CA CA - Bob Harrod, 81, Orange County, 27 July 2009 - # 1

[cloudajo]

I could see being off by 30 minutes and maybe even 1 hour, but two different daughters were off by 2-3 hours (late morning vs later in afternoon), and one of them was posting that 2 weeks after Bob went missing. That is if we go by the latest time last seen of 2:30PM, told to police by BIL/SIL according to latest OC Register article. And there was allegedly a trip in the morning by the BIL/SIL to CVS, where he allegedly bought soda and paper plates.

July 28 - 1 day after Bob went missing
[snipped]
Reporter: “Julie says her husband was with her dad, at his home yesterday. He went to the hardware store alone. When he came back…”
Julie: “My dad was gone.”
Reporter: “What time?”
Julie: “We’re thinking maybe 1, Noon?”

July 30 – 3 days after Bob went missing
Placentia Police Department website: Robert Harrod was last seen at his residence on July 27, 2009 at 1100 A.M. in the city of Placentia. When a family member returned to the house at approximately 1:00 P.M., Harrod was gone.

Aug 11 - >2 weeks after Bob went missing
Daughter posted on forum that she called her dad that morning. “Then she realized” her BIL was there and she “DID” hear him say he was going to the “hardware store,” and her "dad responded to him in a favorable way.” She posted that she gave an approximate time of between 11 and 12 and found later it was probably after 11:30 a.m.

Aug 12 - >2 weeks after Bob went missing
Same daughter who posted on Aug 11 posted that she’s “Not aware of how many trips BIL made out”

Aug 13 - >2 weeks after Bob went missing
Same daughter posted that LE has looked at their father’s phone records – she knows this because they did not know which phone call was hers, because she came up as “private.”

Aug 14 - 2-1/2 weeks after Bob went missing
Americas Most Wanted: Robert’s son-in-law told cops that in the late morning on July 27, 2009, he had left Robert to run errands at the hardware store, and when he returned, Robert was gone.

October 8 - >2 months after Bob went missing
[snipped]
Michaels told police he left the house for Home Depot to buy supplies around 2:30 p.m.

http://www.ktla.com/videobeta/watch/?watch=ac85bbd7-919c-45df-8bff-de9407f59354&src=front
http://www.placentiapd.org/pd/default.asp?section=1&NewsID=192&type=News
http://www.amw.com/missing_persons/case.cfm?id=67544
http://www.ocregister.com/articles/harrod-bob-police-2598739-fontelle-michaels

 

[Sharyne]

Yes the time line has really changed. And I never figured out why/when the police decided to call it a homicide, as at one point (I think about 2-3 weeks missing) on their website they had him listed as just missing.

 

[dreamweaver]

I know we all have our differing views of what may have taken place on July 27, 2009.
But, I am thinking that if we look away from the 'usual' and
try and discover what else could have happened, it could
stop the spiral we seem to be in right now.
My opinion early on was that the barber or her husband had something to do with Robert H's disappearance.
But, they have been ruled out.

'snipped from recent OC Register article'
Michaels told police he left the house for Home Depot to buy supplies around 2:30 p.m., and time stamped-receipts bear him out, Loomis said.
This appears to clarify the different time lines. In one of the very first news reports, the PPD said around 3pm.

They called Placentia Police to do a welfare check at the residence, Brady said. Officers found the house was as empty as Michaels said he left it.
Bob Harrod's daughters called Fontelle Harrod in Missouri, and she called in a missing persons report to police.
Family called PPD to do a welfare check as their father was still not at home. They then called Fontelle. Everyone began to worry.

She said he had failed to provide copies of their mother's will, which he was obligated to do because of the financial mechanisms set up by the estate.
Theirs is a family trust, set up by Robert and Georgia Harrod years ago. After Robert's wife died in early 2008, he was to provide copies of their mother's will to the daughters. By 7/26/2009, he still had not done that.
Perhaps he was busy with his new bride and his new circumstances getting the house ready for her return, but still had not made copies of Georiga Harrod's will, as part of the family trust.

There are no suspects, Loomis said. There's not even any evidence of a crime.
But Jeff Michaels' story checks out, and neither he nor any of the daughters are suspects in the disappearance, Loomis said.
No suspects, per Det Loomis. Jeff M's story checks out.

