Found Deceased IA - Mollie Tibbetts, 20, Poweshiek County, 19 Jul 2018 #8

[WalnutWhip]

I had a thought at that point was that if there is a POI, it is someone whose identity will be upsetting to learn. JMO

Agree with this. Would explain why they are tip toeing through a field of resting butterflies !

 

[carbuff]

This isn't a theory, but I did want to point out that the most responsible, disciplined people are sometimes the ones who reach the "I can't cope any more!" point. They're so used to meeting everybody else's expectations that the only way they can see to get out is to just leave everything.

I don't think that's what happened here, but it does happen. And with all the hoopla around the case she could easily be too embarrassed to come back.

 

[thesensitivechild]

I was surprised when he was thrown off by the question if the public should be concerned for their own safety.

Then he stated that since they do not know the reason behind Mollie's disappearance, this can't be known at this time for sure.

I got the feeling that they do not feel this is random and that she was somehow "targetted". Does anyone else feel this way after watching the press conference?

I think Iran because they know enough to know this person abducted her

I basically think they feel there's no good reason for the public to be sleuthing this and they got it. Whether they have the exact answers, obviously not but they know more than we do any day. We can try to glean a direction from his answers but his whole point is to communicate neutrality on the subject. If he hesitated weird it's because the answers to those questions can be wrangled so poorly and I think he did a great job not giving away any info. While I personally think regardless of what they say or anyone says the likelihood of her being abducted vs willingly leaving is high. She could be anywhere taken by anyone and none of her behaviour would lead to any clues as to who took her. I feel like it could be a complete stranger and she's long gone but that is so soul crushing. Makes me dislike men, no offense. Well because it's most likely some deranged sicko ahole man who felt entitled to ruin a completely innocent person's life because of his sick perversions. Ugh rant

Agree with much of this.

 

[bizzle2]

So can someone explain to me how a press conference like that puts pressure on a POI? I'm not saying it doesn't. I'm just trying to understand how. I've seen the technique used before but the press conferences seemed to say things like 'We know the person is out there and we are going to get justice" - that kind of scare stuff. But unless you are on web sleuths and dissecting the bejebbies out of every words and facial expressions, this pc really made it sound like they don't know anything concrete (and I'm still wandering into that camp myself). So if we assume this was a show for the POI, is the point to make him squirm or to relax him?

Well, I'm more of the opinion that they really don't know anything. But if they do have a POI in mind the purpose of this presser would be to put him/her at ease. A POI isn't going to feel much pressure after that kind of presser.

Thinking back some more on it. Another part that makes me think they are stuck is when they talked about "getting to know Mollie." That tells me that their leads haven't gone anywhere and they want to re-focus the investigation to see if focusing on Mollie leads them anywhere. Also got the sense that they aren't close because they talked about the process going forward, like they think it is going to take a while.

 

[Inthedetails]

HLN covering Mollie again in just a few minutes.

I'm not planning to read any articles or watch coverage in between press conferences. The media really doesn't know anything we don't know (and we often know the details better). So unless there is a break in the case before the next schedule press conference, I think we're on our own.

Mollie, where are you?

jmo

 

[gliving]

Friend Calvin on HLN>

Brooklyn Iowa is really small town, everyone knows everyone.
Mollie is hard not to notice in a good way, outgoing, wanted to be psychologist.
Lot of leads called in.
Calvin and friends, lots of college friends helping.

 

[Weeobanite]

They could, but I don't think they generally do. Doing that a lot would kind of ruin their credibility.

I think someone said they've done it before. Maybe they didn't think then but do now and don't want to give it away until they have evidence.
<modsnipped not victim friendly>

 

[Twistinginthewind]

Much ado about nothing.. sadly... they must know something important, like with AH in NH and maybe that's why they aren't saying much more. This response is so much like that one.

Yes, hoping that she may have been kidnapped and is being kept alive and will come home eventually like Abbie Hernandez did after 9 months of being held prisoner in a metal crate behind some sick person's house. Link to MSM article about her return home.
Abby says Sun's page 2 'missing' box gave her hope

 

[bellesnwhistles]

Mollies friend on HLN saying she always wanted to help and listen to others, and she wanted to be a psychologist. Putting this with the officer emphasizing getting to know mollie, maybe she was trying to help someone who took advantage of her or became obsessed with her.

 

[flute4peace]

"We can't tell you why Mollie is missing"... What???

I caught that too. Can't or won't?

