Found Deceased CO - Suzanne Morphew, 49, did not return from bike ride, Chaffee County, 10 May 2020 #3

Welcome to Websleuths!
Click to learn how to make a missing person's thread

DNA Solves
DNA Solves
DNA Solves

New Posts

Status
Not open for further replies.
Dave F. said:
Most LE agencies will not mention a reward UNLESS it is offered through Crimestoppers or similar reliable agency. IMO
Click to expand...
My point was really more about the two maybe not seeming to be on the same page. I think it's always best for a family to work with LE and listen to their wise advice.

I don't know that's not happening in this case, just looking at the outward appearance. The family is likely in very close contact with the CCSO.
 
kay74 said:
I'm SURE this sheriff checked out his location way back when this started so who cares if his relatives are letting people know this info. It's not the husband anyway they have to start looking for the suspect. They have the FBI there for pete's sake. I hope it's not going to be another Jayme Closs who had to save herself.
Click to expand...
bbm
This post is a general speculation and directed at no one in particular.

Respectfully --we do not know this for a fact.
Although if you have a link that it's for sure not the husband and he has been cleared by LE, it would be helpful.

I trust LE in this investigation; they've been very tight-lipped and have not cleared anyone.
If LE chooses to clear someone, I'll accept it completely.

From the beginning I think it was classified as a criminal investigation and to my knowledge that hasn't changed.
Afaik no one has been cleared.

IF Suzanne was taken and is missing -- LE are not treating this as someone who willfully ran off or was abducted.
Where are the bolo's for who has her ?
As well as a description of a vehicle or at the very least what was she wearing and a description of her bike ?
So many unanswered questions.

LE have not said anyone took her, and they haven't described the bike nor her clothing.
Nor have they warned the public to be on the lookout, which speaks volumes; imo.
All of which points to whatever happened -- it may not have been an abduction.

This case is frustrating because we've been told so little !
 
Last edited:
10ofRods said:
Depends on time of year. The headwaters to the river aren't far from where the Morphews live, so it's still smallish as it passes their house, probably has lots of exposed boulders, but also some deeper pools. People do raft the river a little further downstream.

According to the water flow rate chart, flow is above average right now. Do keep in mind that you can't tell the depth of these rocky gorges by looking at the width of the riverbed. Take a look at the pictures and flow rates here:

Arkansas River At Salida Flow Report | Colorado USGS 07091500

Many a person has disregarded depth and gone into water just like that. It would probably be called a creek if it weren't known to be the Arkansas River. 1469 miles long, starting about 60 miles from the Morphew house, it flows into the Mississippi. The whitewater rafting season has started (county residents only) and Brown's Canyon (near Salida) seems to be a busy put-in place.
Click to expand...

From your post, I'm not sure if you know that the Arkansas River and the South Arkansas River are not the same waterway. They each come down from the mountains in different drainages.

The South Arkansas River is what goes by the Morphew's house and Maysville, then runs into the Arkansas River south of Salida. The headwaters of the South Arkansas River are up by Monarch Pass, west up Hwy 50 from Maysville, and it is smaller than the Arkansas.
 
perception≠reality said:
Can you please provide some clarification? It was my understanding we are supposed to be allowed to theorize or state our opinions or hypotheses, so long as it is clear that we are offering opinion or speculation ONLY, and we do not accuse anyone not named as a poi/suspect. <modsnip>
Click to expand...

When members are speculating, it must be clear that it is their theory or speculation (i.e. IMO, JMO, I wonder if ...) based on a known fact rather than come across as a statement of fact, AND it cannot be unfriendly to innocent people (people who are not officially named by LE to be a POI or suspect).

Example: We know from the nephew a bike was found (MSM), so it is okay to base speculation on the bike being found. To say to the effect "I wonder if the perp left her bike there because the perp wanted to stage her disappearance" is fine, or "IMO, maybe a perp left the bike there to stage her disappeareance". To insinuate however that it might be an innocent person or family member who has done so would not be victim friendly.

If members want to speculate that the bike being found (a known fact) is part of a staging scenario (speculation), they can make it clear it is opinion or theory. In order to remain victim friendly however, that theory must not insinuate an individual who has not been named a POI or suspect by LE. So in order to consider staging as a theory, members could base their theory on an unknown perp but not on a family member or other innocent party.

