Canada - Lucas Fowler, Chynna Deese, and Leonard Dyck, all murdered, Alaska Hwy, BC, Jul 2019 #17

[MistyWaters]

When did they tell her that? It would have taken at least 3 days to get there, especially with only one person driving, and the murders happened within less than 3 days of them leaving. Did they tell her that after the murders?

“Schmegelsky’s grandmother, Carol Starkey, said McLeod and Schmegelsky left Port Alberni on July 12 to find work in Whitehorse. When they arrived in Whitehorse a few days later, they decided it wasn’t what they had expected. Starkey, who was last in touch with her grandson on July 13 or 14, isn’t sure what their plans were after that.”
RCMP not ruling out link between missing Alberni teens, body found near truck, double slaying

 

[LoisLane]

That sounds like a stretch, especially because they actually did go in the direction of Alberta at first. I still think my explanation seems way more likely.

I don’t understand how this is a stretch. I didn’t read your prior posts though so I may be off topic with your previous posts.

I wonder if maybe AS would have been able to pick up on something being off if he would have made it to town before Bryer left. IIRC they had plans to go on a vacation of sorts together and AS was to meet him.

 

[LoisLane]

Liars tell people just what they want to hear, is the simplest explanation.

Yes! Much simpler said! Thanks!

 

[NJSleuth91]

“Schmegelsky’s grandmother, Carol Starkey, said McLeod and Schmegelsky left Port Alberni on July 12 to find work in Whitehorse. When they arrived in Whitehorse a few days later, they decided it wasn’t what they had expected. Starkey, who was last in touch with her grandson on July 13 or 14, isn’t sure what their plans were after that.”
RCMP not ruling out link between missing Alberni teens, body found near truck, double slaying

That makes no sense. If she last talked to them on July 13th or 14th obviously they would not have gotten there by then. And it also wouldn't be "a few days later" from July 12th. There has to be a mistake either in the reporting or her recollection of the date. Most likely she talked to Bryer after the first two murders and in that case it would make sense why they would lie.

I don’t understand how this is a stretch. I didn’t read your prior posts though so I may be off topic with your previous posts.

I wonder if maybe AS would have been able to pick up on something being off if he would have made it to town before Bryer left. IIRC they had plans to go on a vacation of sorts together and AS was to meet him.

I recommend going a page or two back and reading them then, so I don't have to restate what I've already said a bunch of times.

This is the first I'm hearing of them going on a vacation. IIRC, I heard they were supposed to meet in Nanaimo, which is where they usually met since it was kind of a halfway point between Port Alberni and Victoria.

 

[Arizona 123]

Also another thing, if they hadn't decided on the Yukon vs. Alberta when they left, that would actually make sense with their route. Since they went to Liard Hot Springs, given the amount of time it took to get there, we can assume the route they took was all the way on the other side of the province from Port Alberni. It actually would have been five hours faster to go to Whitehorse via a more western route. The only way their route really makes sense is if they were undecided when they set out, and just decided to figure it out along the way. I'm leaning towards it wasn't a planned deception (since it really would not have accomplished anything), and was just that they weren't sure where to go. And maybe they made it sound to their parents/guardians that their destination was more concrete, so they wouldn't be like "you guys don't even know where you're going?"

View attachment 200105

I've long puzzled about their route. I ran a couple of quick routes in Google Maps and also in my Garmin GPS, and if we assume they crossed on the Nianimo-Horseshoe Bay Ferry, the fastest route to Whitehorse is 28 hours (From Horseshoe Bay), which uses the route you show (via Dease Lake). The alternative shown by google (that goes into Alberta via Jasper), though, is not a good alternative at 33 hours. If they instead went up highway 97 via 100 mile house to Prince George, continued on 97 to Chetwynd, took the 29 cutoff to get back to 97 (now the Alaska Highway), it's 29 hours. This route would take them right through Hudson's Hope.

I think you're right; they might have been unsure as to destination when leaving, otherwise they'd have probably gone up the westerly route via Dease Lake.

 

[MistyWaters]

You have missed my point, I was considering that this could have been a slip of information, possibly indicating that the video was made before Bryer's 19th birthday occurred.

An 18 year old is able to write a Will, even if the age of majority is 19 in their home province.
Age Based Rights | Justice Education Society

But the person must be deemed to be of sound mind and body at the time.
Last Will and Testament FAQ - Canada

 

[MistyWaters]

That makes no sense. If she last talked to them on July 13th or 14th obviously they would not have gotten there by then. And it also wouldn't be "a few days later" from July 12th. There has to be a mistake either in the reporting or her recollection of the date. Most likely she talked to Bryer after the first two murders and in that case it would make sense why they would lie.
.

Or she is aware of the information gleaned through communication with another family member, such as Bs mother.

 

[NJSleuth91]

Or she is aware of the information gleaned through communication with another family member, such as Bs mother.

