Found Deceased Canada - Shannon Burgess, 25, Calgary, 26 Nov 2014 - #3 *Arrest*

[Sillybilly]

She's mixed up "break" and "brake" again, but the other way around...? Strange coincidence. First reddit post (misspelled break THREE times in post) and last FB post (misspelled brake). Not reading too much into it, but still, a bit weird. And both posts turn to sex as a topic (threesome/the "funzies" comment).

<rs&bbm>

From another re**it entry "has a reputation amongst the group for braking things off"

Not to mention SB's disappearance would certainly constitute "braking things off"?

 

[evafiore]

It wouldn't be difficult for people to find that post, either. Fanboy, Fanboy's gf, Mr Man, Mr Man's ex, anyone. Wonder if SB knew that any of those people would likely see it. Someone Googles her (she's got a distinct handle), they find that, and they may be feeling a bit resentful...

 

[stan laurel]

had to run some errands in Inglewood. Drove around a bit looking for cctv and there are tons, I guess due in part to gentrification. even ramsay had quite a few cameras around.

 

[deugirtni]

But her 'breaks' post was posted around midnight the night before she went missing.. so she was in Edmonton the next day after posting about the brakes and was verified to have been seen..

But you still may be on to something though, because I notice a LACK of spelling bombs in the 2 posts she apparently made last (the one about missing YukYuk's night, and the one about Funsies). Her spelling does seem to be atrocious, but not in her last 2 FB posts.

BBM

Nov 25 @ 11:54 pm (Nov 25 23:54) Alberta time, SMB posted on FB that breaks went for $h!t (no location showing)

Nov 25 @ 11:58 pm (Nov 25 23:58) Alberta time, a DM pointed out her spelling error re "breaks"

Nov 26 @ 12:02 am (Nov 26 00:02) Alberta time, SMB acknowledged DM's spelling correction and edited her earlier post to "brakes"

Nov 26 - I'm adding in here that it is believed she attended an audition, which she did in fact show up for, in Edmonton, sometime on this day, not sure what time

Nov 26 @ 09:15 pm (Nov 26 21:15) Alberta time, SMB posts on YukYuks FB &#8220;So sad I didn&#8217;t make it back into Calgary in time for the show&#8221;

Nov 26 @ 10:06 pm (Nov 26 22:06) Alberta time, SMB made her last post wrt "missing the man ... funzies ..." - which was a post she made in reply to her fellow Larper friend with whom she did that particular 'skit' or whatever you want to call it.

Nov 27 @ 12:30am (Nov 27 00:30) Alberta time, (2.5 hours after her last known public FB post), SMB was reported to have been seen by her ex husband JB in the home they still shared even though reportedly going through a 'messy divorce' by MSM - this is reported by MSM and LE as being the last time she was seen and/or heard from.

It wouldn't be difficult for people to find that post, either. Fanboy, Fanboy's gf, Mr Man, Mr Man's ex, anyone. Wonder if SB knew that any of those people would likely see it. Someone Googles her (she's got a distinct handle), they find that, and they may be feeling a bit resentful...

 

[deugirtni]

Interesting! So... nobody had a recording that showed her in it, or it was too late and already re-recorded by the time anyone looked?

had to run some errands in Inglewood. Drove around a bit looking for cctv and there are tons, I guess due in part to gentrification. even ramsay had quite a few cameras around.

 

[OutOfTheDarkness]

Interesting! So... nobody had a recording that showed her in it, or it was too late and already re-recorded by the time anyone looked?

Without a coordinated effort to make local CCTV owners aware to review recordings, or having LE collect those recordings... who knows?

 

[Sillybilly]

Nov 26 @ 09:15 pm (Nov 26 21:15) Alberta time, SMB posts on YukYuks FB &#8220;So sad I didn&#8217;t make it back into Calgary in time for the show&#8221;

<rsbm>

Do we know if Shannon was supposed to perform at YukYuks that night, or was she just attending the show? If she was just attending, was she to meet others there? IOW, if she was to perform, surely she would have called management beforehand to say she couldn't make it; if she was to meet others for the show, I would think she also would have called them to say she couldn't make it. Why go on FB and make an apology after the fact when common courtesy would normally dictate that you call in person prior to, or as close to 7:15 (iirc) show time as possible. Supposedly she had her phone to make the post, why not a phone call?