 

[thekarmabus]

People that are asking about fit bit. Basically you have a Fitbit account. The app on your phone displays the information howeveronce it’s synced the data would be saved in your Fitbit account not only in the app. If she has her phone and fit bit on it may have synced and that data would be in the fit bit account . The FBI seems to have worked with Fitbit company to retrieve that data from the account . Does not matter if they have the devices or not.

 

[BRRI]

Do we know if her family was affluent? Was middle class? Struggled financially?

I ask because she was to go to the DR for the wedding and no doubt her trip had been paid for at the time she went missing. I believe in a parental interview it was stated that she had just obtained her first passport for this trip. A young college girl from a landlocked state about to make her first trip to a Caribbean island - a trip that might've been more costly than her typical vacation - is not one most girls would be likely to just skip out on.

And the fact that she had been coordinating with her mother about getting ingredients for a dessert she was to take to work on Friday (I believe)...

And she was partway through an online class...

Things like that make me think it's highly unlikely she would've left voluntarily at this time. I'd think she'd just not mention the need for a dessert if she knew she wasn't going to be around to make it, and would wait until after the trip and the class to leave. Within a couple of weeks or so, both of those thing would be behind her.

If there was any indication that she’s voluntarily missing, I don’t think they would keep adding investigators and agents. She’s an adult, so they would be unlikely to sink time and resources into an effort that could be all for nothing. They have reason to believe that this is NOT voluntary, I’m sure.

 

[Inthedetails]

This isn't a theory, but I did want to point out that the most responsible, disciplined people are sometimes the ones who reach the "I can't cope any more!" point. They're so used to meeting everybody else's expectations that the only way they can see to get out is to just leave everything.

I don't think that's what happened here, but it does happen. And with all the hoopla around the case she could easily be too embarrassed to come back.

The world is full of forgiving, understanding people. My wish is that anyone feeling embarrassed or alone realizes that - because it's the truth.

I know we would rejoice to know she is safe!

jmo

 

[carbuff]

When LE says they've cleared somebody, that's not an always and forever statement. There's always the caveat that new evidence might turn up that changes everything. That's why it's nearly always phrased in terms of at this time, or no evidence. It's relatively rare to have it stated as clearly as they've done in this case.

 

[DancingMuse]

Based on what I am reading I continue to believe what I stated yesterday. They are in a very tricky situation because someone abducted Mollie. They think there is a high chance that this individual will keep her alive for some time for himself. They know she is not in Brooklyn. They know the public won’t, at least for now, find her as she is being held somewhere. They do not need the public’s help because unless a member of the public sees a girl being held captive or something of that nature (which would lead to a 911 call not a tip) the public won’t be of any use to them. The public is a distraction because it leads to individual sleuthing and tips that have no relevance to the case. They do not, for now, need the public involved. They are concerned because this individual may act at any time. The less they tell the more they have the ability to assume some control in how the abductor acts. They want her alive. They have no clue where she is. They must find her and they want to do it soon and through their own investigative techniques. Mollie is most likely in a house or on a property of this individual. The situation is very delicate. They for whatever reason believe the individual will not just dispose of Mollie but will want her alive. If she is murdered the abductor may wait before disposing of the body. No public tip from sleuthing will help. The only tip that might help is someone who observes something, someone who maybe saw something around the time, or someone in the area of this individual who notes their behavior is odd or they randomly have more groceries or something along those lines. Sleuthing can’t and won’t help. Their releasing more information than need be puts Mollie in more danger. Read between the lines. This is an abduction and an ongoing one. I also personally believe they feel this person has done this before and therefore are being even more cryptic. They don’t want anyone to know what they know, what they don’t know, if they know anything at all. They need to do work to try and figure out who this individual is. Most likely he is more than 15
Miles from Brooklyn. This is all moo from observing.

Awesome points made here.
The Abduction vs. Voluntary disappearance, or combination-of-both, thoughts by other Websleuthers have been so on point since the PC, also.
Brilliance here abounds.

I hope LE is also looking into:

Has anyone else gone "missing"?

Such as,

* A student at the university withdrawing from the Summer Program, for "personal reason"s?
* A church-member who has decided to travel to a "mission"? (that would lend credence to the Restrained by a Cult idea)

Anyone else leave the community, suddenly, with as yet unverified reason?

 

[carbuff]

The world is full of forgiving, understanding people. My wish is that anyone feeling embarrassed or alone realizes that - because it's the truth.

I know we would rejoice to know she is safe!

jmo

Yeah, I would hope she knows that if she is in that situation, people just care about her and want her home. And there's always help.

We love you Mollie, please if you're out there just call somebody and let them know you're okay...

