Found Deceased CO - Suzanne Morphew, 49, did not return from bike ride, Chaffee County, 10 May 2020 #5

[Hatfield]

Just curious, but... am I the only one that finds it slightly creepy that SM is "known to go for a bike ride on Sunday mornings before church" as the fire chief RB was quoted as saying in the CrimeOnline article?

I mean... for you married folks, do co-workers of your spouse know your fitness/recreation/hobby routines?

It just seems odd to me.
Unless they were all really close friends or something, that's not information a co-worker of her spouse should really know.

Maybe it's just me.

JMO
I find it highly unusual if anyone would know that information about my spouse. But I think what may have happened is the chief may have just learned that after she went missing because I am sure he had personal discussions with him after his wife went missing.

So I am guessing the chief had only recently learned about that after she went missing.

 

[UnderstandBlue]

As seen by the 12-minute helicopter ride circling overhead the Morphew residence, I believe this area is marked with caution tape marking broken or incomplete part of a rock path leading to the driveway on the front side of the residence. The rock path crosses a stream running in front where what appears to be a large piece of slate serves as a bridge over the stream crossing. It looks to me that some rocks are either being replaced or there was some erosion after winter break-up. Colorado soil has a large clay content and I think this looks like part of the grounds that may not have wintered very well and is being reinforced. The tape is tied off to a compact loader parked next to a flatbed likely used to haul large mountain rocks for the landscape and walkway. Moo

That was my impression too - that grade there and the tight turn.

Just curious, but... am I the only one that finds it slightly creepy that SM is "known to go for a bike ride on Sunday mornings before church" as the fire chief RB was quoted as saying in the CrimeOnline article?

I mean... for you married folks, do co-workers of your spouse know your fitness/recreation/hobby routines?

It just seems odd to me.
Unless they were all really close friends or something, that's not information a co-worker of her spouse should really know.

Maybe it's just me.

Maybe if they go to church together? I think anything habitual - especially people who are really into biking (if she was) is something people probably discuss a lot in social settings. Among my friends, there are no "meh" bikers - they are either consumed by the hobby or they just use it to get from here to there - not much in between where I live.

The part of it that I found odder was that it was notably just Sunday - she doesn't seem to have a 9-5 job that I can tell, so weekends wouldn't be as special for those activities. To me it would seem more like a daily routine thing, not just something on a weekend if you had the luxury of time in that gorgeous outdoor setting. My sister doesn't work and her fitness outing is daily.

 

[Stripehaven]

I know what you mean. Why wouldn't he ask locals to look on their property, and in their outbuildings, and to search the local trails etc, just in case?

Seriously. We did all this and more when my sister’s cat went missing. Day after day after day and into the evenings. (He was found safe.)

 

[Wendyb1063]

Just curious, but... am I the only one that finds it slightly creepy that SM is "known to go for a bike ride on Sunday mornings before church" as the fire chief RB was quoted as saying in the CrimeOnline article?

I mean... for you married folks, do co-workers of your spouse know your fitness/recreation/hobby routines?

It just seems odd to me.
Unless they were all really close friends or something, that's not information a co-worker of her spouse should really know.

Maybe it's just me.

At first I thought that was a bit odd, but then... I live in a very rural area, and I go for morning walks. People I know tell me they see me out walking (or stop to say hi), and one time someone I just met said "Oh, you are the woman I always see out walking in the morning". So I think in rural areas, people's outdoor exercise habits on public roads are "known".

 

[Hatfield]

JMO
I was outruling the chance of any of the fire crew going to church with them because I am assuming the fire crew is all in Denver and their home is 2 hour drive away. But we really dont know for sure. The fire chief or someone from the fire crew may have also lived close to where he lived. I suppose we dont know that for sure.

Which brings up a question that I really dont know one way or the other.

Do we know if the volunteer fire company he volunteered at was near his home or in Denver?

 

[Ontario Mom]

JMO
I find it highly unusual if anyone would know that information about my spouse. But I think what may have happened is the chief may have just learned that after she went missing because I am sure he had personal discussions with him after his wife went missing.

So I am guessing the chief had only recently learned about that after she went missing.

