Found Deceased Spain - Esther Dingley, from UK, missing in the Pyrenees, November 2020 #4

[Onlinesleuth]

Who knows, though, what the firm representing them may be directing him to do. They may have asked him to severely limit discussion so as to let them control the messaging. One "false word", so to speak, and the entire public sees something nefarious, misleading, etc. I don't know, but could this be the reason?

In almost all missing person cases, especially when it’s been categorised as a ‘criminal investigation’ appeals for witnesses are made on television and the heat is kept up - especially in the first few weeks because that is when the trail is still warm. The authorities don’t care about how it comes across, or who says what, they just want the case solved. I’d be interest to know what the reason for the silence is...

 

[HongKongPhooey]

In almost all missing person cases, especially when it’s been categorised as a ‘criminal investigation’ appeals for witnesses are made on television and the heat is kept up - especially in the first few weeks because that is when the trail is still warm. The authorities don’t care about how it comes across, or who says what, they just want the case solved. I’d be interest to know what the reason for the silence is...

There may have been appeals on local TV - Spain and France, possibly.

 

[RickshawFan]

To her credit, ED did the 3 day cycling fundraiser last summer, for starters... not sure what else.

The quote was from the second year on the road, though, not last year. So, I'm wondering what evolved from the commitment to "giving back" during the 3rd year. 4th? 5th?

 

[stmarysmead]

There may have been appeals on local TV - Spain and France, possibly.

‘The protocol might be different if someone disappears from a shopping center parking lot, midday in July... rather than a remote mountain peak, late afternoon in the last part of November.

 

[ZaZara]

In almost all missing person cases, especially when it’s been categorised as a ‘criminal investigation’ appeals for witnesses are made on television and the heat is kept up - especially in the first few weeks because that is when the trail is still warm. The authorities don’t care about how it comes across, or who says what, they just want the case solved. I’d be interest to know what the reason for the silence is...

Kindly reminder that you mentioned the alleged nature of the criminal investigation when you first arrived on this platform.

To which I replied:

There’s confusion over the French and Spanish handling of the case. My understanding is it’s now being investigated by the French. If they have now called it a criminal investigation that naturally indicates that there’s a third person involved, because how else could a ‘crime’ have been committed? (Unless I’m missing something...)
Snipped for brevity and BBM

You are going too fast here. A criminal investigation in France allows for the possibility that a crime may have been committed and gives the Police more options to investigate and to hear possible witnesses. There needn't be any third person involvement or person (s) of interest at the start or later in the investigation.


BBM

Spain - Esther Dingley, from UK, missing in the Pyrenees, November 2020 #3

Your reply:

Ah, OK - I wasn’t aware of that. Thanks for clarifying...

Spain - Esther Dingley, from UK, missing in the Pyrenees, November 2020 #3


You're welcome!

 

[Onlinesleuth]

The quote was from the second year on the road, though, not last year. So, I'm wondering about the 3rd year. 4th? 5th?

Who knows? But her level of generosity is not really what’s up for discussion here. I’m more interested in the facts that led to her disappearance and who, if anyone, was involved it...

 

[Onlinesleuth]

‘The protocol might be different if someone disappears from a shopping center parking lot, midday in July... rather than a remote mountain peak, late afternoon in the last part of November.

Very different... however, one of the main people involved stated on television that he doesn’t believe that she is on the mountain. She’s therefore a missing person. Therefore, there would normally be an appeal, if not several.

 

[jsoap]

‘The protocol might be different if someone disappears from a shopping center parking lot, midday in July... rather than a remote mountain peak, late afternoon in the last part of November.

I suspect that it's not high priority in France, since LE were of the opinion that ED never came into France. Compare the coverage with that of Delphine Jubillar who went missing in Tarn in December

 

[Ruthbullock]

Yes, but do they have an EU pet passport, and how long is it valid? There is also the animal health certificate, as well as the GB pet health certificate, and to get those, they would need a visit to a vet to be issued, and how much would that cost with five dogs? Add to that the tape worm treatment, so there would likely be an additional vet cost if they were going back after January 1, 2021 with the dogs. Would the income from the books be able to cover it? They would not be able to bring more than five dogs into the UK.
Pet travel: to and from Great Britain

That’s not any different to before Brexit, having lived abroad we always brought our dogs back when we came to see family and even though one was registered in UK and one in Germany- the protocol was the same for both- vets 24 hours before for health check, worming and something else (can’t remember what off the top of my head).

 

[Onlinesleuth]

I suspect that it's not high priority in France, since LE were of the opinion that ED never came into France. Compare the coverage with that of Delphine Jubillar who went missing in Tarn in December

Why do France have control of it, in that case?

 

[stmarysmead]

Here’s a US case from long ago...the woman died recently so it was again in the news. This young couple , both from religious loving families, disappeared for 4 months. Their car was found in a rough area of Chicago and a crime was assumed. There was a massive search, but nothing was found...until they themselves sent letters to their families.

The passing of a local legend

WHEATON COUPLE SAY THEY DID IT ALL FOR LOVE


“Carolyn said that when they left they had figured they would never come back. But when they began to have second thoughts, she said, the possibility of contacting their families was complicated by the unanticipated and intense publicity surrounding their disappearance.

The couple left Carolyn`s car, a bright red 1985 BMW owned by James MacLean, near the police station at 113 W. Chicago Ave. They put the keys under the mat and hoped that the car would be returned to MacLean.

Instead, they wrote, it probably was stolen, which explains how it ended up in the alley behind Orchestra Hall, 220 S. Michigan Ave., with the keys in the ignition. The engine was warm when it was found.

The couple took a cab to O`Hare International Airport and flew that evening to San Diego, where they have been living ever since. Earlier that week, Carolyn had bought warm-weather clothes in Wheaton. The couple kept track of the search by reading Chicago papers at a college library.

