Found Deceased VA - Morgan Dana Harrington, 20, Charlottesville, 17 Oct 2009 - #1

[KaylynnCouture]

WSLS sat down with Harrington’s pastor, Rev. Diane Scribner Clevenger, who lives with the Harrington family in their Roanoke County home.

“I think everyone’s just numb,” Rev. Scribner Clevenger said. “It’s a sense of shock.“

She says police first contacted the family Sunday morning after finding Morgan Harrington’s purse in the parking lot of John Paul Jones Arena.

“Her phone was in there,“ she said. “It was odd the battery had been removed.“

Snipped from http://www2.wsls.com/sls/news/state...earch_continues_for_missing_vt_student/55634/

That's extremely concerning that she or someone else removed the battery from her cell phone.

:rose: praying for Morgan.

 

[Angel Who Cares]

Former teacher calls Morgan Harrington "a genuinely nice person"
2009.10.20
<snipped>
She served as Tater Benson's student aide in his Special Education Class.

Benson had this to say about Harrington:

"Morgan is an outstanding person. She was an aide in my class. She had a positive effect on my class and is a genuinely nice person and she made our class a lot of fun. We are all praying for her safe return."

Article:
http://blogs.roanoke.com/rtblogs/botetourtview/2009/10/20/morgan-harrington-a-genuinely-good-person/

:angel:

 

[Mazama]

CHARLOTTESVILLE, Va. — Police are looking for a Virginia Tech student who got separated from her friends at a Metallica concert Saturday and hasn't been seen since.
Police are looking for 20-year-old Morgan Dana Harrington, who was last seen near the John Paul Jones Arena in Charlottesville. Her parents say they talk to her every day and her disappearance is very out of character.

Read more at: http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2009/10/20/morgan-dana-harrington-mi_n_327278.html

Maz
​

 

[kellync]

This is a link to the body found in my area today FWIW
http://www.wlos.com/shared/newsroom/wlos_index.shtml

ETA: The girl in the link above seems to have multiple piercings and we havent heard that about Morgan, also it says the hair is light brown or auburn, which doesnt match either. It sure looks like a straight (relatively) shot from John Paul Jones Arena to this area of the blue ridge, and a roughly 4.5 hour drive. If the concert ended at 1 am or so, and the body was found at 630 a.m. it could line up, maybe I am just reaching.....

Quoting my own post here, sorry, but if you follow the links on the facebook page, there is another page with an event for Morgan that one of her friends posted and has 28 pictures with it. She definitely has multiple piercings, they are visible in some of the pictures, although I didnt see one in the nose. I just cant get over the time/distance/proximity angle here...I wish LE would release a discription of the clothing the girl on the Blue Ridge Parkway wore...The latest article on the Blue Ridge Parkway jane doe says the autopsy is being pushed back until tomorrow..

 

[MBLover]

Quoting my own post here, sorry, but if you follow the links on the facebook page, there is another page with an event for Morgan that one of her friends posted and has 28 pictures with it. She definitely has multiple piercings, they are visible in some of the pictures, although I didnt see one in the nose. I just cant get over the time/distance/proximity angle here...I wish LE would release a discription of the clothing the girl on the Blue Ridge Parkway wore...The latest article on the Blue Ridge Parkway jane doe says the autopsy is being pushed back until tomorrow..

I'm pretty sure the article I read about the body of the girl found gave the following description - tattoo (kind of looked like a female devil to me), weight of 160-190 - which I believe Morgan's weight was given as 120. I saw one description of her (girl found) as being between 19 and 30 and another as 25-30. I'll see if I can find the article

 

[kellync]

http://www.wlos.com/shared/newsroom/wlos_index.shtml
MBlover, this is video of the news story on the Blue Ridge Girl. I have seen Morgans pictures, and IMO she looks to weigh more than 120 to me, but thats just MOO. I dont know, I am just stuck here...

 

[angelmom]

YouTube - Police: Student Disappeared From Weekend Concert

 

[MBLover]

Description of female found in SC - age throws it off for it to be Morgan

http://www.foxcarolina.com/news/21337377/detail.html

snipped
The woman was not identified; however, Dillingham said the woman was between 25 and 30 years old.


http://www.citizen-times.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20091020/NEWS01/910200311

snipped
The victim is described as white, 25-35 years old, five feet five inches to five feet seven inches tall, 160-200 pounds with blue eyes and light brown/auburn hair. Her hair may have been dyed and her nose was pierced with a diamond stud, Dillingham said.

