Found Deceased IA - Mollie Tibbetts, 20, Poweshiek County, 19 Jul 2018 #18

[Deleted member 227095]

Dear JoJoJo,

Thanks for this. Perhaps it has to do with culture and the verbiage used in our upbringing. For example, my family says "evening" until around 9pm then we refer to that part as "night".

It is interesting though. The late evening could run into 9pm or start after 9pm. One poster showed that daylight ended around 9ish that week. I will search and see if I can find that post.

Agree. American english has its challenges. I also think there are some regional differences as well. Seems like most parts of the country use 9pm local as the cut off time between evening and late evening. It seems like on either of the coasts that after 10 pm is late evening but there are those that think its after 11 pm. I recall when I read the first report on this topic that referred to late evening. What ran through my mind was based on the person speaking that its probably the midwest definition of late evening which might mean after 9pm. But, honestly who knows?? Its all conjecture. It gets even more confusing as the next report we got on homework referred to evening vs late evening? The only thing I assumed after this statement of evening was that we were talking sometime after work and possibly up until 9 pm.

I do think most people are fairly literal with the word night to mean anytime after dark whereas day means there is sunlight. Evening can clearly mean different things to different people I think. I also remember being a student and the concept of time is quite different and its very possible to completely lose your sense of time if you are working on a project or reading etc.

 

[Mom24]

Newbie here, hopefully this posts appropriately. But question:

Why does everyone keep saying the brother who dropped her off was the last person to see her? Should we include the individual who was reported in the Daily Mail article:
Mother of missing Iowa student Mollie Tibbetts says she does not believe she returned home | Daily Mail Online
who as far as I can tell, is *one of the only* people (the only person?) who actually saw Mollie *jogging*? And in this article appears to be the last one who saw her on Pershing?

Absolutely!!! Great first post and welcome!

 

[BullBear77]

Sorry if I have overlooked this fact or if it was already asked but what if any portion of MT's jogging route was on dirt/gravel road vs paved? Also, I think I read waaaaay back there were thunderstorms the next morning after they believe she was abducted? Just wondering after watching the drone footage. I ask because if she did run over any stretch of dirt road and abducted there, there would be obvious signs of struggle in the dirt road, shoe sizes, and even tire marks which could lead to more info based off the tread and tire size. Again, sorry if this was already discussed or ruled out due to weather, paved road, etc. Thanks!

 

[Seattle1]

=

 

[PommyMommy]

When was Sunset that evening in Brooklyn, IA?

8:41 pm

 

[Dudda]

My Fitbit doesn't need to be charged every day. I haven't tested it to see how long it can go; typically I charge it every 3 days.

Thank you for clarifying last time I had a Fitbit was a long time ago and it would run out of juice in one day. Could be she forgot to charge it and was going to that night.

 

[tokyorose]

Why would an investigator even tell him MT returned home after jogging? I don't get it.

So maybe he would admit to seeing her?

 

[MassGuy]

In many cases, but not all, LE tells the public to be alert for individuals who do things like change their appearance (cut their hair much shorter, shave a beard, etc.), exhibit personality changes, start abusing drugs or drink alcohol more. I don't recall having heard those things from LE here. Granted LE doesn’t always say it, but one would think if they are looking for tips they would bring this up here. We have a $300K+ reward out there. I also wonder about individuals who might scratches or bruises like they had been in a struggle.

LE neglected to mention this? Or LE isn’t concerned because they believe they have their suspect and they are watching the person?

You’re dead on here (I’ve said the same thing so you obviously are). LE hasn’t mentioned these things, which I find to be incredibly curious. You’d think they’d mention these changes in behavior and appearance as well as possible injuries in the days following Mollie’s disappearance. This is either a huge oversight, or they in fact have their eyes on someone. Taking into account the FBI’s involvement in this, I think that such an oversight is less likely. So hopefully, they have a person in their crosshairs, but anything is possible.

 

[jillycat]

If it's a fact that LE asked the mom if MT was "in a house" at 9:45, what could that suggest? Maybe one of the tech-savvy people can address this: Could it suggest that her electronics show she was stationary at some place -- a place that is not the house where she was staying? Could the data be sufficient to show the location was not that house, yet insufficient to show the actual location?
If the "in a house" phrasing is correct, that's a strange question.

Yes, and I've seen this 'in a house' report more than once about the mom's alleged remarks that she was asked this and it was couched as 'in a house'. But I can't find the reference or an article don't know if that's a quote. I'm interested in any tech opinion as well.

