CA CA - Barbara Thomas, 69, from Bullhead City AZ, disappeared in Mojave desert, 12 July 2019 #5

[kay74]

IIRC in the Erin Corwin case, investigators had a mine map and methodically plotted out which mines she may have been placed in based on cell phone data. Then they attached a little camera to a long cable and poked around in the most likely ones. And they found her. So my understanding is that those mines are mapped. And the key to finding an individual who might be in one of those mines is knowing in what general area to look. MOO and if/when I get time, I will do more research on this.

Wow, I followed that case and I didn't see this part of using their cell phones to see the spot they were at and thus the closest mines.

 

[Blondiexoxo]

It’s clear Barbara’s family are frantic, that’s why her son gave a heartfelt and honest interview. RT on the other hand refers reporters to his lawyer and doesn’t think to inform his wife’s own son that she is missing? In the same thought I’m genuinely not leaning toward either foul play from RT or some other person(s), I do think that it is more likely that she did meet with foul play though but at the hands of who I’m not sure. The photos we’ve seen do show Barbara in a bikini and she is absolutely stunning so it is possible her husband does believe she’s been kidnapped, him lawyering up shouldn’t and can’t be held against him, it’s his right and we all know that anything you say can and will be used against you in a court of law.
There’s usually some truth hidden in lies so it is entirely possible the last time RT ‘saw’ Barbara she was wearing a red bikini drinking beer, IMO MOO.

 

[GordianKnot]

Hark! Did I hear someone mention the Erin Corwin case?!?

I think there's probably a lot that we could glean in terms of the SBCSO's desert search methods and capabilities by reviewing the info on that forum...I may spend some time doing a look back tonight to see what comments posters were making r/t LE updates or lack thereof, etc., just to see how it does or doesn't match up with what we're seeing and hearing here, which is largely radio silence.


JMO.

Good Grief, Charlie Brown.

I have no idea how I managed to quote myself in a new post here, when all I was trying to do was edit my old one. Major fail.

Anyway, here's the late thought I wanted to add to my prior post:

I do remember there being a lot of activity in "the basement," i.e, scanner thread, in the day or 2 immediately preceding the discovery of EC's remains in the mine, as well as obviously a ton of traffic on the day she was found.

It would probably be worth keeping an ear on the scanner traffic for any reports r/t locations that fall anywhere within the route b/t her home and the initial search locale.
I got totally hooked on Broadcastify during that case.
I even had all those numerical code thingies dispatchers and LE use memorized.

*Edited to fix broken quotes.
Not that it makes any difference whatsoever at this point.
Frankly, this post has turned into a complete, unmitigated disaster from start to finish.

JMO.

 

[Kapua]

Wow, I followed that case and I didn't see this part of using their cell phones to see the spot they were at and thus the closest mines.

Well, as it turns out, I was mistaken. I did a quick search and found the real story. It was a photo and a mine expert that cracked the case:

For several weeks searchers looked through every single mine shaft in the vast desert area, not knowing the condition of them. Some you could walk into, others you had to rappel to look for Erin Corwin's body.

Detectives showed the photos to mine expert Doug Billings.

"I didn't have to look at a map, I knew exactly where it was, so I was able to help direct the rescue team," Billings told local TV station KESQ.

Married to a Marine, in love with another, pregnant woman disappears in the desert

ETA another link:
https://www.usatoday.com/story/news...corwin-marine-wife-murder-gold-mine/14741271/

 

[HongKongPhooey]

Oh, there's no doubt that BT is definitely somewhere.

One thing we know for certain: She didn't evaporate.

I think she's likely in the desert at a location that's somewhere between their home and the search location.

JMO.

I think this too. Presumably with some kind of pull off point not visible from the main road.

 

[rosesfromangels]

IIRC in the Erin Corwin case, investigators had a mine map and methodically plotted out which mines she may have been placed in based on cell phone data. Then they attached a little camera to a long cable and poked around in the most likely ones. And they found her. So my understanding is that those mines are mapped. And the key to finding an individual who might be in one of those mines is knowing in what general area to look. MOO and if/when I get time, I will do more research on this.

Thank you!!!
THIS is helpful

 

[katydid23]

I think this too. Presumably with some kind of pull off point not visible from the main road.

I agree, but we might need to take that 360 picture into account. Was she seen in that picture, or another taken at that time?

I have wondered if they took a quick morning hike, which makes more sense, with the desert temps. And he did something bad to her at that time, then moved the trailer to that new location, and staged the disappearance?

 

[ChuckMaureen]

Cell phone ping data? Warranted and obtained? The problem LE may encounter is if cell phone pinged locations remained within a <10-mile circumference it would be difficult to ascertain which are key; there might not be obvious standouts, i.e.such as a branch-off drive away and return some miles off the localized paths.

Curious: might a certain white vehicle have integral GPS, maybe OnStar-type tracking? Worth a shot...

 

[Kapua]

Oh, there's no doubt that BT is definitely somewhere.

One thing we know for certain: She didn't evaporate.