Though employed at separate places, Scott`s and Carolyn`s hours were similar, James MacLean said.

''What this sounds like,'' said Robert Fletcher, a spokesman for the Illinois state police, ''is an F. Scott Fitzgerald story, where you have a couple that decides to go off on a lark. The only thing that got them into the paper is the fact they came from money.''

Fletcher said it is not especially difficult to elude a police search if a person does not leave a paper trail and does not get into trouble with the law. Scott and Carolyn left their credit cards and pieces of identification behind. Swanson also acknowledged leaving confusing pieces of evidence.”

 

[jsoap]

Why do France have control of it, in that case?

No idea what you mean

 

[Sillybilly]

ADMIN NOTE:

This post lands at random.

There is an ongoing cleanup of this thread. In the meantime, stop with the judgmental posts and the trashing of the victims. It is no way productive in trying to find out what has happened to Esther.

ETA: Be careful what you wish for ... when someone says Goodbye, we are very polite and say Goodbye in return.

 

[Neal Issagum]

Welcome to the thread. What are your opinions on the case?

Thank you, I’m enjoying reading the discussion. Still confused as to what happened on 21st Nov, there seems to be a lot of time unaccounted for that day.
Interesting that the Instagram posts by ED listed by a previous poster @Grouse show a (temporary?) pattern of evening posts (19h-21h00 approx) possibly after a day’s hiking, but there was one post on 21st at around 13h. Not sure if this is indicative of anything though.

 

[Inspectormotive]

Are the authorities able and allowed to pull the telephone numbers of every phone that pinged off that mast for a few days either side of when ED went missing?

 

[Grouse]

Thank you, I’m enjoying reading the discussion. Still confused as to what happened on 21st Nov, there seems to be a lot of time unaccounted for that day.
Interesting that the Instagram posts by ED listed by a previous poster @Grouse show a (temporary?) pattern of evening posts (19h-21h00 approx) possibly after a day’s hiking, but there was one post on 21st at around 13h. Not sure if this is indicative of anything though.

Yes, for me the post on 21st stood out from the others in the series, at least going as far back as 16th, for that reason. It was slightly gratifying to see that it did at least confirm what I had thought after poring over shadow angles way up thread.

 

[otto]

Regarding French authorities involvement in the disappearance, France is her temporary home at this time, and is where her partner is currently living. French authorities interviewed her partner several times, which makes sense since he is in France. French authorities are collaborating with Spanish and British authorities, and continue to investigate because there is no trace of her.

 

[miekei]

So I’ve been following this thread since the beginning, and I can’t stop thinking that there was third party involvement. Taking ED’s outgoing and trusting nature into account, it’s always been my gut feeling that she met up with a seemingly innocuous fellow hiker (could have been French, Spanish, or maybe a fellow Brit) and that somewhere along the way, for whatever reason, things went horribly wrong. The meet-up might have been pre-planned, or impromptu. If it was pre-planned, it might explain why she arrived at the Pic so late in the day on the 22nd; perhaps she was filling in some time before the rendezvous. She’d already been up the day before and it had been pretty spectacular, plus she already knew she would have phone reception at the summit. Why not take advantage of the weather and make one more quick trip up? If she then came back down off the mountain, either alone or with a companion (depending on where exactly the arranged meet-up might have taken place) it would explain why her trail went cold before ever reaching the Refuge. Perhaps she was simply scouting out the trail/the area on the 21st. Better than just hanging out in Benasque. All hypothetical of course. I can certainly appreciate, given the circumstances, how appealing it might have seemed to find a hiking buddy.

So why have they found no trace whatsoever of ED or her belongings? I keep thinking back to Maelys de Araujo, the young girl who vanished from a wedding party in SE France back in 2018. It was widely publicized. Her remains were ultimately found in a wooded area, a half hour drive away from where she disappeared.

There have been 5 other instances of hikers gone missing in that general area in the last 15 years, but one in particular caught my interest: Francoise Dasnois, also inexplicably vanished without a trace back in 2009 - also widely publicized. Colungo, from where she disappeared, is about a one and a half hour drive from Benasque.

Both these cases have also been “Websleuthed”.

 

[Grouse]

On the subject of ED asking for fruit as a way of engaging with people she met, and in light of much recent analysis here of her mental well being, I just remembered today something I read a while ago in an email newsletter, about talking to strangers being mood enhancing. Did some searching this evening and I was surprised how much there was out there. I can imagine ED would have seen some of this as well and incorporated it into her routine.

Want To Feel Happier Today? Try Talking To A Stranger

Does talking to strangers help your mood? Moodscope blog.

The surprising benefits of talking to strangers

 

[stmarysmead]

Lately I’ve certainly moved more into the “third party” column myself, except I can imagine a voluntary disappearance with third party help. Much like the Wheaton case I posted from the past, I wonder if this was indeed the case, if Esther would have any idea how much publicity her disappearance would generate?
I imagine a situation where she met...as she always seemed to do...a kind fellow hiker that she confided in. In her mind, she might have been weary of the requests that she come home, but really, really not wanting to. She might confide this ‘soul-searching’ and the new friend might have offered a place to stay for awhile. She turns off the phone and off she goes.

Then, imagine a few days later, she hears of a massive search, and international publicity. Maybe she thought Dan would give her some space...but instead, her face is everywhere.

Here’s that long ago quote from Carolyn Swanson...

“But when they began to have second thoughts, she said, the possibility of contacting their families was complicated by the unanticipated and intense publicity surrounding their disappearance.’

All my imaginings, of course.

But...I know this question has been asked by others and myself...would we even know, if indeed she did make contact now...to at least let Dan and family know she is safe? In the case above, it was front page news when they returned, but that was Chicago...and many years ago.