 

[stan laurel]

Interesting! So... nobody had a recording that showed her in it, or it was too late and already re-recorded by the time anyone looked?

It's odd because a basic field camera can store up to 55,000 images which if transferred literally to film (digital 36 frames per second) would be 25 hours. Thing is, cctv is not continuous, it's more like time lapse. Also, cctv goes to your computer and only requires bytes of memory, so it's not uncommon to have a months worth of footage.

If a car left via Spiller Road and onto 9th ave SE by the Dean House, it would have been caught on film as the Dean house - a historical building - is going thru a restoration (big security). Spiller Road the other way brings you out near the Stampede/City of Calgary/LRT heavily filmed.

I didn't spend much time near their home, just a drive past, tried guessing her car (if parked on the lower level), and want to believe it's cctv'd but can't be sure.

In short, it would be hard to exit the neighbourhood without being filmed.

 

[Lalalacasbah]

First Reddit Mr. Man has a reputation amongst the group for braking things off, finding another girl for a few months, then going right back to her even though he says he wont.

Last FB (that was not a response) And then the breaks on my car went to ****... Starting to wonder who I pissed off enough to curse me

She's mixed up "break" and "brake" again, but the other way around...? Strange coincidence. First reddit post (misspelled break THREE times in post) and last FB post (misspelled brake). Not reading too much into it, but still, a bit weird. And both posts turn to sex as a topic (threesome/the "funzies" comment).

...if someone had seen that reddit post (and remembered it well, because it was about them), and then were pretending to be her, maybe they'd mix up brake/break again, for authenticity? It's quite a reach, but it's a coincidence, no?

Wow, great observation about the misspelling of breaks/brakes!

I think that's a great catch and I think might classify as a Freudian slip. It would seem it was indeed her that posted the FB funzies post UNLESS of course someone was extremely smart enough to think to use her 'lingo' which is quite chilling and quite possible. Could go either way...

 

[Lalalacasbah]

Without a coordinated effort to make local CCTV owners aware to review recordings, or having LE collect those recordings... who knows?

It's possible LE might have their hands on useful, informational CCTV footage in relation to the case but are keeping it quiet because maybe they can't link A to B, have proof for charges of any sort or just not enough solid evidence to use in conjunction with video footage.

 

[Leischa]

Ok, I'm curious..

If someone is being questioned.. and say they have 'an alibi' which is 'I was with my friend/mother/girlfriend/daughter (or other person who cares about whether I go to jail or not)..... is that a good enough alibi to just rule someone out?? Or would LE take those kind of alibis with a grain of salt?

I think if someone else were there to also provide evidence that she was present in her home at 12;30am on Nov 27th, that would have been reported, MOO.. am I wrong in thinking that? They wouldnt' have had to say who it was specifically, or what the relationship was, but wouldnt' they have stated that?

I assume that they would've said that her husband and ''a friend / family member / lady / man'' both saw her at SB's and JS's place. I don't think that they would hide it.

About whether or not LE would trust someone who could be a potential suspect when their alibi is someone close to them, I really don't know. I guess that their next step for checking that alibi would be to go ask the other person and watch the way they react to their questions, and then decide whether they believe them or not.

 

[Leischa]

So how do cellphone pings off of celltowers work.. ie.. if LE has SB's cellphone.. they can tell that yes, the phone was in Edmonton, and yes the phone came back to Calgary, and yes the posts made late on the 26th were made from the phone while the phone was in Calgary... but would pings be able to ascertain whether a side-trip was made on the way back home from Edmonton to Calgary, or perhaps see a span of time where the phone stayed in one place mid-way between the two cities, in the middle of nowhere?

I'm no expert on the subject but I read a lot of stuff about cell phones while going through the Meredith Kercher case. I'll explain things to the best of my knowledge.

There are celltowers in various places and these towers each cover an individual zone. The thing is that you could be standing in your house and have your cellphone connect through the tower X zone, and five minutes later you go to your neighbour's place and have your phone connect through the Y tower zone.