We see these theories start innocently enough but next thing we know we have members referring to it as if it is a known fact. For example: "Well, the fact that staging is involved would seem to indicate ....."

Clear as mud? Any further questions, please ask via private message rather than on the thread. Thanks.
 
margarita25 said:
Is everybody here sold on foul play? I have some thoughts re: the terrain, etc. but don’t want stones thrown at me lol jk.
Click to expand...
At the very start I did worry about her health issues. I'm a worrier. I was concerned that she may have not been in great health, and something like a stroke, or a fall, might have happened, and she got lost. But as time has passed, I think she would have been found by now if that were the case. Pretty sold on foul play now.
 
Ontario Mom said:
I'm pretty much sold on foul play but I promise not to throw any stones.
Share your thoughts, I'm curious now.
:)
Click to expand...
bbm
We can share our thoughts now ?
And no stone throwing ?
Lol, jk.
I thought from the first that maybe she'd fled to escape whatever, and that she'd had help.

But when the husband posted the reward on msm; I thought it was odd as if she ran and he knew it-- why not keep it a private matter ?
Awfully quick reaction after only 1 day of her vanishing.

I have other theories that I've already posted; and some that I haven't posted. :eek:
 
clearskies1 said:
Seems like foul play. Otherwise, would probably have found her by now. JMO.
Click to expand...

Well, maybe...we see searchers miss people...

We have Rita Gutierrez for example who is known to have likely been disposed of around Rabbit Mountain—she has still not been found. That WAS FP, but it goes to demonstrate these terrains are vast. Amy Ahonen was never found until the 2013 floods scattered her bones across three different counties...we still don’t know if her death was an accident or not...

Again, this appears to be potentially challenging terrain. We see missing hikers in CO...Additionally, there is much wildlife as we know.

Have you guys talked about mountain lion dens? (Again, please don’t throw stones at me lol).

While mountain lion attacks are rare, they do happen. I can link examples,’some including bicycles.
They stalk you—you don’t see them but they see you. When they attack, they get you by the jugular then try to drag you off to their “dens”. I don’t think these dens are always visible?

Sorry for any rehash, just looking at all possibilities.

—-

Would like to study this—

Could anyone be so kind as to please circle related areas here on this topographic map? Tia.

Monarch Pass Topo Map in Chaffee

—-

I wonder if she fell in a crevice.
 
Last edited:
sillybilly said:
When members are speculating, it must be clear that it is their theory or speculation (i.e. IMO, JMO, I wonder if ...) based on a known fact rather than come across as a statement of fact, AND it cannot be unfriendly to innocent people (people who are not officially named by LE to be a POI or suspect).

Example: We know from the nephew a bike was found, so it is okay to base speculation on the bike being found. To say to the effect "I wonder if the perp left her bike there because the perp wanted to stage her disappearance" is fine, or "IMO, maybe a perp left the bike there to stage her disappeareance". To insinuate however that it might be an innocent person or family member who has done so would not be victim friendly.

If members want to speculate that the bike being found (a known fact) is part of a staging scenario (speculation), they can make it clear it is opinion or theory. In order to remain victim friendly however, that theory must not insinuate an individual who has not been named a POI or suspect by LE. So in order to consider staging as a theory, members could base their theory on an unknown perp but not on a family member or other innocent party.

We see these theories start innocently enough but next thing we know we have members referring to it as if it is a known fact. For example: "Well, the fact that staging is involved would seem to indicate ....."

Clear as mud? Any further questions, please ask via private message rather than on the thread. Thanks.
Click to expand...


This actually makes complete sense, and I whole-heartedly agree, thank you so much for the reply.

We can all do a better job with the way we word our theories/suppositions, and be certain we don’t place blame on any one party in our comments, or state opinions or ideas (Or information gleaned from forbidden sources) as fact. Thanks again, perfect clarity on this point.
 
margarita25 said:
Well, maybe...

We have Rita Gutierrez for example who is known to have likely been disposed of around Rabbit Mountain—she has still not been found. Any Ahonen was never found until the 2013 floods scattered her bones across three different counties..we still don’t know if her death was an accident or not...

Again, this appears to be potentially challenging terrain. Additionally, much wildlife as we know. We see missing hikers, etc all the time here.

Have you guys talked about mountain lion dens? (Again, please don’t throw stones at me lol).

