Found Deceased CO - Suzanne Morphew, 49, did not return from bike ride, Chaffee County, 10 May 2020 #29

[10ofRods]

It looks to me to be a general description of how cell phones connect to towers in a certain area. LE would probably know approximately where BM was when he used his phone to text his daughters and to call the neighbor.

What I would be interested in is all the locations where there is no service, or whether or not the phone was turned off at a particular time or in a certain area. Can the location still be determined if there is no service? Did the truck have GPS? In what way did the GPS data not match Barry's story? Could that have been related to the time Barry mentioned that he was fixing something on his bobcat? Or whatever it was that he said.

Anyway, what I think might be important is where he was and what he was doing whenever he was "off grid," or in the areas where there was no phone service.

Imo

Short answer: Yes, GPS can find you where there is no cell service. To be really accurate, someone explained in an earlier thread that the GPS needs to be unobstructed to more than one satellite. It's rare to be entirely without GPS in the mountains, which is what PLB's are based on.

All Androids and Apple phones have onboard GPS that works when the phone is powered on, whether or not there's cell service. Most google apps send that information to the cloud as the phone travels (to Google servers).

So, BM would need to keep turning his phone on and off (in between texts and phone calls) to evade GPS detection (I hate giving instructions for these kinds of things). But that behavior would be so suspicious in and of itself as to constitute some good evidence against BM. Most people would know not to do that. So, I believe BM's phone will show him heading up toward Denver early in the morning (but whether it shows him at any particular place that could be a work place is another matter). Then, it will show him getting texts, making phone calls prior to 6 pm.

Does the phone show any stops along the way? Is there enough data in the phone to show that? If no cell service, perhaps hard to know.

It's been interesting to me that LE closed the road heading away from Denver (from the Morphew residence) to conduct an approximately day long search. What made them do that? Did BM do some driving around more locally before heading to Denver? Did he perhaps leave for Denver much later than 5 am?

Did he really go to Denver? I can say that if I were AM and had heard from CSI that BM's story about his whereabouts didn't add up, that would be enough for me personally to be extremely upset with BM.

At any rate, my guess is that GPS will be key in this case. There's an interesting podcast about a murder in California that hinged on GPS: To Live and Die in LA. Wherein, the murderer didn't realize just how much GPS could show...and where it is stored.

 

[Cindizzi]

Will be lighting a candle for SM in about 4 hours.


https://twitter.com/laurenscharftv/status/1299715047434924034?s=21

SUZANNE MORPHEW VIGIL will be tonight in Indiana at 8 p.m. EST so that is 6 p.m. Mountain time. #shinebrightforSuzanne #FindSuzanne #SuzanneMorphew

 

[oviedo]

Will be lighting a candle for SM in about 4 hours.


https://twitter.com/laurenscharftv/status/1299715047434924034?s=21

SUZANNE MORPHEW VIGIL will be tonight in Indiana at 8 p.m. EST so that is 6 p.m. Mountain time. #shinebrightforSuzanne #FindSuzanne #SuzanneMorphew

Thank you for the reminder !

 

[Diddian]

I've speculated earlier on this thread that BM may have been running machinery at his own property the night of 5/9 and that the machinery running in the middle of the night at the separate worksite may have been to support work done at the Morphew site. Maybe BM was borrowing that machinery and had to load it on a flatbed for transport, or maybe he was borrowing an accessory - a bucket or set of forks or a battery to replace a dead battery on another machine.

Why do I speculate that? I had substantial stone work done at my own property in 2018 and one thing I remember is that the mason would run the skid steer for about 20 minutes each morning to charge it before using it for work. If the Bobcat on that worksite (the property where CBI cut a square hole in the foundation) works the same way and it only ran for about a half hour (IIRC, that is what the neighbor estimated), then that didn't allow much time for any onsite work. But, it would have been enough time to charge up the machine to change something out (battery, fork or bucket) or to load it up for transport to another site.

With that possible scenario in mind, I've been comparing the only photos I have access to that show the Morphew property before 5/9 (i.e. the listing photos from 2018 - I've attached a pdf with one of those photos) and the drone footage that LE took. A small portion of that footage is available on Suzanne Morphew Story Map on the Profiling Evil site - here is the link:.