So... I guess they should be able to see it if she made a side-trip, especially if that trip was away from the main arteries where she would normally travel. But since I have no clue of how the zones are distribued between Calgary and Edmonton, I don't know to what extent they could actually identify something suspicious. If she stopped, for example, at some place located along the highway she was traveling on, maybe they wouldn't see a change of cell zone but perhaps the time that the phone pinged from that location could give them some information.

 

[Leischa]

The one thing I noticed about that post was that the spelling was poor, and sorry to say, based on some of her other posts, spelling is not her strong suit (see her Cupid profile and FB notes to see what I'm talking about). So the post is consistent that way, unless JB knew that she'd misspell something, and threw "breaks" in there for authenticity...

Indeed, she did spell "breaks" wrong and I too, have read a lot of the stuff she wrote and I agree that she wasn't exactly a Spelling Bee. But if JB posted something on her wall, I don't think he would've thought of putting a spelling mistake in, just so it would look like it was written by her.

After reading just about everyone's opinions and idea realted to her Facebook wall, the post that I now find the most suspicious is the one about how she whored herself out for funzies. Although, no matter how hard I try to figure out how this post could explain what happened, there is always something in the back of my mind that tells me that it doesn't make sense.

But since there doesn't seem to be any people who have come out to say that they saw her that night after she came back to Calgary, those last online moments that she took part in could mean something important.

If only we could know when she went to her OK Cupid profile for the last time... I guess we can rule out the last date that appears on it, since she was already missing. LE must have been able to see her last online date and time so maybe that's why they don't consider JB as a suspect, even though his behaviour is rather odd.

 

[Leischa]

<rsbm>

Do we know if Shannon was supposed to perform at YukYuks that night, or was she just attending the show? If she was just attending, was she to meet others there? IOW, if she was to perform, surely she would have called management beforehand to say she couldn't make it; if she was to meet others for the show, I would think she also would have called them to say she couldn't make it. Why go on FB and make an apology after the fact when common courtesy would normally dictate that you call in person prior to, or as close to 7:15 (iirc) show time as possible. Supposedly she had her phone to make the post, why not a phone call?

From what I read on their FB page, Wednesday was material swap night, so if she was to perform on that night, she would've been teamed up with someone else. If she was supposed to perform, wouldn't she have called or sent a text message to her swap partner? So, maybe she did call someone in order to say that she wouldn't make it in time, and then felt the need to apologize to everyone else involved in the event.

Or maybe she was just planning on attending the even and had friends who were performing or simply waiting for her so she sent a message to apologize to them as a group.

But if she never actually made it back to Calgary because something bad happened, and the perp knew she'd planned on attending the even or that she was supposed to perform, then they could've written that message so the people waiting for her there wouldn't start searching for her and, after not being able to get in touch, alert her family, other friends or the police. Time is precious. The police could've found her if she'd been reported as missing right when she did go missing, instead of five days later.

 

[deugirtni]

I'm sorry this post is long, but found some info on how these 'Development Nights' work. Sounds like they were running twice-monthly on Wed nights, as 'learnin' events. In November 2014, the dates were: November 12th (SB had signed up for the Nov 12th Workshop which began at 6:30pm Calgary time), and November 26th (there is no indication that I can see that SB was signed up in advance for the one on the 26th).

The Yuk Yuk's Calgary Development Night is a bi-monthly Wednesday-night series of workshops and shows for local stand-up comedians who can't ever fill their heads with enough learnin'!

Find information about upcoming shows and workshops, post your suggestions for presentations or share resources on comedy and creativity -- just have fun and be nice, everyone!

If you're a comic looking to perform on a Wednesday-night show, or a creative professional who'd like to present a workshop, please get in touch with Ian Wallace.

For the 26th, it was a 'material swap night'; there is no indication that I can see that SB was signed up for it, as she was for the earlier one which took place on Nov.6th. This was posted by YY DN on Nov.22nd, in anticipation of the Workshop on Nov.26th:

Don't forget: This Wednesday's show will be a material-swap night. Your goal will be to perform a short set of someone's else joke's, inflected with your own approach. Your subject can be local or from the greater world of comedy, you can use material from one other act or a dozen -- just find a way to say something about the material you choose, communicate what you love about it or how you feel it could use a little extra zing!

