NV NV - Steven T. Koecher, 30, Henderson, 13 Dec 2009 - #21

[sbakker]

Gotta say cloudajo - Thanks! Really well thought out, well-done, and all with links to references!

Wish all the work that Laytonian had done (timelines, etc.) were still here to serve as an aid in your research....

What did happen to all of Laytonians info? Sure miss her here!

 

[fridaybaker]

Cloudajo: You mention that there were about 14 phone communications between SK and GW in the week before SK disappeared and link to a post on Websleuths. Do you have any idea of the source of this information? Anyone else here?

 

[Fairy1]

Cloudajo: You mention that there were about 14 phone communications between SK and GW in the week before SK disappeared and link to a post on Websleuths. Do you have any idea of the source of this information? Anyone else here?

The specific post to which cloudajo was referring is this one:

Websleuths Crime Sleuthing Community - View Single Post - NV NV - Steven T. Koecher, 30, Henderson, 13 Dec 2009 - #16


I'm sure it's in the timeline, but IIRC, the information came from Naegle via laytonian. Steven's family had his phone records early on and were even able to listen to his voicemail messages.

IMO, the most important detail in terms of these phone calls is not who was calling or even how frequently, but that they STOPPED calling when they did. It would still be several days before SCA security called Steven's Mom regarding the car, so no one knew Steven had disappeared, officially.

What would cause someone who had been making calls or sending text messages to someone frequently suddenly stop before they knew he was missing?

 

[swjaxon]

The specific post to which cloudajo was referring is this one:

Websleuths Crime Sleuthing Community - View Single Post - NV NV - Steven T. Koecher, 30, Henderson, 13 Dec 2009 - #16


I'm sure it's in the timeline, but IIRC, the information came from Naegle via laytonian. Steven's family had his phone records early on and were even able to listen to his voicemail messages.

SK's communication with GW is, in my opinion, rather easy to understand when you compare the calls/texts with the context. They all surrounded church services. There were several calls on their ward temple night the week before he disappeared (along with several calls to other church members) and a call the Sunday he disappeared. That's it.

As an aside, when I spoke to GW he said they weren't "good friends" as it has been portrayed -- they knew each other for about six months (my exact time might be off, so don't quote me) from church, and that's it.

 

[Fairy1]

SK's communication with GW is, in my opinion, rather easy to understand when you compare the calls/texts with the context. They all surrounded church services. There were several calls on their ward temple night the week before he disappeared (along with several calls to other church members) and a call the Sunday he disappeared. That's it.

As an aside, when I spoke to GW he said they weren't "good friends" as it has been portrayed -- they knew each other for about six months (my exact time might be off, so don't quote me) from church, and that's it.

I'm sure the six-month timeframe is fairly accurate as Steven had only been in St. George for about 8 months before he went missing. Personally, I am not willing to take GW's word in terms of the context of their calls. And, there is still the question of why the calls/texts stopped abruptly, when they did.

GW said Steven ALWAYS notified him if he was not going to be able to attend a church function. I would love to know how often that occurred and why Steven did NOT call GW on December 13, 2009. The fact that, when they did speak that day, GW said, "Do what you have to do" tells me their conversations were not relegated only to church matters.

 

[swjaxon]

Personally, I am not willing to take GW's word in terms of the context of their calls. And, there is still the question of why the calls/texts stopped abruptly, when they did.

I don't think they stopped abruptly. They were too infrequent to show a pattern of ceasing. Literally, two days of calls/texts over the span of a month.

 

[Fairy1]

I don't think they stopped abruptly. They were too infrequent to show a pattern of ceasing. Literally, two days of calls/texts over the span of a month.

Well....Steven went missing on Sunday, 12/13/09. And when was he officially reported missing? Closer to the following Sunday, right?

 

[cloudajo]

I don't think they stopped abruptly. They were too infrequent to show a pattern of ceasing. Literally, two days of calls/texts over the span of a month.

This post mentions about 14 calls/texts between them in the previous week, which would be an average of about 2 calls/texts per day. I'd be curious to know whether GW was calling/texting Steven, the other way around, or a combination.

====

You don't have to see the phone records, to guess who *never* called Steven after noon on Dec 13th, although there'd been about 14 calls/texts between them, in the previous week.

Websleuths Crime Sleuthing Community - View Single Post - NV NV - Steven T. Koecher, 30, Henderson, 13 Dec 2009 - #16

 

[cloudajo]

[snipped]
Wish all the work that Laytonian had done (timelines, etc.) were still here to serve as an aid in your research....

I really wanted to read that!