Either way, the drive to Whitehorse with only one person driving would have taken 2-3 days. I don't think we know what time they left on July 12th (do we?) but we know the murders happened on the night of July 14th-15th. If they told their families they went up there and spent enough time there to decide it wasn't what they expected, that had to have been after the first two murders.

 

[srper2]

That makes no sense. If she last talked to them on July 13th or 14th obviously they would not have gotten there by then. And it also wouldn't be "a few days later" from July 12th. There has to be a mistake either in the reporting or her recollection of the date. Most likely she talked to Bryer after the first two murders and in that case it would make sense why they would lie.



I recommend going a page or two back and reading them then, so I don't have to restate what I've already said a bunch of times.

This is the first I'm hearing of them going on a vacation. IIRC, I heard they were supposed to meet in Nanaimo, which is where they usually met since it was kind of a halfway point between Port Alberni and Victoria.

BS's grandmother wasn't clear on the date. Only police know the date they called her and where they were when they did call. They very well could have gone to Whitehorse, then turned down and headed back down. whatever they did to LD, the times they are reported camping at Dease lake are vague at the least. Until I see some evidence linking them to the other murders I have to remain open-minded here.

 

[MistyWaters]

I've long puzzled about their route. I ran a couple of quick routes in Google Maps and also in my Garmin GPS, and if we assume they crossed on the Nianimo-Horseshoe Bay Ferry, the fastest route to Whitehorse is 28 hours (From Horseshoe Bay), which uses the route you show (via Dease Lake). The alternative shown by google (that goes into Alberta via Jasper), though, is not a good alternative at 33 hours. If they instead went up highway 97 via 100 mile house to Prince George, continued on 97 to Chetwynd, took the 29 cutoff to get back to 97 (now the Alaska Highway), it's 29 hours. This route would take them right through Hudson's Hope.

I think you're right; they might have been unsure as to destination when leaving, otherwise they'd have probably gone up the westerly route via Dease Lake.

From Port Alberni to Hope, then north through Prince George, merging onto the Alaskan Highway just north of Fort St John would have them in the Laird area at a total driving time of 24 hours adding the inevitable road construction, stops to eat, etc. 3 days of leisurely 10 hour driving time each day would place them at the murder scene on the evening of July 14th.

The RCMP has not confirmed they indeed arrived at Whitehorse and then turned immediately back to Laird, which seems unlikely given a great deal of nonstop driving.

 

[MistyWaters]

BS's grandmother wasn't clear on the date. Only police know the date they called her and where they were when they did call. They very well could have gone to Whitehorse, then turned down and headed back down. whatever they did to LD, the times they are reported camping at Dease lake are vague at the least. Until I see some evidence linking them to the other murders I have to remain open-minded here.

The shortest route to Whitehorse and back to Laird is at least 40 hours of straight driving time, in 3 days. Why would be the reason they’d drive to Whitehorse and then immediately leave, if job hunting was their intention?

 

[LoisLane]

DBM

 

[srper2]

The shortest route to Whitehorse and back to Laird is at least 40 hours of straight driving time, in 3 days. Why would be the reason they’d drive to Whitehorse and then immediately leave, if job hunting was their intention?

I wasn't suggesting they turned straight back. I was saying the grandmother was unclear on the date they called her. I was also giving my own opinion that I have seen nothing to prove to me they were at the place CD and LF were murdered at the time they were murdered.

 

[LoisLane]

That makes no sense. If she last talked to them on July 13th or 14th obviously they would not have gotten there by then. And it also wouldn't be "a few days later" from July 12th. There has to be a mistake either in the reporting or her recollection of the date. Most likely she talked to Bryer after the first two murders and in that case it would make sense why they would lie.



I recommend going a page or two back and reading them then, so I don't have to restate what I've already said a bunch of times.

This is the first I'm hearing of them going on a vacation. IIRC, I heard they were supposed to meet in Nanaimo, which is where they usually met since it was kind of a halfway point between Port Alberni and Victoria.

I think I’m understanding your previous comments being about why the deception. That’s what I was commenting about (my own thoughts on why). Obviously I missed your other points so I will leave it at that.

I thought in the early interviews AS mentioned that him and Bryer were going on a trip together. I’m looking and will try and find that in the next couple days.

On another note I did find this Global interview which I hadn’t seen before (in its entirety at least). It got me thinking about the fathers comments about them going out in a blaze of glory and I am just realizing now that he could have said this in relation to his comment that the Police would shoot to kill - which is considered a “blaze of glory”.
This whole time I was thinking KM and BS would continue to shoot and kill in a blaze of glory. Anyways, when I change my interpretation of the comment it makes more sense to me. JMOO.
Here’s the link:

 

[Optics]

@NJSleuth91 [QUOTE="NJSleuth91, post: 15361255, member: 249582"]Also another thing, if they hadn't decided on the Yukon vs. Alberta when they left, that would actually make sense with their route. Since they went to Liard Hot Springs, given the amount of time it took to get there, we can assume the route they took was all the way on the other side of the province from Port Alberni. It actually would have been five hours faster to go to Whitehorse via a more western route. The only way their route really makes sense is if they were undecided when they set out, and just decided to figure it out along the way. I'm leaning towards it wasn't a planned deception (since it really would not have accomplished anything), and was just that they weren't sure where to go. And maybe they made it sound to their parents/guardians that their destination was more concrete, so they wouldn't be like "you guys don't even know where you're going?"

