NC NC - Madalina Cojocari, 11, reported Missing Dec 2022 three Weeks After Last Seen, Cornelius, *Parents Arrested* #2

[Tealgrove]

Not what I expected but it leaves a door open that Madalina may still be alive, and explains her mother's silence.

JMO

It does doesn’t it?

But then what was all the burning of furniture about?

This case is not what it seems.

MOO

 

[Ontario Mom]

Mother of Madalina Cojocari wanted help 'smuggling' daughter away from stepfather, warrants show

WCNC Charlotte has reviewed search warrants from the Cornelius Police Department that shed new light on the ongoing case.

www.wcnc.com

I've had to re-read this several times. Plus the tweet summary via the link above.

First, how in the world does Diana Cojocari even know a drug trafficker, to be in communication with one, extensively?
Show of hands, how many of us here know the phone number of a drug traffiker?

Maybe that's answered by the drug sniffing K-9 alerting to the presence of drugs in Diana's car?
Many have wondered how they paid the bills at that nice home. Maybe the answer is what the dog alerted to?

What the heck did that woman do to this girl? And if mommy dearest is the one ringing up known drug traffikers, why in the world is the step dad still in jail? I'm guessing it's on the charge alone, of not reporting Madalina missing. Ugh. This news doesn't make me feel any better about what might have happened to this poor little girl.

 

[Ontario Mom]

It does doesn’t it?

But then what was all the burning of furniture about?

This case is not what it seems.

MOO

Destroying evidence. No doubt in my mind that's what she was doing.

 

[tlcya]

CORNELIUS, N.C. — Newly obtained search warrants reveal Madalina Cojocari's mother asked a distant relative if he'd help with "smuggling" her and Madalina away. She also told him that she was in a "bad relationship" with her husband Christopher Palmiter and that she wanted a divorce.

According to the warrants, phone records, reviewed by the investigators, revealed "extensive communication on Dec. 2, 2022" with that relative. That person's phone records revealed "multiple calls to phone numbers belonging to unidentified targets involved in ongoing T3 drug/narcotic trafficking investigations."

Mother of Madalina Cojocari wanted help 'smuggling' daughter away from stepfather, warrants show

The above information does NOT make me feel that Madalina is necessarily safe even IF she is alive. If I am reading this correctly mom had been calling unnamed relative asking that they smuggle Madalina away. Then that unnamed relative has multiple calls with individuals who are into drug trafficking. Then poof, M disappears, falls completely off the radar and neither parent is talking. This girl is surrounded by unsavory sorts MOO.

Praying for her safety.

 

[tlcya]

how bad is bad in terms of parental relationship? Very concerning if mom is so frightened of dad that she contacts family member with ties to suspected drug traffickers to smuggle kid away. Either that or mom is full of bull and she and dad are both up to no goodness (K-9 reaction to dad car) mom and calls to person connected to traffickers. yikes I don't like any of this.

 

[Megnut]

I've had to re-read this several times. Plus the tweet summary via the link above.

First, how in the world does Diana Cojocari even know a drug trafficker, to be in communication with one, extensively?
Show of hands, how many of us here know the phone number of a drug traffiker?

Maybe that's answered by the drug sniffing K-9 alerting to the presence of drugs in Diana's car?
Many have wondered how they paid the bills at that nice home. Maybe the answer is what the dog alerted to?

What the heck did that woman do to this girl? And if mommy dearest is the one ringing up known drug traffikers, why in the world is the step dad still in jail? I'm guessing it's on the charge alone, of not reporting Madalina missing. Ugh. This news doesn't make me feel any better about what might have happened to this poor little girl.

I don't know that she knew any traffickers. Her distant relative did.

This changes the calculus for me.

Perhaps she's willing to go silently to prison if it means her daughter is safe. Until I know more, perhaps she had no other way. We don't know the power dynamic, if there is one.

Me, I'm holding out hope that M is somewhere safe.

JMO

 

[Ontario Mom]

CORNELIUS, N.C. — Newly obtained search warrants reveal Madalina Cojocari's mother asked a distant relative if he'd help with "smuggling" her and Madalina away. She also told him that she was in a "bad relationship" with her husband Christopher Palmiter and that she wanted a divorce.

