MA MA - Molly Bish, 16, Warren, 27 Jun 2000

[Yemelyan]

1. I agree it is speculation as to how the actual abduction took place. I would want to ask the other lifeguards that worked there the question, "If someone came down the hill behind the beach at 10 am on a Tuesday morning would that seem out of place to you?" From the pictures and videos I have seen of Commins Pond Beach area it seems very secluded. Maybe Molly Bish simply did not notice someone approaching from the hill?

Snipped by me to address this point.

Why does the abductor have to come down the hill behind the beach after Molly arrives? Is it not possible the person comes down before she arrives and simply conceals himself somewhere nearby? Then rushes out once he sees if she is alone, perhaps then deploying a ruse to get her to come with him.

I also think it's possible that he made her leave her shoes behind in order to keep more control of the situation and prevent her from running. So we have to be careful when making assumptions or inferences like "her shoes were already off so that means....".

 

[Joshw2022]

I will try and provide some perspective from what I have read or seen in various photos and videos about the case.

1. I agree it is speculation as to how the actual abduction took place. I would want to ask the other lifeguards that worked there the question, "If someone came down the hill behind the beach at 10 am on a Tuesday morning would that seem out of place to you?" From the pictures and videos I have seen of Commins Pond Beach area it seems very secluded. Maybe Molly Bish simply did not notice someone approaching from the hill?

2. On the day of the abduction, police used scent dogs which tracked up the hill to the path in the cemetery. However, a sand truck driver who was there at Commins Pond parking lot around the same time as Molly Bish arrived for her shift said a white car had come into the Commins Pond parking lot shortly before Molly and her mother arrived. I could never understand why the white car would do this, even if the sand truck driver had not been there that day. As for the sand truck driver, I cannot figure out whether he was still there when Molly Bish was dropped off or if he had already left the Commins Pond parking lot before Molly Bish got out of the car to walk to her post or possibly to some storage shred on the property(to get lifeguard things I assume).

3. I think you need to watch some video of the actual Commins Pond area. Satellite view can be deceiving as the actual beach area does not seem like it is very large. As for where she would sit, you are generally taught as a lifeguard to sit in a place on the beach where you can visually scan the water for any emergency situation. Asking other lifeguards where she generally set up her lifeguard stuff on the beach would also help.
I think I can offer a little more perspective as to your theory about the abduction. According to 48 Hours Mystery program, there was a picture of the lawn chair she would have sat in. But when the picture was taken, it looked like there was some binder type item in the chair. This makes me wonder if she ever sat down. Also, if you look closely at the towel she draped over the chair, this lawn chair had webbing design so I would have thought the towel would have been more flush against the webbing if someone had been sitting in the lawn chair, but it is hard to tell. But maybe a parent put that binder item in the lawn chair too when they were acting as the lifeguard on the beach?

Another reason I do not think Molly Bish would have sat down yet is because she had not made her two-way radio check in call to the police department. I do not know Commins Pond beach protocols, but my guess is this radio check with the police was to ensure there was communication in case of an emergency. This would be an important part of procedure. How important was this police radio check-in at Commins Pond? I do not know, but am speculating based on what I know about lifeguarding. From everything I have read, Molly Bish never checked in with police over the two-way radio that morning.

It is difficult to come up with theories or ideas when you do not know information or have the correct information. For example, the path where the car parked in the cemetery looks very narrow so I wanted to know if police ever found any sort of tire tracks? They had to have walked that cemetery looking for any sort of evidence from a possible vehicle if they thought she was abducted into a white car. I would also think they had to have taken pictures.

I do not know what to think of Molly Bish's abduction. It could be anyone who knew she was a lifeguard at Commins Pond or saw her at Commins Pond.

You make some great points. In response to the above:

1 - I think you're correct that it would be important to speak to any other lifeguards to establish this. However, I do know Molly's sister has said publicly that the majority of people in the town did not know the swimming spot/trails were there. The exception being a few unsavoury characters (she describes them as mainly teenagers smoking weed or similar), or those who used it as a swimming spot. I would suspect that it would be relatively unusual to use the trail from the cemetery unless you were coming from one of the houses up there...otherwise you'd use the main car park.

2 - The sand truck driver was still present when Molly was dropped off. Her mother later said that she actually felt more safe leaving Molly on the beach because the driver present when she dropped her off (unknown if there was a passenger or not), because it made her feel that there were actually people working/going about their business. Therefore, she cannot have been abducted via the main car park. Coupled with the scent followed by the dogs I think it's very likely that she was removed via the cemetery path. I'm going to do some more digging into the car situation...I'm not entirely sure that the 3 sightings of the white vehicle are actually the same vehicle, but I would agree that it's odd for the vehicle to drive in and turn around/leave.

