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Friday, March 23, 1990

Fort Knox area is searched for Ann

Gotlibs bodyBy Cary B. Willis

The Courier-Journal

Police and FBI agents began searching a remote area of Fort Knox yesterday for the body

of nn !otlib" the #ussian immigrant $ho $as %& $hen she disa''eared from a

suburban Jefferson County sho''ing mall se(en years ago.

man con(icted of murdering three 'eo'le" including t$o teen-age girls" $as broughtfrom Texas to Kentuc)y and returned Wednesday by the *.+. ,arshals +er(ice"

according to Charles Bro$n" a s'o)esman for the Texas e'artment of Criminal Justice.uthorities refused to comment on $hether ,ichael /ee /oc)hart -- a &0- year-olddrifter from Toledo" 1hio" $ho re'ortedly has confessed to crimes in all but fi(e states --

is a sus'ect in the highly 'ublici2ed disa''earance.

But the state medical examiner" r. !eorge 3ichols" said yesterday that county 'olice

told him a man had confessed to the crime.

4They said they re5uired assistance at a site $hich had been (isually identified by a man$ho allegedly is her murderer"4 3ichols said.

Jefferson County 'olice $ould not comment beyond saying a search $as under $ay.They said the search $as called off at dar). n FBI agent said only that in(estigators

$ere acting on seemingly reliable information. It could not be determined last night if theFBI and 'olice $ere to resume the search today.

Phil oty" a s'o)esman for the FBI" said agents sur(eyed a $ooded area on the military

base Wednesday e(ening. n intensi(e search" in(ol(ing county 'olice and military'olice" began yesterday morning" he said. +ome digging $as ta)ing 'lace" he said.

oty said in(estigators are searching in an area that is off-limits to the 'ublic.

6e refused to say ho$ the information about Fort Knox $as de(elo'ed. 4Were not goingto go into that. Its 7ust one of the many leads that $e(e gotten in that case and its come

u'. It $as e(aluated as being at least $orth a try" so $e $ent on do$n there.4

nn $as last seen at Bashford ,anor ,all in the late afternoon of June %" %089" after

(isiting a friend $ho li(ed nearby. Police found the girls bicycle at the south end of the

sho''ing center" near Bacons de'artment store" that night.

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nn and her 'arents" /yudmila and natoly !otlib" had mo(ed from the +o(iet *nion to

/ouis(ille in %08:.

Police ha(e 'ursued hundreds of leads since nns disa''earance" but ha(e come u'em'ty each time. 6er disa''earance has gri''ed the community unli)e any other in

recent history" $ith candlelight (igils and 'ublicity dri(es )ee'ing ali(e ho'es of findingher.

3ichols said r. a(id Wolf" the state anthro'ologist" $as sent to Fort Knox at there5uest of county 'olice. Wolfs 7ob 4has to do $ith systematic in(estigation of burial

sites" and e(aluation of s)eletoni2ed and decom'osed remains"4 3ichols said.

4t the time I $as contacted they $ere as)ing for assistance in e(aluation of a site to see

$hether r. Wolf could ex'ose or identify a burial site"4 he said.

/oc)hart" $ho com'ares himself to serial )iller Ted Bundy" is on death ro$ for )illing a

Texas 'olice officer and has been sentenced to death for )illing teen-age girls in Indianaand Florida.

/oc)hart re'eatedly stabbed a %;-year-old !riffith" Ind." girl in 1ctober %08