 

[MBLover]

http://www.wlos.com/shared/newsroom/wlos_index.shtml
MBlover, this is video of the news story on the Blue Ridge Girl. I have seen Morgans pictures, and IMO she looks to weigh more than 120 to me, but thats just MOO. I dont know, I am just stuck here...

I agree that Morgan appears to weigh more than 120 in those pics, but I guess it's like the old saying...cameras add pounds... I would guess by those pics to be more like 135-140, but don't believe she would weigh the 160-200 as given for the UID in NC

 

[kellync]

Looks like they may know who the woman on the parkway in NC is..

 

[kellync]

She is a gorgeous girl. I shudder to think what might have happened here...
I wonder if the battery on the phone fell out vs. being taken out? I have dropped my phone and the battery fell out. My brother lives in Charlottesville, and I live in NC. This is just a sad situation..for both girls families

 

[MBLover]

Looks like they may know who the woman on the parkway in NC is..

Looks like they may.

 

[Marie]

She sure does look a lot like Claire from the tv show Lost.

Finding her purse in the parking lot is bad. I'll be hoping she's okay though, maybe just lost or some sort of medical problem.

 

[Angel Who Cares]

Police Working Leads in Search for Missing VT Student
Posted: 1:12 PM Oct 20, 2009
<snipped>
Investigators say they are following up on a couple dozen new leads that have come in since Monday's press conference with Morgan Dana Harrington's parents.

Police activity and searches will continue Tuesday near the JPJ. State and UVA police have been canvassing the area since Monday to make sure nothing is out of the ordinary, and that no additional evidence was overlooked.

Police investigators say they've received calls regarding Harrington's disappearance, and are following up on them Tuesday. Each tip is prioritized based on the information provided.

Video: Missing VT Student 2:01
http://www.whsv.com/video/?autoStar...ult&clipId=4226821&flvUri=&thirdpartymrssurl=

Video: Missing Virginia Tech Student 1:02
http://www.whsv.com/video/?autoStar...ult&clipId=4226134&flvUri=&thirdpartymrssurl=

Video: Web Extra: Full News Conference - Parents Plea for Safe Return
http://www.whsv.com/video?clipID=4227480&autoStart=true&contentID=64984027

Video: UPDATE: Parents Stay Hopeful in Search for Missing Daughter and VT Student
http://www.whsv.com/video?clipID=4226966&autoStart=true&contentID=64984027

Video: Parents and Police Search For Missing VT Student
http://www.whsv.com/video?clipID=4226250&autoStart=true&contentID=64984027

Missing VT student Press Release:
http://media.graytvinc.com/documents/missing+VT+student+press+release.doc

Article:
http://www.whsv.com/news/headlines/64984027.html

:angel:

 

[jodierenee]

From the ABC 13 Website:
http://www.wlos.com/shared/newsroom/wlos_index.shtml

BREAKING NEWS: Parkway Body Identified

Authorities have identified a woman whose body was found on the Blue Ridge Parkway.

The body of 21 yr. old Misty Carter of Henderson County was found around 6:30am Monday near mile post 395. She was a 2006 graduate of North Henderson High School.

Authorities are not releasing a cause of death until an autopsy is completed tomorrow.

Deputies are following leads on a possible suspect, but are not identifying them at this time. Stay with News13 and www.wlos.com for the latest details on this story.

 

[Shutterfly]

It's a little odd that this (presumed) abduction case in Va and this (presumed) dump site in NC have something in common...the Blue Ridge Parkway. And the general appearance of these two girls is strikingly similar. Same age too.

 

[Angel Who Cares]

Police ask Metallica fans to check video, photos for missing Tech student
Tuesday, October 20, 2009
<snipped>
Virginia State Police are asking anyone with video or photos from Saturday's Metallica concert in Charlottesville to check the images and see if they show missing Virginia Tech junior Morgan Dana Harrington.

State police spokeswoman Corinne Geller said in an e-mailed statement today that investigators are following up on dozens of tips, and also continuing to canvas the area around the arena.

Article:
http://www.roanoke.com/news/breaking/wb/223186

:angel:

 

[kant]

I found some conflicting information. WDBG TV7 has reported that her father reported her missing, not the friends.

http://www.wdbj7.com/Global/story.asp?S=11336143#

Harrington's parents, Dan and Jill, both spoke at the news conference and appealed to Morgan to call them, or if there is someone holding her against her will to release her. Morgan was supposed to return home Sunday to study for a math test with her father. When she never showed up, her father reported her missing to police.

