Found Deceased CO - Suzanne Morphew, 49, did not return from bike ride, Chaffee County, 10 May 2020 #15

[Moonchime]

I have seen a photo of them all together at a restaurant last Mothers Day...including his Mom. Not able to post it as per TOS.

That's quite interesting. And, it causes a fresh wave of sadness to wash over me considering that Mother's Day was likely her last.

 

[Acorunadepor]

BBM:

Timing of discovery that she was missing would be important in this scenario because BM was able to place himself hours away from the scene at the time she purportedly went missing.

The girls were expected back from their camping trip that day, apparently.

IF the bike was staged, then the only plausible reason to stage that scene was to make it appear as if SM had left the house, gone for a bike ride, and then vanished.

I think the initial plan WAS for her daughters to come home to discover both her and her bike missing.

While it has not been disclosed by either LE or BM, I would not be at all surprised to discover that prior to the girls asking the neighbor to check on SM, there had been multiple texts/calls initiated by BM asking them whether they were on their way back and/or what their ETA home was.

IF BM is responsible for SM's disappearance, he would not want to put himself back in the frame by arriving back in town before she was discovered missing.

As soon as he heard they were running late, he would have needed to come up with an alternate plan.

Hypothetically, let's call it "Plan B: Call The Neighbor."

I think BM is the one who encouraged the girls to call the neighbor.

Just a guess.

JMO.

How would you think (in that scenario) he would have handled in the days prior?

They left friday presumably. When did he came back? If he staged the bike, did he forgot about the personal item because it was during the night? What was his timeframe? Late friday night untill early sunday morning? Can you move freely without being noticed at all?

Because his presence in Denver (or not) must be easy to dissect. My questions are more focused on what happened before that late afternoon of may the 10th.

 

[Seattle1]

I wonder if LE was looking for small pieces of a smashed Apple watch and a smashed-to-smithereens phone? That would explain the LE using sifters.

Absolutely. And what if the last known ping from SM's cell phone or watch was from the searched building site? What if BM and SM's phones were paired together at the building site but when BM left the site with his phone, SM's phone never transmitted again and still has not been located.

I never believed the searched site good for a body but definitely destroyed evidence. I think BM left something at that site that caused investigators to return there. MOO

 

[mom2chloe]

No. Not like a wedding but for many of us Mother’s Day is one of the most important family days in the year, after Christmas, Yom Kippur, Thanksgiving, Easter.

Going out to eat and/or on a special outing, taking weekend trips, and spending a bunch of money (Americans spend about TWENTY FIVE BILLION each year on Mother’s Day) aren’t atypical things people do. Not everyone, of course. Some people’s style is more to just relax. But for many people it’s a key holiday.

Mother’s Day is also the largest revenue day for restaurants and surpasses even Valentine’s Day by a lomg shot although not during Covid quarantine.

 

[vaporlass]

Have any descriptions stated she was wearing it? Have any descriptions been given at all?

No unfortunately ... just the “bike ride” scenario that has been offered, which is why I don’t understand why she wasn’t wearing it. I don’t wear mine usually when I’m around the house, just when I’m exercising - walking so I can reach my goals. I’m a bit older than SM, maybe she wasn’t as diligent about wearing it but I see it in that picture - which appears she’s out to lunch - and I can’t help but think she wore it more than I do... younger women might not consider such things but I do. I would say it’s because I’m always on WS or listening to Crime podcast, but I actually do it so my kids can find me if I have an accident or I can call 911 if I have an accident.

 

[FelicityLemon]

With all these past cases, about evidence nailing the POI from cell phones, wouldn't you plan ahead,
so your phone, car GPS etc don't implicate you?
In your mind, if pre planned for someone to be missing, you would be very careful, making sure, these items cannot implicate you.
Therefore not carrying your phone at all times, for many periods beforehand, so it appears to be a routine habit: explained by not wishing to be disturbed.
MOO.