3 - You make some really good points about the lifeguard situation. I've watched a couple of videos of the scene itself, however, it's not clear exactly where she was sitting. In any case, we know that by the time any photos were taken the chair/other items in and around it had been disturbed by many people because the police took hours to seal it off as a crime scene. Therefore, it's difficult to draw much of an inference from the scene itself.

You're correct that Molly did not check in with police that morning. It could be that she sat down and was relaxing for a few minutes prior to starting, or, as you say, that she was in the process of setting everything up. It's really difficult without seeing the photos and having an actual preserved crime scene to establish the facts here.

One last thing - you mention the path...I do recall reading an account from someone who has been to the actual site that, despite how narrow it looks in the photos, you could literally fit a truck down parts of the path due to it being so wide at the time.

 

[Joshw2022]

Snipped by me to address this point.

Why does the abductor have to come down the hill behind the beach after Molly arrives? Is it not possible the person comes down before she arrives and simply conceals himself somewhere nearby? Then rushes out once he sees if she is alone, perhaps then deploying a ruse to get her to come with him.

I also think it's possible that he made her leave her shoes behind in order to keep more control of the situation and prevent her from running. So we have to be careful when making assumptions or inferences like "her shoes were already off so that means....".

Hi Yemelyan,

I think either theory is possible. I do get the feeling that he planned to watch Molly as she arrived. He was likely prepared and wanted to know that she was on the beach and alone. However, it obviously took him a minute or two to show himself because Molly had time to get (mostly) set up for the day before he approached her.

In terms of the shoes, I agree one has to be careful when making assumptions or inferences, but I do think her shoes were likely already off (just my opinion!). The suspect would have wanted to get Molly away from public view and onto the path as quickly as possible, and telling her to take her shoes off would have delayed this. Also, from memory I believe her water bottle was in one of her shoes (correct me if I'm wrong), as if it had been placed there. Again, it's possible that the mother who came along later tidied up Molly's things and put the shoes neatly together, but it isn't mentioned anywhere that the scene was messy/untidy when the parents arrived. It was as if she just up and left. Her sister also pointed out that, whilst Molly did not generally like to be barefoot, the beach itself was very soft and that even the path up to the cemetery was soft enough that it wouldn't have cut your feet...so it's plausible that Molly simply took her shoes off to be more comfortable. Again, all just my opinion.

 

[Yemelyan]

Hi Yemelyan,

I think either theory is possible. I do get the feeling that he planned to watch Molly as she arrived. He was likely prepared and wanted to know that she was on the beach and alone. However, it obviously took him a minute or two to show himself because Molly had time to get (mostly) set up for the day before he approached her.

In terms of the shoes, I agree one has to be careful when making assumptions or inferences, but I do think her shoes were likely already off (just my opinion!). The suspect would have wanted to get Molly away from public view and onto the path as quickly as possible, and telling her to take her shoes off would have delayed this. Also, from memory I believe her water bottle was in one of her shoes (correct me if I'm wrong), as if it had been placed there. Again, it's possible that the mother who came along later tidied up Molly's things and put the shoes neatly together, but it isn't mentioned anywhere that the scene was messy/untidy when the parents arrived. It was as if she just up and left. Her sister also pointed out that, whilst Molly did not generally like to be barefoot, the beach itself was very soft and that even the path up to the cemetery was soft enough that it wouldn't have cut your feet...so it's plausible that Molly simply took her shoes off to be more comfortable. Again, all just my opinion.

Thanks for your thoughts. My post was less about which scenario is correct and more about questioning why we think the way we do about the crime. Undoubtedly there are things the investigators know about the flow of the abduction that they haven't made public. Yes, anything is possible and I get that we have little else to discuss but I don't think we should get locked into any particular scenario or assume investigators haven't looked into certain aspects just because we haven't heard what their results were.

As you probably know better than most, not every crime is carried out perfectly. Lots of times the offender makes odd decisions because they panic or emotions run high. Or they just get lucky. With a case like this one, I believe very strongly that the element of fantasy was important to the offender; IMO he wasn't just thinking how to abduct someone perfectly and not get caught. He was thinking about how he wanted to feel when he did it.

We can wonder things like "how come Molly didn't notice someone coming down the hill at 10am" but maybe the answer is, that's not how the abduction took place. Maybe he was already down the hill and concealed near an outbuilding when she arrived. We don't know - though investigators might. That was, I guess, my main point. I think you are relatively new to this thread - welcome.