Suzanne Moorman Morphew

There have been some observable changes in just the select areas that can be seen in that very small selection of footage:

• In 2018 listing photos, there were NO large stones located in the three garden beds between the driveway and the front door. In the drone footage, there is a single large stone (say 2' x 3') in each of the three front beds - one between the largest (center) tree and the driveway, a second in the bed between front door and garage, and a third in the bed on the opposite side of the front door.

The first two look like large stones you'd typically see used for such a purpose in landscaping (they are medium to dark gray in color and have interestingly sloped sides and appear to be at least partially embedded below grade). The third is a big, blocky light colored boulder like those used in the piled boulder retaining wall lining most of the length of the driveway and that boulder does not appear to be embedded below grade at all (an amateur's mistake according to the hardscaping professional I worked with - you want about 25% to 33% of the stone embedded below ground to make it look natural, otherwise it looks like it was just dumped there).​

• It also appears that there might possibly have been some change made to the beginning of the large stone slab pathway which begins on the far side of the garage and which leads around to the side of the house past two stacked piles of firewood on the exterior wall of the garage. Before, it appeared to be a flat stone path, but in the drone footage it appears there MIGHT be more dimension to the stones at the outside corner of the beginning of that path. It is difficult to tell in the footage.

These changes may have occurred at any time between when photos were taken for the 2018 listing and when the drone footage was taken. However, since some changes HAVE occurred, I hope LE is determining (through photos or satellite images taken closer to May 2020) whether they occurred sometime close to when SM disappeared.

I hope LE is considering: Are there any stones in that drone footage that appear to have exposed surfaces that appear as though they have recently been in contact with moist, dark earth - i.e. they've been upturned and removed recently and put back differently? Are there any areas in pathways or retaining walls that don't look quite as professionally placed as the surrounding areas? Are there ANY evident changes from how areas looked in earlier images (photographs or satellite images)?

 

[Brubon]

Holy cow! Are you talking about the Ersi map. I hadn't looked at it before. Omg, what on earth?

Do you mean ESRI maps?
MOO

 

[10ofRods]

So...can someone help me out with the backhoe/Bobcat/whatchamacallit?

Do I have my facts straight? Bobcat was at the Morphew property when seen by helicopter? Yes?

So BM most likely had access to it on May 9-10?

Was there another piece of excavation equipment at the worksite in Salida (where the search was done)? Or is that entirely conjecture based on the neighbor hearing noise?

BM had a way of transporting the Bobcat, right? (Someone posted about this earlier). Something about there being a trailer for the Bobcat?

Thanks in advance for any help understanding importance of Bobcat.

 

[Topppps]

NM I see where Andy talked about it put it in last fall so like 6 months from when the wall was put in to when they fixed it.

 

[Fireflize]

Do you mean ESRI maps?
MOO

Yes, is that just an imaginary example of tracking or something else?

 

[swedeheart]

does anyone have google map coordinates for the morphew house + the job site + the neighbor who heard noises? i suck at maps and would appreciate any help with someone pointing that out off the top of your head.

 

[10ofRods]

I've speculated earlier on this thread that BM may have been running machinery at his own property the night of 5/9 and that the machinery running in the middle of the night at the separate worksite may have been to support work done at the Morphew site. Maybe BM was borrowing that machinery and had to load it on a flatbed for transport, or maybe he was borrowing an accessory - a bucket or set of forks or a battery to replace a dead battery on another machine.

Why do I speculate that? I had substantial stone work done at my own property in 2018 and one thing I remember is that the mason would run the skid steer for about 20 minutes each morning to charge it before using it for work. If the Bobcat on that worksite (the property where CBI cut a square hole in the foundation) works the same way and it only ran for about a half hour (IIRC, that is what the neighbor estimated), then that didn't allow much time for any onsite work. But, it would have been enough time to charge up the machine to change something out (battery, fork or bucket) or to load it up for transport to another site.

With that possible scenario in mind, I've been comparing the only photos I have access to that show the Morphew property before 5/9 (i.e. the listing photos from 2018 - I've attached a pdf with one of those photos) and the drone footage that LE took. A small portion of that footage is available on Suzanne Morphew Story Map on the Profiling Evil site - here is the link:.

Suzanne Moorman Morphew

There have been some observable changes in just the select areas that can be seen in that very small selection of footage:

• In 2018 listing photos, there were NO large stones located in the three garden beds between the driveway and the front door. In the drone footage, there is a single large stone (say 2' x 3') in each of the three front beds - one between the largest (center) tree and the driveway, a second in the bed between front door and garage, and a third in the bed on the opposite side of the front door.

