I don't know....
Is it just something a dad would say while holding on to hope?
Or is this a viable theory?
I honestly think this is what he wants to believe because like all parents of missing children it is far better to hope they are being held alive somewhere.
He has already said LE tells the family nothing as to what they have uncovered. That makes sense too, and he even said so. He said they didn't want the family knowing any of the facts/evidence because they could unintentionally mention it to the wrong person. (Paraphrasing)
He wants to believe she is alive as any parent would. He holds out hope because they have not found her body.
However; he may have guessed right somewhat. I do believe Mollie knew her abductor even if only casually, and she could have gotten in their vehicle thinking he was benign, and unassuming. We still do not know definitely when the abduction occurred. For all we know he could have offered her a ride to her mom's home and she saw no danger in entering his vehicle before it was too late to escape. Or he could have come to the home later, and told her something then where she would go with him.
I do not believe Mollie left on her own. Has the police implied she left willingly? TIA From what I have read she was constantly on social media, and a very outgoing social young lady. She wouldn't completely drop off the radar without any presence anywhere, imo. I haven't seen anything that supports Mollie was unhappy about anything.
When Sierra Lamar went missing it infuriated me when some tried to infer she simply had runaway when she, like Mollie, was also very socially active, both on the internet, and with friends/family. When everything stops, and its dead silence that never ends something is very wrong the vast majority of the time. I believe LE knows Mollie is no runaway, and has crossed paths with evil...just like so many others who were also abducted and harmed.
Many actions of LE seems to be looking to recover a body even though I am sure they hope to find her alive, even though they know the stats are against it.