I suppose that would make sense if someone told him "yeah she normally goes for a ride before church" but it couldn't have been BM that told him that since the article also says "The fire chief has not had direct contact with Barry Morphew since Suzanne disappeared, but has spoken to firefighters who have. He said that Barry is staying with a friend in the area, “pacing around, staring out windows,” hoping for information about his wife."

So maybe one of the other firefighters repeated some info BM told them? Just a guess.

 

[Ontario Mom]

Maybe if they go to church together? I think anything habitual - especially people who are really into biking (if she was) is something people probably discuss a lot in social settings. Among my friends, there are no "meh" bikers - they are either consumed by the hobby or they just use it to get from here to there - not much in between where I live.

The part of it that I found odder was that it was notably just Sunday - she doesn't seem to have a 9-5 job that I can tell, so weekends wouldn't be as special for those activities. To me it would seem more like a daily routine thing, not just something on a weekend if you had the luxury of time in that gorgeous outdoor setting. My sister doesn't work and her fitness outing is daily.

That certainly might explain it as well.

 

[Hatfield]

I suppose that would make sense if someone told him "yeah she normally goes for a ride before church" but it couldn't have been BM that told him that since the article also says "The fire chief has not had direct contact with Barry Morphew since Suzanne disappeared, but has spoken to firefighters who have. He said that Barry is staying with a friend in the area, “pacing around, staring out windows,” hoping for information about his wife."

So maybe one of the other firefighters repeated some info BM told them? Just a guess.

Thank you. I agree that means he could not have spoken to him directly to know that. Interesting.

 

[Ontario Mom]

At first I thought that was a bit odd, but then... I live in a very rural area, and I go for morning walks. People I know tell me they see me out walking (or stop to say hi), and one time someone I just met said "Oh, you are the woman I always see out walking in the morning". So I think in rural areas, people's outdoor exercise habits on public roads are "known".

That's true in regular old neighborhoods as well. We have a handful of folks in our neighborhood that walk their dogs pretty much every morning and evening at the same time. If one of them were to go missing, I suspect everyone on our street would say "yeah, he walked that dog every morning and every evening".

So that definitely makes sense.

I hadn't really thought about the various scenarios that might make her Sunday morning bike rides sort of a "known" thing to anyone, so thanks folks for helping me out with these ideas.

 

[Fireflize]

Just curious, but... am I the only one that finds it slightly creepy that SM is "known to go for a bike ride on Sunday mornings before church" as the fire chief RB was quoted as saying in the CrimeOnline article?

I mean... for you married folks, do co-workers of your spouse know your fitness/recreation/hobby routines?

It just seems odd to me.
Unless they were all really close friends or something, that's not information a co-worker of her spouse should really know.

Maybe it's just me.

Not sure that statement is true. Could be, but don't know. Not that this man is lying, but that this may just be more of the swirling little items that have been suggested by someone, then taken as fact, like the telephone game. MOO

 

[Ontario Mom]

JMO
I was outruling the chance of any of the fire crew going to church with them because I am assuming the fire crew is all in Denver and their home is 2 hour drive away. But we really dont know for sure. The fire chief or someone from the fire crew may have also lived close to where he lived. I suppose we dont know that for sure.

Which brings up a question that I really dont know one way or the other.

Do we know if the volunteer fire company he volunteered at was near his home or in Denver?

The article says he's Chaffee County Fire Chief so I just assumed he was local.

ETA: Local-ish, I guess. Chaffee County Fire Department is located in Buena Vista, about 30 minutes away from the Morphew home.
https://www.chaffeecountyfire.org/personnel

 

[Seattle1]

Just curious, but... am I the only one that finds it slightly creepy that SM is "known to go for a bike ride on Sunday mornings before church" as the fire chief RB was quoted as saying in the CrimeOnline article?

I mean... for you married folks, do co-workers of your spouse know your fitness/recreation/hobby routines?

It just seems odd to me.
Unless they were all really close friends or something, that's not information a co-worker of her spouse should really know.

Maybe it's just me.

What I also found odd was that I think the last time SM was likely in Church this year would have been prior to biking weather and/or trail conditions suitable for riding. SM would not have been present in Church since at least March when Church services were required to move to video streaming for social distancing per COVID-19 mandate.

