Former FBI agents believe Lina Khil didn’t wander off
Almost three weeks since 3-year-old Lina Sardar Khil went missing, some veteran investigators surmise may not have wandered off on her own, but could have been the target of an abduction.
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“There’s always a possibility she may have wandered off,” said retired FBI agent Greg Pratt. “As time goes on, that possibility dwindles.”
Retired FBI agent Abel Peña, CEO of Project Absentis, an organization made up of retired FBI agents who have worked abduction and kidnapping cases, said he visited the complex and believes it is unlikely that the girl wandered away.
“Is it possible she walked out of the gate? Honestly, I don’t see that happening,” said Peña. “Most kids stay nearby, unless she was drawn out.”
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“From the very beginning, to me, this sounded like an abduction,” Herr said. “A 3-year-old child is going to walk away at 5 o’clock? I mean, everyone is getting home from work. It’s busy traffic hours there, there’s no way she’s out walking around and no one sees her.”
Peña and Pratt said the FBI’s involvement in the case does not mean they are taking it over — as many Hollywood movies and shows portray — but instead are helping complement SAPD’s resources.
“It’s not a matter of capability, it’s capacity,” Pratt said. “When you have a big case, departments sometimes get overwhelmed. They could exceed their capacity because of manpower or other resources.”
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Pratt said each division of the FBI has at least one representative or liaison to the BAU who could decide there might be a need to call in members from the Quantico, Va.-based unit.
Peña, Pratt and other retired agents said the profilers might begin working generally to develop information of what could have occurred. Generally, there could already be a theory developed by investigators handling the case. The profilers will look at reports and witness interviews for information, discrepancies or other clues, the retired agents said.
“The BAU may put together an analysis of what happened,” Peña said. “They might look at the behavioral patterns of some of the individuals connected to the case. They’ll analyze and try to determine things like, ‘Is this person truthful, or are they being deceptive?’”
“If they see any deficiencies or missing information, they may re-interview the witnesses,” Pratt added. “If it is an abduction, they might look at developing a suspect.”
