Found Alive AL - Carlethia “Carlee” Russell, 25, 911 call reported toddler walking on side of interstate, car found, she & toddler gone, Birmingham, 13 Jul ‘23

[cuffem]

I still think someone was already with her in her vehicle. Can’t see any other reason to scream then disappear

Did her passenger door open at any point?

I first thought someone might be in the car also because she was at that side for awhile but saw no one get out.

 

[iamnotagolem]

That car is not that expensive. Not sure why people are focusing on her car. There is nothing to suggest money is motivation here for anything.

Not only that but it looks like her parents gave her a Mercedes when she graduated from HS then she had a dodge Challenger, which was in an accident so with the insurance payout got the Mercedes. I’d say there is a good chance she doesn’t even have a loan for it. I think people are focusing on the wrong things here.

 

[GoBuckeyes]

I did too ... so I'm baffled.

Count me in as being totally befuddled.

 

[gdeyefaith]

That car is not that expensive. Not sure why people are focusing on her car. There is nothing to suggest money is motivation here for anything.

Well imo it’s not cheap either. Isn’t it around $40-50 thousand?

 

[Fuhgetabouddit]

So it was a hoax? Wow, that's some kind of messed up if true!!

There is a guy in that area who does this ALL the time.

 

[katikaboom]

Since you say you're from the area, I'm going to assume that you know what you're talking about. But as a lifelong resident of metro Atlanta, respectfully, I have never in my life heard of gators anywhere north of Macon. (Okay I think there may have been one that was an escaped pet.) <modsnip>

I'm up in NC and we have had gators spotted about 40 miles from the Capital. We're about as far north as they go, though.

 

[Chimera]

Can someone summarize, for those of us not on Twitter? (We can't read them any more.)

Did someone use a toddler as bait to stop a driver? Didn't that happen recently?

Oh, this one, also Alabama!

GUILTY - AL - Adam Simjee, 22, a carjacking turned robbery turned child in the woods with a gun, 2022

https://sports.yahoo.com/woman-fakes-being-stranded-then-163443152.html Complex story

www.websleuths.com

I wondered that as well !
Bait ?
But why a toddler, as at that age they're not going to necessarily follow instructions (wandering all over the place and not walking/staying next to the road) and a man could've stopped, or even an off-duty cop ?
This is so sad, strange, and scary.
Hope Carlee is ok and if someone has her they'll let her go !
Omo.

 

[Cyan]

By the time I get to the last page to read, two more are popping up!

One thing I thought about is this...
If I thought I saw a kid.. or anything else out of place for that matter.. along a dark road is that even with my headlights on, I'd turn the flashlight on my phone (even if I was on a call) and probably the interior lights on as well. Does her phone have the flashlight feature? And if so, was it on when they found her phone? Was her stuff found on the driver side or passenger? (Sorry if I missed it somewhere) Idk maybe I'm weird with my thinking.

 

[MotherOcean]

Not likely. This is in a landlocked area of Alabama, nowhere near the small stretch of coast to the south along the Gulf.

I don’t think Carlee was taken by a gator but there are gators everywhere in Alabama. Alabama has water literally everywhere and not just on the Gulf coast.

Expect to See Alligators Throughout Alabama | Outdoor Alabama

Official Web Site of Alabama Department of Conservation and Natural Resources

www.outdooralabama.com

 

[GoBuckeyes]

watch at 19 minutes there's a dispatch recording saying she called her family from a Red Roof Inn?

 

[GoBuckeyes]

I don’t think Carlee was taken by a gator but there are gators everywhere in Alabama. Alabama has water literally everywhere and not just on the Gulf coast.

Expect to See Alligators Throughout Alabama | Outdoor Alabama

Official Web Site of Alabama Department of Conservation and Natural Resources

www.outdooralabama.com

Thank you. So my question wasn't unwarranted after all.

 

[keepitsimplestupid]

I don’t think Carlee was taken by a gator but there are gators everywhere in Alabama. Alabama has water literally everywhere and not just on the Gulf coast.

Expect to See Alligators Throughout Alabama | Outdoor Alabama

Official Web Site of Alabama Department of Conservation and Natural Resources

www.outdooralabama.com

This may sound ignorant, but how do gators get to the water In lakes and ponds? I live in Metro Atlanta, so similar geography as central Alabama. We also have water e everywhere and are always at the lake. My in-laws live on Lake Oconee, we were there yesterday. Is seeing a gator something I need to add to my list of things to worry about?! I have three young kids, so it’s a long list!

Edited to add: all of our lakes are man-made as the closest large body of water is the Atlantic Ocean 4 hours away in Savannah.

 

[cuffem]

Why would someone do that? What would someone have to gain from doing this? Genuinely curious as it sounds a bit crazy. Does crazy follow this family? I get that everyone has

I’m also in Metro Atlanta, lived here for 32 years. Never once heard of gators up this far. Now I’m scared lol great, one more thing to worry about.

They are in lower parts of NC too. They go dormant in winter.

 

[dfwhawk]

Since she purportedly was on her way home with food from Taziki's restaurant for her and her mother (according to the mother), does anyone know if that food was in the car, too? Or if the receipt had a timestamp on it?

 

[LNL]

Does anyone know if Carlee has a boyfriend?

 

[Quill]

This may sound ignorant, but how do gators get to the water In lakes and ponds? I live in Metro Atlanta, so similar geography as central Alabama. We also have water e everywhere and are always at the lake. My in-laws live on Lake Oconee, we were there yesterday. Is seeing a gator something I need to add to my list of things to worry about?! I have three young kids, so it’s a long list

They walk. Seriously, they move pretty fast on land. We have them all over MS,. When we have successive heavy rains, they really get moving!

Alligator spotted crossing Highway 80 at Pearl-Flowood line

Police in Pearl had their hands full with an alligator trying to cross Highway 80.

www.wapt.com

 

[T4Tide]

This may sound ignorant, but how do gators get to the water In lakes and ponds? I live in Metro Atlanta, so similar geography as central Alabama. We also have water e everywhere and are always at the lake. My in-laws live on Lake Oconee, we were there yesterday. Is seeing a gator something I need to add to my list of things to worry about?! I have three young kids, so it’s a long list!

Edited to add: all of our lakes are man-made as the closest large body of water is the Atlantic Ocean 4 hours away in Savannah.

I wouldn’t Google that if I were you.

(I did.)

 

[cuffem]

Does anyone know if Carlee has a boyfriend?

Or EX boyfriend.

 

[Lindadanette]

I hope they're using bloodhounds in case someone chased her into the woods.

 

[ChatteringBirds]

I'm leaning toward she was abducted spontaneously by an adult who was near the wooded area. I think she thought she saw a child, but when she got there she actually saw an adult acting strangely, hence the, "Are you okay?"

I could understand wanting to walk away from a high-pressure college-life for awhile, but to stage it so dramatically on a busy highway feels unlikely to me.
(Unless she's having a medical/health event.)

Just my current opinions.