Found Deceased MT - Rita Maze, 47, Wolf Creek, 6 Sept 2016 #1

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Inthedetails said:
What direction on this map was she traveling?

What I'm curious about is how far ahead would another place to use the restroom be? Did she know this the only option for miles and miles - or are there gas stations ahead? I'm assuming this type of rest stop did not have cameras that can be checked.

jmo
Click to expand...

I see a little settlement (a church and some houses - not sure what to call it) about four miles (mm 226) away but I can't tell for sure if there's a cafe or gas station. It doesn't look like it. Mostly it looks like there's nothing at all for miles and miles in either direction.

Had she travelled I-15 before?

eta: Helena is only 36 miles away. I didn't zoom out far enough.

eta2: And there's an Exxon on the other side of Wolf Creek. Damn. I fail at map reading today.
 
Inthedetails said:
What direction on this map was she traveling?

What I'm curious about is how far ahead would another place to use the restroom be? Did she know this the only option for miles and miles - or are there gas stations ahead? I'm assuming this type of rest stop did not have cameras that can be checked.
Click to expand...

She would have been travelling towards the left of the screen, ie northwards. Wolf Creek is only a couple of miles further on with a gas station and a cafe according to Google maps.

Since she was travelling from Helena (where she had been visiting family) to Great Falls (home) I would guess she was very familiar with the road and had travelled it many times. She would surely know, therefore, that Wolf Creek was so close which makes it stranger to me that she would choose to stop in a very isolated place (traffic notwithstanding) rather than drive the extra mile.
 
bluesneakers said:
I see a little settlement (a church and some houses - not sure what to call it) about four miles (mm 226) away but I can't tell for sure if there's a cafe or gas station. It doesn't look like it. Mostly it looks like there's nothing at all for miles and miles in either direction.

Had she travelled I-15 before?
Click to expand...

Thanks for checking.

It seems she got gas about an hour previously, do I have that right? Did she purchase coffee or soda that would make her want to stop an hour later? Or did she know this was the only option for a long stretch so she took it?

The rest stop doesn't seem horrible, but I don't know if I would stop there unless I really, really had to go, ykwim? Unless it was chosen because it's part of a story to cover a suicide - and I do sincerely hate to say that.

I suppose someone stranded on foot might be willing to carjack, though why kill after the ride when the driver could've just walked away from the car with Rita still in it?

questions....
 
MelmothTheLost said:
She would have been travelling towards the left of the screen, ie northwards. Wolf Creek is only a couple of miles further on with a gas station and a cafe according to Google maps.

Since she was travelling from Helena (where she had been visiting family) to Great Falls (home) I would guess she was very familiar with the road and had travelled it many times. She would surely know, therefore, that Wolf Creek was so close which makes it stranger to me that she would choose to stop in a very isolated place (traffic notwithstanding) rather than drive the extra mile.
Click to expand...

Thanks - that's what I was wondering. So a more appealing restroom wasn't out of reach.

:(
 
bluesneakers said:
I see a little settlement (a church and some houses - not sure what to call it) about four miles (mm 226) away but I can't tell for sure if there's a cafe or gas station. It doesn't look like it. Mostly it looks like there's nothing at all for miles and miles in either direction.

Had she travelled I-15 before?

eta: Helena is only 36 miles away. I didn't zoom out far enough.

eta2: And there's an Exxon on the other side of Wolf Creek. Damn. I fail at map reading today.
Click to expand...

The Oasis Bar and Cafe is a few hundred yards south of the gas station.
 
Inthedetails said:
Thanks for checking.

It seems she got gas about an hour previously, do I have that right? Did she purchase coffee or soda that would make her want to stop an hour later? Or did she know this was the only option for a long stretch so she took it?

The rest stop doesn't seem horrible, but I don't know if I would stop there unless I really, really had to go, ykwim? Unless it was chosen because it's part of a story to cover a suicide - and I do sincerely hate to say that.

I suppose someone stranded on foot might be willing to carjack, though why kill after the ride when the driver could've just walked away from the car with Rita still in it?

questions....
Click to expand...

In the middle of the day I wouldn't hesitate to stop there if I had to go or if I'd gotten a phone call or text I wanted to check. Unless I saw someone there - in that case I'd wait. Especially someone there without a car which makes me think she's nicer and less suspicious than I am or he was hiding.
 
How truly frightening and heartbreaking. Rest stops can be very busy or very empty. I drive from Texas to Georgia fairly often, and some of them are creepy in daylight. I wonder how busy this particular rest stop typically is? Is it easily seen from the road? Some on my driving path are very isolated due to tree coverage despite being close to the highway. This is why I always take my dog with me in, never have had anyone say I couldn't, and makes me feel a lot safer. i even take him into gas station bathrooms.

This reminds me of that movie with Halle Berry, where the girl is in the trunk talking to 911. While I realize police are heroes, unfortunately they are not super heroes, and I imagine they feel such a tremendous amount of guilt in not being able to locate her in time.

Wonder if the car had the emergency release thing in the trunk...prayers for her family, hope this murderer is found soon. Sounds like he could have easily let her go.
 
MelmothTheLost said:
This journey was only about 90 miles - an hour and a half's drive.

http://www.theaa.com/route-planner/...0|Great Falls, MT, USA||-111.283345|47.494184

She was a little over a third of the way home so must have set off only half a hour or so earlier. It seems even stranger that she would stop where she did. Perhaps she was caught short, or maybe had a leg cramp so pulled over to walk it off.
Click to expand...

