Recovered/Located VA - Lauren Cook, 30, & 3 children 7,5 & 2. Maybe travelling in a blue 2013 Chrysler van, Franklin County, 5 Sept 2023

[Jurisprudence]

'There is concern:' Frantic search underway for missing Franklin County woman and three children

The Franklin County Sheriff's Office is investigation a missing woman and her three children out of Franklin County.

wset.com

***********

[snipped by me]

This (your article) is the only reference I see to this man, and it's not directly from him. Even the article that was just published (linked) has nothing from him. She wasn't reported missing for days so there are more than a few questions here.

Where was she Labor Day weekend? Was she at home and only travel to her destination on the day she was supposed to show up, or had her husband not seen her for a week before she was reported missing?

Why were "frantic search efforts ... only launched after the first few crucial days" and why was she reported missing by "loved ones", not the husband. If my "loved one is due to arrive with her children on Tuesday and doesn't arrive, I'm calling her (they did), and I'm calling her husband and nailing him down to a story.

Why is the term "share custody" used over and over? This is not a term imo that is used when two people are married and living together with their children.

The linked article reveals there was no record in Franklin County of domestic abuse. Hints they might not have been there all that long. Are we about to learn she was planning on filing for divorce.

More innocent kids involved in whatever happened. It makes me physically ill.

jmo

Virginia mom Lauren Cook, three kids under 8 missing for over a week in ‘complex’ case

Lauren Cook, 30, and her kids — 7-year-old Benjamin, 5-year-old Hannah and 2-year-old Elijah — vanished without a trace on Sept. 5, Franklin County police said.

nypost.com

 

[DogMum44]

It bothers me that he says he is worried about where the children are, but not his wife? Why didn’t he report them missing? Her family reported them missing. I hope she is in hiding, but it doesn’t make sense that she wouldn’t have told her family.

It bothers me that we have not seen or heard from her family members or her husband. The one article said a "frantic search" is underway...yet, there has been no coverage of any search. It is very strange that this case is not getting much media attention.

 

[MamaHasABigButt]

10 days.. no peep or sighting.. any large bodies of water off the roadways?

 

[Simply Southern]

Lexington is about an hour and a half drive, not far. This area is surrounded by George Washington, Jefferson and Shenandoah parks, each 1000sof acres of dense, mountainous Forrest.

 

[Simply Southern]

10 days.. no peep or sighting.. any large bodies of water off the roadways?

Smith Mountain Lake - Wikipedia

en.m.wikipedia.org

They live in a county with a 32 mile lake.

 

[Simply Southern]

It bothers me that we have not seen or heard from her family members or her husband. The one article said a "frantic search" is underway...yet, there has been no coverage of any search. It is very strange that this case is not getting much media attention.

My concern, as well. No location /address, husband nor family members named, not"originally from this area", no previous location named.

I'm starting to suspect fowl play. Wondering who was the last person to see her and the children?

Moo

Odd....

 

[MamaHasABigButt]

I hate to think negativity and I certainly hope they turn up, but going off the grid with 3 kids, presumably no bank action or strange withdrawals beforehand, would be quite difficult. My mind is going toward some type of accident where her vehicle went off road.

 

[Cedars]

Why is the term "share custody" used over and over? This is not a term imo that is used when two people are married and living together with their children.

Pondering, on the surface the situation appears to be that she left him and took the kids. Maybe they had a big fight, he stormed out, didn't come back for a few days, and she was gone. Which certainly happens, in spite of what LE says.

(For example, that's what happened to Dan Markel, who was later murdered by, allegedly, his ex-wife's brother, because he fought for shared custody).

So that might be why the husband waited, thinking she'd get in touch with him, or show up at a relative's, and didn't go to police right away.

IMO, the reference to 'shared custody' might be a message to her, that she can't legally just take them away.

Just how I'm perceiving it at the moment, my opinion may change.

JMO

 

[Cedars]

I'm starting to suspect fowl play. Wondering who was the last person to see her and the children?

Moo

Odd....

I bet the police are asking those questions as well, but they can't come out and say it directly.

JMO

 

[LaborDayRN]

Absolutely! Lexington is beautiful. There is the Natural Bridge Safari Park not far from there where you can drive through it and hand feed animals, there’s beautiful scenery there along with fairly close access to the Blue Ridge Parkway, Goshen Pass (an area to go and hike, potentially swim or just drive through it to enjoy the scenery) along with plenty of other spots. Lexington is a neat little town.

I hate to ask, but I'm assuming in such a green area there may be bodies of water with bridges that she may have driven over.
To me this doesn't feel like a voluntary missing persons. JMO
ETA: Sorry, I see this was covered upthread.

 

[starlightstarbright]

Her last FB post was on the 26th of August (about a qoya, dance/movement session she was hosting that night). She’s not a prolific poster, but she is mostly posting something ever few days to maybe every week. It’s notable that the posting stops from the 26th Aug. But then her last seen date is 5th September, but I assume she wasn’t actually reported missing until a few days after that. But that means that she potentially hasn’t been seen (by anyone but her husband) since the 26th. I wonder why we haven’t heard from her family- parents, siblings, or friends speaking out and searching for her. Maybe they have and it’s just not been reported as not deemed a big enough case.

 

[vereb]

The FB post by the police is still up, no word about them being found.

A little bit more info about the disappearance:

Deputies said there hasn’t been bank account activity or cell phone activity on Cook’s accounts since around Sept. 7.
The phone last pinged in Lexington around then, according to officials.
Deputies said they are not able to share the full missing persons reports right now as it’s a part of an active case.