 

[lonewanderer]

Snipped by me to address this point.

Why does the abductor have to come down the hill behind the beach after Molly arrives? Is it not possible the person comes down before she arrives and simply conceals himself somewhere nearby? Then rushes out once he sees if she is alone, perhaps then deploying a ruse to get her to come with him.

I also think it's possible that he made her leave her shoes behind in order to keep more control of the situation and prevent her from running. So we have to be careful when making assumptions or inferences like "her shoes were already off so that means....".

It could mean a couple of things.

Sometimes shoes are left behind because they are pulled off while an assailant is trying to grab the victim. Especially if she was in the ground trying to kick them away.

I read a case recently where one man killed another man and threw his body in the river. He intentionally left the mans clothing and shoes on the riverbank in an attempt to corroborate his story that the man took a swim. The clothing and shoes were later thrown in the water by a gang of young boys.

 

[somequestions]

Snipped by me to address this point.

Why does the abductor have to come down the hill behind the beach after Molly arrives? Is it not possible the person comes down before she arrives and simply conceals himself somewhere nearby? Then rushes out once he sees if she is alone, perhaps then deploying a ruse to get her to come with him.

I also think it's possible that he made her leave her shoes behind in order to keep more control of the situation and prevent her from running. So we have to be careful when making assumptions or inferences like "her shoes were already off so that means....".

I agree that there is no way to know where the abductor was located at Commins Pond when Molly Bish arrived. The abductor could have been anywhere waiting.

The part about Molly Bish's sandals already being off is my own opinion. But we all are different. I cannot speak for what Molly Bish would have done regarding the sandals. I would not mind knowing what the other lifeguards thought of her abduction if only to gain some perspective.

If I were the lifeguard at Commins Pond, I would not have taken my sandals off until after I had made the two-way radio call to check in with the police. If I were the lifeguard, I probably would have moved my stuff up closer to the water, but maybe Molly Bish was worried about the small children trampling on her stuff? Maybe the sand at Commins Beach does not have many sticks in it or maybe it is not that hot? If I were the lifeguard enjoying my cold water bottle I would not stand in the hot sand but walk along the shore of the beach letting the water cool my feet.

 

[somequestions]

About Molly Bish's sandals, what I meant was that if someone knocked her out somehow and tried to either carry or drag her body up the hill to get it out of sight, her sandals may have fallen off.

But there that water bottle is in the right sandal. It looks like maybe a decent amount of water had been drank too. In the pictures it is hard to tell, but the picture on the episode of Disappeared makes it look like condensation had formed inside the top of the plastic bottle, probably from the heat.

The main question that I am sure could be asked would be that even if that scenario happened, why would any stranger abductor care about making it look like she took off her sandals? Maybe they also knock over the lawn chair and the first aid kit while in a struggle or her sandals fall off? Why would any of that matter to the abductor? The abductor just needs to get control of her and get her out of there as quickly as possible to the white car waiting on the cemetery path.

Because of where the water bottle ended up, that seems like it is the one scenario that could not have happened. That would mean then that the abduction had to have taken place after she took off her sandals, but before she could close the first aid kit or make the two-way radio check-in call.

 

[Joshw2022]

About Molly Bish's sandals, what I meant was that if someone knocked her out somehow and tried to either carry or drag her body up the hill to get it out of sight, her sandals may have fallen off.

But there that water bottle is in the right sandal. It looks like maybe a decent amount of water had been drank too. In the pictures it is hard to tell, but the picture on the episode of Disappeared makes it look like condensation had formed inside the top of the plastic bottle, probably from the heat.

The main question that I am sure could be asked would be that even if that scenario happened, why would any stranger abductor care about making it look like she took off her sandals? Maybe they also knock over the lawn chair and the first aid kit while in a struggle or her sandals fall off? Why would any of that matter to the abductor? The abductor just needs to get control of her and get her out of there as quickly as possible to the white car waiting on the cemetery path.

Because of where the water bottle ended up, that seems like it is the one scenario that could not have happened. That would mean then that the abduction had to have taken place after she took off her sandals, but before she could close the first aid kit or make the two-way radio check-in call.

I agree in terms of the timing. It makes sense that he approaches/starts to approach her almost immediately after he sees her on the beach. So, IMO she's either finished setting up and is sitting down, or is about to finish setting up, when she is approached. I think Molly is the one who took her sandles off.

Also, I don't suppose you have any links to the Disappeared episode? I'm struggling to watch it from here in the UK!
Thanks

 

[somequestions]

I agree in terms of the timing. It makes sense that he approaches/starts to approach her almost immediately after he sees her on the beach. So, IMO she's either finished setting up and is sitting down, or is about to finish setting up, when she is approached. I think Molly is the one who took her sandles off.