It's possible she didn't stop there at all, but said she did.

And, it's possible she did stop and the story is tragically true.

Did I read upthread that COD will be released today?

jmo
 
Inthedetails said:
Thanks for checking.

It seems she got gas about an hour previously, do I have that right? Did she purchase coffee or soda that would make her want to stop an hour later? Or did she know this was the only option for a long stretch so she took it?

The rest stop doesn't seem horrible, but I don't know if I would stop there unless I really, really had to go, ykwim? Unless it was chosen because it's part of a story to cover a suicide - and I do sincerely hate to say that.

I suppose someone stranded on foot might be willing to carjack, though why kill after the ride when the driver could've just walked away from the car with Rita still in it?

questions....
Click to expand...

BBM.
We don't know COD yet. How hot was it there? The perp might have just walked away and left her in the car and she died from the heat or from the head injury he inflicted on her before putting her in the trunk. Either way this is a dangerous man that needs to be apprehended. And if it was a car jacking, why even bother putting her in the trunk? Why not knock her out and steal the car and gun? I'm wondering if this was someone she knew or if it was random violence/a fugitive trying to escape from another crime he had committed.
 
"Dutton said there is a person of interest in the case and that authorities are looking at a surveillance video from a convenience store.....

FBI media spokesperson Sandra Barker said the federal law enforcement agency was working in conjunction with the Lewis and Clark County Sheriff’s Office but would not confirm FBI agents were investigating a specific person of interest connected to the murder."

Also in the article is info from co-workers and family about Rita. She sounds like a very nice person with a loving family and community. She does not seem to be someone who would be targeted, so I'm thinking random violence or suicide. Either way, tragic and sad.

http://www.greatfallstribune.com/st...ed-montana-woman-found-dead-spokane/89960296/
 
Satchie said:
I wish LE could have tracked her cellphone location more quickly and stopped the car.
Click to expand...

From what other people have said, it sounds as though phone signals are very patchy in that part of the country.

For anyone now worried about a similar event, you can get fairly cheap but reliable trackers which use GPS. They start at about £80 (about $110) here in the UK. You put them inside the vehicle (but not in the boot/trunk because if they are completely surrounded by metal they cannot send and receive the GPS signal) or underneath. The vehicle can then be tracked using a phone app or PC/laptop utility.
 
Gardener1850 said:
BBM.
We don't know COD yet. How hot was it there? The perp might have just walked away and left her in the car and she died from the heat or from the head injury he inflicted on her before putting her in the trunk. Either way this is a dangerous man that needs to be apprehended. And if it was a car jacking, why even bother putting her in the trunk? Why not knock her out and steal the car and gun? I'm wondering if this was someone she knew or if it was random violence/a fugitive trying to escape from another crime he had committed.
Click to expand...

Yes, if the perp walked away she still could've died in the trunk, but it takes a certain type of person to actually pull a trigger...when really there was no reason since she had no idea what the kidnapper looked like or even how many there were. It's hard to think why murder was necessary if a car ride was all that was sought.

FBI is on the case, which is very helpful.

jmo
 
TTF14 said:
What does "caught short" mean?
Click to expand...
RSBM

Had to use the restroom , like right away.

With all due respect -- If she committed suicide, the gun would be with her and no other prints on it. If she was shot and no gun --there is a dangerous perp loose.
I find it strange for the perp to have killed her after such a long drive-- but maybe he/she feared they'd be recognized ?
 
JMO, but I think if she died from a gunshot wound to the head we would have heard that already. It doesn't take an autopsy to figure that out. There is no chance this could be suicide, imo. Why would a woman fake an abduction and then kill herself in her own trunk? I believe her call for help was sincere and I feel so bad for her family going through this nightmare..
RIP Rita.
Justice for Rita.
May the FBI find this perp soon before he has time to do further violence.
 
LietKynes said:
RSBM

Had to use the restroom , like right away.

With all due respect -- If she committed suicide, the gun would be with her and no other prints on it. If she was shot and no gun --there is a dangerous perp loose.
I find it strange for the perp to have killed her after such a long drive-- but maybe he/she feared they'd be recognized ?
Click to expand...

There has been no mention if the gun was with her, has there been? Also, the ME should be able to tell if the gunshot was self-inflicted. Once the autopsy is complete, I expect LE will know definitively whether it was suicide or murder.

jmopinion
 
Gardener1850 said:
JMO, but I think if she died from a gunshot wound to the head we would have heard that already. It doesn't take an autopsy to figure that out. There is no chance this could be suicide, imo. Why would a woman fake an abduction and then kill herself in her own trunk? I believe her call for help was sincere and I feel so bad for her family going through this nightmare..
RIP Rita.
Justice for Rita.
May the FBI find this perp soon before he has time to do further violence.
Click to expand...

Well, some people think that life insurance policies won't pay out if it's a suicide, so it's possible a suicidal person could want to make their death look like a murder. I don't think that's the case here, but it's possible I guess.
 
Dogface said:
How truly frightening and heartbreaking.
Click to expand...

Especially so as by any standard she was not a high risk victim engaged in high risk activity.

She was not a teenager (especially a runaway) or young adult woman.
She was not hitchhiking.
She was not a sex worker hanging around truckstops.
She was not a drug user.

And she was armed.

A middle aged woman, driving her own vehicle on a familiar road in broad daylight, with a firearm.

She really should have been safe.

Always assuming, of course, that what happened is what appears to have happened and it was not, as one or two have speculated, an elaborate suicide.
 
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