KFI's John and Ken discussed the whole Jennifer Lopez Dejongh saga on their show yesterday. Whittier Daily News reporter Airan Scruby heard some of the show.

I haven't listened yet, but here's a link in case you are interested.

The letter has garnered interest from both the Los Angeles County Sheriff's Department and the West Covina FIeld Office of the FBI. Officials say the case against Lopez is still a state matter, but the Feds are involved because of their belief that Lopez Dejongh and her husband George Dejongh have crossed state lines with U.S. Rep Gary Miller's three grandchildren.

Anyway onto the column. Here it is:

It’s always exciting to get mail at work.

For one thing, you can almost always be sure that something with your name on it isn’t going to contain a bill.

On the other hand, there’s lots of junk that ultimately finds its way into the round file.

Last Thursday, I received a small, somewhat crumpled, white envelope addressed to me. The handwriting on the outside was block-printed. The smeared postmark over a pink 58-cent stamp appeared to say Manchester, New Hampshire.

“Oh great,” I thought, “Another nut who reads the Crime Scene Blog on the Internet with a tip about the murder of James Ellroy’s mother.”

Back in early 1990s, I wrote a story about unsolved mysteries in the San Gabriel Valley. One of the mysteries involved Jean Ellroy, the mother of a young boy who would grow up to be author James Ellroy.

Jean Ellroy was last seen at the Desert Inn at Five Points in El Monte. Her partially nude body turned up the next morning dumped in an alleyway behind Arroyo High School. She had been strangled with her bra. The killing remains unsolved.

The article turned out to be inspiration for James, already respected for his L.A. Quartet, which included the “Black Dahlia” and “L.A. Confidential.”

Ellroy convinced the Los Angeles County Sheriff’s Department to reopen its investigation into the case. He turned the investigation into one of the most powerful pieces of nonfiction ever written, “My Dark Places.”

Anyway, that was on my mind as I turned to my boss, Ed Barrera, and showed him the envelope.
“What do you think it is?” I asked rhetorically, as I ripped the envelope open.

I pulled out a mass of folded papers, unfurled them and read the first lines:

“Dear Frank, My name is Jennifer Lopez Dejongh. Mother of Brian Christopher, Christian and Evan Miller.”
Then and there I realized I was holding a piece of news.

Dejongh’s three children happen to be the grandchildren of U.S. Rep. Gary Miller, R-Brea. They’ve been missing since November. In the letter, Dejongh admits taking the kids after losing a round in a bitter custody dispute between her and Brian Miller, the congressman’s son.

The letter indicates the kids are “safe and happy.” It also lists some of the unseemly details at the heart of the dispute.

“I didn’t leave to be selfish. I left to protect the boys,” Dejongh writes. “I’m not trying to get even with anyone.”

After I got Jennifer’s letter, I spoke with her father, Jude Lopez. He seemed to be shaking as he read the letter, and confirmed it was written by his daughter.

Lopez said he warned his daughter that if she ran, he wouldn’t shield her from authorities.

I also spoke to the congressman. He said his son has been in agony over the disappearance of the children.

The children’s pictures are all over the Internet thanks to the National Center for Missing and Exploited Children.
The Los Angeles County Sheriff’s Major Crimes Bureau, the U.S. Marshal’s Office and the FBI are all involved in the investigation.

Also following the case is the National Organization for Women’s California chapter. Their spokeswoman sent an e-mail Sunday evening after reading about Jennifer’s letter.

“There is so much to this story that has not been reported,” wrote NOW spokeswoman Rachel Allen. “I’m sure there is more in the 16 pages Jennifer wrote that is deserving of verifying and reporting.”

For now, Detective Mark Martinovich, with the Major Crimes Bureau, said he believes the children are safe with their mother.

“We’ve never felt the children were in physical danger,” he said last week.

He also said he wanted to read the letter.

Which is exactly how I felt when I opened my mail Thursday.