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

[Crystal Regan]

If the brother of DJ says it would be unusual for her to stay the night by herself at DJ house and it wasn’t in disarray and the dogs were put up, maybe something happened closer to mom’s, on the walk, etc. maybe why she didn’t respond to brother about ride to work. She was planning on staying the night at mom’s so no big deal about responding. It does seem to me though, when she is dropped off at boyfriends’s house after work by brother you would say something like, “see you tonight, pick me up in the morning”. I would love to know what that conversation was.

 

[Stormy21]

That is interesting.

You mentioned some interest in a Utah connection. Any follow-up? Any action on that?

 

[otto]

Somebody mentioned (and posted a map) showing a running path she might have taken if headed towards her mom's house that ran by the high school.

Why would she run along the highway's narrow shoulder with traffic whizzing by at 45 mph when there are safer running routes to get to her mom's house that completely avoid running on a highway? Furthermore, she had asthma, so running in car exhaust seems like something she would avoid.

What I'm saying is that when speculating about a route, I think we need to take everything into consideration, not just roads on an aerial map.

 

[otto]

Anything new?

Nope

 

[AC's Grandma]

Just a reminder that comments under an article, video, etc. are not allowed to be discussed.

 

[Ommmm]

It was a screenshot on her IG account of a conversation between Mollie and someone else regarding being approached in the library by a cop who asked her if she owned the pink coat on the chair and she said yes. He then said there was a report that someone thought a six to ten year old child wearing a pink coat was traveling alone on the bus. Afterwards she commented on her own post that for the record she isn't six to ten years old.

So, it sounds like rather than mistaking her for a child they thought was missing, his story is that someone saw Mollie, specifically, and called it in because the person thought she was much too young to be traveling on a bus, alone. Correct?

I think she could easily be mistaken for being much younger, but 6-10 is a stretch. IMO, college students look like college students, with their various appendages... backpack, earbuds, etc., and Iowa City is crawling with them. I’m guessing they saw her walk toward a library, which, to me, is another dead giveaway of a college student. Even if you did mistake her age, I would think that this kind of context would tell you differently. I realize I’m around college students all the time, but so is anyone who’s riding a bus in Iowa City.

A few things my librarian friend pointed out: police do come through public libraries, and are sometimes looking for people. That’s not abnormal. Police typically approach staff upon arrival, let them know why they’re there and ask if anyone on staff has seen a person by a particular description. They’ll attempt to take a quiet lap around the library, so as not to draw any attention or give other patrons the impression that something’s wrong. Being a librarian at an urban public library in a town about the size of Iowa City, she’s pretty emphatic that they (both police and library staff) are very specific in how these kinds of visits are handled, because they’re aware that frequent police presence can give patrons the false impression that the library is an unsafe environment. A police officer wandering around her library without checking in would be definitely approached by staff to find out what he’s doing. Also, in her experience, it’s usually a middle schooler or teen who isn’t where they told a parent they would be. A six year old, for example, would garner a much less nonchalant response, in her opinion.

This may or may not apply. It’s possible that it’s just her specific experience. I just thought it was an interesting conversation.

 

[otto]

I didn't see any traffic in the photo, and very wide grass median! Brooklyn roads at 7:30p not a hazard in my opinion.

It would be a mistake to assume that because I took a screen shot of the highway without traffic, there is no traffic on the highway.

Do people jog in ditches next to highways in Iowa when there are perfectly safe alternate routes that are flat, safe, and don't involve highway ditches?

 

[str8nightowl]

I really don't think we should go off in a certain direction based on a comment made by a troll on a youtube channel. It seems unfair if the person is completely innocent.

NewYork625

I don't understand. I haven't seen the YouTube video everyone is talking about. I am just trying to figure out if she WAS wearing a red shirt (which again is all speculation) WHY she had that shirt on (or with her) AND her jogging clothes are missing too. I was thinking maybe someone from the camp (I remembered she worked at the camp) lied and said there was an emergency or something and somehow she needed her shirt (but then again WHY would she need her shirt). So I guess I am trying to grasp at straws here. There was probably never a red shirt, but I am thinking that there could be a red shirt involved and that red shirt is why the FBI got involved so soon with the investigation. But her jogging outfit is ALSO gone alone with her headphones and Fibit and I guess her phone too. I am thinking someone still asked her to meet them and she knew them and trusted them. Then things turned South for some reason. But also I am wondering WHY she would have her red shirt with her in addition to her jogging clothes. I am just speculating on people she worked with BECAUSE the red shirt is POSSIBLY involved.

 

[shanadk]

So, what can be discussed?
One individual, a farmer, was discussed for dozens and dozens of pages; but another possibility cannot?
I don't get it.

 

[Stormy21]

This link isn't working:

"This page isn't available

The link you followed may be broken, or the page may have been removed"

Weird because it works for me.

I want people to know this is a facebook page without any suspect, person who is suspicious or anything nefarious. Appears to be a supportive person who is from the Brooklyn area.

Which makes sense. If a young adult is troubled, he/she may just drive to a trusted relative to chill.