 

[Deleted member 227095]

Why would an investigator even tell him MT returned home after jogging? I don't get it.

I think we talked about this in an earlier thread that this converation was most likely held with local LE vs FBI so might have been more casual. But what causes me to question that is that the statement referred to fitbit data that I am not sure was had until the FBI hit the scene. I'm not so sure a seasoned investigator would share the information about the fitbit. Honestly the entire interview with that witness struck me as odd as he seemed to have more information than the other witnesses had. Just seemed off somehow.

 

[houndstooth]

How about these two?
Mollie is a "creature of habit"
Dalton sent her a text in the morning and Mollie did not respond.

Not trying to be "judgy", but why weren't they texting the night before? They are the SO and it seems everybody is constantly texting. He's away working, it just seems odd he didn't text good night or notice he didn't hear from her.
(Am not insinuating anything, just making a mental note of it).

I am not part of the younger set, and have a semi handle on social media. Did someone have the password to use MT's facebook page? I would have liked it to be more or less halted from the first day and a separate "Missing" page set up. It was such a mishmash that it was useless as a forensic examination of who she was prior to the day and hour in question. Do you know what I mean?

 

[PommyMommy]

Seems it was still daylight. Need to know what time it became dark. Strange that the reporter didn't ask the approximate time.

Sunset was 8:41 pm, but it there would still have been some light. I bet LE asked the time!

 

[carbuff]

I used to pay attention to locking up before I realized that anybody who wanted to break into the house didn't have to bother with the door, they could just go around to the side and come in through the living room window, or one of several windows in back where nobody could see them. It would be trivial to break out a pane and reach in to unlock it (and one of the Carbuff offspring did just that once when he came home unexpectedly for the weekend when we weren't home, but that's another story.

Possibly if we buy another house, I'll pay more attention to security, but for now, it's not worth the bother.

 

[rosesfromangels]

Not trying to be "judgy", but why weren't they texting the night before? They are the SO and it seems everybody is constantly texting. He's away working, it just seems odd he didn't text good night or notice he didn't hear from her.
(Am not insinuating anything, just making a mental note of it).

I am not part of the younger set, and have a semi handle on social media. Did someone have the password to use MT's facebook page? I would have liked it to be more or less halted from the first day and a separate "Missing" page set up. It was such a mishmash that it was useless as a forensic examination of who she was prior to the day and hour in question. Do you know what I mean?

Your query is reasonable as it might highlight something out of the norm. Whatever their normal pattern of nightly sign-offs would dictate whether the night in question had an irregular lack of communication. Worthy of exploration.

 

[jillycat]

Could that be the time the snap chat was sent? Do they have that information yet?

This is my question. Are the snap image that doesn't seem to be clear enough, or wasn't taken in sufficient light, and the time frame related?

 

[InvSmith]

I’ve read almost every thread and spent hours a day looking at every news feed (yes very bored at work) Even though this is my first post on the website I have been a quiet sleuther for a while, so please keep an open mind and let me know what you think so I can improve.

There is one factor in my opinion that holds the most (ah ha) value which is the dogs being found in the basement. This means MT was either fully gone from the house or someone that the dogs didn’t know but she knew came to the house and they barked at them so she put them in the basement and invited them in or just talked to them at the front door. Many SM pics show the dogs roaming freely in the house even laying on the furniture and the BF also verified the same thing and that the dogs would have slept with in the bed with her.


Scenario #1 (what I consider the most likely). MT returned to her boyfriends house from her run that started around 7:30. She let the dogs out of the basement, etc. She remembered she had an assignment due or test the next day for school at the last minute or she procrastinated (I mean it is summer who wants to do school work). She lost track of time and because of this never changed out of her running clothes. She realized how late it was and that she needed to get to her mom’s to get the car and eat. She put the dogs back in the basement. Since it was dark out she put on a shirt over her pink sports bra she had worn earlier (red daycare shirt...yes I know she had two already over at her moms....maybe she couldn’t remember if they were over there for sure...her mom did say she could have a third shirt) and headed out walking/jogging to her moms with the intention of staying overnight there and coming back with the car in the morning to let the dogs out. She never made it to her moms I think because of a crime of opportunity even though it is rare. Also fitbits need to be charged once a day. I think her Fitbit ran out of battery while she was still wearing it at the last ping that went out (pig farm?) after she had already been abducted. Still wondering about the cell phone though. It would be interesting to see if cell phone data and Fitbit were different because of one of them running out of battery way before the other one.


