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

[Barry]

No offense @Barry, but it is a little disconcerting to see that Barry liked my post in this particular thread.

None taken

 

[Feistyomi]

A good kickstart to suspicion could possibly be the home surveillance camera not working. .... that would do it for me .... speculation, of course. MOO

This is actually an important puzzle piece to me. Do we actually know the
Home surveillance cameras weren’t working? There is so much speculation to wade thru, and very few facts. I believe there could have been surveillance somewhere showing someone other than BM grabbing SM. LE would then need to identify this person as well as rule out involvement by BM
This would explain apparent focus shifting from lion to BM. Home surveillance camera could do this quickly and reason shift was made.
Unidentified person search encompasses total stranger(random) and someone connected to BM.

 

[kkdj]

As I remember, it's suggested that the nieghbor was used for making the 911 call only after the daughters were running late...seems like the daughters were expected to make that call when they arrived to an empty house. For some reason BM did not seem to want to be in charge of calling 911. Moo

BBM
Ahah! That's right! I hadn't thought of that! Their plans were delayed and unexpectedly so! The girls were the ones intended to call 911. Unless it's random of course.

 

[OldCop]

Not anymore. BM could have called 911 and asked to be connected to Salida, dialed the out of area emergency number for Salida, or texted 911 with the Salida suffix code that puts caller through to the same dispatch that answers calls in Salida. There's simply no reason why BM (or daughters) couldn't make the call.

And he would know that since he would have been quite familiar with the 911 system as he was a volunteer firefighter.

 

[tmar]

I think that with the absence of known facts and evidence, sometimes we need to look closely and observe what LE are not saying as opposed to what they are saying. For me, there would be more information given out by the sheriff and more family pleas for information to help locate SM. Therefore, I deduce, and it is merely MOO that LE know exactly what’s happened and who they are building a case against . I may be wrong and I will hold my hands up if that is the case, but I truly believe that they know and are putting together all the pieces of that jigsaw puzzle!

Once they release their findings, we may be surprised, with the detail in the evidence.
Hope it is soon.

 

[Puzzles8]

As I remember, it's suggested that the nieghbor was used for making the 911 call only after the daughters were running late...seems like the daughters were expected to make that call when they arrived to an empty house. For some reason BM did not seem to want to be in charge of calling 911. Moo

In fairness to BM, it might have been more practical for someone local to call 911. I doubt BM had the direct phone number to the police station in his phone. I think if you call 911, operators will connect you with the closest 911 tower/location. He might have been several hours from home when 911 was called. I am no tech expert, so MOO.

If someone would be kind enough to answer a couple of questions. I am way behind trying to catch up.

Has it been confirmed anywhere what time BM actually arrived back in Maysville on MD? I thought I read somewhere that he returned home at 9pm. Was that after he had tried to join the search parties, or was he just rolling into town? Did he stay at their house that night?

TIA

 

[oviedo]

He had the knowledge, tools, and time. Personally, I’d be stunned if she was ever found.

ITA and I think her missing date is earlier too
JMO

 

[Tate123]

Having spoke to hundreds of jurors and potential jurors over the years about their TV habits I was suprised at how all over the map they tend to be.

During CSI's ratings heyday only a couple of people per panel admitted to watching CSI. Law and Order was more popular, but still less than I suspected. A consistent number say they did not really watch any particular show. It is always some of more light-hearted portion of Voir Dire.

IMO jurors are more sophisticated then most people, including attorneys, think.

IMO most civil and criminal jury trials come down to the truth and credibility.

I deny watching The Real Housewives of NYC but never miss an episode.

 

[Feistyomi]

BBM

yeah, those calls are recorded for future analysis.[

IMO BM is like me, KISS, he really wasn’t alarmed, but the girls were, the Morphew girls may be very comfortable w neighbor, but the chain of command is to check with family first, before alarming the neighbors.
BM was alarmed enough to head home from Denver, but he needed to know for sure something was amiss before calling 911.
While girls call the neighbor, BM is throwing things in truck, getting on the road home, wasting no time. Neighbor finds something alarming enough that she doesn’t waste time in calling 911... Her age gives her the experience to immediately call. whatever the neighbor did find, it was instantly recognized such that something HAD happened to Suzanne...but not enough to rule out lion attack...that’s gonna keep me up tonite.

