GUILTY DC - David Messerschmitt, 30, murdered in Washington hotel room, 9 Feb 2015 #1

[radiator]

I feel sorry for the poor housekeeping staff that found him. Can you imagine how traumatic that must have been? I also wonder if they have cleaned the room up and are already renting it out again. Can you imagine the creeps you'd get if you found out you were sleeping in a room where someone had been murdered?

Luckily in this case it wasn't an unwitting housekeeper going into clean the room who found him. The police called the hotel and asked management to check, so whoever it was that opened the door had some forewarning that things might not be well. (This is from the search warrant which is linked somewhere in the thread.)

 

[cluciano63]

Unless LE has a strong suspect, I really do think a disposable phone must have been taken from the scene. Otherwise the victim's phone should have been full of clues. Jmo

 

[FelicityLemon]

Regarding the gait- if you wear shoes that are too long you have to turn your toes outward to avoid tripping. Think along the lines of swim fins. I also think woman trying to appear male, bulked up deliberately. I think the eyebrows are heavier than pics I've seen of the wife, but I don't know how old those pics are.

Also, suspicious spouses/parents have been known to lojack cell phones for tracking locations.

 

[rosesfromangels]

The POI walks like a bodybuilder. Someone who has to accommodate for big thighs.

 

[LadyL]

Regarding the gait- if you wear shoes that are too long you have to turn your toes outward to avoid tripping. Think along the lines of swim fins. I also think woman trying to appear male, bulked up deliberately. I think the eyebrows are heavier than pics I've seen of the wife, but I don't know how old those pics are.

Also, suspicious spouses/parents have been known to lojack cell phones for tracking locations.

but if shoes are too long, it's difficult to run up stairs in them without tripping

this guy looked very comfortable running up those stairs and around the corners in the stairwell

 

[rosesfromangels]

Yes. Someone athletic

 

[monkey222]

So wife expects him home approx 830pish Mon. Then another hour goes by..so its 930pish.. Then another hour.... Ok, so she is probably getting madder by the hour, IMO. As midnight approaches, it it were me, I would assume he was at some bar and would not even entertain calling LE....at the very least.. a half hour after bar closing time. Logically one would think that she called, texted him alot that evening with no response, and then start calling friends, family maybe, colleagues to see if he was out with them or if they knew if he had a change of plans or his whereabouts. Calling LE after only 4ish hrs missing does not sit well with me. Yes, I might be waiting unpatiently with a frying pan :maddening: but I would wait until the next day to see what happened and if he went to work, etc. IMO.

 

[Momoffourboys]

....frying pan:laughing:

 

[FelicityLemon]

It was 33 degrees without the windchill that night.

http://www.accuweather.com/en/us/washington-dc/20006/february-weather/327659

EDITED TO ADD: My apologies to those of you who have already brought out these points. I wrote this about halfway through 27 pages, and jumped the gun.
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Yikes, at that temperature I vote that the person is woefully underdressed no matter the layers. They don't look super bulky and stiff, but more like coverup clothing for visual affect.

I'm no doubt repeating some stuff here, but it takes me a while to write this out. :/

Had David Messerschmidt already had his date? Going on the assumption he was there for a date.
Has LE already checked out (as much as they could) other people in security videos? How do those faces compare to this one?

Could that second person in the lobby be a look-out for the POI, although to me, it looked as though they were avoiding face-to-face with POI?

Had the enema been used? If so, DNA and timing are info.
Had any condoms been used? If so, DNA and timing are info.

If victim already had the encounter, perhaps the POI could have taken the room key then come back and reentered quietly. Or POI could have passed the purloined room key to the killer?

This could be the same person he had a date with, who then returned and that's why DM opened the door to her/him? Assuming the date WAS there earlier, most likely they wouldn't have tried to disguise themselves or hide their face and that could easily be compared to the video LE has released.

Where was David Messerschmidt between 9:30 am on Sunday and the time his wife 1) spoke with him via phone and 2) he supposedly texted his wife? I know different schedules sometimes make for lack of contact, but that would be some extraordinary schedule to avoid seeing your spouse for that length of time when Sunday would have presumably be husband's day off. He didn't sleep at home that night? Did she work a 24-hour shift?

Timing could be he arrived at the hotel room, had the quickie and texted his wife while his date was cleaning up. He texted rather than risk his wife hearing any noise from his date if he/she was still there.

Did he text his wife in response to a text from her?
Was his text to her out of the blue?
Why text if he spoke with her via phone earlier?