Why this scenario you say....

-explains missing running gear, Fitbit, armband, etc

-explains red t-shirt found

-explains why some neighbor(s) (told by LE) and dad say they think MT made it back home.

-explains the dogs being in basement.

-explains lack of crime scene at house.

-explains why she didn’t text her mom saying she wasn’t coming over for brats since she was on her way.


Scenario #2 (starts out the same as #1)

MT returned to her boyfriends house from her run that started around 7:30. She let the dogs out, etc. She remembered she had an assignment due the next day for school at the last minute or she procrastinated (I mean it is summer who wants to do school work). She lost track of time because of this never changed out of her running clothes (I used to be an avid runner and if I wasn’t too sweaty I didn’t change out of running clothes right away). Someone calls her that she knows or she is talking to someone online and she invites them over to the BF’s house. She puts the dogs in the basement since they don’t know he/she. MT and unknown person go out to hang out, drink, star gaze, etc. Things go very wrong from there.

-problems with this scenario. I think she would have changed out of running clothes if she voluntarily left the house with someone. Especially not had the running iPhone armband which is one of the confirmed missing items.

-doesn’t explain why she wouldn’t text her mom say she wasn’t coming over for brats after all and that she was going to get the car in the morning.


What do you all think?

I agree. I think someone comes by that she knows but does not really know. They offer her a quick ride to Mom's and she is gone for three weeks waiting to be found.

 

[rosesfromangels]

I used to pay attention to locking up before I realized that anybody who wanted to break into the house didn't have to bother with the door, they could just go around to the side and come in through the living room window, or one of several windows in back where nobody could see them. It would be trivial to break out a pane and reach in to unlock it (and one of the Carbuff offspring did just that once when he came home unexpectedly for the weekend when we weren't home, but that's another story.

Possibly if we buy another house, I'll pay more attention to security, but for now, it's not worth the bother.

Respectfully, no...no...no! It's deterrence that is so important. A house can have the same amount of windows etc. as your house, but if they are locked/barred it could be a big enough hassle for a Perp to just go elsewhere. Of course an alarm system and a doberman are the best bet. Secure your home! : ) : ) : )

 

[Deleted member 227095]

Yes, and I've seen this 'in a house' report more than once about the mom's alleged remarks that she was asked this and it was couched as 'in a house'. But I can't find the reference or an article don't know if that's a quote. I'm interested in any tech opinion as well.

While we don't know for sure, the early threads talked about this entire conversation as possibly LE trying to figure out where the snapchat photo was taken. The location of the snapchat photo remains unknown as far as I know but probably was/is of great interest to LE. What was odd about that question to Mom was how specific the time was. I always wondered if MT was home and doing homework later than most had assumed and that the snap photo was sent later than most had assumed or was taken in a house that was not her BF's? This whole issue was also of interest when we learned that LE had taken interior photo shots at one/both of the pig farms (I don't recall if it was just one house or both).

 

[ventuc]

If it's a fact that LE asked the mom if MT was "in a house" at 9:45, what could that suggest? Maybe one of the tech-savvy people can address this: Could it suggest that her electronics show she was stationary at some place -- a place that is not the house where she was staying? Could the data be sufficient to show the location was not that house, yet insufficient to show the actual location?
If the "in a house" phrasing is correct, that's a strange question.

My question here is, if mom's last interaction with Mollie was a text at 7:30pm, why would LE (or whatever "agent" it was) be asking her if Mollie was in a house at 9:45pm? Wouldn't that be a resounding, "I don't know, the last time I heard from her was at 7:30pm."? Is there something I missed regarding this?

 

[Gussified]

Also fitbits need to be charged once a day. I think her Fitbit ran out of battery while she was still wearing it at the last ping that went out (pig farm?) after she had already been abducted. Still wondering about the cell phone though. It would be interesting to see if cell phone data and Fitbit were different because of one of them running out of battery way before the other one.

RSBM
Fitbits can generally go several days on a single charge.

Also, the Fitbit cannot communicate directly with the Fitbit servers. It needs a cell phone for that. So, Fitbit device collects data, syncs that data with the cell phone via Bluetooth , then cell phone updates the server via WiFi or cellular. So, once the cell phone is disabled, no more Fitbit data would be sent to the server.