 

[TxGidget]

Female pronghorns are at minimum about 75 pounds, per Wikipedia. I guess we call them antelope. I can’t see a cat carrying one away without there being drag marks. Can you? Also, they should find paw prints, IMO.

There were some light showers the next day, in the area. But it doesn’t seem enough to destroy all paw prints.

If I hadn’t watched the cat gingerly pick up the animal and trot off, I wouldn’t have believed it possible either. Honestly, I know next to nothing about horned animals. It was at very the very least equal in weight to the cat. I know adult mountain lions can be quite large so I wonder what they can carry in their mouths and haul off. I agree about tracks and drag marks.

 

[pocketaccent]

As I remember, it's suggested that the nieghbor was used for making the 911 call only after the daughters were running late...seems like the daughters were expected to make that call when they arrived to an empty house. For some reason BM did not seem to want to be in charge of calling 911. Moo

The bike had to be found soon.

But before that, somebody had to find SM missing first.
The daughters were running late, won't be home any time soon.

What to do?
He could have made futile text attempts to SM himself. Call 911.
But that wouldn't work. Because he wouldn't be able to say the bike is missing also.

Because it's the missing bike he wanted discovered, not SM missing. The person who calls 911 had to say 'Her bike is missing'. He needed someone who can say that unequivocally. By actually witnessing the missing bike. The daughters were not home. He was not home. But the neighbor was. So the neighbor calling 911-method was chosen.

JMO

 

[Angleterre]

Wow, I love British mysteries, true and nonfiction. I am honored to be texting you!
I don’t think LE has tunnel vision. Maybe we have, because we focused only on BM, I think they have been investigating all the possibilities, except the mountain lion.
Side note I’ve lived on this property for twenty years, woods, wildlife friendly. We know there is at least one bobcat, as one of my sons’ friends saw him(her) I’ve seen footprints in sand twice, and I believe scat? once. Sort of like a a huge house cat covering it. So I haven’t ruled out mountain lions completely. They are much larger, more dangerous, but just as elusive.
Back to this case.
You are absolutely correct that they may be closing all the loopholes, tightening up the case. I may be back at the beginning, I think LE is way ahead of me. But it is sort of the same thing I am doing also, reviewing to see where I slipped up. I am an amateur. I have the blessed freedom to be wrong.
However, isn’t random stranger the hardest case to solve, based on your experience? Working this from a great distance, what do you think? I value your insight.

It’s very difficult for me to say because I have no facts but if you rule out the mountain lion as there’s no physical evidence of such , rule out a ‘tiger’ kidnap because it would be kept secret , rule out abduction because I believe there would be requests for help from LE and pleas from the family and let’s be honest, who would abduct a person and then calmly go and stand their bicycle up against a tree, so what’s left ? I have concerns about things that I have read but I don’t know if they are true for example the reports of the security system at their HA being down and the immediate move to involve the CBI/FBI for a missing woman which ordinary would take far longer for a routine MFH report to be taken, also concerns because BM said in the Ty recording that they were all going to celebrate Mother’s Day together later that day yet he didn’t get home until 9pm thereby allowing speculation that he has set the scene by staging the bike and then being out of the state. There are so many things that give me cause for concern but they are not verified facts so therefore who knows ? My only other speculation is to an abduction that is to do with BM and his allegiances to people to do with his financial situation but that’s a far stretch . These are all purely my thoughts and in no way am I accusing BM outright or saying that he is guilty, however there certainly are areas of concern that if I were the SIO of this investigation, I would want answered ASAP

 

[Angleterre]

I agree wholeheartedly, @Angleterre.

Thank you fellow retired officer

 

[Angleterre]

I deny watching The Real Housewives of NYC but never miss an episode.

This made me lol
I’m guilty of that pleasure too

 

[imakittykittykittyimacat]

Most of us are ethical humans who believe in the oath we took to uphold the US and our respective state constitution, and to get actual justice, no matter how long it takes or where our investigation ultimately leads us.

And then there are the defense attorneys...I KID I KID...lol

 

[DizzyB]

Didn’t BM state somewhere that he had asked SM if she minded him being up in Denver on Mother’s Day? Did he box himself in to saying that the conversation took place on Sunday morning? Maybe it’s as simple as BM stating he was with SM in the morning, and the girls not being able to get in touch with her long before then. Couple that with a bike in an impossible place, security system inoperable, neighbor being the one to call 911, and one or two more hinky things..