According to the warrants, phone records, reviewed by the investigators, revealed "extensive communication on Dec. 2, 2022" with that relative. That person's phone records revealed "multiple calls to phone numbers belonging to unidentified targets involved in ongoing T3 drug/narcotic trafficking investigations."

Mother of Madalina Cojocari wanted help 'smuggling' daughter away from stepfather, warrants show

The above information does NOT make me feel that Madalina is necessarily safe even IF she is alive. If I am reading this correctly mom had been calling unnamed relative asking that they smuggle Madalina away. Then that unnamed relative has multiple calls with individuals who are into drug trafficking. Then poof, M disappears, falls completely off the radar and neither parent is talking. This girl is surrounded by unsavory sorts MOO.

Praying for her safety.

I have a feeling Palmiter really has no idea what happened to Madalina.
This was her mom's doing, and he's also taking a hit for it, since he couldn't be bothered to report her missing.

 

[Mert]

Since the communication was on Dec 2, and (I believe) AFTER Madalina was actually missing or last seen, this may be more along the lines of setting up a story for what the mother wants people to think. Something like she “needed to smuggle her daughter to safety” , when in reality, I suspect that harm came to this lovely girl. * My opinions.

 

[cvaldez1975]

I've had to re-read this several times. Plus the tweet summary via the link above.

First, how in the world does Diana Cojocari even know a drug trafficker, to be in communication with one, extensively?
Show of hands, how many of us here know the phone number of a drug traffiker?

Maybe that's answered by the drug sniffing K-9 alerting to the presence of drugs in Diana's car?
Many have wondered how they paid the bills at that nice home. Maybe the answer is what the dog alerted to?

What the heck did that woman do to this girl? And if mommy dearest is the one ringing up known drug traffikers, why in the world is the step dad still in jail? I'm guessing it's on the charge alone, of not reporting Madalina missing. Ugh. This news doesn't make me feel any better about what might have happened to this poor little girl.

honestly i thought the opposite way. maybe step dad found out the plan to be hidden and harmed her before it could happen.

 

[kittythehare]

Shock twist as 'smuggling plot' revealed 3 months after girl vanished from home

THE mother of missing Madalina Cojocari spoke about a “smuggling plot” with a distant relative who was in communication with drug traffickers, court documents have alleged in a shocking…

www.the-sun.com

 

[Caring4Many]

honestly i thought the opposite way. maybe step dad found out the plan to be hidden and harmed her before it could happen.

I was thinking similarly except not that he hurt her but that he had hidden her in return. Hence the whole “did you hide her?” discussion back and forth between them.
But I do wonder if it isn’t as previously said, this isn’t a red herring.
I also wonder if D wasn’t the one in trouble with other people and they took M due to her not paying or something of the sort. The canine alerting to the drivers side door seems like she would have had been in contact with drugs at some point at that door, correct? I wonder if there were additional hits inside the car or home.

 

[imstilla.grandma]

Madalina Cojocari was seen walking off a school bus on Nov. 21, 2022. Her mother, Diana Cojocari, last saw her at their Cornelius home on Nov. 23, but her mother didn’t report her missing until Dec. 15 -- 22 days later.

In a search warrant dated Feb. 14, investigators said they interviewed one of Diana Cojocari’s distant relatives. He said Diana and her mother asked him if he would help Diana with “smuggling” her and Madalina away from the home. The relative said Diana told him she was in a “bad relationship” with her husband, Christopher Palmiter, and wanted a divorce.

Police said on Feb. 10, Cornelius detectives and North Carolina State Bureau of Investigation agents reviewed Diana Cojocari’s phone records. They discovered she had extensive communication on Dec. 2 with that relative who police interviewed.

Investigators said they reviewed the relative’s phone records as well and found “multiple calls to phone numbers belonging to unidentified targets involved in ongoing T3 drug/narcotic trafficking investigations.”

“T3″ or “TIII” in this context means wiretap, Channel 9 has learned.