 

[Hatfield]

What if she left on her own for good? To lead another life somewhere else. She wouldn't take anything - outfits, toiletries, so it wouldn't look like she was planning to be going somewhere. Having her phone & fitbit (which were missing from the house) with her would be bare essentials, it seems, and her bf said she always had those 2 things with her. Those are the only things missing it seems. The red shirt is debatable since she could have gotten one at work for the day, and it doesn't seem like it's missing from the house for sure.

Re BBM and JMO
Those are good points and I still think its possible.

If she was consulting with a close friend about her concerns about going to Dominican Republic and maybe the pressures on her relationship with her BF just got too much for her. If a friend like that existed and maybe was a trucker and said come with me. I can take care of you and give you everything you need.

If something like that happened then I could see where she may have just picked up and went and left everything behind.

The only thing that I keep thinking about where it goes against that theory is that she had so much going for her there. School, Job, Family connections. But maybe those were some of the things that got too much for her too in addition to maybe BF pressures. She sure was a very busy person and may have had sort of a breakdown.

The bottom line for me is I am still keeping it as a possibility. Until we can get something clear that she was abducted by someone against her will then I have to keep that option on the table. JMO of course.

 

[wowitsdark]

Unfortunately, I completely agree with @Ravenmoon They are gathering trust and info and waiting for their moment. I think they know who could be involved.

I had really discounted the sex trafficking angle, but I'm starting to wonder if it's more of a possibility than I assumed.

It did not seem likely to me that anyone would just kidnap a random girl off the streets in a small town in the middle of the day because it wouldn't be long before someone noticed her missing.

However, we do know that she spent a lot of time online, and it's entirely possible that she met someone online that was posing as someone they were not. With her boyfriend being out of town and nobody else staying in the home where she was, if she was planning to meet an online acquaintance in person, the opportunity to invite someone over was certainly there. And if that person suggested they run get something to eat or drink in XXXX (no clue what nearby town Brooklyn people would have to go to for a fast food drive-thru but I can't imagine Brooklyn has anything) and the other person was buying, she would have only needed her phone and not her wallet.

If in fact sex traffickers lure girls by pretending to be agents seeking models, actresses, etc., she very well could've struck up a 'friendship' with someone making false promises and let them into the house. I saw that she was involved in speech in high school, and perhaps drama. If she excelled in those things she might've had some thoughts of pursuing similar things for money as a college kid. Commercial acting, etc... there are 'casting calls' for jobs like that all over the place.

This is all stuff LE could've figured out from looking at her digital footprint and would explain comments such as the one about knowing who was in Brooklyn when she disappeared, etc.

Just speculation about possibilities...

 

[bestill]

The $2,000 reward is like a token to me, not to disrespect the gesture. It's as if they are doing it because it's expected. I agree with the earlier poster that said we've seen pets have a bigger reward. That tells me they know the reward isn't going to help at all, jmo.

 

[cass523]

Is this your opinion or something you have read somewhere?

I found the interview. copied every word regarding my comment below. I recorded the HLN TV show, "On the Story" at 2 pm.

Lucky for me after writing my comment earlier, I understand now- what he was saying. Below

James Gagliano 25 yrs with the FBI, LE Analyst CNN

"This woman does not have a history of disappearing. they are not saying that they are certain she disappeared on the run, or after she got home, they may not know. They are reaching out for leads, before Fridays press conference to get the story out there. If anyone has seen anything, to let us know. 25 yrs in the FBI, there are no perfect crimes."

Question: "Reportedly she came back to the boyfriends house, she may have done homework on a laptop. They would not confirm or deny, were you expecting them to confirm that or no?"

Gagliano: "No, because there is a person of interest that they talked about earlier on, that they did not mention today. I think a 30 yr old man that was taking pictures and videos of the route where she was running. It could be something harmless, has nothing to do with this, but investigators have to take every single lead seriously and run that down, and Mike in most of the cases I've seen like this, it is usually somebody closely associated to the person who is missing. That may be why they are reticent now to say yes, we think it was out on the run, we think it has nothing to do with the family. It is a tough thing when you have to interview families, and ask tough questions but unfortunately and far too many of these things someone close to the person was involved."

He said a lot more about MT's case. It may be repeated on HLN This is what I heard. Not sure if it is just an example of FBI saying this is why they can't say anything about the investigation. I did hear him talk about not mentioning. saying, info about the POI was not mentioned today in PC, that they had and now I understand it. This guy taking pictures has been released in the media.

Good thing I am not a reporter!