If you're having trouble arranging a swap, use the comments of this post to coordinate!

SB had made no arrangements publicly to 'swap' with anyone, although some others had, which doesn't mean anything, since she may have already had someone to swap with, and perhaps had no trouble arranging a swap on her own.

The group also has 'homework' - this was posted by the Development Night site on Nov 6th in anticipation of the Nov 12th Workshop (which SB HAD signed up for):

Homework!
In advance of next Wednesday's workshop I'd like the group to share some some perspective on the rehearsal/practice process.

It's easy to think of stand-up comedy only as something that happens in the moments on-stage, as a raw expression of a performer's energy and personality. But the truth is that most of the work done by a comic is preparatory, and it's not just the writing. Rehearsing delivery, practicing movement and experimenting with timing are all valuable pursuits that contribute to a polished and professional act that commands attention and (eventually) dollars.

Do you pretend your shampoo bottle is a mic? Do you stand in front of a mirror and practice your stance? Please, drop a comment below and share some details about your own processes, or drop a link to an article or interview wherein your favourite pros discuss their own.

SB responded to the above by saying on Nov 6th at just about 10pm Calgary time:

I like to go over my set a few times in a row; forcing myself to change up every joke every time while keeping within the same time limit. Then I visualize telling it in several different locations, with several different audiences. I change up the joke order, and add or remove jokes that make more sense in the new order; and try it all again. The main goal for me at this stage when rehearsing is to be as flexible as possible so I'm prepared for whatever might happen on stage, and being able to get an idea of how I want to try my delivery the next time out.

So for the November 26th Development Night, no indication she had intended to attend, she didn't 'like' the post announcing the details of it, she didn't use the site to arrange a swap partner. The fellow who runs the YY DN events seemed to be away, out of the country, on Nov 26th, and so someone else posted a reminder (on the day OF (Nov.26)), saying: "Hey gang! Remember that tonight is material swap night. Hope to see you all there! (Get it...I'm doing a post Ian Wallace would post...get it....clever right?!)". SB 'liked' that reminder post (if it was in fact her that pushed the 'like' button), and then suddenly, after the fact, she posted her comment that she was so sorry to have missed it.

It sounds like participants (of the Open Mic Pro/Amateur Shows following the workshops and seminars don't need to sign up in advance, not sure about the workshop/seminar part, but according to the ad posted earlier from the YY site, those who participate in the workshops/seminars, get in free to see the other parts of the shows:

Bucket Show format
The Pro/Am Show following Development Night workshops & seminars uses the Bucket Show format. This is a lean, fast-paced format intended to keep the show running quickly while allowing the greatest number of performers their moment in the spotlight.

Here's what you need to know:

• To perform on the show you only need to write your name on a slip of paper and toss it in the bucket. No need to pre-register or wait for a list to be announced.
• The show is a TRUE open-mic -- anyone who wants a spot can have one.
• The acts BARNSTORM their introductions -- each performer announces the subsequent act by drawing a name from the bucket; The emcee does not provide introductions between sets.
• Each set is 3-4 MINUTES long depending on the whims of the show's handsome and mercurial producers.
• You'll get the red light ONE MINUTE before your set needs to end. When the 3-4 minute set time is reached, your mic will be cut until you say goodnight and begin to introduce the next act.
• The show continues with names being drawn randomly from the bucket until EVERY last one is drawn.

Tips & Tricks:

• Write your FULL NAME on your slip of paper. You can't be introduced properly if the preceding act doesn't know your name. Use your stage name if you prefer one.
• You CAN throw your name in the bucket even if the show is in progress -- just find a moment between acts to do so without disrupting anyone and don't make a spectacle of yourself.
• Begin your time on stage by drawing a name from the bucket and letting the act know their set is next. The timing of your set won't begin until you've finished this step, so don't worry about wasting your performance time.
• When your name is drawn, you set is next. Get ready by moving quietly to the side of the stage so you can take the stage quickly when you're introduced.
• If you notice that an act is beginning their set without having announced the next performer, remind them by shouting "PICK A NAME" at the stage.
• End your set and take your applause, then provide a warm but short intro for the next act. Don't list credits or otherwise make a big deal, just introduce by name and ask the audience to welcome them.