Warrants: Madalina Cojocari’s mom asked relative to help ‘smuggle’ them

The mother of a missing 11-year-old Cornelius girl asked a relative to help smuggle them, according to newly released warrants.

www.wsoctv.com

The newly-released court documents include search warrants and notes from investigators that show a K-9 police dog “alerted” — meaning may have detected — the scent of narcotics on Diana Cojocari’s car on Feb. 10. The car is in police possession, the records state.

Previous arrest records released by the courts show that on the night Madalina disappeared, her parents were fighting. Her mother told investigators she believed her husband, Madalina’s step father, put their family in danger. She also told police she did not report her daughter missing sooner because she feared “conflict” with him.

The court records related to the search of Cojocari’s car are dated Feb. 13 and 14.

Investigators searched Diana Cojocari’s Green 2008 Toyota Prius and seized Madalina’s Moldovan and Romanian passports, Diana’s Romanian passport, a Moldovan debit card, and “miscellaneous education certificates and work documents,” court records indicate. All of these items were found in the car’s center console, police wrote.

Madalina Cojocari’s mother had passports, wanted to ‘smuggle’ child away, police say

The new search warrants were filed with police saying they’re investigating a possible connection to drug trafficking.

www.aol.com

 

[StarryStarryNight]

This scenario is really the only scenario that matches the odd timing of things and strange questions the parents asked each other like, did you hide her, and their bizarre silence, in my opinion.

 

[MsMarple]

We’re still missing an important chunk of information. LE hasn’t revealed if that distant relative acted upon Diana’s alleged request.

Madalina’s passports were seized, which implies she’s still in the U.S.. So why hasn’t she been produced to authorities? The safest place for this little girl is in the custody of LE, not someone connected to drug activity.

Something continues to stink. MOO

 

[kittythehare]

We’re still missing an important chunk of information. LE hasn’t revealed if that distant relative acted upon Diana’s alleged request.

Madalina’s passports were seized, which implies she’s still in the U.S.. So why hasn’t she been produced to authorities? The safest place for this little girl is in the custody of LE, not someone connected to drug activity.

Something continues to stink. MOO

it's a possibility that she was completely unaware of the relative's drug connections.
It is also possible the same relative was in her car while carrying drugs, without her knowledge.
But why was the relative in her car if his or her contact was about fleeing her husband?
The child was missing pre Dec 2.

If the mother knew something about the child's status at that time, what is it that she knew?
If she knew the child was gonee forever she could have just walked out and away, no rescue needed, just some cash for flights or whatever.

Presumably cadaver dogs have been all over the car which suggests that if said relative was a passenger his or her role is not likely to have included the transport of an already dead child.

Then again she could have agreed to allow herself to be used as a drug mule in exchange for the protection of the child who is possibly being kept hidden by a criminal organisation with powerful connections.. Speculating.
That would explain the silence.
That would explain how the relative's contacts would have been known before it came up when they checked her phone against known contacts.

If there was just some way to know the content of those calls all would be solved.

 

[wnk]

TIMELINE UPDATES in RED
(I stepped a way for a few days for the holidays; please @ me with links if I missed anything!)


M = Madalina Cojocari, 11-year-old missing from home at 18413 Victoria Bay Rd, Cornelius, NC
SDadCP = stepfather Christopher Palmiter
MomDC = mother Diana Cojocari; extended family are “well-known and well-connected musicians in Moldova” [25]; father is a teacher and mother an accountant [31]

----------------------------------------

~2011
M is born

2014
MomDC participates in Eastern European weight loss TV show; gets engaged during filming to SDadCP, whom she did not know prior [27]

JUL 8, 2020
MomDC posts FB video with comment "Is something wrong of being violent?" - VIDEO

? OCT (“end of October”)
MomDC and M last communicated with M’s grandfather (MomDC’s father) in Moldova [22]

W NOV 16
According to SDadCP, this was the last time he saw M [15]

M NOV 21 - MADALINA COJOCARI LAST SEEN ------------------------------------------------------------------
According to school counselor, this was the last time M attended school [15] - cf T NOV 22
4:59PM - M recorded disembarking from school bus at her stop [18]
View attachment 389079

