NV NV - Steven T. Koecher, 30, Henderson, 13 Dec 2009 - # 1

[webrocket]

If you notice here, there are a number of people who had conversations with Steven in the days or weeks leading up to his disappearance about Vegas, Sacramento and who knows where else. Everyone here on WS keeps wondering why they did not ask Steven WHY he was in or going to Vegas or Sacramento or wherever.

I think there is a conspiracy (not in a criminal sense) of wilfull ignorance going on here. If they asked the question, they felt either that 1. they would be invading Steven's 'personal life' so they did not ask him for fear of upsetting Steven or 2. they were not concerned with upsetting Steven but were afraid they would be upset if he gave them an answer they did not want to hear. So in order to spare anyone getting upset, they all pretended not to care to know what Steven was up to.

In some ways, the existence of the video is probably more upsetting to the family than had they been left with mere speculation. Had the video not existed, the family could have believed he was carjacked. The video clearly and unambiguously shows that was not the case and now they have to examine why he left the way he did.

 

[ms_writer]

Web, ITA on your first two paragraphs. There is probably a side to Steve's life that family doesn't/didn't know about. He and I are the same age, and I know that my parents and I have a bit of that dynamic where they don't ask questions to which they might not want to know the answer.

However, I don't think that eliminates the possiblity that something criminal befell him after he left his car. For instance, he could have been lured for one purpose (to meet someone, etc.) but the person had more nefarious intentions than Steve was counting on. I hope that he is safe and happy somewhere, but I don't think we can count on it. JMO, of course.

 

[liz b.]

Steven's mom put some money in his account, so that he could pay his rent,but he never used it. So he didn't pay his rent ? And he left his cell phone in his car ? I don't understand what he was living on ; it sounds as though he had very limited funds. The trips to Vegas make no sense on the surface. I wonder if he was depressed, and maybe felt hopeless about his future ?

 

[SuziQ]

A car dump would imply insurance fraud. What good is insurance fraud for Koecher? It's not like he is going to collect a check for the proceeds.

If he just wanted to be relieved of payments, there are more efficient ways to accomplish this.

IMO, she's saying a perp, like from a carjacking robbery gone wrong, dumped the car there. Unless she didn't mean that, that is. lol.

Hey Laytonian, I've seen you around. Glad to have you here!

 

[webrocket]

If he was lured to Vegas by someone who intended to do him harm, I would think the criminals would have taken his car keys and eliminated the car. What killer wants a vehicle from a murder victim sitting in the killer's neighborhood?

 

[SuziQ]

If he was lured to Vegas by someone who intended to do him harm, I would think the criminals would have taken his car keys and eliminated the car. What killer wants a vehicle from a murder victim sitting in the killer's neighborhood?

Unless it's not the killers neighborhood. Tag team with someone in a car on the next block? It's got to be frustrating for the family to have two videos and not have either one be clear enough to positively ID him.

 

[dreamweaver]

I keep thinking of the video and Steven appearing to know where he is headed.

And then I think it was a Sunday, noon.

That sounds like an invitation to Sunday dinner or lunch.

 

[dreamweaver]

FB page has a timeline going. They ask those who saw or heard from Steven in the month before he went missing, to post.

I think it would be helpful to have Steven's work schedule posted as well.
Obviously, the one job we know he had was washing windows part time.

 

[SuziQ]

I keep thinking of the video and Steven appearing to know where he is headed.

And then I think it was a Sunday, noon.

That sounds like an invitation to Sunday dinner or lunch.

Was it unusual for him to skip church on Sunday? Some people you can set a clock by that. If it was unusual, who or what would he miss church for?

 

[ella's mom]

Attached is a link to a Steven Koecher's LinkedIn profile. I believe it is his based on KC confirming that he did in fact work for the Davis County Clipper. (I am going to go on the assumption that it is his profile, until someone tells me otherwise).

http://www.linkedin.com/pub/steven-koecher/16/9a9/164

I don't know when this was posted, but either way, I found a couple of interesting points on it.

#1 - He lists himself as a writing/editing professional in the Las Vegas, Nevada area.

#2 - Job History shows the following:

- October 2008-May 2009 - Sales person at Matchbin (Internet type work)
- September 2005 — February 2007 - Stringer @ Davis County Clipper
- September 2003 — May 2004 - Internship@Utah Gov. Office

No where on there does it show the Salt Lake Tribune (which had me questioning if it was his). However, after checking, I found that he worked at the SL Tribune from March 2007-July 2008. If you look above, you see there is a blatent gap between the Davis County Clipper and Matchbin Jobs. That gap fits the time he worked for the Tribune. So, the question is why would he leave that out?

In a past life, I was a Recruiter for a large company. If I looked at a resume that had that much of a gap in employment, a Red Flag would definitely go up. I found that applicants would leave off employers that would not provide good references. So, if he just left because he didn't like the hours why leave that off?

I remember reading somewhere that someone posted he was fired, but then a family member came on seemingly upset at the poster for saying that and said he was not fired he chose to leave.

Maybe if we knew why he really left, either voluntarily or involuntarily we might find a history of past behavior that could help with this case.

