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

[rosesfromangels]

Here we are on thread #20, and I feel everyone's spirits sagging.
These cases are heartrending, and we know what agony the family must be in.
But I think it's important to remember our research and thinking, our posts, and our prayers do help get us all closer to getting Mollie back to her family.

He did not claim that. His original statement was that after he heard she was missing he figured out it was likely the same girl that jogs down his street regularly and he thinks he saw her that night.

that may be, but of course the narrative has been twisted.

 

[gregjrichards]

It is hard to believe we are on thread 20 and have reached another weekend with Mollie still missing.

Thank you to all of you for posting and caring about Mollie. A big welcome to all new members it is great to have you here.

 

[Emilyf886]

Does ANYONE think there is a possibility she actually did not turn up Orchard and continued on Highway 6 with the intention of turning into 385th to get home?

 

[Gumbeaux]

I had high hopes for the press conference today, so now I’m stretching those hopes over the weekend like all of you. I pray that this postponement is due to LE crossing T’s and dotting I’s in advance of an arrest.

Who might that be? Oh, I have at least 3 ideas floating around and none can be discussed here. I believe WC to be only a material witness, or victim of place. One of my theories is the possibility that Mollie’s disappearance is not the first act by an individual. If this should be a broader investigation, that could explain the further delay in the PC. And like Forrest Gump, that’s all I have to say about that.

 

[FindHG]

I first want to say welcome, even though I am just as new as you are. I have been following this case passively since the very beginning, receiving tid bits from my wife. Once the hoax sighting in KC took place, I latched on and have been on WS for a few days now. This is a great site, everyone provides great insight and it is run in a very professional manner. Not to mention, everyone is so nice on here.

Now, down to brass tacks...I echo your opinion. I think this scenario connects a lot of things for me. This could be the reason LE is so tight lipped, because they DO HAVE a large piece of key information. This could have been some sort of communication between MT and this person in an electronic fashion, whether it was welcomed or not by MT, ie a facebook message or direct message via other SM sites. The second thing I want to note is that she didn't necessarily have to get into a vehicle "willingly" or because she was "comfortable" with this person. Someone a few threads back mentioned the Dru Sjodin case in which a knife sheath was found. Or even the Jacob Wetterling case to a certain extent. In this case it could have been a gun or some other sort of weapon, obviously the use of a weapon can be very persuasive, but we just don't have the evidence to show it at this point. This leads me to believe that the reason LE pushed back the PC is because they are close to something. I have said already that if they had nothing new to say, they would have just had the press conference. My final thought is a little further speculation with not a ton of basis to go on, but I feel like this person was organized, somewhat local and familiar with the area. This is where I really echo your idea, it isn't a coincidence that they knew she was alone. I don't think it was someone young because if that person was also missing, it would have come out by now. It is quite obvious that MT was a caring person, who may have connected with someone via a church function or something around town out of the kindness of her heart and this person took it and ran with it. It could have been someone from a neighboring town that frequents Brooklyn for work or some other reason. I think if it were random, it is too clean. There would have been more to go off of. MOO. (Yes, I am catching on the acronyms)

Again, a lot of speculation on my part, love the site and I look forward to the thoughts everyone else has.

Fantastic post and a belated Welcome! Seems really well thought out. Unlike what I'll post below as some notes on my impressions thinking out loud, off all you sleuthers great posts.

For me, the things that stands out the most, now that we know much more about Mollie, considering we have a better idea since yesterday the loop she may have taken on her jog, is how well planned this may have been.

The perp may know Brooklyn very well and how not be noticed, especially at night.
The perp may have struck with either intrusive or natural awareness of her habits, thus able to create or take advantage of a window in time when Mollie would not be missed.
If that is true, then why go through all this trouble to end her life?
I think the trigger for this may have been the feeling of losing her or access to Mollie, or not having a chance with her after the wedding trip.
The perps sense of owning Mollie by whatever lurking habits they had may have been extremely challenged by the idea of her flying away and returning committed, so a plan may have formed over time, was maybe even tested. Like she ran into this person before on her jogs, maybe chatted in a friendly way.
A well planned perp would perhaps not leave her initial reaction to chance.
Did Mollie ever say she ran into an unexpected acquaintance during her jogs?
If this is true, then the perp may have resources, may be very technically adept at covering their internet tracks, as Otto mentioned, an IT pro on some level, who can make it seem she did homework that night, sent a snap chat, planned distractions, able to cover their tracks online.
If this is true, then the time window that was taken advantage of was in part to confuse the search and get away.
If any of this is true, could it being summer and the perp not being noticed in any way mean they too are on summer vacation, thought to be away?
Sorry for the mess above, just wanted to get it down, it is probably all wrong.

