CA CA - Barbara Thomas, 69, from Bullhead City AZ, disappeared in Mojave desert, 12 July 2019 #3

[kay74]

RT did right by cancelling the flights then calling the relatives to cancel the hotel. 4 days missing I don't see how she could have made her flight no matter what the situation. I believe this whole thing is excruciating for him.

 

[rosesfromangels]

Agreed.

The reality was, after a certain point after her disappearance, she was not going to make that flight. That’s just the sad truth, I’m sure he felt the same. He’s been on idle, standby for news. Canceling the flight & hotel was probably busy work.

I would probably make a horrible investigator. More times than not, I just don’t see what many here do.

LOL. Being a member of this forum for 9+ years has turned me to someone who looks at everyone as a potential Perp until they prove themselves otherwise. Comes with the territory I think.

Amateur opinion and speculation

 

[Micheline]

but according to RT she was kidnapped.

No, he concluded that when days of searches had no result.
What other option can you think of?

 

[Nerissa]

I think - my former theory: she went off trail, incapacitated, gains consciousness later, wanders way way off.....

OR

They had some argument on the trail.....but he follows her back to the RV - something happens there, possibly accidental. RT whether deliberately or not caused her death.

I would suspect dogs would pick up the scent of a dead body though, in the RV, correct?

On fence here

Don't like him not passing lie detector, don't like not notifying son, don't like 'just want her back' & over sharing @ love notes: sounds like regret & nostalgia & trying to 'prove' how much she loved him & things were great etc

Now, as everyone says: we all act differently. Just hope she's found, this is resolved.

JMO

 

[mamallama]

Revisiting this topic because I still don’t understand. Why hide the key under the rock? If they were walking together, wouldn’t he be carrying the keys? He was apparently carrying water and a camera but doesn’t bring the keys? That part of his story is the most suspicious to me. It’s like he made it up so he wouldn’t need to have the keys be missing with BT.

 

[diggndeeperstill]

My family was informed of her disappearance on July 16th. In informing my family Rob mentioned he had cancelled the flights. His family members later repeated that her flights had been cancelled when I tried to reach Robbie by phone.

In the first conversation he had with my family Robbie also said they should cancel the hotel reservations because "she's not gonna make it." endquote.

The source for last sighting is a neighbour's surveillance cam. I'm still waiting to see this footage, but I am trusting the source.

See above BBM. Fact is RT cancelled the flight BEFORE calling family... many family. That is most definitely odd!

Does that not make sense? I think some people go into a state of ‘taking care of business’ in order not to spend the whole time sitting around grieving and feeling useless. It’s really hard to judge how different people handle things.

Some people can’t touch a loved ones room whom they’ve lost, ever, and keep it as an eternal shrine. Others can’t bear to see their loved ones toothbrush and things sitting there untouched just as they left them and will call in friends to help clean these things out. My friend who lost her fiancé in a motorcycle accident did that within a day or so, and she adored him. She was always the organized, keep busy type.

I think we tend to see every little thing, but unless it’s cashing in massive insurance policies, it is hard to make a call. She obviously isn’t making the trip and wouldn’t be going after even 24hrs in the desert because she would need time to recover from dehydration etc. A person who is always prudent about these things might feel uncomfortable to leave flights still booked or hotels as they would feel irresponsible, even if it wasn’t a money thing. I mean, it makes sense to cancel them and judging his cancellation as proof of murder may be a bit intense. I’d need to see more nefarious behavior than that.

Because someone who was lost in the desert for days would most likely need to be hospitalized and certainly would be in no condition for a lengthy flight like that.

Agreed.

The reality was, after a certain point after her disappearance, she was not going to make that flight. That’s just the sad truth, I’m sure he felt the same. He’s been on idle, standby for news. Canceling the flight & hotel was probably busy work.

I would probably make a horrible investigator. More times than not, I just don’t see what many here do.

Because whichever scenario one might cling onto, she would not be travelling long distance within days.
Instead she would need medical and mental assistance, talk to LE, take lots of rest etc etc.

Which elderly person getting out of a kidnapping situation or surviving in the desert for days, hops on a plane?

 

[Kapua]

LOL. Being a member of this forum for 9+ years has turned me to someone who looks at everyone as a potential Perp until they prove themselves otherwise. Comes with the territory I think.

Amateur opinion and speculation

I try hard not to leap to conclusions. But in this case, IMHO, his story is fishy.

 

[InspectGadget]

This one is a tough one.
As some have said, everyone does act differently when tragedy hits.
Going off of some comments by previous posters, the way I could see him possibly failing the lie detector test is if they did have an argument, etc and she wandered off....he felt responsible and “freaked” so he told a “white lie” which snowballed out of control the longer she wasn’t found. At that point there was no turning back especially if he already felt like a POI. Even guilt that she was with him when she disappeared.
Though on the other hand, this doesn’t necessarily explain why he went straight to kidnapping. Nor does it necessarily explain why he hasn’t corrected his statements since...
Praying for her and her family, hoped ur loved one is found soon!!

