JC was initial suspected by some, but I haven't seen any MSM that indicated what his schedule was at the base, so reports of when he filed a missing person's report didn't give me any red flag. Because the Military kept JC from commenting to MSM, I figured that JC was NOT on the radar and possibly another military person WAS. EC's mom coming to visit and giving her the news of the pregnancy was another issue that struck JC out of the "possible perp" list for me.
EC voluntarily disappearing was another: THAT never made sense to me. Young married pregnant gal, husband had job security, she had her horse, she was excited about the pregnancy, and her mom was coming for a visit. Didn't buy into that one either.
Lost:
I didn't "buy" the "going to JTP to find good hiking spots or areas to photo" for a second, the temps are just too hot, there's snakes, scorpions, etc, and I just don't see someone from Tennessee trekking out there in the desert in the middle of the summer, by herself. She wasn't a "desert rat". Specially in her first trimester where morning sickness, exhaustion, dizzy spells, and all the other fun stuff from pregnancy come into play.
Foul play: This is the only conclusion that made sense to me, even before the "affair" was legitimized. I thought it was going to be a "stranger abduction". Finding her car made it seem more viable an option......
That JC would have been unaware of the affair continuing, I can see that. Some people want to believe the best of their spouses. They deal with it and put it behind them. And JC was doing his job, whether it was on the base or somewhere else. He probably felt he had no reason to keep tabs on his wife.
Unfortunately, there where probably people he worked with or hung out with that knew the affair was ongoing (seriously, his "friend and neighbor", how close is that?). That's just the way it is in small "communities", like military bases. He was probably the last person to know.