One of Elizabeth Smart’s convicted kidnappers, Wanda Barzee, was seen in a new mugshot on Utah’s Sex Offender Registry, smiling from ear to ear.
In Utah, sex offenders are required to register twice a year, once on their birthday and then six months later to the date, according to Utah law.
Nearly 20 years after her conviction for holding Smart captive for nine months, Barzee, 79, was arrested on May 1 after she allegedly violated sex offender restrictions.
She was arrested at her Salt Lake City, Utah, home on Thursday after she allegedly visited at least two parks, which she is prohibited from doing as a registered sex offender, according to reports.
WANDA BARZEE, ONE OF ELIZABETH SMART’S CAPTORS, ARRESTED ON ALLEGED SEX OFFENDER VIOLATION
Wanda Barzee, who was convicted of kidnapping Elizabeth Smart and holding her captive for nine months, is seen smiling in new image on Utah’s Sex Offender Registry. (Utah Department of Public Safety)
Under Utah law, sex offenders are forbidden from entering certain “protected areas” where children are likely to be present, which include public parks, schools, and playgrounds.
During her arrest, Barzee said “she was commanded to by the Lord” to go to Liberty Park and that she liked to go there to “sit on benches and feed ducks,” according to Fox 13 Salt Lake City. The outlet reported that Barzee also admitted that God had “commended” her to go to Sugar House Park as well.
Barzee is now required to do weekly check-ins after her arrest for allegedly visiting parks in Salt Lake City, which she is restricted from doing due to her status as a registered sex offender.
CHILD ABDUCTION SURVIVOR ELIZABETH SMART WARNS OF ‘TERRIFYING TERRITORY’ FOR TODAY’S KIDS
Elizabeth Smart at her home in Wasatch County, Utah on March 8, 2023. Twenty years ago she was freed from a nine-month long kidnapping. ( Chad Kirkland for The Washington Post )
In 2002, Barzee and her husband, Brian David Mitchell, kidnapped then-14-year-old Smart at knifepoint and held her captive for nine months. Mitchell forced Smart into a polygamous “marriage” and raped her almost daily. Smart was rescued when a couple recognized her as she was walking through Sandy, a suburb of Salt Lake City, with Barzee and Mitchell. Initially, out of fear, Smart denied her identity when questioned by police, but later admitted that she was the missing teen. Barzee and Mitchell were then arrested.
It was “America’s Most Wanted,” which aired an episode about Smart’s 2002 abduction, that led to her being recognized by a couple, who spotted her walking with her captors.
Wanda Barzee was convicted of helping to kidnap Elizabeth Smart in 2002. (AP)
After several hearings, Barzee was sentenced to 15 years in prison for aggravated kidnapping. She received the sentence after cooperating with the FBI and the state of Utah to convict Mitchell, who was sentenced to life in prison.
Smart later testified how she was drugged, tied to a tree and raped as often as four times a day, People Magazine reported. If she dared to cry for help, her family would be murdered, Mitchell warned her.
During her ordeal, Smart insisted she never gave up hope that one day she would be found.
KIDNAPPING SURVIVOR ELIZABETH SMART ON EMPOWERING KIDS FROM PREDATORS: ‘DON’T BE AFRAID TO PRACTICE SCREAMING’
Brian David Mitchell, the man accused of kidnapping Elizabeth Smart, is escorted into the Frank E. Moss Federal Courthouse in Salt Lake City. (AP)
“Coming back and being with my family was everything I dreamed of while I was being held kidnapped,” she previously told Fox News Digital. “All I wanted was to make it home, feel love again, feel safe again. I wanted to gain the courage, as cliché as it sounds, to follow my dreams. These weren’t extravagant dreams. I wanted to go to high school, get my driver’s license, go to prom, go on a first date, go to college, get married, have a family.”
In 2018, Barzee was released from prison and placed under five years of federal supervision in addition to being registered as a sex offender. She was ordered not to contact Smart’s family.
Sex offenders cannot be within 1,000 feet of a victim’s residence if a victim-requested restriction is in place, according to the Utah Legislature.
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Smart is a married mother of three, but her story is far from over. She is a child safety activist who regularly speaks on behalf of missing and exploited children. She’s also partnering with “America’s Most Wanted” to serve as a guest speaker for an episode of “America’s Most Wanted: Missing Persons.”
Fox News Digital’s Stephanie Nolasco and Rachel Wolf contributed to this report.
Stepheny Price is a writer for Fox News Digital and Fox Business. She covers topics including missing persons, homicides, national crime cases, illegal immigration, and more. Story tips and ideas can be sent to [email protected]