The first two look like large stones you'd typically see used for such a purpose in landscaping (they are medium to dark gray in color and have interestingly sloped sides and appear to be at least partially embedded below grade). The third is a big, blocky light colored boulder like those used in the piled boulder retaining wall lining most of the length of the driveway and that boulder does not appear to be embedded below grade at all (an amateur's mistake according to the hardscaping professional I worked with - you want about 25% to 33% of the stone embedded below ground to make it look natural, otherwise it looks like it was just dumped there).​

• It also appears that there might possibly have been some change made to the beginning of the large stone slab pathway which begins on the far side of the garage and which leads around to the side of the house past two stacked piles of firewood on the exterior wall of the garage. Before, it appeared to be a flat stone path, but in the drone footage it appears there MIGHT be more dimension to the stones at the outside corner of the beginning of that path. It is difficult to tell in the footage.

These changes may have occurred at any time between when photos were taken for the 2018 listing and when the drone footage was taken. However, since some changes HAVE occurred, I hope LE is determining (through photos or satellite images taken closer to May 2020) whether they occurred sometime close to when SM disappeared.

I hope LE is considering: Are there any stones in that drone footage that appear to have exposed surfaces that appear as though they have recently been in contact with moist, dark earth - i.e. they've been upturned and removed recently and put back differently? Are there any areas in pathways or retaining walls that don't look quite as professionally placed as the surrounding areas? Are there ANY evident changes from how areas looked in earlier images (photographs or satellite images)?

Wow - amazing post. I was typing mine at the same time you posted. You're answering a lot of questions for me and also posing some really interesting new ones.

Even without any other information, we see that a landscape contractor with a Bobcat or similar can move and partially bury large rocks. It's a basic part of the business (along with transporting and moving the large rocks for the walkway/wall features).

If the Bobcat was not at home on the 9th, but rather was still in Salida, and someone went and charged it up to move it on the night of the 9th, that's very very interesting. And possible. Makes several details make more sense.

 

[Fireflize]

I've speculated earlier on this thread that BM may have been running machinery at his own property the night of 5/9 and that the machinery running in the middle of the night at the separate worksite may have been to support work done at the Morphew site. Maybe BM was borrowing that machinery and had to load it on a flatbed for transport, or maybe he was borrowing an accessory - a bucket or set of forks or a battery to replace a dead battery on another machine.

Why do I speculate that? I had substantial stone work done at my own property in 2018 and one thing I remember is that the mason would run the skid steer for about 20 minutes each morning to charge it before using it for work. If the Bobcat on that worksite (the property where CBI cut a square hole in the foundation) works the same way and it only ran for about a half hour (IIRC, that is what the neighbor estimated), then that didn't allow much time for any onsite work. But, it would have been enough time to charge up the machine to change something out (battery, fork or bucket) or to load it up for transport to another site.

With that possible scenario in mind, I've been comparing the only photos I have access to that show the Morphew property before 5/9 (i.e. the listing photos from 2018 - I've attached a pdf with one of those photos) and the drone footage that LE took. A small portion of that footage is available on Suzanne Morphew Story Map on the Profiling Evil site - here is the link:.

Suzanne Moorman Morphew

There have been some observable changes in just the select areas that can be seen in that very small selection of footage:

• In 2018 listing photos, there were NO large stones located in the three garden beds between the driveway and the front door. In the drone footage, there is a single large stone (say 2' x 3') in each of the three front beds - one between the largest (center) tree and the driveway, a second in the bed between front door and garage, and a third in the bed on the opposite side of the front door.

The first two look like large stones you'd typically see used for such a purpose in landscaping (they are medium to dark gray in color and have interestingly sloped sides and appear to be at least partially embedded below grade). The third is a big, blocky light colored boulder like those used in the piled boulder retaining wall lining most of the length of the driveway and that boulder does not appear to be embedded below grade at all (an amateur's mistake according to the hardscaping professional I worked with - you want about 25% to 33% of the stone embedded below ground to make it look natural, otherwise it looks like it was just dumped there).​

• It also appears that there might possibly have been some change made to the beginning of the large stone slab pathway which begins on the far side of the garage and which leads around to the side of the house past two stacked piles of firewood on the exterior wall of the garage. Before, it appeared to be a flat stone path, but in the drone footage it appears there MIGHT be more dimension to the stones at the outside corner of the beginning of that path. It is difficult to tell in the footage.

