Transcript from the press-conference held in Orlando

Persons present: Nick Carter (NC), Captain Mark Burns OPD (MB), AJ McLean (AM), Howie Dorough (HD), Agent Jason Anderson FBI (JA) and Tricia Rogers (TR) who represents The Firm and holding in the press-conference.

400 persons represents news-papers and TV-stations from all over the world.

They will be shorten S.

TR: I would like to thank you all for coming. Please try to stick to questions regarding the kidnapping and remember that Nick has been through a lot.

Please begin.

S: How are you Nick?

NC: I’m ok now. Everything felt much better after I met my family and I could take a hot bath. (laugh)

S: Do you have any trace of the kidnappers, Captain Burns?

MB: Because of security-reasons I can’t tell you anything about that, but I can assure you that they will be caught.

S: Can you tell us what happened after you was taken from that night-club, Nick?

NC: I don’t remember very much after that, everything was blurry.

S: Don’t you remember anything?

NC: Of course I do, it’s just that some things are way to scary for me to share, I can’t even tell my family.

TR: Please respect that. Proceed.

S: Were you treated good?

NC: No.

S: Could you say something more about that?

NC: Just that I received insufficient with food, I was locked up in a cell, I had no contact with the world and that I was beaten every time I tried to talk to them…(gets upset, but calms)…I’m sorry.

AM: You ok Nick? We can stop if you want to.

NC: I’m ok. Please continue.

S: How did you escape?

NC: I heard that several of the guards were sick but they guarded me anyway.

I figured they would be weaker than I, so I waited for an opportunity to escape.

When one of them came in to give me food I hit him in the head as hard as I could with a plate they left the other day. I sneaked out and managed to find a small road. I walked by the side. I was afraid that they would find the guard very soon so I wanted to get as far away from that place I could. A car approached me, but I didn’t hear it. I thought it was the kidnappers but I was lucky.

It was a man who asked me if I wanted a ride…I ended up in Orlando again, where I called AJ. He and Howie came to get me. The rest you know.

S: Where is the man?

MB: We don’t know. He dropped Mr Carter off at the mall in Orlando. We have searched for him, but we don’t know who he is for the moment.

S: Mr McLean, what was your first thought when you heard Nick’s voice?

AM: I couldn’t believe it. After the first shock I was just…plain happy.

S: Nick, why didn’t you call the police first?

NC: Honestly, I don’t know. Probably because I wanted to see a familiar face again.

S: Why not a family-member?

NC: I looked awful, I would have scared my parents to death.

S: Were you scared when you were in that cell?

NC: Yes. I didn’t know where I was, why I was there or what they were about to do with me.

S: Did you ever think you would die?

NC: (is quiet before he answers) Sometimes. When things felt really bad.

S: Did you pray?

NC: No.

S: Why?

NC: I don’t wanna discuss religion now, but I though that if I ever got out of there, it wouldn’t be with God’s help.

S: Mr Anderson, what do you know about the dead man, the one found in the forest?

JA: Nothing.

S: What do you mean, nothing? There must be something about him?

JA: Actually no. He has no fingerprints, he isn’t in any register anywhere, and most important of all, we don’t know who killed him and why. We found a weapon close to his body, next to some wheel-traces. We think that one of his partners turned on him and drove away. We are searching for the car and it’s driver now.

S: How about the girl who was found in the morgue? Does she have anything to do with all this?

JA: We believe so, yes.

S: What was her name?

JA: (leans over and talks to Captain Burns before answering) We can’t answer that question.

S: Howie, can you say something about how this has effected the Backstreet Boys?

HD: This has effected us all very deeply, we never thought that fame could do this. We were very worried over Nick, especially AJ here. But we have no plans to quit singing because of this, more the contrary, we will show the world that we are still going strong. But we will take a break now so Nick can take it easy, and the police have caught the kidnappers.

S: How do you feel for your fans now, Nick? You have probably seen the pictures of fans, praying for you and hoping that you were ok. What are your feelings?

NC: I want to thank them. Words can’t express what I felt yesterday, when I read about it, and I read some of the e-mails I have received.

I love them. There is nothing more to say, I just do.

S: Did you know that your albums have been on number one since the day you were kidnapped?

NC: Yes, I have been told that.

S: So, what do you think

NC: I don’t know. It’s pretty weird, it was as they thought I wouldn’t come back so they wanted to hear our voices again, I dunno.

S: People actually thought that you were dead.

NC: Oh (looks at AJ)

S: What will you do now, Nick?

NC: As Howie said, we will take some months off, just resting. I want to put all this behind me.

S: Are you afraid that they will come back after you again?

NC: A little. But I will have heavy security around me now, and so will my family and friends.

S: Did the kidnappers ever tell you what they wanted from you?

NC: No, I always thought it was all about money, but on the other hand I knew that my friends and family would pay if they were asked to by the kidnappers.

I actually started to blame them for me still being there. (glances at Howie and AJ) I’ve always thought that if you really want to find a person you can.

S: I see. So you think that it’s their fault that…(Nick interrupts)

NC: I didn’t say that I THINK that they are to blame for anything. But at that time, I needed someone to blame. And that someone had to be my friends.

TR: I think that that’s enough. (rises, and the others follow her example) Thank you all for coming, if you have further questions, please ask Agent Anderson or Captain Burns.

End of transcript