 

[ella's mom]

FB page has a timeline going. They ask those who saw or heard from Steven in the month before he went missing, to post.

I think it would be helpful to have Steven's work schedule posted as well.
Obviously, the one job we know he had was washing windows part time.

I don't think there is a work schedule. Sounds like he was trying to find more clients to wash windows and/or blinds for. Doesn't sound like the business was going well.

 

[webrocket]

excellent find ella's mom. Yes the gap leaving out the SL Tribune is glaring. Putting the Vegas area is not as nefarious. St. George may sound too remote for Vegas area people to give him a shot at work so that could be why he put the LV area.

It does however, show more than a transient interest in the LV area.

I know I had asked this of Naegle some time back. Did the family find his important papers like a birth cert?

 

[dreamweaver]

I don't think there is a work schedule. Sounds like he was trying to find more clients to wash windows and/or blinds for. Doesn't sound like the business was going well.

I thought I remembered a post about his employer, who has the window washing business.
He would have an account of when Steven worked in the month prior
to his disappearance Dec. 13.

On FB, one friend says she worked where blinds were needed and she and Steven exchanged cards.

 

[lost at sea]

Hi, Im new here. Higherpower and I work together and this case has become a topic of conversation at work. I cant help but add a few thoughts to the rapidly growing pile.

What strikes me as especially peculiar, as others have mentioned, is that several people made contact with Steven relatively soon before his last known location in Henderson. We have Gregg Webb, his bishop, his family, also whoever he was staying with. Did not ONE of these people ask what brought him two hours away from home. If I was in Tucson for the day (I live in Phoenix) and somebody called me, they would ask what I was doing. If I went to stay with someone, theyd ask what I was doing. My point is SOMEBODY who talked to Steven must know his intended purpose in Vegas. It may not be his TRUE purpose for being in Vegas, but it seems odd that no answer has been given yet.

Naegle, I wonder if you could give us info on a few points:

1. Did Steven have plans to stay with family, friends or relatives that night in Vegas? If so, what information were they able to give as to what he said his purpose was in Vegas?

2. I noticed an article that said that homeowners in the area of where he left his car were "hesitant to pass the buck". Was there any neighbor in particular that was less cooperative than others in helping the family? Was there a neighbor that the family has felt knows more than they let on but doesn't want to offend an neighbor they have to live next to for the rest of their lives?

Which brings me to my second point (and I really think fasteddy4 has done a superb job in pointing this point out) - SOMEBODY on Evening Lights knows SOMETHING about where Steven is or went. Whether he parked his car so as to not be seen or whether it was because he was planning on leaving it for an extended period and didnt want it to get towed, it doesnt matter. His destination was the same that day. Somebody saw him. Somebody talked with him. Steven didnt know the cameras were there. If he was hoping to ditch his car and go somewhere else that day he wouldnt have taken such a circuitious route back to the main drag.

Id be interested to know who lives in the casitas eddy mentioned. What do they do for a living? Do they travel frequently?

There is a lot of conjecture and supposition about where and why he was going but I feel that they only real theory that has potential at this point is that somebody on EL knows where he is or went. There are still people who havent been questioned (to our knowledge).

Naegle, if any of these points have been covered or we are missing details please fill in the blanks.

______________

Also, saw on his Linkdn page he lists that he claims to do writing and editing in or around the Vegas area.


Steven Koecher Directory (2 of 2)

1.
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Steven Koecher

Title
Writing and Editing Professional
Demographic info
Writing and Editing | Las Vegas, Nevada Area

Past:
Sales person at Matchbin, Stringer at The Davis County Clipper, Intern in the Governor's Office at State of Utah
Education:
University of Utah, Brigham Young University - Idaho

 

[dreamweaver]

Attached is a link to a Steven Koecher's LinkedIn profile. I believe it is his based on KC confirming that he did in fact work for the Davis County Clipper. (I am going to go on the assumption that it is his profile, until someone tells me otherwise).

http://www.linkedin.com/pub/steven-koecher/16/9a9/164

I don't know when this was posted, but either way, I found a couple of interesting points on it.

#1 - He lists himself as a writing/editing professional in the Las Vegas, Nevada area.

#2 - Job History shows the following:

- October 2008-May 2009 - Sales person at Matchbin (Internet type work)
- September 2005 — February 2007 - Stringer @ Davis County Clipper
- September 2003 — May 2004 - Internship@Utah Gov. Office

No where on there does it show the Salt Lake Tribune (which had me questioning if it was his). However, after checking, I found that he worked at the SL Tribune from March 2007-July 2008. If you look above, you see there is a blatent gap between the Davis County Clipper and Matchbin Jobs. That gap fits the time he worked for the Tribune. So, the question is why would he leave that out?

In a past life, I was a Recruiter for a large company. If I looked at a resume that had that much of a gap in employment, a Red Flag would definitely go up. I found that applicants would leave off employers that would not provide good references. So, if he just left because he didn't like the hours why leave that off?

I remember reading somewhere that someone posted he was fired, but then a family member came on very upset at the poster for saying that and said he was not fired he chose to leave.

Maybe if we knew why he really left, either voluntarily or involuntarily we might find a history of past behavior that could help with this case.