Fontelle Harrod and her children by previous marriages wouldn't have anything to gain by Harrod's disappearance, either.
No suspects, per Det Loomis.

Chief Anderson was cryptic in his responses during an interview about the future of the investigation.
"I don't want to show my hand to you," he said. "We have a couple of ongoing roads we're going to go down. I don't want to alert possible suspects. We have nothing to focus on directly yet."
Possible suspects. Ongoing roads to go down.
IMO:
PPD are looking somewhere other than Robert H's daughters, his sil, and his new wife.

Let's look somewhere else too.
Old friends, new friends, neighbors, the bag boy at the supermarket....?


http://www.ocregister.com/articles/harrod-bob-police-2598739-fontelle-michaels
more at link.

 

[SuziQ]

IMO, LE doesn't call someone a suspect in an effort to keep them from lawyering up. The fact that JM's story checked out only means to me that he was verified to have been at the Home Depot at a certain time. Bob's family has not been cleared. IMO, if Bob only took his wallet, keys and locked up, who's to say that he didn't get in the car with JM and JM dumped his body off on the way to or from Home Depot? Even LE says logic points to money in this case.

Loomis said simple logic would dictate that Bob Harrod's money would be the motive for someone to get rid of him, which would hypothetically connect Harrod's daughters to the disappearance. But Jeff Michaels' story checks out, and neither he nor any of the daughters are suspects in the disappearance, Loomis said.

 

[Sharyne]

IMO, LE doesn't call someone a suspect in an effort to keep them from lawyering up. The fact that JM's story checked out only means to me that he was verified to have been at the Home Depot at a certain time. Bob's family has not been cleared. IMO, if Bob only took his wallet, keys and locked up, who's to say that he didn't get in the car with JM and JM dumped his body off on the way to or from Home Depot? Even LE says logic points to money in this case.

Loomis said simple logic would dictate that Bob Harrod's money would be the motive for someone to get rid of him, which would hypothetically connect Harrod's daughters to the disappearance. But Jeff Michaels' story checks out, and neither he nor any of the daughters are suspects in the disappearance, Loomis said.

It wouldn't be the first time LE "cleared" a suspect and later charged him/her.

BTW, I like and agree with your statement under your name.

 

[Fairy1]

This is such an odd case! I actually don't suspect the daughters. They knew the family fortune was in a trust and their dad going missing will not help them gain access to the $$$ for years. The same can be said of the barber woman. If anyone close to him actually killed him, they would have placed his body somewhere where it would be easily found, IMO. Clearly, that is not the case.

IDK - If what the daughters say about his disposition is true, I can see him just taking off and leaving his loved ones in limbo. No one stands to gain anything the way it stands right now.

 

[Angelo]

Have polygraphs have been offered to anyone involved?

Have any family members taken a polygraph or voluteered to do so?

 

[suzyq211]

This is such an odd case! I actually don't suspect the daughters. They knew the family fortune was in a trust and their dad going missing will not help them gain access to the $$$ for years. The same can be said of the barber woman. If anyone close to him actually killed him, they would have placed his body somewhere where it would be easily found, IMO. Clearly, that is not the case.

IDK - If what the daughters say about his disposition is true, I can see him just taking off and leaving his loved ones in limbo. No one stands to gain anything the way it stands right now.

What if that Sunday afternoon things were said that caused the daughters to think that their inheritence might be in jeopardy, ie: the new wife and their father's supposed plan to add Fontelle on his "accounts".When people think the rug is being pulled out from under them they can behave in irrational ways.

I honestly can't see an 81 year old man with bad knees taking off without being seen by anyone, even if he would have gotten some enjoyment out of it. It was probably a real disappointment to him to realize just how greedy and selfish some family members can be.

 

[eyes4crime]

IMO, from what I've read, I think they had an opinion of him for a long time, and certain events during/after their mother passed away caused it to be an extreme issue for them.

The OC Register article mentions that from 1953-2002, Bob "builds his wealth through a combination of wise investing, purchasing properties and what his daughter Roberta Brady called “extreme frugality.”