I believe the bike trail prior to March would probably still have snow and just beginning winter break-up as I think is evidenced at the property where the walkway and stream crossing are being repaired and/or rebuilt.

Fire Chief's comment to the effect of SM being too nice and/or talks to everybody sounded close to victim-blaming.

“Her biggest downfall is the fact that she’s so friendly,” Bertram said of Suzanne. “She’s one of those people that wouldn’t hesitate to talk to anyone, to help anyone.”

Do you think SM going biking prior to Church services would have been something the husband would have offered and not SM?

MOO

ETA: Add quote

ETA: According to their website, their Church is still not holding services.

Welcome to Grace Church
Grace Church services are being held online at 9:00am. There will not be any on-site services until further notice. View the livestream on our YouTube

 

[Hatfield]

At first I thought that was a bit odd, but then... I live in a very rural area, and I go for morning walks. People I know tell me they see me out walking (or stop to say hi), and one time someone I just met said "Oh, you are the woman I always see out walking in the morning". So I think in rural areas, people's outdoor exercise habits on public roads are "known".

Thats a really good point too. Just because we dont think it is known by others doesnt mean it isnt known.

We used to have one neighbor years ago in a different place and she was a classic example of a Nosy Nellie. We learned to love that nice older lady and if we ever needed to know the latest news in the area, we would just talk with her.

 

[MadTing]

It would be easy enough for LE to confirm if he was landscaping for somebody on that day by simply asking the people that hired him to do the work. Hopefully its not a case of he was working a job but the property owner was not at the property that day. Which would be convenient if he is involved.

 

[Seratonin]

 

[Hatfield]

The article says he's Chaffee County Fire Chief so I just assumed he was local.

Thanks. That makes more sense now and yeah, then any of the fire company members may have actually been fellow church members with one or both of them.

I wrongly assumed the fire company was in Denver because of the early reports of him being out of town in Denver and early discussion thought it was possibly some fire training which I think now is not the case. Last I heard was the Denver trip may have been due to his landscaping business and had nothing to do with the fire company.

 

[Seattle1]

Are people, other than LE, that are not allowed into the home, allowed to be on the property outside or is that not allowed either?

Their property is a huge area and if told they are not allowed on the premises I don't know that this would exclude the outlying area. Now that I think about it, it probably would to protect the integrity of the investigation.

 

[Seattle1]

JMO
I was outruling the chance of any of the fire crew going to church with them because I am assuming the fire crew is all in Denver and their home is 2 hour drive away. But we really dont know for sure. The fire chief or someone from the fire crew may have also lived close to where he lived. I suppose we dont know that for sure.

Which brings up a question that I really dont know one way or the other.

Do we know if the volunteer fire company he volunteered at was near his home or in Denver?

Yes, the husband's been reported a Volunteer FF for the Chaffey County Fire District.

 

[Madeleine74]

Just curious, but... am I the only one that finds it slightly creepy that SM is "known to go for a bike ride on Sunday mornings before church" as the fire chief RB was quoted as saying in the CrimeOnline article?

IMO

People hear things like details of someone's life when they're missing, things said by others, and they co-opt that info as if they know it first-hand. It's very common as the urge is to be "in the know" and present like an insider. This is especially so for anyone who is in a position of authority or is speaking to the media, like the Fire Chief, for example.

It's one reason why media reports can't just be taken at face value and media articles are not considered evidence in a case.

In a case I followed closely and got to know a bunch of people, including family & friends of the victim, a few media folk somehow got my name and contacted me for info or interviews later on. I quickly shut any of those requests down by making it clear I didn't know the victim or perp and couldn't offer any insight as I followed the case just like anyone else did. I wouldn't have spoken to the media even if I had inside insight, to maintain privacy.

 

[Flight154]

Just curious, but... am I the only one that finds it slightly creepy that SM is "known to go for a bike ride on Sunday mornings before church" as the fire chief RB was quoted as saying in the CrimeOnline article?

I mean... for you married folks, do co-workers of your spouse know your fitness/recreation/hobby routines?

It just seems odd to me.
Unless they were all really close friends or something, that's not information a co-worker of her spouse should really know.

Maybe it's just me.

I guess I could see that coming up im conversation..... especially if they were work friends, not just coworkers.