LOL, you'd think people would learn, wouldn't you? I was disabused of that notion in 1987 when we watched Fatal Attraction in the theater and heard all the men's groans at what the cheater husband went through with the bunny boiler. We sat there afterwards and I said "I wonder if men will think twice about having an affair after seeing what could happen when they cheat on their wife?"

And then again, after Teresa Sievers was murdered by her lump of a husband and and his friends, I thought "surely, some people will reconsider murdering their spouse after learning EVERYTHING that LE can do to discover EVERYTHING about them!" That was absolutely mind-blowing work from Law Enforcement and prosecutors.

Nope. I see spouses still cheat and I see stupid people still think they're smarter than Law Enforcement.

roflllllllll at myself.

 

[vaporlass]

Now, that's interesting. An Apple watch. I'm sure the daughters would be able to tell LE if she always took the watch and/or her phone with her on her rides. It would make sense for any woman to do that. You simply don't know what can happen, from fairly benign things like banging your leg up in a bike accident to horrifying things like attacks by strange people. The Salida area has plenty of tourists from all over the place (although COVID may have impacted that somewhat) so you can never be sure there isn't some killer cruising the area. On a bike you are often very alone and in remote areas.

Are both her watch and phone missing? Were they both left home? Or are they gone, but have gone dead, showing their last location as the house? All of those scenarios are highly suspicious, obviously. One thing about all these tracking devices -- if a missing person always wears her watch, or always carries a phone, or never leaves on a bike ride without telling someone where they are going/leaves a note, well. Huge red flags if, on this day, she never did those things.

There's another good reason why she would have taken her phone anywhere she went that Mother's Day -- her two girls were on the road. She wouldn't want to miss a call from them in case they were delayed/hurt/in trouble.

Brilliant! I had not thought of the fact that she would take her phone or wear her watch so she would be in contact with the girls while they are traveling! Of course she would! I talk to my daughter when she drives to work each morning and back usually... she’s older but still as a Mom, I worry when she is traveling.
All of this might be WHY LE suspected something I immediately. JMO.

 

[MimosaMornings]

Another possibility is that the girls are coming home by a chartered bus, not driving by themselves. If the bus drops campers off at certain location, then they may need a ride to get home and they would be calling parents or friends to pick them up. In this case, SM was not answering the calls from the girls.........

(Hypothetical)

That’s a good thought!
But I don’t think so with the Covid restrictions that were in place.
Travel was heavily discouraged during that time period, especially out of state.
Something about that trip is off.

Why Idaho?
A favorite camping spot?
A friend had a cabin there?
Was anyone else on the trip?
Whose idea was it to go there?

JMO

 

[Cindizzi]

From experience, can confirm this.

FYI - this is very good information to know if you are ever stuck in an elevator.
No phone, but text still works. You can all thank me later....

Can confirm that text messages will go into a queue much like emails and be delivered when cell service is down. Living in Colorado and having a huge family in Houston, we found this out during Hurricane Harvey ( or possibly Hurricane Ike). At times, none of my family could contact each other, but could get through to me. I am their out of state relay contact now. Good thing because it keeps me busy when things get hairy and I’m so far away!

 

[Truecolors]

Still stuck on “the girls were running late”...,

If he’s completely uninvolved, I still don’t understand how it took him so long to be aware that the trip was delayed. And if he knew the trip was delayed, why didn’t he reach out to SM himself on her solo Mother’s Day? Surely he could spare a few minute for a phone call.

If he is involved, and, as suggested, needed the bike to be discovered, he must’ve been in contact with the girls. I think that their departure time would be heavy on his mind. No way he only found out at 5 that they weren’t getting back before dark. This is a missing piece for me. I can’t see him waiting all day until the girls call the neighbor on their own (as he said in the TD interview).

MOO

 

[Minordetails]

Could that Apple watch be the personal item they found?

His cell phone, her cell phone, her Apple Watch, and his truck GPS, all work together to tell a story. BM had to have known this. It takes a whale of a plan to coordinate all 4 of these devices with out raising any suspicion.