Why would Morgan's friends head home without reporting her missing? Why wouldn't they stay to help look for her? Charlottesville is over 2 hours from Virginia Tech's Blacksburg campus. Morgan reportedly didn't drive to the concert, so she didn't have a way home.

This information, another article where I read she had tried to call her friends after getting separated from them (I'll have to try and find the link), and the statement about the battery having been removed from the cell phone found in her purse are very strange. I wonder if the friends know more than they have reported to LE.

I agree; something doesn't add up, but maybe it would make more sense if we had the answers to the questions you asked. I was wondering the same things.

I'm trying to catch up, so forgive if I misread; but here's what I got from it so far. (Please correct me too b/c Im trying to work out the timeline in my head) Also, I just heard some details on HLN from the father.

(1.) Oct 17, last Sat. evening, she rode with friends to a concert in Charlottesville that was ~ 2 hrs away from where she lives at school, Virginia Tech's Blacksburg campus.

She called her dad at 2 PM on Saturday to tell him that she arrived safely in Harrisonburg which was a stop on the way to the concert where she met up with the friends who drove her the rest of the way.

How did she get to Harrisonburg?
Did she drive there? (and was to drive herself back?)
If not, who drove her to Harrisonburg?

Were any of these friends "a date?"
Or was it just a group get-together of all girls?

(2.) She "got separated" from the group at the concert.
The father said on HLN that the friends said that she went to the restroom (which are inside the arena) at 8:40 PM.

The main act had not performed yet and the crowd was still coming in for seating.
She didn't go back to her seat; she went OUTSIDE the arena.

And per the arena rules, they wouldn't let her back inside,
so she called the friend who drove to say she couldn't get back in.

WHY WOULD SHE GO OUTSIDE THE ARENA?
Are the restrooms in a location where she could have seen someone outside who she knew?

When Morgan called from outside to say she couldn't get back in, did the friend ask her WHY she left the arena?
If not why not? (that seems like a given that you'd ask unless you already knew why. And if you knew why, then why not say so now?)

When she called the friend, did they make plans to meet at the car?
What else did she say?

Was she going to meet someone else there who was not in the original group who came together?
If so, who?

How long was the concert?
Iow, how long would she have had to be outside the arena waiting on the friends?

If people were still coming in at 8:40 there'd still be folks around; but after the concert started, it may have gotten deserted outside the arena.
Couldn't the friend have come to the gate or exit and tossed her the keys so she could at least wait in the car with the doors locked?
Or drive somewhere for short time? (IDK if that was feasible)

(3.) She didn't drive there, so she didn't have a ride...

Was she supposed to ride back to Harrisonburg or all the way home?
She didn't have another ride.... unless she was meeting someone who was supposed to take her home. Was she?
As Cindy asked too, why would the friends just leave if she "got separated" from them? (unless they thought she had a ride;

And perhaps that would seem to also explain the friends not reporting her as missing. They wouldn't necessarily have known if she were missing if they thought she had a ride. But why not say so?
The father has apparently spoken with the friends IIRC, and they didn't SAY to the dad whether they thought she had a ride? THE FRIENDS LEAVING WITHOUT HER - THS PART IS HINKY FOR ME.

(4.) She didn't show up or call her Dad on Sunday and they had plans together; That's how she got reported missing - when the dad tried to contact her.

If she drove to Harrisonburg, (did she?) the friends didnt' notice that her car still there? (iow that she hadn't come back form the conert)
Does she have a roommate?

If so, was the roomate at home that night to know or notice that she didnt' come home?
Had she said that she had planned to return that night?
Does she live in a dorm or apt?

(5.) Her purse was found with the phone in it; but the battery was out of the phone

Where was the purse found?
Was the battery completely missing? or just extracted from the phone, but still in the purse?
When a battery is out of the phone that prevents pings, which reveal location, right?
Does that effect (or wipe out) any previous information on the phone?

tia.

 

[January.]

Thanks mods for merging!

I'd like to know if the cell phone was damaged in any way which could explain why the battery wasn't in it. Also if someone did abduct her, why would they take the time to take the battery out of her phone if the phone didn't go with them anyway?

 

[KaylynnCouture]

Those are great questions Kant. I only wish we knew the answers

Also, not sure if this has been posted, but there has been a Facebook group set up to help find Morgan. http://www.facebook.com/group.php?gid=162224546575&ref=search&sid=666482915.1685764065..1

On it, it says there will be a candlelight vigil held for Morgan on the Northside Highschool football field at 7pm.