Also, I don't suppose you have any links to the Disappeared episode? I'm struggling to watch it from here in the UK!
Thanks

The best I could find was a link to program on Investigation Discovery tv site, but that is not allowed to be linked here. Maybe someone else can help you out on this or you might find it linked somewhere earlier in the thread?

I remember the title of the episode was Murky Waters from program Disappeared. This was filmed back in 2010.

 

[Richard]

Bumping this thread up.

 

[xXxDeath_By_DecafxXx]

Kind of goes to show what kind of search efforts were in place in the beginning

As a person who grew up in Warren and was a year younger than her when she disappeared, our town cops had no idea what they were doing and certainly messed up some things when she initially went missing. Like not securing the pond for evidence. Treating her as a runaway before taking it seriously that she was abducted. They questioned quite a few people I knew. I firmly believe it was a local because Comins isn't easy to find if you don't know the area and where I think he took her from (the back way into the pond is a trail from the cemetery which is secluded) is a way definitely only a local would know. It was to risky to take her into the parking lot, someone would be pulling up any minute for swim lessons. I hope her poor family, and most importantly, Molly, gets justice.

 

[xXxDeath_By_DecafxXx]

Up2theminute, I had forgotten about the suicide attempt by Molly's friend. Was it just an attempt or did the boy actually succeed in committing suicide? I can't find the link now.

I wonder if either the hunter or the childhood friend were one of the 11 who failed the polygraph test. I wonder what an expert would say about the fact that 11 people failed the test.

I seem to remember that the man who owned the swimming hole where Molly worked and from where she disappeared had failed the polygraph test, and that a teenage male co-worker had failed the test as well. But since I can't find any links, my recollections might be totally wrong.

Wonder if we will learn anything new from the 48 Hours episode?

Just my opinions...

He did succeed in unaliving himself. His name was Peter Remezewski (I probably didn't spell his last name right!). I remember when that happened. I lived on the road he crashed on. I had to walk through the woods to get to my house because the cops wouldn't let anyone through and I was a teenager. It was never confirmed he had anything to do with her disappearance. It's said he was distraught about her dying because they were close.

 

[somequestions]

The gas station convenience store video released in 2014:

In the course of Molly Bish's investigation there was a gas station convenience store video released to the news media. It helped establish a timeline of the day of the abduction, Tuesday, June 27, 2000. According to the news media, the start of this video is 13 minutes from when Molly Bish was first noticed missing at Commins Pond at 10:03am.

If you look at the gas station video it looks like the timestamp starts at 9:50 am. 13 minutes later would be 10:03am. This is consistent with when a kid on a bike says he arrived at Commins Pond beach at around 10 am and saw only the lawn chair, but no Molly Bish anywhere.

There is not much to actually notice in the gas station convenience video. Molly Bish puts a water bottle on the counter and then grabs it back probably after the clerk scanned it. Her mother looks like she bought a newspaper and her and Molly were very interested in something within the newspaper right away as her mother opens it up to look at it before leaving the gas station. I tried to tell if Molly Bish was wearing any jewelry around her neck, but it was hard to determine if she was.

The story goes that after leaving this convenience store at 9:51am, they drive over to the police station where Molly picked up the two-way radio she used to communicate with police and emergency personnel while at the beach. Molly then drives the car from the police station to the beach. When they arrive they see a sand truck in the parking lot dumping sand. Molly gets out and walks to her spot on the beach to set up. I have never been able to figure out if the sand truck left before Molly's mother left the Commins Pond parking lot or after. It is thought also that Molly went to some shed to retrieve some lifeguard items needed for that day. This would make sense as the amount of items Molly seemed to have with her would have been a lot for one person to carry.

At 10am a kid on a bike showed up to the beach and only saw Molly's chair, but not Molly. The main theory is that a person in a white car parked at St. Paul cemetery located directly behind Commins Pond beach and walked down the hill to approach and abduct Molly Bish right before this kid on the bike showed up at around 10am. The abductor either then forced Molly Bish to walk up the hill or dragged her up the hill to the waiting car in the cemetery.

At around 10:20 am the first adult witness, SW, showed up at the beach. In her statement to the program, 48 Hours Mystery, she talks about all the various items she saw out on the beach except for something that looks like a binder that was placed on Molly Bish's lawn chair seat. I still do not know what the binder looking item is that was located on the lawn chair. Unfortunately, a lot of what is discussed is based on speculation because very little has been released to the general public.