There are posts on another forum referring to “$$$=God to him,” that he was cheap, that he could have spent money to improve the conditions of their mother's care but didn’t, and they refer to money spent by him after their mother passed away as their "mother's blood money."

http://www.ocregister.com/articles/h...telle-michaels

bolded by me -
I've been following along and I can't resist another post.

Bob has spent his life practicing 'extreme' frugality...that's how he became rich. He worships money like he would a God. The girls must feel outraged that their mother wasn't cared for properly. My point is - there is no new behavior on Bob's part!. According to the daughters, Bob has spent a lifetime accumulating money and wealth, a lifetime of being cheap, frugal, and greedy. The daughters grew up in that environment - this is what they are used to. So why the disruption?

The ONLY change is that Bob suddenly and abruptly got married. I think this is all about the money, the trust, the new wife, and an extreme sense of entitlement on the part of the daughters. I would be shocked if it wasn't!!!

 

[dreamweaver]

What if that Sunday afternoon things were said that caused the daughters to think that their inheritence might be in jeopardy, ie: the new wife and their father's supposed plan to add Fontelle on his "accounts".When people think the rug is being pulled out from under them they can behave in irrational ways.

I honestly can't see an 81 year old man with bad knees taking off without being seen by anyone, even if he would have gotten some enjoyment out of it. It was probably a real disappointment to him to realize just how greedy and selfish some family members can be.

===========================================

I suppose anything is possible, but
I do not think that three grown women decided to
kill their dad after a discussion about money.
What would that conversation be like?

They had been dealing with dad's behavior about money
all their life.
There was a trust set up by Robert and Georgia Harrod years before.

Robert probably was planning to add Fontelle to his accounts.
He had just gotten married.
But whatever the trust contained could not be broken.

Whatever people tend to believe, Robert H is missing.

 

[Angelo]

We do not know Bob Harrod's behavior. We do not know what he was like with money. We only know what the daughters have posted on another site.

One of the daughter's lives in a house owned by her father.

Maybe BH did not freely hand-out money to his children while they were growing up and when they were grown. So what.

 

[eyes4crime]

We do not know Bob Harrod's behavior. We do not know what he was like with money. We only know what the daughters have posted on another site.

One of the daughter's lives in a house owned by her father.

Maybe BH did not freely hand-out money to his children while they were growing up and when they were grown. So what.

Sorry Angelo - I don't care if the daughters wrote lies or the truth about their dad - they wrote it! The caricatures of him on-line represent what they are thinking NOW. To put it any other way is to minimize the anger and resentment they have. Maybe old dad is tied to a bed somewhere - sedated. But where ever he is, my opinion is that his family has something to do with it. I can always hope that I am wrong.

 

[Angelo]

Sorry Angelo - I don't care if the daughters wrote lies or the truth about their dad - they wrote it! The caricatures of him on-line represent what they are thinking NOW. To put it any other way is to minimize the anger and resentment they have. Maybe old dad is tied to a bed somewhere - sedated. But where ever he is, my opinion is that his family has something to do with it. I can always hope that I am wrong.

I agree with you 100 %. IMO money is the cause of Bh's disappearance. I also agree the daughters have a strong resentment of their father and a dislike for him and his ways. This is obvious in their postings. As time went on after they starting posting, it seemed that they could not hide their real feeling about their father, his money, and his remarriage.


BH is not here to defend himself. IMO his daughters know he will never be back to defend himself, hence they can say anything they want and BH can never refute it.

The postings of BH's daughters give us real insight into what the daughters were feeling, however we do not know what BH was really like as a person. He may not have been stingy with his money (as the daughters state), but may have expected his children to work, support themselves, and be adults. The daughters may not have liked that.

 

[suzyq211]

I too am tired of all the ill comments and badmouthing of the father when he can't defend himself. Here is a comment written by a neighbor in response to the article in the OC Register.
http://www.ocregister.com/articles/...RecommendedOnly=0&oncommentsPage=3#slComments

ptownmama wrote:
<snip>
We live right around the corner from the house. While we didnt know Mr. Harrod we had seen him around, and knew from other neighbors that we was a quiet, kind, retired military man. It sickens me every day to drive by his home, especially at night and see the porch light on the green front door. My kids ask me frequently, "have they found the old man?...Is the old man back yet?"