SOMETIME BETWEEN T NOV 22 TO Th DEC 15
According to CPD, “one of the family members [MomDC] was in the Madison County area of NC” with a Toyota Prius between 22 Nov and 15 Dec [32]; deputy stopped to check on her at pull-off area west of Marshall, near Lonesome Mountain; M was not in the vehicle [33]

T NOV 22 - DAY 1
MC attended classes at Bailey Middle School [10] - cf M NOV 21
12PM - According to MomDC's report on Dec 15, M was missing since this time [16] - cf W NOV 23
[TIME?] - MomDC's vehicle reportedly seen in Weaverville, NC [35]

W NOV 23 - DAY 2
NO SCHOOL [4]
[PM] - M last seen at home [1] at 10PM [10] by MomDC when M went to bed [12] - cf T NOV 22
[PM] - According to MomDC, she and SDadCP had an argument that night [12]

Th NOV 24 - DAY 3
THANKSGIVING - NO SCHOOL [4]
[AM] - According to MomDC, SDadCP drove to Michigan to "recover some items"; he claims he did not see M before he left [12]
11:30AM - According to MomDC, she woke up feeling sick, as if she’d been under anesthesia [31] and when she went to check on M, she was gone [12] but that she’d been looking for her “non-stop” since then [31]

F NOV 25 - DAY 4
NO SCHOOL [4]
[TIME?] - MomDC's vehicle reportedly seen in Weaverville, NC at an IHOP [35]

Sa NOV 26 - DAY 5
7PM - According to MomDC, SDadCP returned from his trip to Michigan and she asked him if he knew where M was, but he did not; she did not make missing persons report because she was "worried to might start a conflict" between her and SDadCP; he claims that he asked MomDC then and in weeks following if she had "hidden" M from him [12]

Su NOV 27 - DAY 6
[PM] According to neighbors, there were fires burning in the yard at the residence "at all hours" beginning on this day [19@2:22]; items burned included couch cushions; Cornelius FD chief acknowledges blaze but can’t comment on it [26*]

F DEC 2 - DAY 11
MomDC has extensive communication with a "known subject" in "ongoing T3 drug/narcotic trafficking investigations"; asked for help in "smuggling" her and MC away from residence [36]

M DEC 12 - DAY 21
2PM [17] - SRO tried to make a home visit to address M's truancy, but no one answered at residence [12]; truancy packet was left [15]

T DEC 13 - DAY 22
[TIME?] - Around this date (“Roughly, I don’t know, 13, 14”) MomDC cried on the phone to her sister AuntCP, stating that she was afraid SDadCP was listening to her phone conversations, knew M was gone but did not know where, and that when she had woken up on W 23 NOV, she’d felt sick, like she’d been waking up from anesthesia [31]

W DEC 14 - DAY 23
[TIME?] - MomDC calls school counselor and schedules meeting to discuss truancy, saying she will bring M [15]

Th DEC 15 - REPORTED MISSING - DAY 24
1:15PM - M reported missing to Bailey Middle School SRO by "parents" [1] MomDC supposed to bring M to meeting at school about truancy but arrived without her, claiming that she did not know where M was [12]

F DEC 16 - DAY 25
[PM] FBI, SBI searching residence, "spent hours digging in the ground in her backyard, and searching for evidence inside the home" [3]

Sa DEC 17 - SDadCP & MomDC ARRESTED - DAY 26
[TIME?] during visit to home [on this date?], LE note that kitchen was blocked off; SDadCP claimed it was to create another apartment [20]
12:29AM [6] - SDadCP arrested for failure to report disappearance of child, held on $100k bond [2]
[AM] According to neighbors, there were fires burning in the yard at residence up to this time [19@2:22]
10:12AM - MomDC arrested for failure to report disappearance of child, held on $100k bond [7]; stated that she “believed her husband put her family in danger”; family in Moldova had told her to call the police but she did not; stated that a bookbag with clothes was missing [20]