 

[Fascinated1]

Seems like everything has gone quiet in the last few days. No new statements from family or LE, no big news on increase in reward fund leads me to believe they are on the verge of a break and may also know she is no longer with us. Is it possible someone confessed?

 

[keddiecutie]

A tribute to Mollie and her family.

If I could turn back the clock
I'd make sure the light defeated the dark
I'd spend every hour, of every day
Keeping you safe
And I'd climb every mountain
And swim every ocean
Just to be with you

link

Not many mountains or oceans in Iowa, though we appreciate the sentiment.

 

[crumbcleaner]

My newest scenario (of the many that play in my mind each day)...Mollie goes for a run, stops home (or doesn't, scenario could play out the same either way) and goes back out to walk to her moms. A friend drives by and asks if she wants a lift or maybe even if she wants to grab a bite to eat, she says yes and gets in (edited to add, they never made it to eat, you could feasibly insert any reason for her to get in the car). This friend has always had a secret crush on her, maybe has had a drink (or few) and has some courage to go for it and tries to make a move. Mollie politely declines. This person gets upset, loses his *advertiser censored* and accidentally kills her. He has easy access to a farm, disposes of the body and purposely places her phone & fit bit on WC's property because the entire town knows his history and the focus on him will give Mollie's "friend" time to cover his tracks. IF the family knows, they help to cover it up because they are tight knit and this would ruin their name, the town and their lives. I have a person in mind and an idea as to why the FBI would be brought in.
I've clearly read too many psychological thrillers and have been hooked on this story. I'm still holding out hope she is still alive but with each passing day it gets more difficult to imagine. My constant prayers and thoughts are with her family. You can tell me how crazy I am now..

 

[Mom24]

Again, how would media get the guy’s name? I guess they may have seen LE there, or did he contact media?

I'm not sure? I do know the witness posted on the Poweshiek County website a few times over the course of a few days. So my guess would be that may be how MSM got his name? Or maybe LE released it to them? His first interview was on GMA, and he may have contacted them because it was an exclusive, meaning he sold his interview to them exclusively. Here's a little info on how exclusive interviews are conducted. ABC and NBC Pay Newsmakers to Be Interviewed
Sadly a lot of people will sell their interviews and not realize that a news report can be crafted in a way you hadn't intended. Which is why it's never a good idea to do a interview. We had a very high profile case here and LE had a large private meeting with our residents to warn us of the pratfalls of giving any interviews. We all closed ranks, the MSM got tired and left us alone. MSM makes money by making news, not just reporting it and you have to be aware of their editing rights and also understand that the public is looking for a suspect and if you're the face, you're sometimes it.

 

[PNWgirl10]

Again, how would media get the guy’s name? I guess they may have seen LE there, or did he contact media?

He had posted on the Find Mollie Facebook page that he recalled seeing her out jogging. I'm sure the media is all over that site

 

[Mom24]

My newest scenario (of the many that play in my mind each day)...Mollie goes for a run, stops home (or doesn't, scenario could play out the same either way) and goes back out to walk to her moms. A friend drives by and asks if she wants a lift or maybe even if she wants to grab a bite to eat, she says yes and gets in. This friend has always had a secret crush on her, maybe has had a drink (or few) and has some courage to go for it and tries to make a move. Mollie politely declines. This person gets upset, loses his **** and accidentally kills her. He has easy access to a farm, disposes of the body and purposely places her phone & fit bit on WC's property because the entire town knows his history and the focus on him will give Mollie's "friend" time to cover his tracks. IF the family knows, they help to cover it up because they are tight knit and this would ruin their name, the town and their lives. I have a person in mind and an idea as to why the FBI would be brought in.
I've clearly read too many psychological thrillers and have been hooked on this story. I'm still holding out hope she is still alive but with each passing day it gets more difficult to imagine. My constant prayers and thoughts are with her family. You can tell me how crazy I am now..

The only thing is, they're in a small town and had they gone somewhere to eat, people would have seen them.

 

[Dushi]

Just one question.

Is it possible to be so obsessed with a person that you would abduct them and no one that knows you would pick up on that?
Would it be possible to keep a sick obsession THAT private?
Wouldn't friends notice that you speak of this person often, watch this person?

I am not sure about an obsession thing yet.

JMO

 

[MntnHiker]

As far as finding it hard to believe something happened to her with no one seeing....as far as I know, no one saw the hardware store getting vandalized that probably also caused noise because I believe the glass was broken.

If someone saw it, they didn't call it in because I believe the first it was called in was when the bartender got off work around midnight. There would be comings and goings from the bar, yet no one saw a thing as far as we know.

I think this shows that in any city in any state, stuff happens that no one sees. There are other cases of people just seemingly disappearing. And like another posted pointed out, there MAY be evidence of something happening that LE knows about and we are not privy to.