I think she's likely in the desert at a location that's somewhere between their home and the search location.

JMO.

Going back to a thought I had several days ago, there are only so many places you can park a vehicle towing a large RV. If I were an actual detective, rather than an armchair detective, I would try to narrow down which direction they travelled and where along that route there are places large enough to park that behemoth and go for a stroll, because I think there's a strong possibility that they made another stop or two. Then I'd do some targeted searches using tracking and cadaver dogs. MOO

 

[Twistinginthewind]

Hark! Did I hear someone mention the Erin Corwin case?!?

I think there's probably a lot that we could glean in terms of the SBCSO's desert search methods and capabilities by reviewing the info on that forum...I may spend some time doing a look back tonight to see what comments posters were making r/t LE updates or lack thereof, etc., just to see how it does or doesn't match up with what we're seeing and hearing here, which is largely radio silence.

JMO.

ITA on the similarities with BT and Erin Corwin's disappearances, both went missing in the desert in San Bernardino County, and searches were conducted by SBCSO's SAR.

IMO, there are some key differences with EC's disappearance, which IMO is in part why they searched for months in abandoned mines for her until they found her.

No one knew where Erin went missing or with whom, they just found her car near where she lived by Twenty Nine Palms Marine Base, after she didn't come back home after telling her husband she was going on her own early in the morning to go check out places to go to take pictures nearby for when her mother came for a visit in the coming weeks.

In Erin's case, she disappeared when alone, she was having an affair with a married neighbor (Christoper Lee), she was supposedly pregnant possibly by him and had told him, and texted a friend back home that he said he had a 'big surprise' for her when they secretly met up and went out in the desert (she may have thought it was a marriage proposal according to her friend), but instead he took her life and disposed of her body down a mine shaft.

LE was able to narrow it down to him as a main POI, served warrants on his computer and cell phone, and found that he had been researching places to dispose of a body out in the desert so it would never be found on his computer, including maps of where dozens of abandoned mines were, and his cell pings and other evidence eventually led them to find her.

I'm not trying to discourage research on EC searches, just providing an overview that they searched for months in mines because they had evidence CL had killed her and disposed of her body out there in a mine. They also weren't as closed lipped in Erin's disappearance, and shared info on the progress of their investigation and searches on a fairly regular basis IIRC.

With BT, she was with her husband when she went missing, and her whereabouts are unknown (no evidence she went missing where RT said she did according to LE after 10 days of searching) unless LE has found evidence in their ongoing investigation since finishing their search out in the desert that she went missing and / or was left or put somewhere else.

MOO

 

[ChuckMaureen]

Many cameras now include a GPS-based location feature that tags photo with EXIF location data. Which camera was used, or was it simply a cell phone... which also might include location data in photos....

 

[Kapua]

ITA on the similarities with BT and Erin Corwin's disappearances, both went missing in the desert in San Bernardino County, and searches were conducted by SBCSO's SAR.

IMO, there are some key differences with EC's disappearance, which IMO is in part why they searched for months in abandoned mines for her until they found her.

No one knew where Erin went missing or with whom, they just found her car near where she lived by Twenty Nine Palms Marine Base, after she didn't come back home after telling her husband she was going on her own early in the morning to go check out places to go to take pictures nearby for when her mother came for a visit in the coming weeks.

In Erin's case, she disappeared when alone, she was having an affair with a married neighbor (Christoper Lee), she was supposedly pregnant possibly by him and had told him, and texted a friend back home that he said he had a 'big surprise' for her when they secretly met up and went out in the desert (she may have thought it was a marriage proposal according to her friend), but instead he took her life and disposed of her body down a mine shaft. LE was able to narrow it down to him as a main POI, served warrants on his computer and cell phone, and found that he had been researching places to dispose of a body out in the desert so it would never be found on his computer, including maps of where dozens of abandoned mines were, and his cell pings and other evidence eventually led them to find her.

I'm not trying to discourage research on EC searches, just providing an overview that they searched for months in mines because they had evidence CL had killed her and disposed of her body out there in a mine.

With BT, she was with her husband when she went missing, and her whereabouts are unknown (no evidence she went missing where RT said she did according to LE after 10 days of searching) unless LE has found evidence in their ongoing investigation since finishing their search out in the desert that she went missing and / or was left or put somewhere else.

MOO

The big difference I see is that RT was driving a large truck and towing that RV. I don't see him going off on some small road unless he unhitched the RV first, which I suppose is not beyond the realm of possibility. Note that in Erin's case, there were telltale tire tracks.

I want to know in which direction they were traveling when they left home for openers. MOO

 

[GordianKnot]

ITA on the similarities with BT and Erin Corwin's disappearances, both went missing in the desert in San Bernardino County, and searches were conducted by SBCSO's SAR.

IMO, there are some key differences with EC's disappearance, which IMO is in part why they searched for months in abandoned mines for her until they found her.