The date could have been with his own wife.
The items found in the room could have been planted to mislead.
An enema could have been used by 1) the victim, 2) the date either male or female

If the enema and condom were unused, that says something, too.

Lots of public transportation have multiple cameras. Taxis, too. Maybe killer came in a private car and wouldn't have needed warm coat since it would be in there ready to change into.

Did his wife try calling and texting him? Ping ping ping.

So many questions, so little time for typing right now.

 

[FelicityLemon]

Hmmm...
Well, I can certainly see a sex worker carrying a protective weapon, but I would think it more like a taser or pepper spray or even a gun. But a knife? That doesn't really add up, or does it? And, I don't see a woman using a knife. You have to be very strong, or it will be taken from you. Unless, of course you are massaging someone and they don't see it coming.

Watching Cops, some hookers do carry knives. It could have been a hotel letter opener.

 

[rosesfromangels]

....frying pan:laughing:

Rolling pin!

 

[FelicityLemon]

What significance does the knife have? Why didn't the POI use a gun? No access to a firearm? Less easier to trace? Genuinely, women use guns as opposed to knives when committing a murder.

Knives are quiet.

 

[rosesfromangels]

Knives are quiet.

It's definitely a thugster weapon vs. a mobster weapon

 

[FelicityLemon]

Sorry. But high school and college gang rape is at a all time high and I never seen them consist of gay encounters. These boys are so horny that they do not mind sharing and treating females like a piece of meat. I think gays are just opening up more since the lifestyle is being integrated into alot of prime time tv shows lately.

Rape is an entirely different thing.

 

[monkey222]

Rolling pin!

Let me be clear, a cast iron frying pan. :trout:

 

[FindHG]

The POI walks like a bodybuilder. Someone who has to accommodate for big thighs.

Don't laugh, but I put on my DH's ski pants and big big shoes, the closest jacket I could find, while everyone was off doing their thing, because they'd totally make fun of me if they saw me bulk up like the POI. Came away with this: the POI's one foot, the one closest to the elevator side wall as he enters, the sideways gait so aptly described below by FelicityLemon, was necessary, but that one foot is even more exaggerated than necessary, like the POI has something long on that side possibly. When my pockets were empty they bent in when I reached out and bent my arms, or walked swinging my arms or put my hand in my pocket. The other thing was to keep the waist portion of the jacket from bending in I think you'd either have to be of great girth, or stuffed somehow. The POI's hands, in that one instance the one spread out against the stairwell wall are not big, and in other shots, thin fingers, small hands in proportion to the feet. In screen grabs of the back of the POI posted upyhread, you may notice the shoulder blades, if you play with the contrast. The way the jacket drapes down from them gives the impression of a thinner person than a body builder's upper shoulder area, to me.

from here

 

[Happyshoes]

Just popping in to say thanks to FindHG and FelicityLemon for thoughts put into this case. I hate that this sharp, educated, family guy had to go out in this fashion. I keep going back to who wanted him dead?? Either his spouse/new boyfriend/new girlfriend..? And maybe not so new, who knows? I wouldn't be surprised if it turns out to be as simple as it looks, though. This POI could have been the date, only the date didn't happen.

 

[Miss Muffet]

Don't laugh, but I put on my DH's ski pants and big big shoes, the closest jacket I could find, while everyone was off doing their thing, because they'd totally make fun of me if they saw me bulk up like the POI. Came away with this: the POI's one foot, the one closest to the elevator side wall as he enters, the sideways gait so aptly described below by FelicityLemon, was necessary, but that one foot is even more exaggerated than necessary, like the POI has something long on that side possibly. When my pockets were empty they bent in when I reached out and bent my arms, or walked swinging my arms or put my hand in my pocket. The other thing was to keep the waist portion of the jacket from bending in I think you'd either have to be of great girth, or stuffed somehow. The POI's hands, in that one instance the one spread out against the stairwell wall are not big, and in other shots, thin fingers, small hands in proportion to the feet. In screen grabs of the back of the POI posted upyhread, you may notice the shoulder blades, if you play with the contrast. The way the jacket drapes down from them gives the impression of a thinner person than a body builder's upper shoulder area, to me.

It doesn't look like a body builder to me.

It looks like an overweight AA/Asian male in winter outerwear due to the cold temperatures at the time.

Overweight people can have small hands and feat.

My son has a friend who is built like that and walks like that.