<rsbm>

Do we know if Shannon was supposed to perform at YukYuks that night, or was she just attending the show? If she was just attending, was she to meet others there? IOW, if she was to perform, surely she would have called management beforehand to say she couldn't make it; if she was to meet others for the show, I would think she also would have called them to say she couldn't make it. Why go on FB and make an apology after the fact when common courtesy would normally dictate that you call in person prior to, or as close to 7:15 (iirc) show time as possible. Supposedly she had her phone to make the post, why not a phone call?

 

[deugirtni]

Yes, good point, I was forgetting to consider that if SB had in fact planned to attend that Development Night Workshop, she would have had to have already arranged a 'swap partner'. Although there was no indication on the YY DN page that she had planned on attending, if she had planned on it, then what about that swap partner? Hmm.

From what I read on their FB page, Wednesday was material swap night, so if she was to perform on that night, she would've been teamed up with someone else. If she was supposed to perform, wouldn't she have called or sent a text message to her swap partner? So, maybe she did call someone in order to say that she wouldn't make it in time, and then felt the need to apologize to everyone else involved in the event.

Or maybe she was just planning on attending the even and had friends who were performing or simply waiting for her so she sent a message to apologize to them as a group.

But if she never actually made it back to Calgary because something bad happened, and the perp knew she'd planned on attending the even or that she was supposed to perform, then they could've written that message so the people waiting for her there wouldn't start searching for her and, after not being able to get in touch, alert her family, other friends or the police. Time is precious. The police could've found her if she'd been reported as missing right when she did go missing, instead of five days later.

 

[deugirtni]

The spelling error in the 'breaks' is a moot issue because it was posted the night before she disappeared. She was seen after posting that post, so I doubt if someone else would have been posting on her behalf, in her absence, if she was still around. It wasn't until the *next* evening/night that the 2 public posts become a little suspicious. So does everyone think that post about the 'funzies' is similar to how SB would have posted/responded/spoken? It never struck me as odd before, because when it is read in context, as a reply to the poster making the comment above, it all made sense to me. But if someone else posted in while covering their tracks and trying to add credibility to the fact that she did return to Calgary after being in Edmonton earlier in the day, then who knows? That person was wise to have replied/responded to the post above it. Does it sound like her?

Indeed, she did spell "breaks" wrong and I too, have read a lot of the stuff she wrote and I agree that she wasn't exactly a Spelling Bee. But if JB posted something on her wall, I don't think he would've thought of putting a spelling mistake in, just so it would look like it was written by her.

After reading just about everyone's opinions and idea realted to her Facebook wall, the post that I now find the most suspicious is the one about how she whored herself out for funzies. Although, no matter how hard I try to figure out how this post could explain what happened, there is always something in the back of my mind that tells me that it doesn't make sense.

But since there doesn't seem to be any people who have come out to say that they saw her that night after she came back to Calgary, those last online moments that she took part in could mean something important.

If only we could know when she went to her OK Cupid profile for the last time... I guess we can rule out the last date that appears on it, since she was already missing. LE must have been able to see her last online date and time so maybe that's why they don't consider JB as a suspect, even though his behaviour is rather odd.

 

[deugirtni]

On November 14, 2014 SB made a FB post saying 'sounds about right', in regard to a remixed Taylor Swift song called 'Blank Space'. The remix was done by local Calgary hiphop artist 'Transit'. There was a small write-up/review on the remake by Irene Seto writing for the 'calgaryisawesome' site. In it, she says,

"He flips Taylor’s usual MO of singing about an ex-boyfriend to rap about an ex-girlfriend that didn’t treat him well. This girl always made him listen to Taylor Swift when they were dating. The girl is bad news, treating her guy like crap during and after the relationship. His rap isn’t so much mean, but eloquent, and really the ultimate burn to the ex who treated him so poorly."
http://calgaryisawesome.com/2014/11/18/transit-and-kirstyn-johnson-remix-taylor-swift/