 

[Feistyomi]

It’s very difficult for me to say because I have no facts but if you rule out the mountain lion as there’s no physical evidence of such , rule out a ‘tiger’ kidnap because it would be kept secret , rule out abduction because I believe there would be requests for help from LE and pleas from the family and let’s be honest, who would abduct a person and then calmly go and stand their bicycle up against a tree, so what’s left ? I have concerns about things that I have read but I don’t know if they are true for example the reports of the security system at their HA being down and the immediate move to involve the CBI/FBI for a missing woman which ordinary would take far longer for a routine MFH report to be taken, also concerns because BM said in the Ty recording that they were all going to celebrate Mother’s Day together later that day yet he didn’t get home until 9pm thereby allowing speculation that he has set the scene by staging the bike and then being out of the state. There are so many things that give me cause for concern but they are not verified facts so therefore who knows ? My only other speculation is to an abduction that is to do with BM and his allegiances to people to do with his financial situation but that’s a far stretch . These are all purely my thoughts and in no way am I accusing BM outright or saying that he is guilty, however there certainly are areas of concern that if I were the SIO of this investigation, I would want answered ASAP

Agreed, we have few verified facts and a lot of speculation. I am not sure the bike was standing against a tree, certainly that would have ruled out both abduction and lion attack, therefore it is important. It could have been picked up by a searcher and placed there. I’d like to know exactly who and when the lion attack became possibility.

I have decided to review the case with bias toward BMs innocence.
I guess I am taking the Miss Marple approach. I actually know several happily married couples, and as they are in their 60’s and 70’s, murder becomes more unlikely... I have decided to assume BM innocent, and review from that angle. Isn’t that also helpful when tightening up cases?

I have my own questions. This will be more complicated than any of us expect, interesting when we do get the explanations. Thanks for your response.

 

[Janeumayer]

As I remember, it's suggested that the nieghbor was used for making the 911 call only after the daughters were running late...seems like the daughters were expected to make that call when they arrived to an empty house. For some reason BM did not seem to want to be in charge of calling 911. Moo

Correct, maybe didn’t want his voice recorded and analyzed for posterity?

 

[rainbowshummingbird]

The bike had to be found soon.

But before that, somebody had to find SM missing first.
The daughters were running late, won't be home any time soon.

What to do?
He could have made futile text attempts to SM himself. Call 911.
But that wouldn't work. Because he wouldn't be able to say the bike is missing also.

Because it's the missing bike he wanted discovered, not SM missing. The person who calls 911 had to say 'Her bike is missing'. He needed someone who can say that unequivocally. By actually witnessing the missing bike. The daughters were not home. He was not home. But the neighbor was. So the neighbor calling 911-method was chosen.

JMO

Yes, of course, you are right. In order to set forth the proposed scenarios of cat attack, abduction, bike accident, hit and run and kidnap for ransom; the knowledge of her missing bike was crucial.

 

[Angleterre]

Agreed, we have few verified facts and a lot of speculation. I am not sure the bike was standing against a tree, certainly that would have ruled out both abduction and lion attack, therefore it is important. It could have been picked up by a searcher and placed there. I’d like to know exactly who and when the lion attack became possibility.

I have decided to review the case with bias toward BMs innocence.
I guess I am taking the Miss Marple approach. I actually know several happily married couples, and as they are in their 60’s and 70’s, murder becomes more unlikely... I have decided to assume BM innocent, and review from that angle. Isn’t that also helpful when tightening up cases?

I have my own questions. This will be more complicated than any of us expect, interesting when we do get the explanations. Thanks for your response.

I will be honest and say that I am on the fence and not leaning either way BUT it’s the little that we do already know and BM’s chat with Ty that is pointing the finger back at himself and this is where the questions come up.....we will soon hear ( I hope ) and either way I hope SM is located / recovered . If BM is involved then it’s so sad that she survived cancer twice ,only to suffer such a fate and it makes me question is in fact BM took out large life Insurance policies on SM thinking that she would die from the cancer and both times she was strong enough to beat it thus scuppering his plans and therefore he committed the ultimate sin , all for money ? I am again not saying that this is the case , it’s merely thoughts on paper and I apologise for the graphic nature of those thoughts but we have to examine all aspects and not just the nicer parts but the ugly parts of the investigation too I’m afraid!