At least there is one kind comment about Mr. Harrod. Selfish, controlling, money-hoarding men don't come off as 'kind" to neighbors, IMO.

 

[Fairy1]

We do not know Bob Harrod's behavior. We do not know what he was like with money. We only know what the daughters have posted on another site.

One of the daughter's lives in a house owned by her father.

Maybe BH did not freely hand-out money to his children while they were growing up and when they were grown. So what.

I have to admit, most everything I've learned about Bob has come from the daughters. So, in retrospect, my opinion may be a bit skewed. That being said, I do tend to think he was at least a bit of an SOB. These women are in their 50's or 60's, right? They KNOW their family fortune is in a trust and they KNOW that they will not be able to collect any of it if their dad is simply "missing."

So then, what is the theory here? Do ya'll think the daughters killed Bob on the Sunday before he went missing or the day he went missing?

IIRC - the neighbors saw Bob the morning of the day he went missing...yes? The SIL's trip to the hardware store has been verified. So, when was he murdered - if that is the case?

I just don't know what to think here!!!

 

[dreamweaver]

I have to admit, most everything I've learned about Bob has come from the daughters. So, in retrospect, my opinion may be a bit skewed. That being said, I do tend to think he was at least a bit of an SOB. These women are in their 50's or 60's, right? They KNOW their family fortune is in a trust and they KNOW that they will not be able to collect any of it if their dad is simply "missing."

So then, what is the theory here? Do ya'll think the daughters killed Bob on the Sunday before he went missing or the day he went missing?

IIRC - the neighbors saw Bob the morning of the day he went missing...yes? The SIL's trip to the hardware store has been verified. So, when was he murdered - if that is the case?

I just don't know what to think here!!!

=================================================
I have to agree with fairy1.

Robert Harrod's daughters do know what their dad is like.
He probably was a penny pinching, tight fisted man.
Maybe the daughters did feel he did not treat their mom
as good as he could have during her final illness.
Maybe the daughters are not as close as some to their dad.
Maybe they were concerned that he was giving or loaning money
to the barber.
Maybe they felt he was starting to have some mild dementia since he was passing his money out to an almost stranger.
From all I have read, they were excited and happy for their dad, once
he met Fontelle.
They said in a news article, that their dad was happy for the first time in a very long time.
The daughters also have said they welcomed Fontelle into the family, glad she was going to be a part of their family and be their dad's wife.

They met with Robert Sunday before his disappearance. He was to
provide copies to them of their mother's trust.
It had been over a year since their mother's death. He was required by law to provide copies.
He became upset because he did not have the copies ready and they were upset because he had known for a long time he had to do this.
They felt he was reacting in such a way that brought up
the thought that maybe he was not himself, careful, organized, disciplined,
beyond frugal dad. ...i.e., when he was handing over thousands of dollars to the barber. Maybe there was some mild dementia going on.

And, so to think, that at that moment in time, those 3 daughters looked at one another and said, well, that's it, he has to go.
I do not think so.
And somehow in their 3 seperate cars, going back to their 3 seperate houses, they hatched some sort of diabolical plan.
A plan that was to be activated the very next day.
Nope.
I don't think so.

 

[dreamweaver]

There is no money available to anyone for seven years, since
no one knows where Robert H is.

If the barber has been ruled out as a suspect.
If Fontelle does not have a money motive
and
if the daughters do not have a money motive,

then what the heck happened to Robert Harrod?

Who would have harmed him?
or
Who would have helped him disappear?

 

[ShowMe]

I'm new have been thinking outside of the box about this story.
I have a theory that 81 year old Robert is overwhelmed, stubborn, and less able to make good decisions. Cold feet was one police theory. I agree that he may have decided not to be tied down by family, a new wife, or anybody. With no evidence of a crime and no activity on accounts, he could have siphoned off enough to live on and walked away rather than face up to any regrets.
It is entirely possible that nobody wished harm upon him and he alone decided to make himself scarce. This is such a sad story and so hurtful for all concerned.