 

[legomonster]

I had no idea this hasn't been solved. It's such a tragedy when local, small police departments don't use the resources, knowledge and skills immediately of state or FBI on cases such as this one.

 

[somequestions]

In case anyone is interested, the information about the kid on the bike is from the program On the Case with Paula Zahn episode titled, "Gone in Less Than 3 Minutes" released in 2021. This is why the abduction is thought to have taken place by 10:03am the morning of June 27, 2000.

Maybe for some reason the sand truck driver was cleared early on, but after hearing this new information about the kid on the bike, I had questions. Commins Pond Road is one way in and one way out to get to Commins Pond Beach. When the kid was riding his bike to the pond, did he pass a dump truck leaving on Commins Pond Road? Anything that helps narrow down the timeline is important.

A theory I had was this: Molly Bish sets up part of her lifeguard stuff. She is somehow made unconscious, hit on the head or drugged. Her unconscious body is placed up on the hill behind Commins Pond. Kid on bike arrives onto the beach while abductor takes path behind the pond back over to the Commins Pond parking lot and leaves. Then abductor goes over to municipal parking lot next to St. Paul's Cemetery, walks to where Molly Bish's body is on hillside through a path next to the cemetery. This might also explain the lack of tire tracks along the paved paths in the cemetery as it is not like you can quickly step on the gas to leave St. Paul's cemetery since the paths are rather narrow.

The main issue with that theory is the sandals falling off. There is the possibility the sandals could already have been off her feet. If she was wearing the sandals, I think the sandals would have fallen off her feet and not been so neatly placed if she had been made unconscious. Also, there is a water bottle in one of the sandals indicating most likely the water bottle was put there in the sandal by Molly Bish herself. If someone had been coming towards her from the hill asking for help, I thought maybe she would have tried to put on the sandals to assist them when she walks towards them as putting on sandals seems like something that can be done quickly.

The other theory that is possible is that a white car parked in the back of St. Paul's Cemetery and the abductor walked down and abducted the lifeguard while forcing her to walk to back to his car. It would be nice to substantiate it somehow with an oil leak or water trail from the muffler or tire tracks from where the car left the paved path.

When you look at the locational setup of where the Commins Pond parking lot is in relation to where the actual beach area is where Molly Bish was abducted from, the part that always stood out to me is why would anyone, if they already had knowledge that St. Paul's cemetery path connects to the Commins Pond Beach area, ever go the Commins Pond parking lot to do any observation? You could observe from the hill next to the cemetery overlooking Commins Pond Beach. Did the abductor do a run through of the crime and go to St. Paul's Cemetery on Monday, June 26th, to park their car in the back of St. Paul's Cemetery to get out and walk part way down the hill to observe the beach from above before deciding to commit the abduction the next day on June 27th? Maybe the reason the abductor wanted to do some observation from the Commins Pond parking lot is to see what car Molly Bish was driving?

It could be anyone who knew Molly Bish would be out at Commins Pond Beach at 10 am on Tuesday, June 27th, 2000. Sadly, this case is approaching 25 years without being solved. If this case proves anything, it is how quickly an abduction can happen. It proves why it is so important to document the area and the evidence on the day of since there is no telling how long it will actually take for a case to get solved.

 

[babyblujems]

In case anyone is interested, the information about the kid on the bike is from the program On the Case with Paula Zahn episode titled, "Gone in Less Than 3 Minutes" released in 2021. This is why the abduction is thought to have taken place by 10:03am the morning of June 27, 2000.

Maybe for some reason the sand truck driver was cleared early on, but after hearing this new information about the kid on the bike, I had questions. Commins Pond Road is one way in and one way out to get to Commins Pond Beach. When the kid was riding his bike to the pond, did he pass a dump truck leaving on Commins Pond Road? Anything that helps narrow down the timeline is important.

A theory I had was this: Molly Bish sets up part of her lifeguard stuff. She is somehow made unconscious, hit on the head or drugged. Her unconscious body is placed up on the hill behind Commins Pond. Kid on bike arrives onto the beach while abductor takes path behind the pond back over to the Commins Pond parking lot and leaves. Then abductor goes over to municipal parking lot next to St. Paul's Cemetery, walks to where Molly Bish's body is on hillside through a path next to the cemetery. This might also explain the lack of tire tracks along the paved paths in the cemetery as it is not like you can quickly step on the gas to leave St. Paul's cemetery since the paths are rather narrow.