Su DEC 18 - DAY 27
[PM] - FBI, SBI, CPD return to residence, collect evidence, bring in K9 unit, tow vehicle [8]
View attachment 388683

M DEC 19 - DAY 28
[AM] - Search includes Lake Cornelius/Lake Davidson [9]
[AM] - SDadCP appears in court, bond increased to $200k [9]; represented by public defender; both parents state they do not know where M is [11]

T DEC 20 - DAY 29
[AM] - MomDC appears in court [9]; bond increased to $250k [13]; electronic monitoring will be required should she makes bond [14]
7PM - Prayer vigil held in common area near home [10][21]

W DEC 21 - DAY 30
AM - Interview with MomDC’s father in Moldova published [22] - cf ? OCT
5PM - Cornelius PD return to residence, possibly taking photos [23]

Th DEC 22 - DAY 31
AM - Members of M’s extended (Palmiter [25]) family release letter requesting public’s help in finding her [24]
7PM - Prayer vigil held at Cornelius Town Square [10]

F DEC 23 - DAY 32
PM - SDadCP’s FB page updated with new profile pic, removal of other info [27]

SOMETIME BETWEEN T DEC 27 and F JAN 6
LE canvassing in Madison County; search dogs spotted along Lonesome Mountain Road [33]

T DEC 27 - DAY 36
PM - Cornelius PD release video update - states it is a “serious case of a child whose parents clearly are not telling us everything they know”[30]

W DEC 28 - DAY 37
PM - COURT DATE: Bond hearings for SDadCP & MomDC scheduled [25] - not held [29]
PM - New bond conditions agreed upon with judge [29]

• If released, MomDC and SDadCP will surrender their passports [29]
• If released, SDadCP would also be required to wear an electronic monitoring device [29] (already a condition for MomDC - cf T Dec 20) [29]

F DEC 30 - DAY 39
Warrants for Dec 21 search of residence temporarily sealed [33] - cf T Jan 10

F JAN 6 - DAY 46
LE asks for info about anyone seeing MomDC or Prius in Madison County (about 3hrs from M’s home) between Nov 22 and Dec 15 [33]

T JAN 10 - DAY 50
Warrants for search of residence unsealed [34] - cf F Dec 30

------------
SOURCES
[1] Cornelius PD FB post - Dec 15
[2] Stepdad of missing 11-year-old - WSOC - Dec 16
[3] FBI, SBI search Cornelius home - WCCB - Dec 16
[4] Bailey MIddle School calendar
[5] Police asking for public's help... VIDEO - WCNC - Dec 17
[6] Mecklenburg Co arrest record for Christopher Palmiter (saved on Wayback)
[7] Mecklenburg Co arrest record for Diana Cojocari (saved on Wayback)
[8] FBI, SBI Return to Home of 11-Year-Old... - WCCB - Dec 18
[9] Search for Madalina Cojocari expands - WCNC - Dec 19
[10] Police search lake in Cornelius... - Charlotte Observer - Dec 19
[11] Stepfather of missing 11-year-old... - WBTV - Dec 20
[12] @DerekDlngr tweet THREAD - WJZY - Dec 20
[13] @DerekDlngr tweet THREAD - WJZY - Dec 20
[14] @MaryCalkinsTV tweet - WBTV - Dec 20
[15] Arrest report: Mom, dad say missing girl last seen - WSOC - Dec 20
[16] Mom has 'hindered the investigation' - WBTV - Dec 20
[17] @SydneyHeiberger tweet - Fox46 - Dec 20
[18] Cornelius PD press release tweet - Dec 20 - incl link to bus VIDEO
[19] Madalina Cojocari Missing - WCNC VIDEO - Dec 17
[20] Mother of Missing Cornelius girl - WBTV - Dec 21
[21] @observer_photog tweet - Charlotte Observer - Dec 21
[22] Ce declară bunelul fetiței dispărute în SUA - stri.md - Dec 21
[23] Large police presence spotted at home - WBTV - Dec 21
[24] ‘We are desperate to find her right now’ - WSOC - Dec 22
[25] New insight into Madalina Cojocari’s extended family - WCCB - Dec 22
[26] Family of missing Madalina Cojocari, 11, lit a fire – DailyMail *TABLOID - Dec 22
[27] FBI releases new photos - WCCB - Dec 23
[28] @DerekDlngr tweet THREAD - WJZY - Dec 28
[29] Judge sets new bond conditions - WSCOC - Dec 29
[30] Cornelius PD FB video - Dec 27
[31] Mărturia exclusivă făcută de mama Mădălinei Cojocari - Antena3.ro - Dec 29
[32] Missing Madalina Cojocari: Police seek information - Jan 6
[33] Find Madalina: Police ask anyone who saw mom, car - Jan 6
[34] Search warrants released - WCNC - Jan 10
[35] Missing Girl Madalina Cojocari and Her Mom's Car Seen - Inside Edition - Jan 30
[36] Madalia Cojocari's mom asked relative to 'smuggle' them away - Mar 8

