Found Deceased IA - Mollie Tibbetts, 20, Poweshiek County, 19 Jul 2018 #21

[jman07]

This detail is really bugging me. I am wondering exactly who approached her? Local police or campus police? The questions nagging me all have to do with was this a legit officer or someone posing as one in an effort to get close to her. It really does seem like a bizarre incident given what we know. I hope LE has it on their list of red flags.

No doubt it would be on their list. If there is anything or anyone that she ever posted on SM, it is on their list. But IMO it seems unrelated.

 

[Kapua]

Did LE ever disclose the last time her phone pinged? That would tell us when she disappeared.

No. They've been very closed-lipped. But I'd bet you lunch they know that - and a lot more.

 

[Gumbeaux]

Do we know that the keys were in the home or is that speculation?

Auntie.... your name is amazing!

(Sorry for interrupting the thread)

 

[Doghairrules]

Did you check the police report for 11/14/17? Perhaps it wasn't called in but someone mentioned it to campus security and it was campus security that spoke with Mollie in the library? I believe there is a bus system for that college.

I also wondered, due to the way mollie’s text is worded, whether a concerned bystander called police or security because they thought mollie was a 10 year old out and about by herself?

 

[Jennifermn]

Thanks for working on a case map. Not sure if this is feasible but on google maps it tells you the time it takes to walk from point A to point B or the time it takes to travel that distance in a car. Is that something that could be worked into your map?

I believe there is a tool like this.

Yesterday I was using the distance measuring tool to come up with jog routes that would put Mollie at approximately 45 minutes. The only problem is it doesn't save the measurement lines. I thought I had read Mollie ran about an 8 or 9 minute mile, though I don't know for certain that is correct. So I was calculating the distance and then multiplying it by both numbers to get a range.

I have opened the map up so that anyone can edit. It should free up the tools to use the measurement feature I mentioned and likely the feature you're looking for. If I had more time this morning I would try to figure it out but hopefully someone better at this can take a crack at it.

 

[NewYork625]

This detail is really bugging me. I am wondering exactly who approached her? Local police or campus police? The questions nagging me all have to do with was this a legit officer or someone posing as one in an effort to get close to her. It really does seem like a bizarre incident given what we know. I hope LE has it on their list of red flags.

Perhaps someone approached her that night dressed in the same uniform?

 

[Spartygirl]

x


I couldn't find anything even expanding the search to the surrounding states. Of course a lot of missing children are only on the news for a few hours before they're updated with a happy ending, but I couldn't even find any news items that might fit.

It seems like a silly enough mistake but in retrospect it makes me wonder if there was a stalker and he made up the story to have an excuse to approach her. Not likely, I know...

BBM-- You aren't alone with this thought. It was my first thought when I read that as it does seem rather odd to me.

 

[jman07]

What time was DJ contacted when MT didn't show up for work?

 

[Deleted member 227095]

Does anyone have any links to the home being burglarized nearby? I hadn't heard that before.

It is on sheriffs facebook page where the list the police log by date.

 

[NewYork625]

I also wondered, due to the way mollie’s text is worded, whether a concerned bystander called police or security because they thought mollie was a 10 year old out and about by herself?

Mollie just doesn't look that young to me so I do find it odd. Almost like someone was trying to start a conversation with her. Not that that is really unusual though.

 

[NewYork625]

Does anyone have any links to the home being burglarized nearby? I hadn't heard that before.

July 16. West Des Moines.

 

[geevee]

I'm assuming he does. Likely he pulled the sim card and cut the power around the pig farm. But I don't think he ditched it then. Cuz they haven't found it.

Somehow Mollie's fitbit and phone (needed for the fitbit to register GPS coordinates) traveled at least 10+ miles south of Brooklyn--at which point it's not clear if the fitbit stopped registering GPS pings or if that's only as far as LE is willing to admit knowing about.

I wonder why the only device we've heard about is the FitBit, what about the phone? We know at some point it was shut off (all calls were going to vm) but it pings, it sends a final ping on shut down - where was that location? Why when LE (Sheriff, DCI) were speaking publicly, the phone was never mentioned, only the FitBit? This has been bothering me for what seems like ages.

 

[ChiCubs2016]

I am glad the thread is shut down overnight. Gives me time to somewhat catch up. Not that we have any new information. It is just nice to read everyone's thoughts.

 

[Jon Glass]

Could someone bring me up to speed on the "missing child" event that happened to MT at college..? I don't believe in coincidence... And, I'm refusing to go through her social media, it just doesn't seem right for me to do that.
So... If someone could, I would appreciate reading what we know about that incident. Thank you.

 

[Parks]

x


I couldn't find anything even expanding the search to the surrounding states. Of course a lot of missing children are only on the news for a few hours before they're updated with a happy ending, but I couldn't even find any news items that might fit.

It seems like a silly enough mistake but in retrospect it makes me wonder if there was a stalker and he made up the story to have an excuse to approach her. Not likely, I know...

I know! I looked at the police blotter, Facebook and twitter pages. I couldn’t get the blotter to go back far enough though. No media coverage of anything on that day. With the whole, “did you get off the bus” comment, it could be from a surrounding state. I couldn’t find anything though. It’s suspicious.

 

[jillycat]

I actually think it's interesting that they even mentioned the FitBit and that it's what led them to the pig farm. To my recollection, they've not said anything else about any pings.

 

[Parks]

I also wondered, due to the way mollie’s text is worded, whether a concerned bystander called police or security because they thought mollie was a 10 year old out and about by herself?

Im not sure about that considering he asked her about her pink coat and whether she just got off a bus.

 

[WhimsicalWillow]

Her Twitter is public.

 

[Seattle1]

I wonder why the only device we've heard about is the FitBit, what about the phone? We know at some point it was shut off (all calls were going to vm) but it pings, it sends a final ping on shut down - where was that location? Why when LE (Sheriff, DCI) were speaking publicly, the phone was never mentioned, only the FitBit? This has been bothering me for what seems like ages.

How true! Fit bit was initially presented as something LE could use to determine her route pattern, and I kept waiting for the Phone info to follow and it never did!

 

[Kapua]

I wonder why the only device we've heard about is the FitBit, what about the phone? We know at some point it was shut off (all calls were going to vm) but it pings, it sends a final ping on shut down - where was that location? Why when LE (Sheriff, DCI) were speaking publicly, the phone was never mentioned, only the FitBit? This has been bothering me for what seems like ages.

It's been bothering me, too. I am a Fitbit wearer. People seem to think the Fitbit is going to provide the answers, but IMHO, the phone will be far more useful in that regard. And some think that a perpetrator would have immediately disabled the phone, but I disagree. She had it in her armband. If someone got her in a vehicle, or she entered the vehicle voluntarily, that person might not have been able to remove her phone from its armband right away. I followed the Charli Scott case very closely and the perp in that case drove her all the way down to the crime scene with her phone active the entire way. That's what let LE to what little they found of her.