Police Still Pursuing Leads In Adam Walsh Murder

Under pressure to release investigative records in the unsolved 1981 abduction and murder of 6-year-old Adam Walsh, Hollywood police confirmed Tuesday that they have up to three “potential suspects” in the case.

Police held a news conference to answer a barrage of media questions after a Broward, Fla., circuit judge ruled Monday that the records should remain closed. A detective testified in Monday’s hearing that the case was still active and that he had identified at least one new suspect within the last six months.

Joel Cantor, the department’s legal adviser, said Tuesday that releasing the file could jeopardize the case. He would not say what evidence pointed to the new potential suspects, nor would he provide any information on who the potential suspects might be or when any arrests might be made.

Walsh family members are not and have never been suspects, he said, adding that detectives believe Adam’s killer was a stranger.

“We feel in good faith that we will be able to go ahead and bring this case involving the death of Adam Walsh to a close in the very near future,” he said.

Adam was abducted from the now-closed Sears store at Hollywood Mall in July 1981. His severed head was found floating in a canal near Vero Beach, Fla., a few weeks later, but his body was never recovered.

Cantor said the Walsh case had never been closed. Police even sent a detective to Wisconsin two years ago to interview serial killer Jeffrey Dahmer after receiving information that he might have been in the Hollywood area when Adam was kidnapped.