Officer’s Tale Suspect In Baby Disappearance

The search for an infant supposedly thrown off a bridge into a river was suspended Friday as new questions arose about a police officer at the center of the mystery.

Narcotics detective Billy Vasser, who claimed to have nearly rescued a baby from the Coosa River following an anonymous tip Tuesday, apparently has a history of getting involved in situations that provide him with opportunities to be a hero, sources told The Associated Press.

Dozens of volunteers had been working round-the-clock since Tuesday, when police arrived at the river to find a sobbing Vasser sitting waist-deep in the water, clutching a tiny blue shirt trimmed with lace.

Vasser said he lost his grip on the child in the swift current. But rescue squad members doubted many aspects of the story almost from the start, including how an infant’s wet shirt could have come off.