Found Deceased UT - MacKenzie "Kenzie" Lueck, 23, Salt Lake City, 17 June 2019 #5

[PommyMommy]

Welcome to Websleuths, @pheonyx! Thanks for your insight.

 

[yellowmoose]

@yellowmoose do you know if Kenzie was expected at her job at the lab last week? I've been puzzled as to why her job didn't seem to be looking for her, but I wasn't sure if she was not expected due to her grandmother's funeral? Or something else? Could a co worker have called in on her behalf to say she wouldn't be at work? And if that happened, would her manager have accepted that if it wasn't Kenzie herself calling in?

Good question!! It's one I've wondered myself. I assumed that due to the funeral she had a decent amount of time off which would explain why they potentially didn't reach out when she wasn't seen because she wasn't scheduled. I think her work would think it strange if somebody else called in on her behalf. If that did happen I hope her work would notify LE.

 

[dancemom]

You make some very compassionate remarks. It can be a weird time in life, not really knowing what is going to happen in the next year. A feeling of "Am I prepared?" can be unsettling.

Some people use that feeling to take action so they are prepared. Others run away or self-sabotage (flunk classes, for example). And others sort of drift, living from moment to moment and living on hope that things will work out because they always have worked out well enough in the past.

I have a hunch ML was living in the moment, and I don't think she thought she was taking risks, but was sort of entertaining herself in the limbo years before "youthful student" era ends. That makes her vulnerable, imo, and willing to meet someone so late instead of preparing for an exam and being rested enough for work, etc. That's not a moral judgement, just an acknowledgement of the rather strange feeling of ending a life stage without knowing what the next life stage is.

jmo

I really do feel compassion for her. I agree with everything that you said. I teach college students. There are some regional differences (West Coast for her vs Deep South for me), but I feel like if I compare Kenzie to my students, in spite of the racy topics getting a lot of attention here, she seems sort of naive. That scares me for her.

 

[SoCalGirl]

This isn't someone random she met online that day imo.
This was either/or someone she had an ongoing intimate relationship with, something to do with money, and/or something to do with possession and jealousy. Could it be anything else?

Studying? She had a mid-term; maybe she was meeting up with someone for a study session or to get notes or a cheat sheet?

 

[Kittygrrll]

This is such an odd case.
<modsnip - not victim friendly>


Although it seems unlikely that niether she nor the friend who met her in the park would have contacted "someone" to let them know she's safe, stranger things have happened.. it's not beyond the realm of possibility that they went somewhere remote and disconnected from society - thus being unaware of the media attention.

Unlikely, but not impossible. I'm hoping for a good resolution.

 

[Inthedetails]

From the article:

Police will confirm that Lueck’s cell phone is currently powered down and that it was turned off once she met up with an unknown person at Hatch Park in North Salt Lake just before 3 a.m. on June 17.

“Pretty much right after the contact was made at the park—that’s when things went dark,” said Detective Greg Wilking.

That is super frightening, and to me, it points to deliberate harm. For awhile I was thinking a tragic accident happened on the date and the unknown person panicked, but if her phone went off soon after meeting the person, I think that was part of his plan from the start.

Sending out good vibes to the investigators working on her phone records. We need your work!

jmo

 

[CluelessWonder]

People should realize that an SD/SB relationship can evolve just as a more traditional relationship often does. What may start out as casual sex can become an emotional connection. What begins as looking for financial support can evolve into an emotional bond and/or into casual sex.

What I see here is a situation that had reached the point where Kenzie felt that she could trust the person. Meanwhile, I think the person had become infatuated with her to the point that the person couldn't wait for her to return to SLC. The person needed to see her ASAP. And I think it's likely that the person had no intentions of letting her go to her home or anywhere else except with him.

In the person's mind, I think he felt that Kenzie was going to enjoy being with him. But we know that probably wasn't the case.

Now, here is the weird part for me. Kenzie's phone was turned off. But we don't know if it pinged anywhere after she left the Lyft, do we? Let's assume it didn't. That means that she would have had her phone taken away right there in the park. If it did ping, then police likely know what direction the car went.

In my opinion, this person has disposable income and a family. The person likely gave family an excuse like a business trip to get away from the house. The person has to be somewhat familiar with Hatch Park. It's a small park. I don't even know the names of parks in my area.

I would love to have a profile on SDs. Are these people who wield a lot of power and want it taken away? Or people with very little power who want to have it? Or is it not about power but about attention? Someone who gets no attention at work and no attention at home might seek out this kind of relationship. Also, are SDs usually tempted by having close proximity to young women on a regular basis? Say, a teacher/professor.

 

[liebling]

Hi there, popping in from lurking.

