Found Deceased OH - Joey LaBute, 26, Columbus, 4 March 2016 #2

[RybieMagoo]

The missing puzzle pieces involve his social life and everyone he came into contact with that evening. We know his roommate was an employee of the Union. Joey probably knew the employees there through his roommate. We know Joey was on a date that evening. We know he saw friends that evening at the Union, including a Matt and a Chad. He later texted Matt and accused him of lying about something. We also know, based on the report of a witness on the prior thread, that he saw Joey active on Scruff/Grindr that night. All of this is critical. Hopefully, the detectives are taking a deep dive into his life and questioning everyone.

Do we know that he texted Matt LATER? I don't recall seeing a time stamp for the conversation before the gibberish text. I could be wrong, though. It's really difficult for me to keep the timeline straight.

 

[RybieMagoo]

Somebody else in an earlier post got "Justin" too. Justin was the name of Joey's roommate, who works at the Union. Somewhere there is a link containing an interview with him. Interesting.

That's a really good thought. Those cars require a membership to use and I believe that you have to "reserve" one to make sure it stays where it is. You can't just walk up to it and use it. Joey also already had a car so it may be unlikely that he had a Car2Go membership. But we never know. It's a really good thought!

 

[osu]

April 1, 2016
Unsolved mystery: 10 years later, Brian Shaffer still missing

~snip

"We never could have believed then that 10 years later we still don’t know what happened to Brian,” Maurin said. “It’s been so hard watching Derek go through this, but we had to get back into our normal lives.”


It’s hardest for Derek when he hears news reports that someone else has gone missing. That was the case last month when Joseph LaBute Jr., a handsome 26-year-old, went missing after leaving a bar in the same area where Brian went missing.

“It just brings all the pain from Brian back again,” Derek said. “How long will it be before we know something? Ten years? Twenty? Thirty? Never?”

~snip

Video at link:
http://www.dispatch.com/content/sto...-years-later-brian-shaffer-still-missing.html

 

[OccamsRazor]

Something seems strange to me about Matt. He received the gibberish text at 1:22 am Friday night, said he saw the text Saturday morning but didn't think anything of it (says he thought it was a pocket text) and then responds Saturday night at 11:47 pm with: "Hey. You there?" Seems odd to me. In my opinion, he is also demonstrating some expressions and behaviors in his interview that might suggest he is being untruthful.

http://www.10tv.com/content/stories...id=979166608786495_979674422069047#f2c4934b18

 

[trout]

A study of micro-expressions would be useful.
If the "hunch" about where to look is true, then the police have a lot of information. My own hunch is that there will be an arrest sooner than later.

 

[OccamsRazor]

Brian Shaffer:

http://nbc4i.com/2016/04/01/a-decade-later-medical-students-disappearance-remains-a-mystery/

 

[Sparky]

:stop:

Please stop with the rumors. Unless it's states in MSM and you have a link for it, it's considered rumor.

It's against WS TOS to post rumors.

Thanks!

 

[Rstlne]

I'm having a problem understanding the timeline.

What time did the aunt call? Was it after 1:22 a.m.?

I have an article that states the following:

"Family members said the last message sent from LaBute’s phone sent at 1:22 a.m. Saturday simply read: “Jnhstioj.”

http://www.10tv.com/content/stories...tage-to-help-locate-missing-columbus-man.html

Here's my only question.... Why did his aunt ultimately call him, in which he said "I'm driving" if no one even knew anything was wrong at that point? Is it common for an aunt to call her nephews phone in the early Saturday morning hours? I'd like to know if perhaps someone called or texted her and then she tried calling him or what? I just find it odd that she would randomly call if nothing was wrong bc remember at the time of the phone call no one knew Joey was missing or anything. His cousin stated in an interview they thought Joey just went home or to a friends place so they left Union that night.

 

[Rstlne]

A thought I just had- has anyone here considered car2go? Perhaps Joey ended up using a car2go to get somewhere quickly, instead of walking back to his own car. I'm sure on a crowded Friday night there were at least a couple car2go(s) in the area. Just trying to think outside of the box here.

Or Über?

 

[Esse]

Here's my only question.... Why did his aunt ultimately call him, in which he said "I'm driving" if no one even knew anything was wrong at that point? Is it common for an aunt to call her nephews phone in the early Saturday morning hours? I'd like to know if perhaps someone called or texted her and then she tried calling him or what? I just find it odd that she would randomly call if nothing was wrong bc remember at the time of the phone call no one knew Joey was missing or anything. His cousin stated in an interview they thought Joey just went home or to a friends place so they left Union that night.

I have the same question. I think someone must have contacted her and she was checking on Joey.

What time was he reported missing? Does anyone know?

 

[Tiggerford]

This is what I've been questioning from the beginning. I feel like she maybe she had some reason to be worried about him, to call so late. Maybe she knew Joey was upset about something? Not saying he was suicidal at all, because I truly don't think that's what happened here. It would just be nice to have some of these answers....

 

[Rstlne]

I have the same question. I think someone must have contacted her and she was checking on Joey.

What time was he reported missing? Does anyone know?

Not until sometime on Saturday afternoon/evening

 

[Rstlne]

This is what I've been questioning from the beginning. I feel like she maybe she had some reason to be worried about him, to call so late. Maybe she knew Joey was upset about something? Not saying he was suicidal at all, because I truly don't think that's what happened here. It would just be nice to have some of these answers....

Knowing Joey, he was not suicidal and I've heard some people bring up any drug usage... The only way this would be true is if something was given to him without his knowledge... He didn't use drugs.