 

[swjaxon]

Well....Steven went missing on Sunday, 12/13/09. And when was he officially reported missing? Closer to the following Sunday, right?

I'm not sure when he was reported missing. And I'm also wrong, there were three days of communication over a month. That said, I still don't think it's suspicious. He communicated with a lot of people from his ward, but the only consistant calls he made/received were with his employer.

I don't think it's accurate to say communication with GW stopped after he went missing. Communication between the two was far too inconsistant to make that assumption.

This post mentions about 14 calls/texts between them in the previous week, which would be an average of about 2 calls/texts per day. I'd be curious to know whether GW was calling/texting Steven, the other way around, or a combination.

Three incoming texts from GW, four outgoing texts to GW on the 9th (This was ward temple night. There was a lot of activity this day, all to members of SK's church). Two incoming texts from GW, two outgoing texts to GW on the 10th. One call on the 13th from GW to SK.

 

[sbakker]

I don't think they stopped abruptly. They were too infrequent to show a pattern of ceasing. Literally, two days of calls/texts over the span of a month.

So jaxon, just was wondering who or what you think happened to SK? If you would not mind giving us your thoughts.


I am not saying that GW, the landlords, or his boss (at the window washing place) had anything to do with his disappearance, abd knowing he did not have many friends in St. George, these are the people he probably knew best and talked to the most.

It seems as though they are the ones that should be checked out first-thouroughly. And I do not know if they have been. Talking to neighbors who lived by SK, were never questioned. (My daughter lived 2 blks. from where SK lived)

 

[swjaxon]

So jaxon, just was wondering who or what you think happened to SK? If you would not mind giving us your thoughts.

I am not saying that GW, the landlords, or his boss (at the window washing place) had anything to do with his disappearance, abd knowing he did not have many friends in St. George, these are the people he probably knew best and talked to the most.

It seems as though they are the ones that should be checked out first-thouroughly. And I do not know if they have been. Talking to neighbors who lived by SK, were never questioned. (My daughter lived 2 blks. from where SK lived)

Sure. I believe SK came to Las Vegas for a reason he thought was legitimate, and through the course of his day met with foul play. I believe his travels leading up to December 13 were, in his mind, also legitimate and are connected to his trip to Las Vegas.

I know for a fact the police in Henderson believe SK is a walkaway, and have treated his case as such. I believe there is evidence to the contrary, but until new tangible evidence is found, and I mean a significant find, police will continue to treat this case as a walkaway. I believe that after the initial investigation (the few months after the MP report was filed), police have done little to find SK.

In my years of covering missing people and crime, I am surprised at how this case has been investigated.

 

[Fairy1]

Sure. I believe SK came to Las Vegas for a reason he thought was legitimate, and through the course of his day met with foul play. I believe his travels leading up to December 13 were, in his mind, also legitimate and are connected to his trip to Las Vegas.

I know for a fact the police in Henderson believe SK is a walkaway, and have treated his case as such. I believe there is evidence to the contrary, but until new tangible evidence is found, and I mean a significant find, police will continue to treat this case as a walkaway. I believe that after the initial investigation (the few months after the MP report was filed), police have done little to find SK.

In my years of covering missing people and crime, I am surprised at how this case has been investigated.

Thank you, swjaxon. What would you (or LE) consider to be tangible evidence? What, if anything, can WE do to push the investigation?

 

[MLE]

I haven't read much in the threads of this case, but I did see the episode of Disappeared and thought this case was stranger than most.

Assuming it was him in the video where his car was found, it would seem sort of unlikely that he actually knew anyone in that community.

So think about if we saw a female who disappeared under such circumstances. We'd probably assume they were raped and killed in one of those homes. The thing is, the exact same thing can happen to males. He could've been overpowered or slipped something in a drink. Or he could've been targeted for money since Las Vegas is the epicenter of American housing doom with an estimated 81% of people underwater on their mortgages based on an article I read last year. Plus, there is no shortage of compulsive gamblers and drug junkies. He could've been even targeted for his organs by someone needing a transplant. There are so many different scenarios, but it seems probable that it was a stranger who disappeared this guy and he was baited into a trap under false pretenses surrounding a BS financial opportunity.

 

[Essbee]

Frequent reader, rare poster here. I've been following along since last summer or so.

I agree with the post above. For example, this case was very much a mystery for many months.

http://www.signonsandiego.com/news/2011/jun/01/murder-sex-assault-trial-begins-death-oc-man/

Now, the perp in that case was apparently arrested in 2009 but it's the type of person who could have lured Stephen.

