maybe you should do some research and find out about that other Asian girl he raped during high school.

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by 2009diann September 16, 2009 1:24 AM EDT

a beautiful young lady with a bright future gettin' ready to make it right in the sight of the Lord i pray for her family to help them, in this hard time

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by simlpelife September 17, 2009 1:33 PM EDT: Linda1233,you just full of BS.Your Parent should teach you some manner,respect.Now youhave your say just SHUT UP.Just feel sad for Annie .Now you in better place ,peace and with out the B..ch Linda1233

by ivandrago September 15, 2009 11:11 PM EDT

Polygraphs are bull*&**.They don't measure truth, they measure reaction to a question. I'm not saying this dude is innocent, but the shock of hearing a question can make to spike the needles on that discredited device. They should bring back measuring the bumps on people head, if that thing gets to stay around.

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by bobnjersey September 16, 2009 4:57 PM EDT: [Polygraphs are bull*&**.They don't measure truth, they measure reaction to a question. I'm not saying this dude is innocent, but the shock of hearing a question can make to spike the needles on that discredited device. They should bring back measuring the bumps on people head, if that thing gets to stay around. ]

physiological response to mental state is well documented and measurable via a variety of means ... and the polygraph uses some of them. most who administer these tests have knownlege and training in the recognition of 'other' indicators and techniques for eliciting truth/deception.

what is truth ... and what would be the way to identify it if 'you' saw it? intent is much more important and valuable to identify. if they ask you a question and your actions/responses infer deception ... what does this say about one's intent. why would someone being asked a question intend to deceive?

in addition, they baseline responses w/ control questions to eliminate false reads due to current conditions and unusual response to the environment.

where's your links to support your claims that this device ... and the techniques behind it's operation ... are discredited?


by rsmik September 17, 2009 12:26 AM EDT: Polygraphs are crap. Anyone can beat a polygraph. Just think that every answer you give is a lie even if it's true. The readout will be so spiked the examiner won't be able to get a reading one way or the other. That's how innocent people not trying to trick these things fail too, the old inherent guilt trip - my mother would fail one just stating her real name.


by TooComplex September 15, 2009 2:13 PM EDT: God bless her family and fiance. Can you just imagine this happening right before your wedding? What kind of monster would do that to this pretty, sweet girl?; Reply to this comment


by steve54z September 15, 2009 10:17 AM EDT: There might be Witnesses to the homicide. Detectives should search for someone who had seen part of the incident. That person could identify the killer.; Reply to this comment


by shlompsen September 14, 2009 8:32 PM EDT: I'm in no position to make accusations, but I know where I would start my investigation:

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Joseph_Schlessinger; Reply to this comment