The main issue with that theory is the sandals falling off. There is the possibility the sandals could already have been off her feet. If she was wearing the sandals, I think the sandals would have fallen off her feet and not been so neatly placed if she had been made unconscious. Also, there is a water bottle in one of the sandals indicating most likely the water bottle was put there in the sandal by Molly Bish herself. If someone had been coming towards her from the hill asking for help, I thought maybe she would have tried to put on the sandals to assist them when she walks towards them as putting on sandals seems like something that can be done quickly.

The other theory that is possible is that a white car parked in the back of St. Paul's Cemetery and the abductor walked down and abducted the lifeguard while forcing her to walk to back to his car. It would be nice to substantiate it somehow with an oil leak or water trail from the muffler or tire tracks from where the car left the paved path.

When you look at the locational setup of where the Commins Pond parking lot is in relation to where the actual beach area is where Molly Bish was abducted from, the part that always stood out to me is why would anyone, if they already had knowledge that St. Paul's cemetery path connects to the Commins Pond Beach area, ever go the Commins Pond parking lot to do any observation? You could observe from the hill next to the cemetery overlooking Commins Pond Beach. Did the abductor do a run through of the crime and go to St. Paul's Cemetery on Monday, June 26th, to park their car in the back of St. Paul's Cemetery to get out and walk part way down the hill to observe the beach from above before deciding to commit the abduction the next day on June 27th? Maybe the reason the abductor wanted to do some observation from the Commins Pond parking lot is to see what car Molly Bish was driving?

It could be anyone who knew Molly Bish would be out at Commins Pond Beach at 10 am on Tuesday, June 27th, 2000. Sadly, this case is approaching 25 years without being solved. If this case proves anything, it is how quickly an abduction can happen. It proves why it is so important to document the area and the evidence on the day of since there is no telling how long it will actually take for a case to get solved.

I live in town. Comins (correct spelling sorry) Pond is one way in and out. The beach/water treatment facility parking lot is a turn around and the beach is fenced in. The hill you're speaking of from the cemetery to the beach is actually a wooded trail which might be pretty difficult to drag a body through, there would be broken twigs and marks and all sorts of stuff. I think that's why it's believed she walked out of the woods to the cemetery. The path to the beach is at the bottom of the hill in the cemetery and since the entrance/exit is at the top it's easy to hide things from the public in that area. The cemetery is also off at the top of a small dead end street. With how nosy this town is, I'm surprised no one mentioned seeing a weird car. As for the binder, it was the first day of swim lessons. Our current swim teacher shows up with a binder of who's registered, filled out the consent forms and a roster with sign in/outs for the day. It may have been that, making it of little consequence to the investigation.

 

[somequestions]

I live in town. Comins (correct spelling sorry) Pond is one way in and out. The beach/water treatment facility parking lot is a turn around and the beach is fenced in. The hill you're speaking of from the cemetery to the beach is actually a wooded trail which might be pretty difficult to drag a body through, there would be broken twigs and marks and all sorts of stuff. I think that's why it's believed she walked out of the woods to the cemetery. The path to the beach is at the bottom of the hill in the cemetery and since the entrance/exit is at the top it's easy to hide things from the public in that area. The cemetery is also off at the top of a small dead end street. With how nosy this town is, I'm surprised no one mentioned seeing a weird car. As for the binder, it was the first day of swim lessons. Our current swim teacher shows up with a binder of who's registered, filled out the consent forms and a roster with sign in/outs for the day. It may have been that, making it of little consequence to the investigation.

It helps to have perspective. The building straight ahead as you enter the Comins Pond parking lot is a beach/water treatment facility. I did not know that. I do not know a lot of information about this case which is why most of what I write is speculation and guesswork.

There were plenty of people who saw a white car the day of the abduction. A woman saw a white car parked near the car wash at the end of Comins Pond Road. A cemetery worker saw a white car parked in the back of St. Paul's Cemetery. The sand truck driver saw a white car in the Comins Pond parking lot only moments before Molly and her mother arrived the morning of the abduction, June 27, 2000.

I wondered why the sand truck driver is never mentioned in this case. Maybe police have some solid alibi evidence that places him away from Comins Pond shortly after the time the abduction took place. For example, maybe if he is on camera getting coffee a little after 10 am after dropping off the sand, that would help to eliminate him as a suspect in my opinion. Maybe police do have eyewitness testimony from the kid on the bike saying a sand truck driver did pass him on Comins Pond Road as he was riding his bike to Comins Pond beach? I have never heard any answers to these questions.

The work supervisor has been discussed as a suspect, but he was doing so many other things that day that it seems very difficult for him to have been involved. Molly Bish would have to have been abducted and then put somewhere while he dealt with the rest of his day.