 

[cloudajo]

I saw a program where a young woman was hit by a car and died. She didn’t have any identification when found, so was entered into (NamUs?) as Jane Doe. The young woman’s mother had reported her missing, but there wasn’t an official missing persons report filed for some time. When the case was entered into (NamUs?), it was entered with a Last Known Alive date later than the date entered for Jane Doe. So for some time, the two cases for the same woman were in the database, but no matches came up due to the dates entered.

In general, I think NAMUS is a great tool, but it also depends on the accuracy and completeness of the information that gets entered, and the follow up.

For instance, if I pull up Steven’s case # on NamUs (MP # 4889), it shows a Profile Strength of 4 out of 5 stars. The Circumstances section shows “St. George, UT” but he was last seen in Henderson, NV. Dental information is chartered/entered, but for DNA it shows as “Samples submitted - Tests not complete.” So is the DNA information available for potential matching and the record just wasn’t updated?

Then, if I do a search in the NamUs Unidentified Persons System, using only Date Found of 12/13/2009 in State of Nevada, there are 2 hits. One has a Race of Black/African American, and the other has a Race of “Unsure” and no age range. For the second, on June 13, 2010, a skull and 4 misc. bones were found by a woman walking her dogs in the desert area near Boxcar Cove, Clark County, NV. This is NE of Henderson, about a 35 minute drive. The Profile Strength for this case is 1 out of 5 stars. Dental information says “Dental information / charting is available and will be entered later.” DNA information says “Samples submitted - Tests not complete.” I know it’s a long shot, but things like this make me wonder. Were these remains looked into by LE and ruled out as Steven’s?

Steven’s NamUs Case: https://www.findthemissing.org/cases/4889/0/
Unidentified Case: https://identifyus.org/cases/7941
Map from Henderson to Boxcar Cove, Clark County, NV: Henderson, NV to Boxcar Cove - Google Maps

 

[cloudajo]

To be on the safe side, I sent an email to both the NamUs case manager noted for Steven, and the case manager noted for the Unidentified Person's case, and asked them if they hadn't already, could they look into it and rule out a match.

 

[hollyblue]

I'm not sure when he was reported missing. And I'm also wrong, there were three days of communication over a month. That said, I still don't think it's suspicious. He communicated with a lot of people from his ward, but the only consistant calls he made/received were with his employer.

I don't think it's accurate to say communication with GW stopped after he went missing. Communication between the two was far too inconsistant to make that assumption.



Three incoming texts from GW, four outgoing texts to GW on the 9th (This was ward temple night. There was a lot of activity this day, all to members of SK's church). Two incoming texts from GW, two outgoing texts to GW on the 10th. One call on the 13th from GW to SK.

Do you know why or have a guess why the ward temple night was never mentioned by LE, the media, or at the presser.....ever? Surely the family or LE had talked to GW in length about his timeline with Steven the week prior.... which would included temple night, yet Mrs. K said nothing about it at the PC (Feb 26'10) while giving her timeline of SK's actions the prior week. In fact, it wouldn't have been possible. It's always bother me, tbh, since nothing was ever mentioned except one person's comment on his FB page and then we were to take "other reliable sources" at face value...not knowing if it was verified by LE. The next time we hear anything about it was the ID show a year and half later.

Favor if you could. The presser was linked to an article you had done when covering it. Is that still available from 8 News Now and possible you could link it here since it seems to be gone from the article? Thanks, swjaxon


***On SK's being reported missing, I believe it was the 17th. SCA left Mrs. K a msg on the 15th, she retrieved it on the 16th and then Mr. K and one of SK's brother's went to Henderson that night then reported him missing the next day.

 

[Malini2001]

I have a copy of the time line as it existed in April of 2010 saved to my computer. I don't know how to publish it, but if somebody can help me with that, it may be helpful to other posters.

 

[swjaxon]

Do you know why or have a guess why the ward temple night was never mentioned by LE, the media, or at the presser.....ever? Surely the family or LE had talked to GW in length about his timeline with Steven the week prior.... which would included temple night, yet Mrs. K said nothing about it at the PC (Feb 26'10) while giving her timeline of SK's actions the prior week. In fact, it wouldn't have been possible. It's always bother me, tbh, since nothing was ever mentioned except one person's comment on his FB page and then we were to take "other reliable sources" at face value...not knowing if it was verified by LE. The next time we hear anything about it was the ID show a year and half later.

Favor if you could. The presser was linked to an article you had done when covering it. Is that still available from 8 News Now and possible you could link it here since it seems to be gone from the article?

I don't know why the temple night was not mentioned. However, it is obvious by looking at his phone records that SK was organizing a church-related activity that day.

Our video retention policy knocks clips off the site after about 3-6 months. So that video is long gone... I'm full of help today.