These changes may have occurred at any time between when photos were taken for the 2018 listing and when the drone footage was taken. However, since some changes HAVE occurred, I hope LE is determining (through photos or satellite images taken closer to May 2020) whether they occurred sometime close to when SM disappeared.

I hope LE is considering: Are there any stones in that drone footage that appear to have exposed surfaces that appear as though they have recently been in contact with moist, dark earth - i.e. they've been upturned and removed recently and put back differently? Are there any areas in pathways or retaining walls that don't look quite as professionally placed as the surrounding areas? Are there ANY evident changes from how areas looked in earlier images (photographs or satellite images)?

Thank you, Diddian!

 

[dalsglen]

If there was machinery that had those long tracks instead of wheels and a low cabin, they would check under them during a search, right?

 

[Boxer]

I think you're right about one thing. She didn't start a fight or even a serious conversation. She was in a conversation and was interrupted by BM. He started it...and finished it. Moo

Good point. That makes sense.

 

[Brubon]

Yes, is that just an imaginary example of tracking or something else?

ArcGIS is an IT mapping tool that can put cumbersome data into a friendlier format, such as a map.
St. Petersburg, Florida Police use it. Instead of reading a bunch of addresses connected to LE issues, a user friendly map is generated.
ArcGIS is a product of ESRI.
(I wish I knew how to copy a link.)
MOO

 

[Wendyb1063]

What if Barry is innocent?

Could someone point me to any physical evidence that he killed Suzanne.

I was afraid to make this post because I haven't been here long and I've seen how people are jumped on if they disagree. I hope we can discuss the evidence without attacking.
Peace.

I'm mostly a lurker here, and I've tried hard to remain objective in terms of BM despite certain gut feelings. However, I am pretty certain he's responsible. Here is the most objective information that has brought me to this conclusion:

1. The sheriff has said this is an open criminal investigation, so that rules out an accident, animal attack, or her leaving on her own accord. This leaves either a kidnapping or a murder with her body removed from the home. Because no description of Suzanne was released by the police to the media, this implies that the police have evidence that a kidnapping did not occur. This leaves murder with her body removed from the home as the only remaining option.
2. BM said in the video with TD that his name had been cleared. However, on July 9, LE said that they had not formally ruled out anyone from suspicion.
3. The Morphew house has been searched twice, with sealed search warrants (which require a judge to agree with law enforcement that there is probable cause that evidence of criminal activity will be found) obtained for each search and evidence removed.
4. One of BM's job sites (where he was recently hired to lay dirt) has been searched, which also was done using a search warrant.
5. BM says he has not been asked to take a polygraph exam. However, SM's family says he has been asked twice to do so and has refused both times. I don't know why her family (who do not live nearby) would lie, and I don't think that LS (the reporter) would have stated this in her article if she had any doubts about the veracity of this statement.
6. In same LS interview with a family member of SM, it was said that the data collected from BM's truck didn't match up. Again, I trust LS to only report this if she had confidence in its truth.


I'm probably forgetting some important things here. There is also PLENTY of less objective information that supports the idea that BM is behind SM's disappearance.

The other theories I've considered all have problems. For example, maybe it was a stranger who entered the house. This makes the bike staging hard to explain, as well as the perfect timing with BM and the girls gone. It could have been a friend of SM's or BM's or one of the girls who knew SM would be alone that day, but why then would they hide the body AND stage the bike?

I haven't yet heard a good theory that fits the few known facts of the case that really would absolve BM, but I'd love to hear one. IMOO.

 

[Diddian]

Wow - amazing post. I was typing mine at the same time you posted. You're answering a lot of questions for me and also posing some really interesting new ones.

Even without any other information, we see that a landscape contractor with a Bobcat or similar can move and partially bury large rocks. It's a basic part of the business (along with transporting and moving the large rocks for the walkway/wall features).

If the Bobcat was not at home on the 9th, but rather was still in Salida, and someone went and charged it up to move it on the night of the 9th, that's very very interesting. And possible. Makes several details make more sense.

There is a LOT of stonework on the Morphew property. If LE had strong suspicion that SM might be somewhere under it, I assume they'd have to narrow down a location; I can't imagine they would just go digging it all up. If LE hasn't already, I hope to God they can get some cadaver dogs on that property and some cellphone location data to narrow the range of possibilities.