 

[cody22]

I'm thinking if her event in HS was X-country (5k distance or 3.1 miles) she would have a 3.1 mile loop. I put together two, one from BF house, and one from Mom's. Then I virtually walked them to make minor mods for isolated stretches, or higher car traffic stretches. I've physically done the same thing for my own kids training loops.


Taking the clock-wise direction, its about 2.1 miles from the first sighting (~7:30pm) to the 2nd Street sighting (~8:00pm). At 8 to 9 minutes/mile (slower HS girl x-country) that would be ~16 to 18 minutes apart and fits the timeline better than the counter-clockwise direction. I think the last sighting is when she's walking and possibly using her phone, with the intention of continuing on to Mom's (~.7 miles).

The dogs having plenty of food and water (and in the basement) at 7:30pm to me seems too late in the evening to be their dinner. What if her intention was to run her loop, continue to Mom's, and stay the night there (not by herself at BF's). The food would then be breakfast the next day, and she could stop by to let them out and continue on to work.

I think the stretch of highway in front of the HS and on to Mom's, sometime after 8:15pm, is where something changed in her plan(?). Was she on the phone (with who) during the cooldown? Could this be the Snap to BF?

Bingo !...... Thank you for the clear, sensible, great post.

 

[Owutatangledweb]

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!

I'm thinking they know where the phone is and they assume the Fitbit is with her because it was on her arm.

 

[Cardinal47]

I can't think of one reason Mollie would be stopped by LE in a library. Other than she's young and beautiful. Re looking like a child or she doesn't belong...really! And speaking of libraries. I seen some of the creepiest folks in our brand new Million plus dollar library. Frightening creatures!

 

[otto]

NewYork625

I don't understand. I haven't seen the YouTube video everyone is talking about. I am just trying to figure out if she WAS wearing a red shirt (which again is all speculation) WHY she had that shirt on (or with her) AND her jogging clothes are missing too. I was thinking maybe someone from the camp (I remembered she worked at the camp) lied and said there was an emergency or something and somehow she needed her shirt (but then again WHY would she need her shirt). So I guess I am trying to grasp at straws here. There was probably never a red shirt, but I am thinking that there could be a red shirt involved and that red shirt is why the FBI got involved so soon with the investigation. But her jogging outfit is ALSO gone alone with her headphones and Fibit and I guess her phone too. I am thinking someone still asked her to meet them and she knew them and trusted them. Then things turned South for some reason. But also I am wondering WHY she would have her red shirt with her in addition to her jogging clothes. I am just speculating on people she worked with BECAUSE the red shirt is POSSIBLY involved.

The day that Mollie did not show up for work was a special field trip day. Regardless of whether Mollie wore the red t-shirt in a video at the childcare center, she would have been expected to wear her red work t-shirt for the field trip.

 

[Suglo]

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.

It could have been as innocent as a child wandered off in the library and the guardian of the child asked for help looking for the child. Campus police normally have at least one officer at any university library. The pink coat description is what makes me think it was just a lost child in the library per se.

 

[Stormy21]

I can't think of one reason Mollie would be stopped by LE in a library. Other than she's young and beautiful. Re looking like a child or she doesn't belong...really! And speaking of libraries. I seen some of the creepiest folks in our brand new Million plus dollar library. Frightening creatures!

IDK

Walk thru by a local LE looking for a girl who took a bus downtown. He spied a pink coat and simply checked it out. The girl could have gone to the bathroom or something. Sounds like diligent LE to me.

 

[Stormy21]

It would be a mistake to assume that because I took a screen shot of the highway without traffic, there is no traffic on the highway.

Do people jog in ditches next to highways in Iowa when there are perfectly safe alternate routes that are flat, safe, and don't involve highway ditches?

No!

Never, never take a ditch. First they are overgrown with weeds and trees. Second, you are asking for a sprained ankle. Third, a viscous animal will attack you like a rabbit or a snake, or a coon, or a deer. Fourth, they are steep and then you have to steeple chase running out.

 

[otto]

<modsnip: snipped quote>

Perhaps I can help. News articles hopefully contain facts about Mollie's abduction, so anything stated by a journalist in a news article (video, etc) is considered valid information. A random, potentially anonymous comment attached to a youtube video is nothing more than an opinion posted on another website, and is unrelated to facts of the case.

 

[SharonNeedles]

It would be a mistake to assume that because I took a screen shot of the highway without traffic, there is no traffic on the highway.

Do people jog in ditches next to highways in Iowa when there are perfectly safe alternate routes that are flat, safe, and don't involve highway ditches?

I don’t recall ever seeing joggers along any highway in this area, maybe not unheard of but certainly not common. Too many good running surfaces along the city streets.

 

[MntnHiker]

I think it would be realistic if someone called in either an entirely different person who really was a young girl alone or *thought* MT was actually closer to ten (I guess if she had a hat on and you didn't see her up close) that LE would walk around the area she was seen getting off the bus and question someone fitting the description.

I also think I'd put more weight in something nefarious being tied to this if that Tweet was from July or even June. I mean, it is possible someone played the long game (so to speak) and started paying attention to her in November. But I do think (personally) this was not related to her disappearance. JMO