@poppydarling can you give any sense of the degree to which the men (especially married) participating in the SB/SD lifestyle believe it’s legal, or perceive it as sex work? Do they tend to see it primarily as transactional or relational (and is that data self-reported and/or anonymous)? I’m not talking about the SBs here, only the SDs.

Relatedly, is the “real connection” language truly a signal for an allowance, as noted somewhere above? (Sorry, I can’t find the specific post now). Is there a source for these SB/SD specific terms?

My thinking is (and I’m entering speculationland here) if she had an allowance-style sexual relationship with an SD, then he might find her absence for her grandmother’s funeral aggravating—he may see himself as already having paid for her time. If she then returns tired, emotional, and, say, not up for a midnight quickie, he might feel quite literally entitled to her body, regardless of her emotional state.

FWIW, I’m not criticizing well-negotiated, ethical SB/SD relationships. But not all relationships (of any kind) are well-negotiated or ethical, and not all partners are decent people. A sense of entitlement seems like it would be a unique pitfall in this lifestyle, particularly where an allowance is concerned.

 

[margarita25]

Here’s another thing and what this respectful and academic discussion comes down to (again thanks for that to all. We are all on the same side here I think, even though our opinions may vary):

What are the chances here in everybody’s opinions that a possible meeting as the one we are discussing as a potential was a factor in Kenzie’s disappearance? Imo, the chances are definitely high, at leeeeeeast 33% imo and that’s a conservative estimate on my part.

Of course it could turn out that these factors have nothing to do with any of this, as people are victims of crimes all the time that do not participate in these types of relationships.

But I think common sense tells us that there is a VERY GOOD cHance this could be the key to her missing .

We also know a case can have twists and turns and surprises...for all we know none of this is a factor here. And it could turn out to be nothing we expected. But we would be irresponsible and frankly not quite bright if we were to discount this as a variable. I’m almost positive LE would agree, moo.

So, again goal is not to debate or have a discussion about morals, but rather emphasize the point for young women out there to really think harder about this if you think this is safe behavior. Yeah you might say, “oh well I always tell my friends where I’m going”—-well, that’s not going to help you in the situation, only perhaps afterwards when it’s too late. And even simple things like them having your SM account info, phone number, etc can lead to all kinds of information being divulged about you, who your family members are, where you live, where you work.

Circling around back around to Kensie specifically, let’s hope whomever she met left a trail. If this was premeditated and he is a sophisticated predator, then he may have hidden his tracks well and not left any breadcrumbs.

 

[liltexans]

Good question!! It's one I've wondered myself. I assumed that due to the funeral she had a decent amount of time off which would explain why they potentially didn't reach out when she wasn't seen because she wasn't scheduled. I think her work would think it strange if somebody else called in on her behalf. If that did happen I hope her work would notify LE.

The reason I wondered about someone calling in for her was because of another missing person's case (Kierra Coles in Chicago). Kierra supposedly called in sick the day she disappeared, but it was later determined that it was probably not Kierra who called in because she worked for USPS and they apparently have an automated system where employees just enter their employee ID or something similar in the system and they don't actually have to talk to a live person or to their manager.

Obviously, I have no idea if the lab where Kenzie works requires voice contact with an actual person or if an email could be sent or something similar.

 

[jdog17]

Not necessarily true...there was a women (white, intelligent, middle-aged woman) a couple of months ago who was almost abducted in a grocery store parking lot in mid-day.

If this is true (not convinced it is) it does not refute the point made by gitana1, which is that maybe in a blue moon a white woman is randomly abducted and sex-trafficked but it's highly aberrant; par for the course is vulnerable people who won't be missed.

 

[SuperTmo]

<modsnipped quoted post and direct reply to it> I have a lot of experience having been in LE and with SD/SB cases especially - I could illuminate some aspects of those relationships much more


I was in LE and often worked with various FBI Agents. In fact, when I first got into LE one of them trained me. These people are not your average police officers - most often they have a Master's Degree or higher, are incredibly smart (way above average), are completely self-motivated (they will work a case 100%), and are very healthy and physically fit (more than 90% of us). I have only been impressed by them, and I always learn from them as well. These folks genuinely care; they also have nearly unlimited resources - personnel, technology, etc. Just because they don't make an arrest doesn't mean they didn't try - remember, many cases have to be run by the State's Attorney for approval, and then to determine the charges. I've had a few cases that I thought were cut-and-dry whereby the SA declined to take the case, and wanted me to acquire more evidence, statements, etc. Sometimes the SA will even have to discuss the case with their supervisor - the SA may want to move forward with charges, and their supervisor overrides that decision. Have faith in the FBI, Marshals, DEA, etc - they're on the side of victims, and will work tirelessly to give these victims a voice and to put the offender behind bars.

I’m confused by your post. I never said I don’t have faith in the FBI or other federal law enforcements, nor did I imply that I don’t think they are highly qualified or work tirelessly for victims.

