Sniper Suspects Silent

The Justice Department is denying a New York Times report that sniper suspect John Allen Muhammad was close to confessing to state and federal investigators when federal prosecutors forced them to end their interrogation.

The Times reported in Wednesday editions that Muhammad had started to establish a rapport with an FBI agent and a Maryland detective the day of his arrest, talking to them for more than an hour, state and federal investigators said.

But a Justice Department official told CBS News Producer Kathy Mountcastle that the Times' story was "patently false."

The newspaper said local investigators were forced to end their interrogationwhen the U.S. attorney for Maryland told state officials to deliver Muhammad to Baltimore to face federal weapons charges, the Times reports.

Sources told CBS News Correspondent Bob Orr that for more than four hours 17-year-old sniper suspect Lee Malvo did not speak but "made some non-verbal admissions."

"It did not look like the juvenile was going to talk," a local law enforcement official said. "But it looked like Muhammad was ready to share everything, and these guys were going to get a confession."

Muhammad, interrogated separately, was more talkative, but did not answer substantive questions. He complained he was "hungry, tired and wanted a shower".

Sources say each suspect at some point invoked his right to remain silent.

The investigators said they spoke with a reporter to explain why they have been so upset with the federal prosecutor, Thomas M. DiBiagio, who brought federal charges Tuesday against Muhammad. The account was given by two law enforcement officials from Maryland and three federal officials involved in the case.

A federal law enforcement official dismissed the idea that Muhammad might have confessed to the killings if the interrogations had continued. The official said Muhammad "was talking, but he wasn't giving anything relevant to the crimes" in the interrogation.

DiBiagio's office denied the Times story in a written statement. "The allegations in the New York Times article today are false. At no time did I say that the White House had anything to do with the decision to place John Allen Mohammad in federal custody. Further, it should be clear to everyone involved in this matter that no White House officials had anything to do with any of the decisions about where these individuals would be in custody or where charges might be brought.

"Law enforcement officials first took the two individuals into custody at approximately 3 a.m. Thursday morning, October 24th. Both individuals were questioned throughout the day. There was no indication throughout the day that either of the individuals were yielding any useful information. In fact the juvenile was not speaking to officials at all. At one point, in the early afternoon I did caution law enforcement officials that federal law requires that a juvenile must be brought before a magistrate 'forthwith,' and an adult must be brought before a magistrate 'without unnecessary delay.'

"At approximately 3:00 p.m., Maryland Assistant States Attorney John McCarthy called my office and informed us that the adult had invoked his right to counsel. At that time, by law, the questioning had to cease and the suspects had to be presented to a Federal Magistrate Judge.

"At that time the decision to proceed with an appearance before a Federal Magistrate Judge was based solely on the legal concerns raised under 18 U.S.C. Section 5033 which mandates that a juvenile must be brought before a magistrate judge 'forthwith' and Federal Rules of Criminal Procedure (i.e. 5 of Federal Criminal Procedure), which mandate that an adult must be brought before a magistrate 'without unnecessary delay.' "

The new federal weapons and extortion charges against sniper suspect Muhammad added to the questions over which jurisdiction will be the first to prosecute him and his alleged partner in the attacks.

Muhammad, 41, and Malvo are already charged with murder in Maryland and Virginia in the attacks that left 10 people dead and three others critically wounded. They are also charged with an Alabama slaying last month and are suspected in a February killing in Washington state.

The federal case could take precedence, though Attorney General John Ashcroft said negotiations over where the two men will first stand trial are continuing.

Montgomery County State's Attorney Douglas F. Gansler, who filed six murder charges against the two on Friday, said the ultimate decision rests with the federal government, which has the suspects in custody.

"They hold all the cards," he said.

Federal prosecutors charged Muhammad under the Hobbs Act, a 1946 union corruption law the government uses against people accused of trying to extort money or disrupt interstate commerce. The charge was based on a note, found at the scene of one of the shootings, demanding $10 million.

However, Justice Department officials said prosecutors believe the firearms charges would make the best death penalty case at this point because they have the best evidence -- a weapon linked to the killings.

"I believe the ultimate sanction ought to be available here," Ashcroft said, adding that the sniper slayings are "an atrocity."

In a broadcast interview Tuesday, Muhammad's first wife and his 20-year-old son said they believe Muhammad might deserve to die.

"If he sits in a car and shot innocent people, if they find him guilty for that, yes," said Carol Williams.

Said Lindbergh Williams: "Even though he is my father, in my eyes, you reap what you sow. If you did it -- you was man to enough to do it, you are man enough to pay the consequences."

Former Maryland U.S. Attorney Jervis Finney said the case is stronger in federal court because it combines crimes committed across the different jurisdictions. He said federal prosecutors made a statement by filing charges.

"Normally it means that the federal government intends to go first," he said.

But Gansler argued the federal case is weaker than the state cases, which directly charge the suspects with first-degree murder. He said prosecutors will have a hard time proving extortion was the primary motive for the shooting spree.

Malvo was not charged in the 20-count criminal complaint, but he is identified as a John Doe in the supporting affidavit that describes some of the prosecution's evidence for the first time.

A judge must agree that Malvo can stand trial as an adult before he can be identified. The federal death penalty does not apply to juveniles, but Malvo could face the death penalty if he is convicted in Virginia or Alabama.

U.S. Attorney Paul McNulty of Virginia said it was undecided whether the government will move to the next step and obtain an indictment. But he said the complaint outlined "some of the grounds for a federal case."

The complaint names only seven victims -- six killed in Montgomery County and a man gunned down in Washington, D.C.

A senior Justice Department official, speaking on condition of anonymity, said the Virginia cases were omitted because of that state's laws regarding double jeopardy -- that is, being tried twice for the same crime. Federal charges covering those cases could be added later, the official said.

During an appearance in federal court here, Muhammad said, "Yes, sir," when asked if he understood the counts against him. Another hearing was set for Nov. 5.

Outside the courthouse, federal public defender Jim Wyda said Muhammad "stands accused of an incomprehensible crime, one that has had a profound impact on our community and has destroyed the lives of good people."

However, he said Muhammad has never been convicted of any other crimes, is innocent until proven guilty and has the right to a fair trial.

"What we're asking the public to do is respect that process. Mr. Muhammad needs it very badly," Wyda said. "This is a situation with so much emotion and so much passion, that it breeds the chance for errors, for mistakes."

The complaint charges Muhammad with affecting interstate commerce by extortion and threats of physical violence, interstate transportation in aid of racketeering, firing a gun near a school and other counts.

The accompanying affidavit details items found in a car that Muhammad and Malvo were sleeping in when they were arrested last week at a Maryland rest stop.

The items include a Bushmaster .223-caliber rifle police linked to most of the shootings and a glove stuck in a hole in the trunk. Authorities believe the sniper shot victims through the hole while lying in the trunk.

The glove matches one found at the scene of the Oct. 22 killing of a Maryland bus driver, according to the affidavit.

Also found was a Global Positioning System, a pair of two-way radios, a laptop computer and a wallet with several driver's licenses bearing Muhammad's photo but with different names.

The affidavit also confirmed that a tarot card with a note was found after the Oct. 7 shooting outside a school in Bowie. A second, longer note demanding $10 million was found after an Oct. 19 shooting in Ashland, Va. A handwriting analysis found they probably were written by the same person, according to the affidavit.

The longer note directed authorities to pay the $10 million into a credit card account or else "more persons, including children" would be killed, the affidavit says.

The credit card was stolen in Arizona in March and used a month later to pay for gasoline in Tacoma, Wash. -- a former home of the two men and where police say the two are considered suspects in a Feb. 16 slaying.