It does appear the most likely suspect is some person(unknown) who was driving a white car who parked in the back of St. Paul's Cemetery and used the trails and hill leading down to Comins Pond Beach to abduct Molly Bish. But if it really is some unknown person driving a white car, I think that makes this a very difficult case to solve. I still cannot understand if this person already knew about the path in the back of St. Paul's Cemetery why they would ever let themselves be seen by her mother in the parking lot(if the white car her mother saw on Monday, June 26th is the same one as committed the abduction on Tuesday, June 27th). Why would the white car even consider coming back to the Comins Pond parking lot on June 27th? But maybe it was a different white car.

Your explanation about the binder is interesting. I wondered what that item was that was on Molly Bish's lawn chair seat. It appears this would prevent her from sitting down. Since Molly Bish was not there that day for the swim lessons, one of the women who arrived assumed her post and acted as the lifeguard. If that woman was sitting in the lawn chair and using the binder, then she might have left it on the lawn chair, and it got photographed with the rest of Molly Bish's stuff when police took the pictures. I wondered about it because the witness on 48 Hours Mystery never mentioned seeing that item on the lawn chair when she arrived at around 10:20am. She also said the backpack was on the bench when it looks like it was on the ground underneath the bench.

If Molly Bish and her mother arrived at just before 10 am that day to Comins Pond Beach, and Molly Bish was abducted by 10:03am the timing is very interesting. From some video I have seen, it seems like it takes nearly 2 minutes to walk from the Comins Pond parking lot to the beach area. This does not include the time it must have taken for Molly to visit some shed on the beach property to get some more lifeguard items. The abduction must have been very quick or the kid on the bike that showed up at 10am did not have his watch synchronized with the correct time. In the small town I lived in, sometimes church bells will chime on the hour. Maybe next year this case will be solved.

 

[legomonster]

It helps to have perspective. The building straight ahead as you enter the Comins Pond parking lot is a beach/water treatment facility. I did not know that. I do not know a lot of information about this case which is why most of what I write is speculation and guesswork.

There were plenty of people who saw a white car the day of the abduction. A woman saw a white car parked near the car wash at the end of Comins Pond Road. A cemetery worker saw a white car parked in the back of St. Paul's Cemetery. The sand truck driver saw a white car in the Comins Pond parking lot only moments before Molly and her mother arrived the morning of the abduction, June 27, 2000.

I wondered why the sand truck driver is never mentioned in this case. Maybe police have some solid alibi evidence that places him away from Comins Pond shortly after the time the abduction took place. For example, maybe if he is on camera getting coffee a little after 10 am after dropping off the sand, that would help to eliminate him as a suspect in my opinion. Maybe police do have eyewitness testimony from the kid on the bike saying a sand truck driver did pass him on Comins Pond Road as he was riding his bike to Comins Pond beach? I have never heard any answers to these questions.

The work supervisor has been discussed as a suspect, but he was doing so many other things that day that it seems very difficult for him to have been involved. Molly Bish would have to have been abducted and then put somewhere while he dealt with the rest of his day.

It does appear the most likely suspect is some person(unknown) who was driving a white car who parked in the back of St. Paul's Cemetery and used the trails and hill leading down to Comins Pond Beach to abduct Molly Bish. But if it really is some unknown person driving a white car, I think that makes this a very difficult case to solve. I still cannot understand if this person already knew about the path in the back of St. Paul's Cemetery why they would ever let themselves be seen by her mother in the parking lot(if the white car her mother saw on Monday, June 26th is the same one as committed the abduction on Tuesday, June 27th). Why would the white car even consider coming back to the Comins Pond parking lot on June 27th? But maybe it was a different white car.

Your explanation about the binder is interesting. I wondered what that item was that was on Molly Bish's lawn chair seat. It appears this would prevent her from sitting down. Since Molly Bish was not there that day for the swim lessons, one of the women who arrived assumed her post and acted as the lifeguard. If that woman was sitting in the lawn chair and using the binder, then she might have left it on the lawn chair, and it got photographed with the rest of Molly Bish's stuff when police took the pictures. I wondered about it because the witness on 48 Hours Mystery never mentioned seeing that item on the lawn chair when she arrived at around 10:20am. She also said the backpack was on the bench when it looks like it was on the ground underneath the bench.

If Molly Bish and her mother arrived at just before 10 am that day to Comins Pond Beach, and Molly Bish was abducted by 10:03am the timing is very interesting. From some video I have seen, it seems like it takes nearly 2 minutes to walk from the Comins Pond parking lot to the beach area. This does not include the time it must have taken for Molly to visit some shed on the beach property to get some more lifeguard items. The abduction must have been very quick or the kid on the bike that showed up at 10am did not have his watch synchronized with the correct time. In the small town I lived in, sometimes church bells will chime on the hour. Maybe next year this case will be solved.