 

[FelicityLemon]

Don't laugh, but I put on my DH's ski pants and big big shoes, the closest jacket I could find, while everyone was off doing their thing, because they'd totally make fun of me if they saw me bulk up like the POI. Came away with this: the POI's one foot, the one closest to the elevator side wall as he enters, the sideways gait so aptly described below by FelicityLemon, was necessary, but that one foot is even more exaggerated than necessary, like the POI has something long on that side possibly. When my pockets were empty they bent in when I reached out and bent my arms, or walked swinging my arms or put my hand in my pocket. The other thing was to keep the waist portion of the jacket from bending in I think you'd either have to be of great girth, or stuffed somehow. The POI's hands, in that one instance the one spread out against the stairwell wall are not big, and in other shots, thin fingers, small hands in proportion to the feet. In screen grabs of the back of the POI posted upyhread, you may notice the shoulder blades, if you play with the contrast. The way the jacket drapes down from them gives the impression of a thinner person than a body builder's upper shoulder area, to me.

I'm not laughing - well, I am, but WITH you I think it's great to get first-hand knowledge of lots of things!

I saw the same aspects regarding the body underneath the clothing and the way it drapes and folds in movement. I thought the area of the upper back and ribcage directly under the armpits is too narrow compared to the other areas of the body - IOW a woman's body. Watching the video that part jumped out at me - the view from the rear.

I wonder if the gloves found in the victim's room were his or could the killer have left them? The list of clothing just seems so incomplete to me. No overcoat? Hat? Shorts and flipflops used at the gym, perhaps in a sauna to meet then move to the hotel? ARGH - I can't find the image of the search warrant that lists what was found. Was there an overcoat? Did the killer wear it out or take it?

I also see the shoes bend as the POI goes up the stairs near the top of one landing when viewed from rear. Although agile enough, the body movement to me is that of a woman.

This person's face looks either feminine or very young male, they're not mutually exclusive. Definitely not a shaver, but Asian men don't have heavy growth. I still see fem because of body and movements.

I don't think about faces unless there's something striking - super heavy brows would be a man not a woman, not even a masculine woman (exception Frida Kahlo), but thin groomed brows are on both males and females. Metrosexual males (thanks Southpark, lol). Faces can go either way on lots of people. Body types are generally one way or the other with some exceptions. Some crossdressers and TGs are undetectable. But, I have TG friends and two who could never, ever look on the outside the way they are inside no matter what Long way to say, some things can't be disguised *especially* if you aren't experienced at it.

The POI looks short for a male. Pants too big and long, jacket too big and sleeves too long.

The cold weather clothing she's wearing? I don't buy it. Those clothes are too large for her to own - perhaps someone wearing their husband/male partner's clothing. In pics in the lobby you can see the shoes are much too long for the body height. I see that as a convenience only because it is non-sexual in style, and looks like there is a complete other outfit underneath. To me, it looks like this outfit was worn in the manner of overalls or coveralls - strips off easily to reveal normal fitting, street clothes or even as someone has suggested, a uniform of some sort underneath?

It could have been a date gone wrong, then someone else comes to set the scene to deflect.

It could have been a date with wife that really wasn't a date, but a set up.

To copy what Happyshoes just said: it may have been a date that never happened. Maybe because it wasn't meant to be a date from the perspective of the datee. Set-up easy pickins for robbery or for murder. Can only speculate at this point.

I understand family are considered victims first, but in reality the spouse or partner is always looked at or eliminated first. Friends or family of spouse/partner is another facet.

 

[Vresia]

I remain confused by the times on the videos. Initially, I assumed that they were not in sync. I have since decided that because both videos are from the same facility surveillance system it is more likely than not that the times are in sync. The 7:44 clip shows the POI entering the hotel and going to the elevators. The 7:40 clip shows this person ascending staircases. Is anyone familiar with the Donovan Hotel ? Were the staircases between hotel floors or in a parking garage ? Does the Donovan have a parking garage with multiple floors ?

If the 7:40 clip is of the stairs between hotel floors, we can assume the POI couldn't get to the 4th floor that way because he subsequently tried the non-functioning elevators. So how did this person get up to DM's room ? If DM provided the required keycard to POI then we know DM was not taken by surprise by this person. How would that work ? I think DM had the hookup between 5:30-7:30 and was preparing to go home, as indicated in his text.

In an earlier post someone theorized that the hook-up, who I believe departed shortly before DM's text to his wife, passed a keycard to the POI. I don't think this works. That would presume that the assailant & hook-up both knew ahead of time that access to the rooms was tricky. POI didn't know this because he/she tried the elevator and maybe the stairs.