 

[white rabbit]

Seems like everything has gone quiet in the last few days. No new statements from family or LE, no big news on increase in reward fund leads me to believe they are on the verge of a break and may also know she is no longer with us. Is it possible someone confessed?

IMO no one confessed but i agree with everything you said...we'll have nothing until monday. and we still may have nothing AFTER monday. *sigh*. spinning wheels now. fitbit, porch sitters, non-hog farmer, running route...all probably fruitless. LE knows who they're after and are in a gerbil cage until they find her body or other hard evidence. JMO.

 

[adot0902]

I’m going to go on a couple rants today so please bear with me... and first I’d like to address us.

I follow Facebook groups and Reddit, I don’t mind that much of it’s absolute garbage because I know that up front. But seriously, this is getting out of hand and I think some introspection would be appropriate at this point.

My tipping point came yesterday when the story broke about possibly the last person to see Mollie jogging. I don’t know why this came to a head yesterday, he reported that weeks ago. But now this guy is being treated with suspicion? His daughters hide in the house terrified while reporters pound on his door? People are digging as much dirt as they can and treating him with suspicion? What?

Brooklyn is a very nice little community. It’s safe, friendly and a great place to raise a family. Even if something terrible did happen to Mollie it’s disgusting how her friends, family and community are being torn apart by baseless accusations. These people are hurting, they care about Mollie more than you do. Please, show them respect and curtesy. Respect their privacy. Stand with this community. We’re better than this.

I had to leave the FB group, the bigger a case gets the more odd people get. I can't believe people are comfortable saying publicly some of the things they are saying. I echo your sentiments about respecting their community and privacy 100%. Thank you for saying something!!!!

 

[Ilovemy3boys]

His name and reported possible sighting weren’t secret. I even asked him a question on facebook two weeks ago and he responded right away. If the media is just now figuring out his name I question how closely they’re paying attention.

No they weren’t secret. I agree. He posted his sighting on the county sheriffs office More than 2 weeks ago and now LE just decides to pass by.

 

[darmela]

If Mollie willingly got into a car with someone she knew, then ALL of her friends and acquaintances need to think back to that night. Was someone missing? Did they come home very late that night? Were they acting strange in any way? Did they miss work the next day or come in late? Someone knows something. All it takes is for one person to call in the one tip that breaks this case wide open. I just hope that they aren't afraid to come forward IF they do know anything. This person had to be someone she knew well, otherwise she wouldn't have gotten into the car with them. LE needs to look at everyone from her work, school, and church - male AND female!

 

[Stormy21]

He did not claim that. His original statement was that after he heard she was missing he figured out it was likely the same girl that jogs down his street regularly and he thinks he saw her that night.

"I wish I did know more, but I dread that maybe I was the last person to see her,"

That is a direct quote. Mollie Tibbetts search: Iowa man says 'maybe I was the last person to see her'

 

[BeeVee]

First post here.

I grew up in a small, rural, agricultural town, very similar to Brooklyn, so my experience prompts a couple of thoughts & questions:

*Info is likely being kept from local LE because everyone in a small town knows nearly everyone. It would be too easy for case info to slip &, possibly, even for some LE to, intentionally or not, have a sense of allegiance to certain families or individuals.
*I lean toward her going with someone familiar just because there are so many familiar faces in a small town. So many connections through friends, family, school, work. You're bound to, at minimum, recognize someone & politely converse with them, if approached.
*I am wondering if this could've been an unintended incident by a local, who was in over his/her head? Maybe a friend or acquaintance, who knew DJ was out of town, so the person approached her with mild intentions (maybe were confused about her interest in that person & assumed she would return the person's advances), she refused, & things escalated from there? Total speculation, but that type of miscommunication is very common among young adults, especially because social media allows for online flirting, etc.
*Lastly, what if the hog farm is a familiar location to someone local, but not specifically WC? Maybe someone who worked there at one time? Or, maybe even some ground that young people secretly used for partying, etc? Being from a rural town, myself, there were lots of fields that teens used to drink, party, etc. Could the hog farm connection be to the land, but not necessarily WC? The kidnapper took Mollie there simply because it is a familiar, remote location?

 

[Soul125]

Maybe there wasn’t evidence of a struggle Bc the other party had a gun and walked into an unlocked house, or pulled it on her after she opened the door
Regarding the man who saw her jogging, once again, outsiders are online descending on a small town and tearing the residents to shreds. Despicable.

Very possible. Most people aren't going to try to resist someone with a gun. This goes back to my first post on this case. Someone is insane to leave their doors unlocked in this day and age. Even if you live in a place where you know everyone's name and trust them, you don't know if a stranger/bad person could be passing through your community while you sleep. Possibly hearing someone trying to break in could give you just enough seconds to call 911.