Re: The phone
Go to Google Earth and search for "446 MAIN ST
Gooding, ID 83330" then enter Street View. Look up.
The cell tower is on the roof, just above where it says "Leader Building".
Verizon issued a press bulletin which clarifed that KB's phone was likely within a mile of that tower when it pinged.
The ping, and the two messages, are absolute proof that KB's phone was there, and that someone other than PF was in control of it.
The messages themselves are irrelevant. The phone was obviously not locked, so the Contacts section would have both numbers. If for some reason the Contacts was empty, the user of the phone could look up both numbers, as they are both widely published. Old-fashioned, I know, but it still works!
KB's BIL told news sources that he had been calling the number over and over, and it just went to voice mail without ringing. On a Verizon phone, this means it is TURNED OFF. If the battery was dead, it would ring, then go to voice mail.
Likewise, if KB's phone was in her condo to take, wouldn't the charger and cord be there, as well?
Finally......LE theorizes that either PF had someone else kill KB and took her phone (murder and solicitation), or killed her, took her phone, and asked someone else to use it. (murder with robbery and solicitation).
OMG! Isn't that exactly where LE is with this case at this time?