[ATTACH]200105[/ATTACH][/QUOTE]
Actually that blue line on the road map is not the alternate route people in BC usually take. They either take the Stewart Hwy (thru Dease Lake) or they go to Prince George and take the hwy up to Fort St. John and on to Fort Nelson then west toward Liard Hot Springs. (both of which are 32 hours) The 2 routes are the way more common ones. The route through Alberta is usually only if one lives near the Alberta border in southern and mid BC,

 

[kmclaren]

This is the first I'm hearing of them going on a vacation. IIRC, I heard they were supposed to meet in Nanaimo, which is where they usually met since it was kind of a halfway point between Port Alberni and Victoria.

It was reported they met in Port Alberni, Redford Motel not sure where you heard Nanaimo?

 

[Iwondertoo]

But why would they need to lie to Bryer's dad? As far as we know he wasn't giving them any resources and he wouldn't have been able to prevent them from leaving.

"As far as we know" leaves a big gap.

Just saying...

JMO

 

[FactFinder3000]

According to the BC CREMATION, INTERMENT AND FUNERAL SERVICES ACT

Part 3, section 5 says, in part:

... the right of a person to control the disposition of the human remains or cremated remains vests in, and devolves on, the following persons in order of priority:

(a) the personal representative named in the will of the deceased;

(b) the spouse of the deceased;

(c) an adult child of the deceased;

(d) an adult grandchild of the deceased;

(e) if the deceased was a minor, a person who was a guardian who had care and control of the deceased at the date of death;

(f) a parent of the deceased;

(g) etc.

---

There's more, but no need to go further, since either (e) or (f) clearly applies.

I think it is quite likely that Bryer died before his 19th birthday. The car was found on fire on July 22 and his birthday was August 4. From the sounds of things he did not survive in the wilderness nearly that long.

So under BC law Bryer was still a minor and the human remains would clearly be given to Bryer's mother or grandmother.

However, it's still unclear to me whether BC Law or Manitoba Law applies.

I will also say that I think the RCMP's use of 'next of kin' was just a simplification.

source: Cremation, Interment and Funeral Services Act

 

[Pyecraft]

So, it appears we've settled for squeezing facts into fitting an unlikely official 'narrative' - triple murder and joint suicide by a couple of nerds. Just my opinion from reading through the latest posts, which I trust isn't breaking websleuth rules.

I was looking for the post of the longer version of Lucas and Chynna's cctv hug at the gas station. Someone posted it before the shutdowns, with a very subtle 'what do you see?' comment. I wanted to reply to that question.

In the original shorter clip, we don't yet see the white saloon pull up alongside the van between it and the store; this happens toward the end of the longer version. Three guys in this vehicle park alongside the van but aren't interested in getting gas. That'd be unusual in itself given the distances between gas stations, but what is also disturbing is that a rear passenger gets out and briefly enters the store where Lucas and Chynna are already inside, before returning to the vehicle and driving away. Inside cctv security footage of those few minutes would be interesting.

The car also simply seems out of place in a region whereby trucks are the norm. Why this hasn't interested an rcmp investigator is anyone's guess, but I'd think at the very least the plates would be worth checking out. Any of the passengers have a beard, resemble the sketch maybe?

Now in light of that, when we rewind the video, the hug takes on an entirely different possibility. Is Chynna reassuring Lucas, following some road altercation? Did the white car double back looking for them, then followed them into the store to confirm they were traveling alone?

We will never know, or more likely, never be told as the LE focus now seems entirely on fitting up the two nerds with convenient motive, which necessitates more convolution with each inspection.

They surely met evil on their ill-fated trip, but rcmp will struggle to prove they're the actual killers, no matter how long they can delay reporting to the citizenry.

Then there's that tricky triviality of folk being innocent until proven guilty in a court of law.

 

[Moriarty]

Here's a direct link to the video from the Globe and Mail article (for those behind a paywall). This case profoundly affected the good people of Gillam and Fox Lake. It's amazing to see how these communities pulled together and supported their people. It also seems like they were comforted and made nervous by the increased RCMP and military presence.

Looks like Gillam has a compassionate mayor who kept the people of his community as his priority. My heart broke for Mrs. Beardy, I didn't know she lost a child. Heartbreaking.

Let's hope that all these people are able to put this horrible episode behind them, move on and that their communities return to normal. They're victims too imo, especially the elders and the people who view the land, the river as sacred places. The healing ceremony will certainly help them.

Edit. IMO, this a short, but beautifully done mini-doc.

<modsnip>

That was an excellent video. Thanks for posting this!