 

[vaporlass]

Denver Fire Training Center - 5280Fire
This is possibly the place he was at for the training he received that weekend, if he was there at the time the call was made and when he left for home I don't know.
(Training was suspended due to COVID, took this address for route purpose only.)

But I took the route from that training center:

خرائط ‪Google‬‏‏

I thought it had been established that he was in Denver to get ready for a “landscaping” job which would begin on Monday morning?
I’m not saying he might not have attended the Fireman’s Calendar Show that weekend, but to my knowledge - he was not there for anything to do with Fireman training or duties that weekend.

 

[kkdj]

Did SM perhaps leave on her bike ride prior to BM leaving for work?
Especially if she wanted to be home for the online church she would have a schedule.
Perhaps BM didn't need to show up on site at any particular time.

 

[vaporlass]

His cell phone, her cell phone, her Apple Watch, and his truck GPS, all work together to tell a story. BM had to have known this. It takes a whale of a plan to coordinate all 4 of these devices with out raising any suspicion.

He could have driven his truck to Denver, left his phone there, took another vehicle back to the house ... left her watch and phone at home with the story, “oh she doesn’t always take them when she rides her bike” ...
This would probably mean an accomplice but maybe it was a vehicle that belonged to one of his employees? Like, “hey man can I borrow your truck to go to a club? My wife has a tracking device and if she sees my truck leave ... I’m in big trouble.”
I know that sounds a bit far-fetched ... I’m sure employee would relay that info to LE if that happened.
A rental car would be noticed, too.
Theoretically ... why couldn’t he have taken an old company truck that doesn’t have GPS and no one knows the last mileage count? Just speculating ... or just my opinions.

 

[pocketaccent]

Still stuck on “the girls were running late”...,

If he’s completely uninvolved, I still don’t understand how it took him so long to be aware that the trip was delayed. And if he knew the trip was delayed, why didn’t he reach out to SM himself on her solo Mother’s Day? Surely he could spare a few minute for a phone call.

If he is involved, and, as suggested, needed the bike to be discovered, he must’ve been in contact with the girls. I think that their departure time would be heavy on his mind. No way he only found out at 5 that they weren’t getting back before dark. This is a missing piece for me. I can’t see him waiting all day until the girls call the neighbor on their own (as he said in the TD interview).

MOO

Maybe he just needed someone to verify the bike was missing from home that day. That can be accomplished through phone calls regardless the girls were running late or not. In the end, mission was accomplished. Physically discovering the bike may not have been his first priority, just on his wish list.

"the girls were running late" may just be an insignificant embellishment he added to his long explanation of how he found out about his missing wife.

JMO

 

[vaporlass]

Think about this case in comparison to the Mollie Tibbets case. Mollie disappeared while jogging.

The boyfriend she stayed with was out of town on the evening she went missing.

For weeks, the family AND the boyfriend and friends spoke out, keeping her story in the headlines for all to see.

Mollie’s father and even some LE thought perhaps she had been abducted by someone she knew.

The reward started for $1000 by Crime Stoppers. Within weeks the reward grew to $300,000.

Guess who kept showing up? The boyfriend, her brothers, her dad, her male friends, none of them hiding behind carefully crafted 30 second “commercials.” All stood united, not in fear of how they might appear on camera. (For God’s sake think how hard Heidi Broussard’s boyfriend had to try to keep the secret that he’d seen video of Heidi leaving in a car....he STILL went in front of cameras.)

And who followed those men, who by circumstance and relation would automatically need to be vetted as suspects...Law Enforcement!

Law Enforcement did not remain silent! They begged the public for information. With Mollie, Crime Stoppers, Iowa Missing Persons, Iowa DCI, and FBI came together VISIBLY. The County Sheriff went as far as to say of her brothers and boyfriend that they were cleared as suspects.

It was no secret. They couldn’t find Mollie and needed help (information).

When LE wants to blow it up, they do. All over town, all over billboards, all over morning news, and all over social media.

LE has kept a lid on this for a reason. Had anyone been “cleared,” in Suzanne’s disappearance, that person should be free to shout from the roof tops, just like all of the men in Mollie’s life, who were cleared, and shouted out for her.