The chorus stays mostly the same (as TSwift's chorus lyrics), but Transit's version of the lyrics were changed to:

(I got a bit stuck with the lanuage around the Tiger up in Vegas part, so wherever I've made a mistake, please feel free to enlighten me ):

[Transit Lyrics]
I'm your 'never-was'
I'm your psycho ex
You Wanna slit my throat,
But that's a idle threat
You blocked my phone,
But still I'm not alone
Fast food, Jim Beam, and rock and roll
I'm ama cryin like I'm savin it for marriage
Save it til I perish
Over tiger up in vegas
To promoters that are cultivated to higher up the wages
Outrageous when i say this
That if I get to the stages
And tell your friends that we never dated
you told me that i'd never make it
Til you saw me in the magazine
Now you tell everybody that you dated me
Saw you the other day puffin on a 20 pack
You said you were sorry
Tried to get me back
I said I'd think about it
Write a song about you
And that I'd sing about it
So I've remixed your favorite artist
And now you can feel
What a broken heart is

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=u_52MS39Jx8

I'm wondering what everyone's thoughts are on SB's comment, 'sounds about right'.

 

[evafiore]

The spelling error in the 'breaks' is a moot issue because it was posted the night before she disappeared. She was seen after posting that post, so I doubt if someone else would have been posting on her behalf, in her absence, if she was still around. It wasn't until the *next* evening/night that the 2 public posts become a little suspicious. So does everyone think that post about the 'funzies' is similar to how SB would have posted/responded/spoken? It never struck me as odd before, because when it is read in context, as a reply to the poster making the comment above, it all made sense to me. But if someone else posted in while covering their tracks and trying to add credibility to the fact that she did return to Calgary after being in Edmonton earlier in the day, then who knows? That person was wise to have replied/responded to the post above it. Does it sound like her?

I definitely agree that the timing wouldn't work with the trip to Edmonton. It still looks like a strange coincidence to me, but it could be just that.

The idea of pretending to be her reminds me of the Loretta Saunders case---the perps tried texting her family members, posing as her, and failed miserably (or rather, thankfully). However, if you know the person, mimicry really isn't difficult, and it doesn't take a genius, especially in text...how many of you tried forging notes from your parents to your teachers? I learned which words my parents would use, and made sure to use them. I was 12 and managed to pull off some convincing notes. The difficult part was the handwriting.

 

[evafiore]

On November 14, 2014 SB made a FB post saying 'sounds about right', in regard to a remixed Taylor Swift song called 'Blank Space'. The remix was done by local Calgary hiphop artist 'Transit'. There was a small write-up/review on the remake by Irene Seto writing for the 'calgaryisawesome' site. In it, she says,

The chorus stays mostly the same (as TSwift's chorus lyrics), but Transit's version of the lyrics were changed to:

(I got a bit stuck with the lanuage around the Tiger up in Vegas part, so wherever I've made a mistake, please feel free to enlighten me ):

[Transit Lyrics]
I'm your 'never-was'
I'm your psycho ex
You Wanna slit my throat,
But that's a idle threat
You blocked my phone,
But still I'm not alone
Fast food, Jim Beam, and rock and roll
I'm ama cryin like I'm savin it for marriage
Save it til I perish
Over tiger up in vegas
To promoters that are cultivated to higher up the wages
Outrageous when i say this
That if I get to the stages
And tell your friends that we never dated
you told me that i'd never make it
Til you saw me in the magazine
Now you tell everybody that you dated me
Saw you the other day puffin on a 20 pack
You said you were sorry
Tried to get me back
I said I'd think about it
Write a song about you
And that I'd sing about it
So I've remixed your favorite artist
And now you can feel
What a broken heart is

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=u_52MS39Jx8

I'm wondering what everyone's thoughts are on SB's comment, 'sounds about right'.

Generally, it sounds like JB flat out rejected her. Left her to stay somewhere else/with someone else? Ran into her in the evening as he was picking up some stuff and left at 12:30am (or so he told family)? Or did he pack his bags when she came back from Edmonton? Took the dog to his mom's? Could explain why her family insinuated she was upset about something...