I feel that everyone is like “The FBI is involved so that means something!” I just don’t necessarily think it means anything except that local LE asked for assistance. That is not a judgement on the feds or their ability, it’s just a simple fact. Sometimes they get involved and it turns out the person hid themselves. Shrug.

 

[Inthedetails]

Exactly. And how does that find Kinzie?

Knowing the bag she carried might help locate ML if someone finds that bag somewhere discarded, for example.

The board is moving so fast, I hope I'm following the gist of this convo properly. If not, sorry.

jmo

 

[SoCalGirl]

Doesn't the validated trail end at the park? Is there anything supporting the Lyft driver's claim that a vehicle (apparently he cannot provide any descriptions) was there for her and contact was made? What if they get to the park and no other vehicle is there? In this case what does ML do...what does the driver do? If there is an SD involved here he must know there is a digital super highway leading right to him. Does he just blow off the meeting?

That's interesting. What if there really was no car there to meet her and the Lyft driver just said there was because he didn't want to seem like a callous d*ck for dropping her off alone at a park at 3 AM? I'm thinking that LE has seen a car in the footage surrounding the area to believe him, though, since they're stating it as fact that she was met by another car at the park.

 

[DenaliSpirit]

Lisa Ling did a show about Seeking Arrangement. If it available to stream i suggest everyone watch it.

I'm not sure if it's available on youtube or not, but searching "Lisa Ling Sugar Daddy" on YT has lots of results containing media exposés on seekingarrangements...

 

[oviedo]

Reposting - from JUN 25

'I text her and call her still,' says friend of missing student Mackenzie Lueck
Family and friends say they’re doing everything they can to help police find Mackenzie Lueck.

“It’s been extremely hard,” said JC, Lueck’s friend who’s also serving as a family spokesperson. “I have my moments where I break down.”

JC is still trying to reach her friend more than a week after she dropped off the grid.

“I text her and call her still,” she said. “I check her location to see if it will pop up magically.”

[...]

“If it is true or isn’t true, the family and I really do not care,” she said. “We just want her home safe. We don’t care about the past. We don’t care what she’s gotten into or what has happened. We just want her home.”

[...]

BBM - wow that's what I was waiting for - clarification that she did have location available on her phone to certain people. It pops up on text messages under "info" if it is enabled.... whoever shut that phone off must have known this about her - leaning more and more towards she knew the person she was meeting in the park. IMO

 

[liltexans]

I really do feel compassion for her. I agree with everything that you said. I teach college students. There are some regional differences (West Coast for her vs Deep South for me), but I feel like if I compare Kenzie to my students, in spite of the racy topics getting a lot of attention here, she seems sort of naive. That scares me for her.

Yes, agreed. Maybe because we all remember being 23? Some of us much more distantly than others of course. You would definitely have a pulse on the current group of college students. But even with all of the changes over the decades, not everything has changed.

 

[Herat]

Hatch Park is not a very impressive or attractive park. There is really only one long strip of parking, with some other spots back a bit by the tennis courts. I had envisioned more secluded parking.

It’s highly unlikely (IMHOO) that there were any other vehicles in that lot. Maybe away from the street lights a vehicle would be hidden, but I’d think the sweep of the Lyft car’s headlights would reveal a general body type and color ( white sedan, dark large SUV) so I think LE has some general idea of the vehicle. And all the parking in spaces faces the same way - so was the vehicle parked in a space, or had it just pulled inside along the road?

This isn’t a lover’s lane kind of place, either. Right next to a freeway, flat, exposed, apartment complex across the street.

It’s a place to get in the car and drive away from.

It gives me the creeps.

 

[margarita25]

Another thing, if whomever she met up with has an interest in S&M, bondage, etc, then I think there’s still a good chance she’s being held alive. He may have wanted her all to himself to participate in sick fantasies. It all depends on the type of predator we are dealing with, again if this is not a voluntary disappearance which I doubt, but as we know anything can happen. Additionally, if she has been killed, what type of predator he is will play a part in the disposal, jmo. Would he bury her nearby on his property so he could be close to her, revisit her, or does he dump her like a piece of trash.
Is he a sexual sadist would be another big question.

Gosh let’s hope they get something from her electronic footprints.

 

[Inthedetails]

I really do feel compassion for her. I agree with everything that you said. I teach college students. There are some regional differences (West Coast for her vs Deep South for me), but I feel like if I compare Kenzie to my students, in spite of the racy topics getting a lot of attention here, she seems sort of naive. That scares me for her.

Same here. I'm not an instructor but a mom of college-aged kids ranging from undergrad to post doc. I agree with your assessment 100%. She might see herself as experienced, but I see her as naive and perhaps a bit young for her years in comparison to other students at a similar stage. (Said with kindness, not judgement.)

jmopinion