No one knew where Erin went missing or with whom, they just found her car near where she lived by Twenty Nine Palms Marine Base, after she didn't come back home after telling her husband she was going on her own early in the morning to go check out places to go to take pictures nearby for when her mother came for a visit in the coming weeks.

In Erin's case, she disappeared when alone, she was having an affair with a married neighbor (Christoper Lee), she was supposedly pregnant possibly by him and had told him, and texted a friend back home that he said he had a 'big surprise' for her when they secretly met up and went out in the desert (she may have thought it was a marriage proposal according to her friend), but instead he took her life and disposed of her body down a mine shaft.

LE was able to narrow it down to him as a main POI, served warrants on his computer and cell phone, and found that he had been researching places to dispose of a body out in the desert so it would never be found on his computer, including maps of where dozens of abandoned mines were, and his cell pings and other evidence eventually led them to find her.

I'm not trying to discourage research on EC searches, just providing an overview that they searched for months in mines because they had evidence CL had killed her and disposed of her body out there in a mine.

With BT, she was with her husband when she went missing, and her whereabouts are unknown (no evidence she went missing where RT said she did according to LE after 10 days of searching) unless LE has found evidence in their ongoing investigation since finishing their search out in the desert that she went missing and / or was left or put somewhere else.

MOO

BBM:

Here's what we don't know:

We don't know what, if any, ping data LE has been able to obtain.
We don't know what, if any, search warrants LE has served.
We don't know what, if any, "other leads" LE is pursuing right now.

In short, we simply don't know whether or not the bolded section of your post reflects areas of similarity or dissimilarity between EC's and BT's cases.

I think there are likely at least some commonalities there.
If you catch my drift.

JMO.

 

[LAhiker]

Oh, there's no doubt that BT is definitely somewhere.

One thing we know for certain: She didn't evaporate.

I think she's likely in the desert at a location that's somewhere between their home and the search location.

JMO.

While this general scenario is possible, depending on whether and where photos with BT in them were taken, there may have been some doubling-back, and she also might be at some point beyond the search location. JMO

 

[Kapua]

Good to know that there's a mine expert in San Bernardino County: Doug Billings. I have no doubt that LE will call him if they need him. MOO

 

[rkendmar]

Going back to a thought I had several days ago, there are only so many places you can park a vehicle towing a large RV. If I were an actual detective, rather than an armchair detective, I would try to narrow down which direction they travelled and where along that route there are places large enough to park that behemoth and go for a stroll, because I think there's a strong possibility that they made another stop or two. Then I'd do some targeted searches using tracking and cadaver dogs. MOO

I have been assuming that LE was in the process of doing exactly what you describe.
Certainly LE has GPS information from the truck?

 

[Twistinginthewind]

The big difference I see is that RT was driving a large truck and towing that RV. I don't see him going off on some small road unless he unhitched the RV first, which I suppose is not beyond the realm of possibility. Note that in Erin's case, there were telltale tire tracks.

I want to know in which direction they were traveling when they left home for openers. MOO

Yes, and CL was driving his Jeep, with tire tracks found near her car and /or at the mouth of the mine they eventually found her in IIRC, and his Jeep ended up containing evidence that matched the crime scene where they found her body (i.e., nylon ropes).

I would suggest again that pulloffs between heir home and the location RT said she went missing (and within a couple hours drive of the missing location), be checked that are near to a canyon, precipice, or sheer cliff, where she could have fallen into an abyss or worse, but I think that is a pretty tall order, and wishful thinking on my part.

Hopefully LE has alot of new info to narrow down where to look for her elsewhere, such as cell phone or GPS pings to help narrow down where else BT may have been earlier in the day before RT made the 911 call. MOO

 

[k-mac]

Bystander effect. Or diffusion of responsibility. In short, everyone assumed that someone would have already called her son.

Five days in, wouldn't you have assumed that the son would have heard about his missing mother somehow, from someone?

the buck stops with her partner to inform HER children she is missing.

if too distraught or whatever (not too distraught to speak clearly on camera to the media...but anyways.....) he has a daughter who also clearly was available to speak to the media.
she also, chose not to pick up the phone and ask matt.....'hey your mums been kidnapped!!! has anyone been in contact with you???????"

imo

 

[MsBetsy]

What part of the rules are we wondering about? To begin with we weren’t discussing because it just came from fb posts of a non-verified VI, and hadn’t been reported in the media. Is that correct?

I don’t think it should be named because who wants to advertise it? But I believed once a source who is clearly family puts information directly in the media it should be able to be discussed? No?

People have reported posts and asked whether it’s ok since last night, so hopefully the no response means there’s not a problem. Unless there’s a rule I’m missing.

Yeah, I would definitely not assume that "no response" means "it's not a problem."
I saw the interview but may have missed part of it because it seemed like it froze. Either that or it ended.

I didn't hear him mention any company at all. In fact he said very little that we don't know except that he suspects Robert which I guess we did know.

Anyway, if it has anything to do with some kind of conspiracy, my guess is we can't discuss it, unless verified in MSM by some sort of authority. Imo

 

[PaulR]

Dbm