It has to be someone familiar with this area. He knew the woods so incredibly well that he had zero worry that a blue bathing suit wouldn't stick out at all. That's how confident he was, and it took nearly three years before they found her, correct?

As so many do every day, none the wiser of how predictable their patterns are, she likely followed the same routine that was easy for someone to plan and carry out so quickly. It's too little time imo, for an opportunist. Imo, he knew the right area and time where it was just Molly and him, showed a weapon, and told her to be quiet and go with him if she wanted to live. People overestimate their ability to 'fight' in imaginary scenarios, and often, many do indeed freeze and follow orders because it's terrifying. Imo, he wouldn't drug her because he had it planned so well, it's sadly like he hunted her as if she was a deer and again, was so confident that the area he chose would have close to zero human traffic and go unnoticed for so long that he didn't need to worry about a blue bathing suit sticking out. People metabolize drugs differently, and it's more difficult to go unnoticed, take much more effort, and leave a better way to track another if they are dragging someone unconscious.

I am really sad that this case has yet to be solved. She and her family deserve justice.

 

[Snoop Sister]

In case anyone is interested, the information about the kid on the bike is from the program On the Case with Paula Zahn episode titled, "Gone in Less Than 3 Minutes" released in 2021. This is why the abduction is thought to have taken place by 10:03am the morning of June 27, 2000.

Maybe for some reason the sand truck driver was cleared early on, but after hearing this new information about the kid on the bike, I had questions. Commins Pond Road is one way in and one way out to get to Commins Pond Beach. When the kid was riding his bike to the pond, did he pass a dump truck leaving on Commins Pond Road? Anything that helps narrow down the timeline is important.

A theory I had was this: Molly Bish sets up part of her lifeguard stuff. She is somehow made unconscious, hit on the head or drugged. Her unconscious body is placed up on the hill behind Commins Pond. Kid on bike arrives onto the beach while abductor takes path behind the pond back over to the Commins Pond parking lot and leaves. Then abductor goes over to municipal parking lot next to St. Paul's Cemetery, walks to where Molly Bish's body is on hillside through a path next to the cemetery. This might also explain the lack of tire tracks along the paved paths in the cemetery as it is not like you can quickly step on the gas to leave St. Paul's cemetery since the paths are rather narrow.

The main issue with that theory is the sandals falling off. There is the possibility the sandals could already have been off her feet. If she was wearing the sandals, I think the sandals would have fallen off her feet and not been so neatly placed if she had been made unconscious. Also, there is a water bottle in one of the sandals indicating most likely the water bottle was put there in the sandal by Molly Bish herself. If someone had been coming towards her from the hill asking for help, I thought maybe she would have tried to put on the sandals to assist them when she walks towards them as putting on sandals seems like something that can be done quickly.

The other theory that is possible is that a white car parked in the back of St. Paul's Cemetery and the abductor walked down and abducted the lifeguard while forcing her to walk to back to his car. It would be nice to substantiate it somehow with an oil leak or water trail from the muffler or tire tracks from where the car left the paved path.

When you look at the locational setup of where the Commins Pond parking lot is in relation to where the actual beach area is where Molly Bish was abducted from, the part that always stood out to me is why would anyone, if they already had knowledge that St. Paul's cemetery path connects to the Commins Pond Beach area, ever go the Commins Pond parking lot to do any observation? You could observe from the hill next to the cemetery overlooking Commins Pond Beach. Did the abductor do a run through of the crime and go to St. Paul's Cemetery on Monday, June 26th, to park their car in the back of St. Paul's Cemetery to get out and walk part way down the hill to observe the beach from above before deciding to commit the abduction the next day on June 27th? Maybe the reason the abductor wanted to do some observation from the Commins Pond parking lot is to see what car Molly Bish was driving?

It could be anyone who knew Molly Bish would be out at Commins Pond Beach at 10 am on Tuesday, June 27th, 2000. Sadly, this case is approaching 25 years without being solved. If this case proves anything, it is how quickly an abduction can happen. It proves why it is so important to document the area and the evidence on the day of since there is no telling how long it will actually take for a case to get solved.

To watch the Paula Zahn episode, I could only find a find a pay site. Do you have the season and episode number for the 48 hour’s documentary?

 

[forensicswannabe]

To watch the Paula Zahn episode, I could only find a find a pay site. Do you have the season and episode number for the 48 hour’s documentary?

Hi its on Pluto Tv 48 hours season 16 called Missing Molly