------------------------------

MOOs

Nope. This new info in no way gets MomDC off the hook, IMO. The phone conversation took place on Dec 2, which was AFTER MomDC was seen in Madison County without MC (Nov 22). It was AFTER the supposed big fight where MC went to bed and was never seen by either of her parents again (Nov 23). It was AFTER SDadCP returned home from his mystery trip to Michigan (Nov 26). It was AFTER the backyard bonfires started (Nov 27).

I could definitely see a plausible scenario where MomDC might let this shady 'distant relative' think that she's just trying to escape a bad relationship, rather than coming right out and saying 'Hey, something bad happened to MC and I'm going to need help going into hiding.' Looking at the sequence of events, though (unless there's evidence that MomDC had contact with this 'distant relative' prior to the Dec 2 call), there's still too many unanswered questions for me to believe that this 'distant relative' is really just hiding MC for her own good.

 

[DoctorStrand]

Is there a scenario where mom drops off Madalina with someone on 11/25 in Western NC while CP is away? Then makes those calls on 12/2 looking for a more permanent solution for both of them?

It's a bit of a stretch if there's no communication found setting this up or if mom has no known contacts in WNC, but if that were just a remote meeting place, Madalina, whether alive or deceased, could have been anywhere in the country by the time she was reported missing.

 

[imstilla.grandma]

Detectives state in the warrant application it’s possible “persons associated with narcotics activity are also associated with human smuggling.” “A search of the residence may locate drugs and/or money not previously found in the residence,” the detective applying for the warrant wrote making a note that a K-9 would be needed. “We believe that an additional search could be helpful in locating and leading to information on the disappearance of Madalina Cojocari.”

Madalina missed nearly three weeks of school and on Dec. 15 Cojocari reported Madalina missing during a meeting with the school about the absences. Since she was reported missing, police have searched her home repeatedly, combed Lake Cornelius, and asked residents of Madison County to come forward with information placing her parents in the area around the dates she disappeared. Detectives said they believed Cojocari was in the area sometime between Nov. 22 and Dec. 15. Cojocari and Palmiter are expected in court on May 11. Cornelius Police are asking the public to continue sharing photos of Madalina with the #findmadalina on social media.

https://www.charlotteobserver.com/news/local/article272895105.html

 

[kittythehare]

November 21st Marks One Year Since Madalina Cojocari's Disappearance - WCCB Charlotte's CW

Today marks one year since Madalina went missing. Tonight the city will hold a vigil in her honor at the Cornelius Town Hall.

www.wccbcharlotte.com

Investigators went through phone records. The report shows they found “multiple” calls to phone numbers belonging to suspects of drug trafficking investigations.

In the search of the Toyota Prius on February 13th, investigators found Romanian and Moldovan passports for Madalina Cojocari, a Romanian passport for Diana Cojocari, and a debit card belonging to Diana from a Moldovan bank

 

[sleuth_truths]

Not what I expected but it leaves a door open that Madalina may still be alive, and explains her mother's silence.

JMO

Soooo relieved and hopeful to see this taking a turn towards my initial feeling (and posted theory). This sweet girl could be alive and safe somewhere after all.