Love this! Even if he’s innocent, his behavior is heartbreaking ... how could he stand by so quietly - saying nothing? We know he is not doing it because he admires and respects LE, the video revealed his opinions of them. So WHY is he being quiet?

 

[10ofRods]

I wonder if LE was looking for small pieces of a smashed Apple watch and a smashed-to-smithereens phone? That would explain the LE using sifters.

Those items would be visible to GPR (ground penetrating radar) as well. Would be hard to tell what the fragments are until uncovered. And would fit the "not associated with Suzanne at this time" because getting proof that fragments of the watch belonged to any particular person would take some time. It might take quite a bit of time. It's the kind of problem I'd love to see LE solve. And they can. So many clues would enable them to use fragments of a watch as evidence. Apple stores so much info about the watch itself and what it's been up to, up until its smashing.

Since in this case there's some obvious "reverse detecting" (LE knows exactly what devices the Morphews owned and what iCloud says about their various travels). So IF Suzanne had an apple watch or other smart device, that might be a piece of evidence a perp would want to destroy (whoever he or she is) and they might choose an unusual disposal method.

 

[DizzyB]

Eh I still think Sunday was not the day when whatever happened actually did. I don’t think there was a conversation about him going to Denver. I think by then SM’s phone & watch were either still in the house or long gone, and BM did the drive so he could say he was out of town when she went on her supposed bike ride. He could have “tried” to text and call her, but did not get an answer. Or he might not be a guy that texts often. The girls may have only tried to get in contact for Mother’s Day or to let their Mom know they were on their way. They might have been out of touch for a day or so before and thought nothing of it. I try not to bug my kids when they are off on their own adventure.

I think the bike was the set up in the hope that it looked like she went missing on Mother’s Day, while BM was gone. I imagine some of the footage LE asked people to hold onto is to verify if BM is captured on it.

 

[Dave F.]

When BLM arrived home is a non-issue to me. The neighbor called 911 at 5:46 pm, presumably as soon as Barry suggested it. Most of the current construction in the Denver metro area is east of the airport, so for an arbitrary place to start I picked DIA. The trip, under ideal conditions, takes 3 hours and 6 minutes. If Barry arrived at exactly 9:00 pm, that only allows 6 minutes to stop for gas.
My impression was that he arrived with the skid-steer on the trailer in tow. That makes it considerably more difficult to negotiate mountain roads. If that assumption is correct, the man was just flat out, laying down tracks home as fast as possible. That's what I would expect him to do. IMO

خرائط ‪Google‬‏‏

 

[vaporlass]

Maybe this has already been noted. Apologies, if so. But I plugged SM’s address into a few tools that identify Internet service providers available at that location. Technically, the house is in a dead zone for all broadband, even satellite. (Although it’s close enough to the edge of the map that it’s conceivable a look-angle might be available if things line up just right. It appears HughesNet’s orbital slots have a higher likelihood for service than ViaSat’s. But it’s hard to say without actually doing a site survey.)

Of course, satellite is a notoriously poor choice for apps that transmit a lot of data — apps like security video. So it’s possible that the reason security cameras may not have been working (assuming that’s the case) is because they were throttled or configured for such low-res as to be essentially useless. It’s also possible that the security video system is one that records locally rather than to the cloud. This would make more sense to me. If that’s the case, and there are unexplained gaps in the footage, it could throw some big red flags for LE. Has anyone noticed a satellite dish in any of the pics and video of the property?

6 Best Internet Service Providers in Salida, CO (Jun, 2020)

We used Hughes Net for Internet in our last home. You couldn’t find us by address ... our security was all wireless, our cameras did not need Internet to record.
Now, we are even deeper into East Texas woods. We can not access Internet at all but we still have cameras and they record constantly. Our security is wireless and does NOT require Internet. It auto dials the police if someone tries to enter our home.
So if security wasn’t working ... I’d say that was a red flag for LE on top of several other things that seem hinky.