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Amber Alert: DiMaggio killed after ‘confrontation’ at Idaho camp

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A massive multiagency manhunt for the suspect in the kidnapping of San Diego County teen Hannah Anderson ended Saturday after a tactical team shot him dead at a campsite deep in the Idaho wilderness.

San Diego County Sheriff Bill Gore said at a news conference that his team was notified in San Diego at 4:22 p.m. that James Lee DiMaggio had been shot and killed by an FBI tactical agent.

“Obviously, we would have liked Mr. DiMaggio to surrender and face justice in a court of law, but that’s not going to be the case,” Gore said.

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Meanwhile, Hannah appeared to be in “pretty good shape” and would be evaluated at a hospital, Gore said. Plans were underway to have her father, Brett Anderson, reunite with Hannah in Idaho tomorrow, he added.

In a message sent to CNN, Anderson said he was “nervous” and excited to see Hannah, and “worried about what my daughter has been through.”

DiMaggio, 40, allegedly killed Hannah’s mother, Christina Anderson, and 8-year-old brother, Ethan, whose bodies were discovered Sunday in the suspect’s burning home in eastern San Diego County.

DiMaggio was shot and killed about 4 p.m. Saturday after his camp was spotted from the air and ground units were then sent in, “leading to the confrontation,” Gore added.

Gore declined to go into detail on what transpired during the confrontation, deferring to officials in Ada County in Idaho, where a news conference was scheduled for later in the evening.

It was a dramatic end to weeklong hunt that included a five-state Amber Alert and ultimately culminated at the end of a dirt road on the edge of a 2.3-million acre wilderness in central Idaho after a horseback rider reported spotting DiMaggio and Hannah.

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His blue Nissan Versa was found concealed at the end of a road near a trail head entering the Frank Church-River of No Return Wilderness.

Much of the terrain is so rugged and remote that some ground search crews had to be flown in Saturday morning. Others took to horseback, while helicopters buzzed overhead.

By Saturday afternoon, roughly 150 FBI officials had combined with local and state officials to amass a force of more than 200 personnel, according to Ada County sheriff’s spokeswoman Andrea Dearden.

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jason.wells@latimes.com

Follow: @jasonbretwells / Facebook / Google+

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