:twocents:

 

[cloudajo]

I have to admit, most everything I've learned about Bob has come from the daughters. So, in retrospect, my opinion may be a bit skewed. That being said, I do tend to think he was at least a bit of an SOB. These women are in their 50's or 60's, right? They KNOW their family fortune is in a trust and they KNOW that they will not be able to collect any of it if their dad is simply "missing."

So then, what is the theory here? Do ya'll think the daughters killed Bob on the Sunday before he went missing or the day he went missing?

IIRC - the neighbors saw Bob the morning of the day he went missing...yes? The SIL's trip to the hardware store has been verified. So, when was he murdered - if that is the case?

I just don't know what to think here!!!

IMO, just speculation on my part:

I think grief about their mother’s passing, anger about how Bob was spending money, his new marriage and what that meant re inheritance, and the daughters’ sense of entitlement, were all events that played a part and came to a head that Sunday/Monday.

Neighbor last saw Bob on Saturday. Bob and Fontelle spoke twice daily while she was in MO, and she last spoke to him that Sunday evening. I think that after the daughters left on Sunday, Bob spoke to Fontelle that evening and told her about what happened and that the daughters threatened him. I say this because the daughter posted on another forum that “there were NO threats and they all left on good terms.” Why would she post this specifically about “threats” unless someone (e.g. Bob to Fontelle that evening) had said there were threats and that was communicated to PPD after Bob went missing?

I think something bad happened to Bob that Monday, between ~10AM and ~2:30PM, but more likely earlier in the day and not closer to 2:30PM. The reason I think Monday (not Sunday) is because the latest OCR article says Bob spoke to the housekeeper that Monday morning and told her to come. I tend to believe that (for now anyway). The changing timelines from daughters about time last and phone call/conversation makes me suspicious of the 2:30PM time SIL supposedly last saw Bob. IMO, I think perhaps it has since changed to 2:30PM so it would seem the SIL didn’t have time to do anything to Bob. All we know is there is a Home Depot receipt saying he paid for items at 3:04PM and an alleged trip to CVS earlier that morning to buy "soda and paper plates."

If Bob was really fine and at home until Monday 2:30PM, why hadn’t he spoken with Fontelle that Monday if they spoke twice daily? That would have been 4:30PM her time in MO. I think it was because Bob was either incapacitated or taken from the house earlier that Monday.

Not sure what I think happened exactly, whether it was hastily planned after the Sunday argument, or whether the one daughter went home and vented to her husband (Bob’s SIL), and the SIL got angry and took matters into his own hands that Monday. But I think it was the SIL and daughters were involved in some way, either before or right after. And their subsequent interviews and numerous posts on another forum were intended to cover up, throw suspicion elsewhere, and get attention and sympathy for themselves.

 

[cloudajo]

=================================================
[respectfully snipped]

From all I have read, they were excited and happy for their dad, once
he met Fontelle.
They said in a news article, that their dad was happy for the first time in a very long time.
The daughters also have said they welcomed Fontelle into the family, glad she was going to be a part of their family and be their dad's wife.

Yes, they did say that, but posts on another forum they allegedly made make me believe otherwise. This does not sound like happy times to me.

• Dec 08 – According to youngest daughter, Bob “pushed the family away” around Christmas, the distance he created was “so selfish,” they were upset about “lavish” gifts he purchased for another woman, and “he did not even acknowledge his own grandson and grandchildren.” According to daughter, the difficult situation of just losing their mother and Bob pushing them away was “insane.”
• May? – According to daughter, they contacted OC Social Services to conduct an investigation of suspected elder financial abuse several months before Bob went missing. OC Social Services could not pursue, as Bob did not want to pursue.
• June 29 - Bob and Fontelle got married and according to Bob’s daughter, told their families a few days later
• Date? – According to youngest daughter, they met Fontelle and Bob wanted them to be an “instant family again.”
• July 7 – Fontelle left for MO
• Before July 27 – According to daughter, they contacted OC Social Services for the second time
• July 26 – According to daughter, the 3 daughters went to Bob’s house to get copies of their mother’s will, stating he was obligated to provide. He didn’t have the copies. Daughter said it wasn’t a heated meeting; just their dad got heated. According to what another daughter posted on a forum earlier, “the family meeting” was heated at times, but there were “NO threats” and they all left on good terms.