PA PA - Ray Gricar, 59, Bellefonte, 15 April 2005 - #5

[PaulR]

That came up a few years ago; the county did not record the serial numbers of the drive. The drive fits the laptop, but they do not have the drive serial numbers. The serial number of the laptop itself was recorded; that was RFG's laptop.

Good question!

With the hard drive serial number, one should be able to determine - at the very least - when the drive was made. You should also be able to determine if it was the brand installed by the factory, maybe to the lot number.

It should be possible to determine if the drive was definitely not the one that the computer came with.

 

[J. J. in Phila]

With the hard drive serial number, one should be able to determine - at the very least - when the drive was made. You should also be able to determine if it was the brand installed by the factory, maybe to the lot number.

It should be possible to determine if the drive was definitely not the one that the computer came with.

That is definitely worth a shot.

LE has never said they checked it. I'm not sure the numbers were readable, however.

It would be interesting if it was not a match to RFG's computer.

 

[J. J. in Phila]

One question I've been asking is if RFG inquired about a replacement drive. He had talked to people about destroying the data on the drive, about a year before he disappeared.

I've never heard an answer.

 

[PaulR]

One question I've been asking is if RFG inquired about a replacement drive. He had talked to people about destroying the data on the drive, about a year before he disappeared.

I've never heard an answer.

That would be a good question. Hard drives are different for laptops and desktops - to be more specific, different sizes. Most stores on the web make it easy by having a different section for laptop and desktop drives. I'm not sure Gricar would have needed help. Even my dad can buy the right kind of drive :crazy:

Anyway - if the serial number for the drive is readable, or even partially legible, we should be able to figure out if Ray just decided to swap hard drives. If so, there may have been a reason why he wanted to keep the old one.

 

[J. J. in Phila]

That would be a good question. Hard drives are different for laptops and desktops - to be more specific, different sizes. Most stores on the web make it easy by having a different section for laptop and desktop drives. I'm not sure Gricar would have needed help. Even my dad can buy the right kind of drive :crazy:

LE has his desktop, and a record of his Internet searches. If he went online and was looking for a replacement drive, there will be a record of it.

Anyway - if the serial number for the drive is readable, or even partially legible, we should be able to figure out if Ray just decided to swap hard drives. If so, there may have been a reason why he wanted to keep the old one.

It might tell when and where the drive the purchased as well. RFG might not have been the buyer.

(I am annoyingly open minded.)

 

[DEPUTYDAWG]

Bumping...as I have always found this case so interesting.

Where is he????

 

[arielilane]

Yes, he did. That was one of my questions.

His daughter (presumably) filed his 2005 return.

RFG had no debt; except for his personal possessions, he had no physical property. He paid for the Mini, drove it almost exclusively, was photographed with it, but put it in PEF's name. His accounts were held jointly with his daughter.

It might have been an attempt at estate planning; he was 59 years old at the time.

(We will be needing a new thread soon.)

J.J. in Phila, do you know if it was typical behavior for Ray to have all his finances in order? No debt, etc.?

 

[pittsburghgirl]

I am the same age as Ray. I have no debt other than my mortgage, my car is also in my husband's name, and my finances are all in order. I think that is not unusual for someone who sees a lot of death and unexpected events or who is a workaholic professional who does not have extravagant tastes or a need for an expensive lifestyle.

 

[J. J. in Phila]

J.J. in Phila, do you know if it was typical behavior for Ray to have all his finances in order? No debt, etc.?

I don't think he got them in order. The question has always been why he had so few assets.

 

[arielilane]

Yes, he did. That was one of my questions.

His daughter (presumably) filed his 2005 return.

RFG had no debt; except for his personal possessions, he had no physical property. He paid for the Mini, drove it almost exclusively, was photographed with it, but put it in PEF's name. His accounts were held jointly with his daughter.

It might have been an attempt at estate planning; he was 59 years old at the time.

(We will be needing a new thread soon.)

I don't think he got them in order. The question has always been why he had so few assets.

I see your point, J. J. in Phila. Ray already planned and moved what assets he had into his daughter's (joint acct.) and his girlfriend's names. Therefore, they would have no problem when it comes to accessing the accounts or his vehicle.


