Found Deceased UK - Susan McLean, 61, U.S. tourist, Aberfeldy, Scotland, 17 May 2015

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Read the latest article in the local paper (The Courier). Hoping you get some news soon!
 
I don't think I've posted on this thread but I've been lurking anticipating Susan being found any day.

So I feel a bit irked that the detective went on vacation and there was no one to cover his cases until he returned? Maybe he couldn't change his vacation plans, maybe less then 2 months into a missing person investigation it is acceptable to take a vacation. But why is there no one else to show the search grid or answer questions????????

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The first sighting location is maybe 1/3 or 1/2 mile from Moness. The reaction of turning her head away from the driver is what I'd expect of Susan if she was crying and didn't want to share her streaming eyes, maybe runny nose with a stranger.
The driver who reported the first sighting (IMHO) is being cautious saying he doesn't know if it was Susan. It's true, the driver didn't get a look at her face or hear her voice. But based on the body stature, the dark hooded raincoat, the time of day, and the location, I am certain it was Susan. There are truly no walkers on this narrow road which has no shoulders or verges, and is not quite two lanes wide. Drivers need to slow down and pull over when oncoming traffic comes. Locals all know NOT to walk there. There are plenty of walking paths that are far better than Crieff Road.
 
I'll be meeting with the detective tomorrow, and I will repeat the Private Investigator's request that Police Scotland share the search grids, when and where dogs picked up her scent, when and where cadaver dogs searched, did police ever check for fingerprints or DNA on the lip balm that hippy hippy found in the area where Phoebe barked frantically, etc.
I can't blame the detective for taking a family holiday, but to not put an email out-of-office notice to refer people to his alternate is a little hard to deal with.
 
This is fantastic publicity - the more people aware Susan is still missing the better. Have you tried to see if BBC News Scotland will report the story too?
 
mbmc said:
​This is my first post on WS, I joined here because Susan's disappearance has resonated with me. If, as her husband suspects, Susan has met with a dreadful accident, I cannot imagine how awful it must be for her family to be so far away, I think about her every day and hope she can be found so that she can be taken home to rest.


My thoughts are with her family and friends and indeed to hippy hippy who has my utmost admiration, I wish i could help with the search, good luck to all.​
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Welcome to websleuths! Thank you for caring about Susan and for joining us.
 
HippyHippy, Lumberjill
HH it is truly amazing what you have done to find Susan. Words cannot express the way I feel about you doing this. Susan is a very dear friend of mine along with her husband Dr. Hoot. If I could be there with both you and Lumberjill I would. Lumberjill I met you last summer at Susan and Hoots' home and had a piece of your fantastic pie sitting in their kitchen with you. It is so hard to imagine that this has happened that our friend is missing. I look forward to your updates and I pray your being there will really put a spark in the searching from others.
For those who don't know Susan, she is a very caring, loving person that is independent and thinks nothing of seeking her own space. For her to take a walk is very much in her character. She is very strong and is in great physical condition. Unloading a truck of 200 bales of hay is typical of what she can handle. Susan loves her family, home and animals. Susan is always willing to help if you need it, a bright smile and encouraging. I hope this shows what type person she is and not just a name of a missing person.
We all miss her and hope for her return.
 
JerricaBenton said:
Read the latest article in the local paper (The Courier). Hoping you get some news soon!
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Thanks for letting us know about the article in The Courier newspaper I am pleased Susan's disappearance is getting publicity in the press and STV news. Lumberjill and HippyHippy etc are doing a fantastic job getting the word out and action being taken. Thank you for all the updates I appreciate you are very busy with a lot on your mind at the moment.
 
windrower said:
Yeah, ninij9 and ellie b, the coincidence of the infrequently used bothy (as per hippy hippy) being used during the time frame Susan went missing is concerning, so I do hope the men were cleared by LE.

However, iirc, Susan went missing on Sunday night, and hippy hippy saw the men on the trail on Tuesday. Seems odd they would have remained in such close proximity if they had harmed Susan--and this is assuming that Susan is in the area and found by the collie that day.
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We were discussing the campers/hikers this evening with a local lady and she reminded us that they probably would have been spotted by the helicopter on both Monday and Tuesday since it was searching those days. Still wondering if the police ever managed to speak to them. Why did the heli not communicate to police that they could see them and have the police drive up there to question them...
Another missed opportunity?
A question for Lumberjill to put to police tomorrow please
 
cutter99 said:
I've been following this thread as I am a native Pennsylvanian, recently relocated to the south, as well as a horse person. I worked professionally in the horse industry in Pennsylvania since 1999 until last year, and may have met Susan somewhere in my travels during that time. Horse women are an independent, unique bunch, who have no problem holding their own in this world.

Hippy hippy, you asked about a herding dog and whether or not it would kill a small animal. I have owned one full blooded collie and right now have a German Shepard/ collie cross. Certainly not a professional when it comes to dogs, but I can tell you my experiences.

My full blood collie was the sweetest animal that could be. He would pin our small dog down very gently and lick her face to wash it with the utmost care. It was precious to watch!

BUT, he was a very infamous chicken thief and killer. We got him from his breeder when he was 6 months old and he had been raised around chickens and kept in the chicken coop at times, so they were something he was very familiar with. He would sneak off to our neighbors and snatch a chicken, bring it home, kill it and eat it. I found it hard to believe until I actually caught him in the act.

Around the same time, we had a neighbor who was poaching deer and dumping the carcasses on a part of his brother-in-laws land that adjoined ours. We found out about the poaching when our dogs started dragging home deer parts. We had so many various parts at one point, I could have built many deer myself!