“The last time that Lauren Cook and her children were seen or heard from from family was around Sept. 5, 6 area, and since then they have just not been able to have any communication with her,” Sgt. Megan Huston said.

Franklin Co. authorities release new details in disappearance of mom, three kids

Authorities have released details as the search continues for a missing Franklin County woman and her three kids.

www.wsls.com

 

[LaborDayRN]

The FB post by the police is still up, no word about them being found.

A little bit more info about the disappearance:

Franklin Co. authorities release new details in disappearance of mom, three kids

Authorities have released details as the search continues for a missing Franklin County woman and her three kids.

www.wsls.com

I hope LE has done a detailed search of the family home.

 

[Cedars]

Her last FB post was on the 26th of August (about a qoya, dance/movement session she was hosting that night). She’s not a prolific poster, but she is mostly posting something ever few days to maybe every week. It’s notable that the posting stops from the 26th Aug. But then her last seen date is 5th September, but I assume she wasn’t actually reported missing until a few days after that. But that means that she potentially hasn’t been seen (by anyone but her husband) since the 26th. I wonder why we haven’t heard from her family- parents, siblings, or friends speaking out and searching for her. Maybe they have and it’s just not been reported as not deemed a big enough case.

IMO she may have been posting behind privacy settings on FB, or using a private instagram feed (I don't use IG), since she has no public posts that show her kids/home or in fact anything personal at all.

JMO

 

[Unalienable Rights]

NCMEC:

Benjamin

Have you seen this child?

Missing From: FRANKLIN COUNTY, VA, US. Missing Date: September 5, 2023. BENJAMIN WAS LAST SEEN WITH HIS SIBLINGS WHO ARE ALSO LISTED AS MISSING. THEY ARE ELIJAH SAGE COOK (2) AND HANNAH MARLEY COOK (5). ALL THREE WERE LAST SEEN IN THE COMPANY OF THEIR MOTHER, LAUREN ELIZABETH COOK, AND MAY BE...

www.missingkids.org

Hannah

Have you seen this child?

Missing From: FRANKLIN COUNTY, VA, US. Missing Date: September 5, 2023. HANNAH WAS LAST SEEN WITH HER SIBLINGS WHO ARE LISTED AS MISSING. THEY ARE BENJAMIN JOSEPH COOK (7) AND ELIJAH SAGE COOK (2). ALL THREE WERE LAST SEEN IN THE COMPANY OF THEIR MOTHER, LAUREN ELIZABETH COOK, AND MAY BE...

www.missingkids.org

Elijah

Have you seen this child?

Missing From: FRANKLIN COUNTY, VA, US. Missing Date: September 5, 2023. ELIJAH WAS LAST SEEN WITH HIS SIBLINGS WHO ARE LISTED AS MISSING. THEY ARE BENJAMIN JOSEPH COOK (7) AND HANNAH MARLEY COOK (5). ALL THREE WERE LAST SEEN IN THE COMPANY OF THEIR MOTHER, LAUREN ELIZABETH COOK, AND MAY BE...

www.missingkids.org

 

[imstilla.grandma]

Investigators are not sure whether the situation may be a result of a dispute between Cook and her husband.

Franklin County Sheriff’s Sgt. Megan Huston said the husband is concerned.

Urgent Search Underway for Virginia Mom, 3 Children Missing for More Than a Week

Virginia authorities are searching for a mother and her three young kids who have been missing for more than a week, WSLS-TV reports. The Franklin County Sheriff’s Office says 30-year-old Lauren Cook and the children were last seen around September 5 after they did not show up at a family...

www.crimeonline.com

 

[Hexe]

The scarcity and vagueness of info is, to be honest, infuriating. Who saw them last? When and where exactly? In what circumstances did the husband see Lauren and the kids for the last time? What they were doing, were they going somewhere? Did Lauren have an argument with her husband? Why didn't the husband start an immediate search? Did Lauren leave with kids previously, to return after some time?

 

[NeverPersonal]

something about this one is weird.

 

[imstilla.grandma]

Ms Cook and her children were last seen on 5 September in Franklin County, but since then communication with Ms Cook has been unsuccessful, Franklin County police said.

Ms Cook is married and lives with her husband, who has full custody of their children. There are no records or 911 calls in Franklin County that show any signs of a domestic dispute between the couple.

Authorities say that while they are unable to reach Ms Cook, a key clue to their investigation is her mobile phone, which last pinged in Lexington, Virginia on 7 September.

Fears for Virginia mother who has vanished with her three children

Police are still trying to search for any clue as to why this mother and her three children have vanished

www.independent.co.uk

*It may be the wording or sentence structure, but the bolded reads like the husband only has full custody?

 

[Unalienable Rights]

Ms Cook and her children were last seen on 5 September in Franklin County, but since then communication with Ms Cook has been unsuccessful, Franklin County police said.

Ms Cook is married and lives with her husband, who has full custody of their children. There are no records or 911 calls in Franklin County that show any signs of a domestic dispute between the couple.

Authorities say that while they are unable to reach Ms Cook, a key clue to their investigation is her mobile phone, which last pinged in Lexington, Virginia on 7 September.

Fears for Virginia mother who has vanished with her three children

Police are still trying to search for any clue as to why this mother and her three children have vanished

www.independent.co.uk

*It may be the wording or sentence structure, but the bolded reads like the husband only has full custody?

I think it's probably the reporting. The direct quote from the police chief in previous articles is that they have shared custody.