While mountain lion attacks are rare, they do happen. I can link examples,’some including bicycles.
They stalk you—you don’t see them but they see you. When they attack, they grab you by the jugular then try to drag you off to their “dens”. I don’t think these dens are always visible?

Sorry for any rehash, just looking at all possibilities.

—-

Would like to study this—

Could anyone be so kind as to please
circle related areas here on this topographic map? Tia.

Monarch Pass Topo Map in Chaffee
Click to expand...
That does give me pause. Do you know how intensive the search effort was in cases? And if LE had good leads as to where they were last seen?
 
K9Enzo said:
Respectfully, what kind of trained guard dog are you talking about? Highly trained executive protection dogs are not readily available to anyone and IMO, shouldn't be. Luckily, the cost alone keeps them from the wrong hands.

Now, if you say it would be nice if Spot the family dog, barked to alert the owner something is amiss, giving them time to take action. Good plan. Good dog. IMO, people that live in remote areas, especially with dangerous wildlife around typically are responsible gun owners.
Click to expand...
MOO maybe Suzanne Morphew was gun owner or her huaband had one for her to use.

I wonder if she had one, how likely she is to have taken a gun on her trail ride for protection?

MOO it would depend on how populated she expected the trail to be.
Her family would know if when she was alone she was in habit of carrying a gun.
MOO she also might have taken a firearm with her if she meant self harm.
Hopefully they find answers soon.
 
Last edited:
I believe all scenarios are being run down and considered as part of the CO and FBI work and as they continue they'll discard the ones that don't fit the case.

IMO and from observation, it seems case followers often think LE is doing very little if LE is not telling the public and case followers everything going on, which LE *never* does. I don't know why this is the default belief; one would think upon following more than a couple cases, the typical LE ("keep everything close to the vest") pattern would be understood. In my area LE says nothing. There may be some press conferences but they are general and do not get into details of investigations. It's done for a reason.
 
margarita25 said:
Would like to study this—

Could anyone be so kind as to please circle related areas here on this topographic map? Tia.

Monarch Pass Topo Map in Chaffee
Click to expand...

The straight blue line with small dots that runs along Foose Creek is the powerline. Everything we are talking about is at the level of that powerline , from Foose Lake to Highway 50.

I think you'd get better mileage off of a Google earth map. You'll have a much better idea of the terrain and the home placement.
 
Seems no matter how much I try to stay up to date with this thread, I'm always 10+ pages behind! I feel like we are running in circles here and until we get some more information, I am trying not to overthink this or point fingers. I do think LE has a decent idea of what path this is leading down. I thought we were getting very little information for a reason. I am now a bit frustrated that they are just now asking for video footage! Do you need the public's help or not? And if you do, why so little to go on? I can understand not discussing the condition of the bike, but I don't get keeping quiet about details that folks in the area could have possibly recalled.

I have little expertise on how different security cameras work and how long they store data. Is it possible to 'save' the information if you are not at the property (for those that only stay at the houses on a temporary basis)?

I think we all have more questions than answers and all are hoping for the best. I also want to apologize if my comments regarding Mother's Day stirred up a fuss. It was not intended that way at all, I was just trying to think about who would have been the last to see or talk to her, etc. considering the holiday. If their family would have visited considering the stay close to home went in place. It wasn't that I thought it was odd really, as I often don't get to see my mother due to her being almost 3 hours away, not including all the covid restrictions. I was just trying to think about different scenarios and as someone else pointed out, these 'disappearances' often happen on holidays.

I think it's reasonable to assume that the younger child would have been at home during the stay at home period, but this could have been the first weekend free to visit with friends, etc. and the first time for Suzanne to get a 'break' from the teen (for those of us who have those magical creatures, you may know what I mean. Quarantine has been rough for them too.)

I hope Suzanne is found soon, safely.

All MOO, of course.
 
Status
Not open for further replies.

DNASolves

Who is Fairfield County Jane Doe (1993)?

Staff online

Members online

... and 227 more.
Total: 1,288 (members: 228, guests: 1,060)

Online statistics

Members online
228
Guests online
1,060
Total visitors
1,288
Totals may include hidden visitors.

Forum statistics

Threads
607,029
Messages
18,214,264
Members
234,020
Latest member
Kaoskap
Back
Top