 

[k-mac]

No, he concluded that when days of searches had no result.
What other option can you think of?

which was when he cancelled the flights.
in that head space/belief (Barbara was alive.....)
which is what red flag you wanted me to clarify.
which I feel I have

moo

 

[Didi777]

american airlined 504
jul 22 vegas to lax

cathay pacific ai 883
july 23 lax to hkg

returning aug 1

Wow, that's actually a long way off yet. Not like the next day...or even anytime that week...
How. very. thoughtful.

 

[k-mac]

Wow, that's actually a long way off yet. Not like the next day...or even anytime that week...
How. very. thoughtful.

yes a week out from a trip cancelling it but not informing her only child of her predicament.

very thoughtful indeed.

moo

 

[rosesfromangels]

Wow, that's actually a long way off yet. Not like the next day...or even anytime that week...
How. very. thoughtful.

Wow.....just .wow.

 

[Kapua]

@dbdb11, you might find some helpful advice here:
Missing Persons of America -Missing Person? What to do!
I do hope there is a scenario in which lovely BT is alive and just taking a time out. Please forgive her if this is the case.

 

[cherrymeg]

For all we know, then, RT could be holding BT hostage in the basement of their home. Is it possible that BT didn't want to go to HK or that RT did not want BT to go to HK, and he (or they) concocted this bizarre story so that she would not have to take the trip?

Instead of just saying you are sick?

 

[rosesfromangels]

See above BBM. Fact is RT cancelled the flight BEFORE calling family... many family. That is most definitely odd!

It's much more than odd.
I hope LE is aware of this.

Amateur opinion and speculation

 

[PajamaSleuth]

I hope BT is found soon.

I am still on the fence about what happened. For some reason,
this case reminds me of two totally different, separate cases: Roberta Snider (who disappeared supposedly while on a road trip with her husband) and Joe Keller (a 19 year old track star, on a road trip with two friends who disappeared while on a run).

AFIK, Bobbie has never been recovered; her husband was charged.

Search teams scoured the area for Joe but could not find him. His body just happened to be recovered a year later. It was determined that he died by accident.

Remains of Joe Keller, missing teen in Conejos County, confirmed by DNA match

All the rocks in those photos .... so large. Could Barb have fallen in a crevice?

 

[al66pine]

What to Do w that Pesky Key

Revisiting this topic because I still don’t understand. Why hide the key under the rock? If they were walking together, wouldn’t he be carrying the keys? He was apparently carrying water and a camera but doesn’t bring the keys? That part of his story is the most suspicious to me. It’s like he made it up so he wouldn’t need to have the keys be missing with BT.

bbm
Okay, ^ first time I've seen this offered as explanation. Possible, but ---------

Maybe their thought was: we'll put key under rock close by, because --
--- if one of us gets tired, thirsty, what-ev, and wants to return first, he/she will have access, no matter which one of us it is, and the other can walk around a bit longer.
--it might easily fall out of pocket/off the tether on pack/what-ev., and it would be hard to find on the trail or in the bush.
Several posters said they routinely play 'hide the key' when they both depart from vehicle/RV.

(In our household, we each have & carry vehicle & RV keys when we exit vehicle & RV We don't feel comfy leaving key around, even if supposedly hidden)

 

[cherrymeg]

RT has no idea what happened to his wife according to RT.
including but not limited to maybe she ran off to go to china.
what gave him the authority to cancel it??

unless you know for sure she wont be taking that trip.....
which as I say.....how would he know this?

imo

If you think she is kidnapped or even ran off keeping her flight plans open could help determine if she is okay. If someone is missing people don't cancel credit cards right away. A plane ticket would be similar.

 

[leomoon]

I think - my former theory: she went off trail, incapacitated, gains consciousness later, wanders way way off.....

OR

They had some argument on the trail.....but he follows her back to the RV - something happens there, possibly accidental. RT whether deliberately or not caused her death.

I would suspect dogs would pick up the scent of a dead body though, in the RV, correct?

On fence here


JMO

Wouldn't the Police have long ago checked that trailer as a potential crime scene and luminol the place? Would her relative dbdb know about this?

 

[Charlot123]

Just a different perspective. If I understand you correctly, you think Barbara rode in the fifth wheel to their destination in the clothing described. While it’s legal in CA to ride in a fifth wheel as long as you can communicate with the driver, I can tell you from experience that it’s far from comfortable....very bouncy and lurchy...even on a bed. I think it’s more likely she rode in the truck wearing whatever. She may have even changed to the clothing he described before they took a walk. I don’t think we’ll ever know for sure what she wore when.
JMO

This is not quite what I meant. I don’t know how she drove, and btw, thanks for describing the fun of riding when lion in bed of a fifth wheel. I never was inside it.

I am just thinking that RT describes what his wife wore inside that fifth wheel. And that was the last time he saw her. Maybe it was before they took a walk. I assume that one feels very comfortable wearing a bikini, a pair of socks and hiking boots inside the trailer. Outside, in a Mojave desert, because of how the climate has changed, people would cover up nowadays. I tolerate heat well, and yet I would 100% protect skin and eyes today. Even people who like to tan, probably, would not parade around in a bikini in a desert with the sun up in the sky. Very early in the AM, maybe. And the beer - what fun is it to carry around a can of warm beer? Because this is what it turns into during a hike in the desert. You either drink it, or throw it out.