Our current German Shepard/ collie cross is also a very sweet soul. While I cannot imagine him purposely hurting anything, he does love to herd and has taken off to chase deer that roam our hay fields. He is extremely protective of me- my husband and I will sometimes play wrestle, and Pudge will insert himself in between us to break things up. He has never been aggressive towards my husband, but my husband takes his interest as a sign that no one is going to "hurt" his mommy!

We also inherited a Great Pyrenees Livestock Guardian Dog when we purchased this farm. She is turned out with our herd of horses and she thinks it is her job to protect them. I have never her seen her do anything remotely aggressive towards the horses, and most if the time she lies close to where they are grazing and observes, but when the coyotes start howling, she springs into action. She barks, paces, turns circles and lets the coyotes know they are not welcome near her herd. I know she is not aggressive with small animals- we have a couple feral cats that frequent our barn and pastures that she never bothers, but I think if you threatened her "herd", she would be much more aggressive.

Could your dog have gotten into it with a small animal and killed it? I believe that is the most likely scenario. Many times they will give chase and if they do manage to catch the animal, they may hurt or kill it just because they do not know what else to do with it.

Hippy hippy, you are doing all you can in this situation and have gone above and beyond. It sounds to me like the police, for one reason or another, do not believe Susan would have been in that area. It also sounds like there is very dense underbrush, that would be very difficult to search, especially this time of year when vegetation is at its' peak.

Have cadaver dogs been brought in? Have the authorities searched via ATV/RTV or horseback?
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Hi Cutter99
Thank you for your input, and sorry for not getting back to you sooner.
Yes it's possible the dog killed a deer, but unless it's a baby,they are very fast moving and agile so while she'll chase a deer, she has never caught up with one. Aldo the blood was all over her head but not in her teeth. she definitely did not eat any animal. I know this because she has a very sensitive digestive system and when she eats something other than her special food, well the poo is dreadful. So no sign of any unusual poo the next day. I still cannot picture her killing a deer or hare and then just rubbing her head in it but not any other par of her body, as dogs do when they find a kill and rub themselves in the carcass.
Lumberjill is meeting with police tomorrow to question them about cadaver dogs. I have asked sarx from WS to comment on this thread with regard to canine searches, so I hope he can so spare us some time and wisdom shortly.
 
Lumberjill said:
The first sighting location is maybe 1/3 or 1/2 mile from Moness. The reaction of turning her head away from the driver is what I'd expect of Susan if she was crying and didn't want to share her streaming eyes, maybe runny nose with a stranger.
The driver who reported the first sighting (IMHO) is being cautious saying he doesn't know if it was Susan. It's true, the driver didn't get a look at her face or hear her voice. But based on the body stature, the dark hooded raincoat, the time of day, and the location, I am certain it was Susan. There are truly no walkers on this narrow road which has no shoulders or verges, and is not quite two lanes wide. Drivers need to slow down and pull over when oncoming traffic comes. Locals all know NOT to walk there. There are plenty of walking paths that are far better than Crieff Road.
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BBM

I have a question about the time of the sighting in correlation to the time of the surveillance photo capture. IIRC, the surveillance camera caught her leaving (walking from) the entrance of the resort at 7:45pm. If she were seen 1/3 - 1/2 mile down Crieff (southbound I presume since she was seen at the nursery), that would mean she was about 7-10 minutes down the road (basing an average person walking a mile in roughly 20 mins give or take). You mentioned that the driver of the car said they knew it was 7:45pm when they saw her as they pulled over a few minutes later to text and their text showed 7:47pm. So, was the surveillance camera time just a guess or was it accurate?

The other question I had was I can't recall if the garden nursery sighting was credible or not? I suppose with no photo (or security camera capture) it would not be for certain, but was wondering if you (lumberjill) are going to try to speak to those folks, or person, who says they saw her at the nursery. And what time was that again?
 
StarAnise, the CCTV video details have said "about" 7:45pm. I asked at Moness for specifics, and they referred me to the police. Meeting the detective today with questions. I spoke to the first sighting driver personally, and the text that the driver sent just after seeing her was at 7:47, as the driver recalls. I didn't see the time stamp on the cellphone, but I believe it to be accurate. The second sighting...hoping for details from police today regarding exact time, likely reliability of observer(s), how much interaction they had with her,... Nobody here in Aberfeldy seems to know who it was so I haven't been able to get facts from the primary source. 3rd-hand info just says "later, in area of Gatehouse Nursery".
 
Does anybody have info regarding a reliable/certified laboratory for doing DNA analysis in Scotland? Looking to test blood residue from blanket Phoebe (hh's dog that returned with blood on her head) slept on to see if human or not as a first step.
 
Was sent a message on Susan's thread and can't over to see if I could help in any way. I am very sorry for her family and friends that are living this nightmare of not knowing.

Hippy, you are truly a special individual and I wish there were more of you on this world.

Is it possible for you to get coordinates for me of all these locations on your map using either a phone app or handheld GPSR? I can then create some radius rings and help possibly narrow things down.

Was Susan aware of the trails in the area? Had she pulled up meals online or seen the signs of already walked any of the area?

Regarding the dog, honestly, given what you have explained and knowing the breed and the behavior you were heading, I think it is unlikely the dog killed anything. Have you ever heard your pup like this before? I believe you said he/she had not run off like this before correct?

Let's see if we can't get the map drilled down for you and figure out where your dog was and get that area cleared.

Sent from my Nexus 7 using Tapatalk
 
Thanks, Jerrica, yes like that. I don't see that they have any familiarity with animal cases. Wonder if they can do an 'animal or human' test? If anybody has the time to check, great. I'm meeting with police and PI and searching the lip balm area with hh today.
 
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