Has Ray ever owned property that you know of? At the time that he went missing if I recall correctly he was living with Patty. Were they renting a place or did she own the property? TIA

 

[J. J. in Phila]

I see your point, J. J. in Phila. Ray already planned and moved what assets he had into his daughter's (joint acct.) and his girlfriend's names. Therefore, they would have no problem when it comes to accessing the accounts or his vehicle.

The join accounts were the ones counted. RFG had slightly over $100,000 is the bank, but he grossed more than $100 K/per year since 1998. Other than his retirement those accounts were his sole assets.

Has Ray ever owned property that you know of? At the time that he went missing if I recall correctly he was living with Patty. Were they renting a place or did she own the property? TIA

Prior to his 2000 divorce, he owned a house, that his ex-wife got (at least in part). He paid off the mortgage on PEF's house, but the value of the house was less than $75 K, so the mortgage would be less than that.

He was not known for spending money.

There is nothing unusual about a middle aged man having his child's name on the account. It gives the child access to the money in case something happens to the father; I was on my father's accounts for that purpose. There is also inheritance tax implication as well.

They checked the accounts for the 2.5 years prior to the disappearance. There were no transfers right before he left.

You do have to ask why a guy making more than $100 K/year, whose only child's mother makes possibly as much he did, with no mortgage, no car payments (he might have sold his Spider prior to buying the Mini), known for being conservative in spending, only has a bit above $100 K in assets?

 

[J. J. in Phila]

If anyone is interested, Sporadic Comments of Ray Gricar is now located here:

http://www.centredaily.com/opinion/blogs/

 

[SheWhoMustNotBeNamed]

Ray is tomorrow's featured case on Nancy Grace, America's Missing!

http://nancygrace.blogs.cnn.com/


The disappearance of Ray Gricar is a mystery that continues to haunt the town of Bellefonte, PA.

Just eight months away from retirement as a 20-year veteran prosecutor, Gricar vanishes after taking a day off from work to take a scenic drive. When he is not heard from for 12 hours Gricar’s girlfriend reports him missing on April 15, 2005. On the next day his red and white mini cooper is found in an antique mall parking lot – his cell phone still in the car, but his sunglasses and keys are missing. There have been many false sightings over the last five plus years, but nothing to fully draw police to one of the three theories they’ve had since day one of Ray’s disappearance – he walked away from his life, was met with foul play, or he committed suicide.

 

[J. J. in Phila]

New article, with some new information, that was related to previous topics:

According to Tony Gricar, the one thing that never made sense to police was his uncle's financial situation.

"He was making a fair amount of money; but, at least from a forensic accounting standpoint, the thought is there that there should have been more cash," he said. "But, for somebody from his generation, which [preferred to] deal in cash, what is the appropriate amount that should be sitting in an account?"

http://www.aolnews.com/2011/01/25/case-of-missing-pa-district-attorney-ray-gricar-baffles-police/

From what I have hear, directly from people who knew RFG, he used his credit card for most purchases.

 

[cluciano63]

This is the spotlighted case on NG tonight, I for one am glad as I don't know all of the details, have not finished reading the entire thread. Hope something comes up to shed some light on what happened to Mr. Gricar.

 

[J. J. in Phila]

This is the spotlighted case on NG tonight, I for one am glad as I don't know all of the details, have not finished reading the entire thread. Hope something comes up to shed some light on what happened to Mr. Gricar.

There are at least five other threads.

[And I'm on only one of them.]

 

[cluciano63]

One that is bothering me, watching NG, his family did not want to particpate, they no longer want to deal with the media. That is a shame as so many families would have jumped at the chance to be featured for an entire hour on a show like this. Why did she pick this case, I wonder?

 

[J. J. in Phila]

One that is bothering me, watching NG, his family did not want to particpate, they no longer want to deal with the media. That is a shame as so many families would have jumped at the chance to be featured for an entire hour on a show like this. Why did she pick this case, I wonder?

The family seems to be very worried about public reaction to walk away.

I'm someone who is willing to embrace the idea that RFG walked away, but I thought the show was overly biased to that possibility.

 

[J. J. in Phila]

As to why NG picked the case, probably two reasons:

1. RFG was a prosecutor when he disappeared; NG use to be a prosecutor.

2. It is a bizarre case. It has enough twists and turns to get people's interest.

 

[SheWhoMustNotBeNamed]

Short clip of Ray on Nancy Grace America's Missing:

http://cnn.com/video/?/video/crime/2011/01/26/ng.americas.missing.gricar.hln