WASHINGTON – A shift in the search for missing intern Chandra Levy from Capitol Hill to Dumpsters near her apartment is expected to take the heat off her “good friend” Rep. Gary Condit – at least for now, police say.
New information, based in part on careful analysis of Levy’s cell-phone records and e-mails from her laptop computer, has led police to believe she was in her downtown Washington apartment for most of the afternoon on May 1 – a little less than 24 hours after she was seen canceling her membership at a health club.
Police officials say the new information has led them to shift the focus away from the possibility that the attractive, 24-year-old California student ran away or committed suicide after being dumped by a mysterious, politically connected boyfriend, who her family believes was Condit (D-Calif.).
Now detectives are investigating the possibility that Levy was a victim of foul play in her apartment building.
Although cops haven’t ruled out the possibility of suicide, police said they plan to canvass garbage haulers and search landfills with dogs. They also aim to look more closely at Levy’s neighbors, and workers who had access to her building.
This week, FBI agents are hoping to interview Mrs. Condit, in part to verify the congressmen’s detailed account of his activities the day Levy disappeared. He has said he met with Vice President Dick Cheney, visited a doctor, voted on the floor of the House of Representatives and had dinner with his wife, among other activities that day.
Police have been publicly insisting all along that Condit, 53, has never been considered a suspect in Levy’s disappearance.
But privately, police say, suspicions have been fueled by Condit at first being less than candid about his contacts with Levy, and then for 10 days ducking detectives seeking a follow-up interview.
If the interview with Mrs. Condit goes well this week, sources tell The Post that Condit’s high-powered criminal-defense lawyer, Abbe Lowell, plans to declare that Condit’s role in the case is over – beyond the congressman’s willingness to assist Levy’s parents.