If SM is deceased, those who cared about her deserve to put her properly to rest.

P.S. I swear that I previously saw a longer video of the drone footage than is provided on the Profiling Evil website. Does anyone know where that longer video (when the drone circles the property multiple times) might be accessed?

 

[Diddian]

I'm mostly a lurker here, and I've tried hard to remain objective in terms of BM despite certain gut feelings. However, I am pretty certain he's responsible. Here is the most objective information that has brought me to this conclusion:

1. The sheriff has said this is an open criminal investigation, so that rules out an accident, animal attack, or her leaving on her own accord. This leaves either a kidnapping or a murder with her body removed from the home. Because no description of Suzanne was released by the police to the media, this implies that the police have evidence that a kidnapping did not occur. This leaves murder with her body removed from the home as the only remaining option.
2. BM said in the video with TD that his name had been cleared. However, on July 9, LE said that they had not formally ruled out anyone from suspicion.
3. The Morphew house has been searched twice, with sealed search warrants (which require a judge to agree with law enforcement that there is probable cause that evidence of criminal activity will be found) obtained for each search and evidence removed.
4. One of BM's job sites (where he was recently hired to lay dirt) has been searched, which also was done using a search warrant.
5. BM says he has not been asked to take a polygraph exam. However, SM's family says he has been asked twice to do so and has refused both times. I don't know why her family (who do not live nearby) would lie, and I don't think that LS (the reporter) would have stated this in her article if she had any doubts about the veracity of this statement.
6. In same LS interview with a family member of SM, it was said that the data collected from BM's truck didn't match up. Again, I trust LS to only report this if she had confidence in its truth.


I'm probably forgetting some important things here. There is also PLENTY of less objective information that supports the idea that BM is behind SM's disappearance.

The other theories I've considered all have problems. For example, maybe it was a stranger who entered the house. This makes the bike staging hard to explain, as well as the perfect timing with BM and the girls gone. It could have been a friend of SM's or BM's or one of the girls who knew SM would be alone that day, but why then would they hide the body AND stage the bike?

I haven't yet heard a good theory that fits the few known facts of the case that really would absolve BM, but I'd love to hear one. IMOO.

Good points.

About #3, a question for attorneys or those with more experience following criminal investigations: For the search warrants to be sealed, wouldn't LE have provided information not only that evidence of criminality would likely be found in the house, but ALSO that to disclose the details in the search warrant (ie. the indicators of probable cause, the specific types of evidence they are searching for, and what they have found) at this time would likely impede their continuing criminal investigation?

 

[Fireflize]

ArcGIS is an IT mapping tool that can put cumbersome data into a friendlier format, such as a map.
St. Petersburg, Florida Police use it. Instead of reading a bunch of addresses connected to LE issues, a user friendly map is generated.
ArcGIS is a product of ESRI.
(I wish I knew how to copy a link.)
MOO

Suzanne Moorman Morphew
On PE website there is an ESRI map site, with blue and pink routes. I saw no explanation. I'm having trouble accessing their site. The blue route went up to Denver and circled back a different way. The pink route went off from the Morphew home to the west. Weird. Probably just showing example of what it can do.
Moo

 

[Murphy1950]

There is a LOT of stonework on the Morphew property..... If LE had strong suspicion that SM

P.S. I swear that I previously saw a longer video of the drone footage than is provided on the Profiling Evil website. Does anyone know where that longer video (when the drone circles the property multiple times) might be accessed?

FWIW....I don't know if this is the same one you are looking for but it may help. Not a drone, a helicopter. Video looks like it's 13 minutes long.

Missing Mother: Video Shows Remote Area Where Suzanne Morphew Was Reportedly Biking When She Disappeared

 

[PaulaDC]

There is a LOT of stonework on the Morphew property. If LE had strong suspicion that SM might be somewhere under it, I assume they'd have to narrow down a location; I can't imagine they would just go digging it all up. If LE hasn't already, I hope to God they can get some cadaver dogs on that property and some cellphone location data to narrow the range of possibilities.

If SM is deceased, those who cared about her deserve to put her properly to rest.

P.S. I swear that I previously saw a longer video of the drone footage than is provided on the Profiling Evil website. Does anyone know where that longer video (when the drone circles the property multiple times) might be accessed?

There's a helicopter flyover on YouTube.