 

[VTX88]

This is what I've been questioning from the beginning. I feel like she maybe she had some reason to be worried about him, to call so late. Maybe she knew Joey was upset about something? Not saying he was suicidal at all, because I truly don't think that's what happened here. It would just be nice to have some of these answers....

Maybe she called because the cousin told her that Joey went up to the bar and never came back and they couldn't find him before they left. They probably told her they tried texting him several times but got no response. Maybe she figured that if he wasn't answering their texts, maybe he'd at least answer her call. And she figured right because he did answer her call.

 

[semisleuth]

Hi everyone,

I lived in Columbus for 6 years and can't count the number of times I had drinks at Union.
Here is my opinion on different hypotheses that you guys have been mentioning:


1. Suicide I believe is very unlikely: because it is very likely that Joey passed away before entering the Scioto.

2. Confusion/disorientation from drugs/alocohol and then falling to the river I believe is very unlikely: see above.


3. Hate crime I believe is unlikely: Columbus is in general a tolerant city, even though I must say there have
been homophobia related incidents. I remember a couple of cases.
See http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2013/06/11/ohio-alleged-gay-hate-crime-_n_3423784.html
Also, once I was standing at Union's patio talking to a guy when someone from
the street threw a stone that hit him in the head.
However, I agree with the person saying that hate crimes are normally visibly
hate related: someone gets beaten and left on the street.


4. Intentional homicide (motivated by ________) I believe is unlikely: given no apparent external injuries but also the weird text around 1:30a
which makes no sense and points to 5a) or 5b). If you are in imminent danger I don't think you txt someone.
If I was in inmment danger (being hit by someone for example) my instinct is to physically protect myself.
If I am running away, I call 911 but I do not run, unlock my phone, go the messages app and write
a message.

5. Overdose I believe is the most likely: given no apparent external injuries, the fact that Joey very likely passed away
before entering the Scioto.


a) Rooffied/unintentionally ingested drugs: I think this is a problem in Columbus.
I am aware of two cases. One is a friend who told me how he was talking
to a guy, then went to the restroom without his drink (his second!). Shortly after
returning, he started feeling very dizzy.. Felt something was very wrong
and decided to immediately drive back home. Vomited something red and passed out in his
bathroom until the next day.


Why didn't Joey call his friends or police if he thought he needed help? Well, maybe
he didn't want the other guy to see he was asking for help. So he grabbed his phone, maybe without
even looking at it. Unlocked the phone (I do not know anyone around his age that does not have to unlock his phone with
some password), but wasn't able to write something that made sense. So how are you able to unlock your phone but then you can't write a clear message? Because you
have unlocked your phone already a million times.


b) Intentionally ingested drugs (with someone else).



I slighlty favour a) over b) Was a) or b) with a friend or a stranger? I think most likely a stranger. A friend is more likely to take you to the hospital if he thinks
you life is in danger.


So what about the "I'm driving?" I dont know who answered the phone but I do not think Joey was actually driving.

 

[OccamsRazor]

Does anyone else just find it incredibly suspicious that the last person Joey texted was (1) the same person he accused of lying, (2) whom he had seen earlier that same night, (3) who saw him at the same place he disappeared, (4) who did not respond to his last text until after 11 PM the following night, and (5) the response was, "Hey. Are you there?" not, "People are really worried about you," or "What did your text mean?" or "Are you okay?" etc. It was a very factual question that seems it could have been calculated as an attempt to prevent questions as to why he did not care enough to respond at all to the original text message. AND, there were no further texts from him. If your friend is missing, wouldn't you be trying to text him like crazy? Unless, of course, you have reason to know he will not, or cannot, respond.

 

[Sparky]

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:tyou:

 

[MerryB]

Here's my only question.... Why did his aunt ultimately call him, in which he said "I'm driving" if no one even knew anything was wrong at that point? Is it common for an aunt to call her nephews phone in the early Saturday morning hours? I'd like to know if perhaps someone called or texted her and then she tried calling him or what? I just find it odd that she would randomly call if nothing was wrong bc remember at the time of the phone call no one knew Joey was missing or anything. His cousin stated in an interview they thought Joey just went home or to a friends place so they left Union that night.

Does anyone have an actual link that mentions the "I'm driving" phone call? I have not seen or heard any mention of this in the local news. I have seen a lot about the date texting "goodnight cutie" at 10:19 and Joey responding "byeeee" at 10:28, and then of course the infamous "pocket text" at 1:22, but am not sure where the "I'm driving" response to his aunt's phone call fits in. I don't see mention of it in any local news articles/stories. TIA

 

[OccamsRazor]

And FYI - I would not rule out injuries at this point. The coroner herself said his body was badly decomposed, she needed dental information to identify him, and she said no "obvious" signs of external injuries, not that there weren't any.

 

[Momoffourboys]

Does anyone else just find it incredibly suspicious that the last person Joey texted was (1) the same person he accused of lying, (2) whom he had seen earlier that same night, (3) who saw him at the same place he disappeared, (4) who did not respond to his last text until after 11 PM the following night, and (5) the response was, "Hey. Are you there?" not, "People are really worried about you," or "What did your text mean?" or "Are you okay?" etc. It was a very factual question that seems it could have been calculated as an attempt to prevent questions as to why he did not care enough to respond at all to the original text message. AND, there were no further texts from him. If your friend is missing, wouldn't you be trying to text him like crazy? Unless, of course, you have reason to know he will not, or cannot, respond.

I know the "hey, you there?" Text troubles you. I will tell you that when I argue with my son. Or if I know he's upset, I will text him those exact words. I feel that Matt knew that JL was upset. Because that is exactly what I text. It's hard to explain and I understand your frustration.

Its mostly to see if my son is ok and to get a reaction. To see if he's still mad.