Karr in Los Angeles custody
LOS ANGELES, California (CNN) — The suspect in the killing of 6-year-old JonBenet Ramsey was in an isolation cell in a Los Angeles jail Monday morning awaiting an extradition hearing.
The hearing will determine how soon John Mark Karr is sent to Colorado to face …
murder charges in the 1996 death of the child beauty queen.
Flanked by federal agents, Karr arrived on a Thai Airways flight at Los Angeles International Airport Sunday evening.
The plane touched down around 12:27 a.m. ET Monday (9:27 p.m. PT Sunday). (Watch Karr’s arrival in Los Angeles — 1:46)
CNN’s Drew Griffin was in the business class section of the plane with Karr during the 15-hour flight.
Griffin described Karr as “a man who seems to be a little bit dazed but also well-composed.”
“He insisted on changing his shirt before landing, brushing his teeth and putting a tie on,” Griffin said.
“He is very well-composed. He spent a little bit of time brushing his hair and he wants to apparently make sure his appearances are up to snuff.”
Karr was accompanied from Bangkok by agents from U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) but was turned over to officers of the Los Angeles Police Department after clearing customs, a statement from the agency said.
After being admitted to the United States, Karr was led across the tarmac in handcuffs and whisked away from the airport aboard a helicopter. He was flown to the Twin Towers Correctional Facility in downtown Los Angeles.
“Mr. Karr is expected to remain in the custody of local authorities while the Boulder District Attorney’s Office seeks his extradition to Colorado,” the ICE statement said.
Carolyn French, a spokeswoman for the Boulder County District Attorney’s office, said Colorado was planning to extradite the 41-year-old former grade-school teacher from California. She said his arrival at Los Angeles International Airport would trigger an extradition hearing based on a murder warrant issued in Colorado.
An investigator for the district attorney’s office also accompanied Karr on the flight. French said the suspect would appear before a judge in Los Angeles no sooner than Monday and, if he so desired, an attorney would be assigned to his case.
If Karr waives his rights and agrees to extradition, then Boulder authorities would have to transport him to Colorado within 10 days of the hearing. But if Karr decides to fight extradition, the process could last weeks, she said.
No extradition hearing had been scheduled Sunday night, according to federal and local officials in Los Angeles. But French said the Boulder district attorney’s office has been told that Sonoma County authorities have withdrawn an outstanding warrant on possession of child pornography, so Karr will not be kept in California to face those charges.
Thom Mrozek from the U.S. attorney’s office in Los Angeles said he has not been notified about plans to transport the suspect.
Karr was taken into custody Wednesday morning in Bangkok, where he had just started a teaching job.
A U.S. warrant called for his arrest on suspicion of first-degree murder, kidnapping and child sexual assault.
Questions about admission
JonBenet’s body was discovered in the basement of her parents’ Boulder home the day after Christmas in 1996. Questions are swirling around Karr, who issued a stunning admission Thursday in Bangkok.
“I loved JonBenet, and she died accidentally,” he told reporters. Asked if he were an innocent man, Karr replied, “No.”
Evidence from the crime scene indicates the girl’s death was no accident, law enforcement officials have long said. JonBenet had been struck in the head and strangled with a garrote made from a cord and tightened with a paintbrush handle, investigators said.
However, questions have since been raised about some of his statements. Karr’s ex-wife and family members say he was not involved in JonBenet’s death. His ex-wife has said he spent the 1996 Christmas season with her in Alabama.
Last week, Boulder District Attorney Mary Lacy said investigators still had “much more work” to do in the case and urged people not to rush to judgment.
CNN’s Stan Grant, Narunart Prapanya, Atika Shubert and Peter Viles contributed to this report.
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