I also have a past life that included being a part of an interviewing team and a big gap in work history would cause me to have asked, why?

I do know that most employers anymore do not give a 'true' reference. Too many have been sued.
An employer can carefully say, yes he came to work on time, yes, his work was adequate.
But they leave out any glowing recommendations.

 

[ella's mom]

I also have a past life that included being a part of an interviewing team and a big gap in work history would cause me to have asked, why?

I do know that most employers anymore do not give a 'true' reference. Too many have been sued.
An employer can carefully say, yes he came to work on time, yes, his work was adequate.
But they leave out any glowing recommendations.

I agree Dreamweaver. By law, employers only have to confirm job title and dates of employment. However, I can't tell you how many times I have called for references and had people provide much more information. Some gave glowing references and others have confirmed employee theft, sexual harassment, drug use, etc.

Chances are the Salt Lake Tribune would only have provided dates of employment and title, but if you unaware of HR practices and Employment Law (which Steven probably was) you might not want to list a job if you left involuntarily or voluntarily, but on bad terms.

 

[dreamweaver]

I agree Dreamweaver. By law, employers only have to confirm job title and dates of employment. However, I can't tell you how many times I have called for references and had people provide much more information. Some gave glowing references and others have confirmed employee theft, sexual harassment, drug use, etc.

Chances are the Salt Lake Tribune would only have provided dates of employment and title, but if you unaware of HR practices and Employment Law (which Steven probably was) you might not want to list a job if you left involuntarily or voluntarily, but on bad terms.

I agree.
I have called employers and heard them say things like,
well, he did have two written warnings in his file.....

 

[ella's mom]

Hopefully I do not offend here. On some of the sites, and in some of the articles (especially the early ones) you see a "Leave it to Beaver" view of Steven and his life. I am not sure if this is on purpose or due to being naive. However, if it's on purpose, because certain people do not want outsiders to know they are not perfect (which none of us are) this case will not get solved. I have seen many posters (not on WS) trying to help and come up with ideas to solve this only to get a nasty reply because it does not fit the "good boy" image.

The worst part about some of these cases is that skeletons are exposed, dirty laundry is aired and people are hurt. Unfortunately, sometimes you have to expose those things to get to the truth.

I think because of that mentality, friends and family may be afraid to come forward. Lost at Sea is right, there is no way someone didn't ask Steven why he was in Vegas or going to Sacramento.

No where have I seen "callers/tips can be anonymous" when LE's numbers are listed. Believe's e-mail to the mortgage company says tips can be anonymous, but thats it. The case may get a little help if people are not afraid to come forward.

 

[Naegle]

Watch out. This is going to be a big one.

The conversation with Annemarie's family was in the Wendover area of Nevada not the Vegas area. The family has a ranch there and a few years ago Steven spent the weekend at the ranch. He went up to Wendover to visit Annemarie and her family. THEORY: From what I can recall Annemarie lived in Sacramento at one time. I think that Steven was tring to make small talk like "Oh, yeah I have family out there. Maybe Annemarie and I could go out there some time." I think he's interested in her and was trying to find common ground. (Steven, if you ever read this I'm sorry!)

Yes, the family believes that it is Steven on the video. True, it's not very clear, but it's his car down the block and the last ping from his cell was from a Vegas tower.

Again, we have checked his cell and bank records. There are no 800 numbers. Every number that he called, was called by and texted has been checked and classified as normal. The same goes for every purchase on his card. Also, his mother put money in his accound and his Grandmother gave him a check but he never used either sum of money. To me this suggests pride. Steven is a grown man and in his eyes he should be able to support himself. In the eyes of the family he's working so hard to find a full time job he deserves some help from his family. It's hard to reconcile those two points of view.

Why would Steven miss church? I don't know. It would have to be something important because Steven had responsibilities in the ward. GW said Steven always called him if he was going to miss church, but didn't the day he disappeared. Maybe that's because Steven had already talked to Paul Doxy at 11 that day.

I'm checking into GW. You all seem to be on to something there. Give me a few days though.

After one of the Trib articles some discussion started about this whole thing and someone did ask if Steven was fired from there. Many people booed down that comment, but no one in my family "freaked out". It's a legit question. A member of the Trib posted later that Steven wasn't fired "he left of his own accord". It is odd that he didn't put the Trib on his linked in profile. I don't know what to do about it though.

He did not mention to anyone that we have talked to that he was going to Vegas. He didn't make plans to stay with anyone. Yes, it's odd that no one asked what he was doing there. That's part of what I'm looking into.

Yes, it's odd that no on in the neighborhood ever saw Steven. There are three explanations, one somone is lying, two we have talk to someone in every house, but we certainly haven't talked to everyone in every house, three he just parked there and walked - a long way - to somewhere else.

 

[laytonian]

A car dump would imply insurance fraud. What good is insurance fraud for Koecher? It's not like he is going to collect a check for the proceeds.

If he just wanted to be relieved of payments, there are more efficient ways to accomplish this.

I'm using "car dump" to describe any situation where the purpose is to park the car and leave....not necessarily insurance or payments fraud.