Found Deceased IA - Mollie Tibbetts, 20, Poweshiek County, 19 Jul 2018 *Arrest* #38

[MsBetsy]

She went jogging at 7:30. It's also possible that 7:45 is the time that the car was circling the block. Mollie's run was 45 minutes and she was close to her mom's house when she was abducted. It's possible that he abducted her at Boundary and Middle St. shortly after 8PM, and that at 8:28PM something significant happened at never mind I think I messed up again

 

[otto]

I originally was thinking that too, Crystal Regan, but after finding out he had a daughter and family in the area, CR fleeing and disappearing would probably have brought LE attention on himself as his ex gf might have reported him missing. And until LE got the security cam footage, he really didn’t have any attention on him. I don’t think he necessarily expected LE to track him down; but when they did he knew the gig was up.

I think he fully expected to get away with murder. Police had nothing until they viewed the CCTV from Boundary and Middle St. That footage was from a bad angle, but they could see a vehicle circling the area and they saw Mollie jogging. The CCTV footage didn't provide a license plate.

They needed the vehicle to make the arrest, and after a month where police had no evidence, Rivera probably thought he was free and clear.

 

[TL4S]

The warrant has to state an incident time. There's an upper and lower range for the time. The lower range is 7:45, the upper time is 8:28. Something distinct happened at 8:28 and the evidence will be on her Fitbit. We don't know if it was a spike in her heart rate or whether the Fitbit stopped transmitting.

Is it safe to assume that her Fitbit data alone wasn't enough for LE to see the moment of death and to tell her family they were thinking she was? If it just ended at 8:28, they had no way of knowing if her heart stopped, or if the Fitbit was seperated from her?

 

[MyBelle]

The video was at a house near Boundary and Middle St. The location of the incident is 1.2 miles away at 1900 385 Ave., so 8:28 does not correspond to CCTV.

I don't believe LE has specifically said where the final security video image was taken. If I'm mistaken, a link would be great to help clear my confusion.

 

[MsBetsy]

I tried to respond to Otto, but messed up the quote again. Seems there is no way to fix it if you accidently delete the quote. Anyway, I'm still trying to ask about the last witness sighting at 8:00 pm. Assuming he could be off by 20 minutes or so, would his sighting make sense? If he saw her at 7:40, where would she be on relation to where it is thought the incident began?

 

[duster1979]

But there were others out and about.

Really? Did you see them? Were they young and attractive? Were they alone? Was their awareness of their surroundings potentially diminished because they were listening to music or focusing on running?

The guy saw his opportunity and took it. Maybe he'd had his eye on her awhile or maybe it was spur of the moment, either way, he saw an opportunity to approach her without being observed so he struck while the iron was hot. That's it.

 

[otto]

Is it safe to assume that her Fitbit data alone wasn't enough for LE to see the moment of death and to tell her family they were thinking she was? If it just ended at 8:28, they had no way of knowing if her heart stopped, or if the Fitbit was seperated from her?

Exactly. We don't know what the Fitbit did at 8:28PM, but even if it stopped transmitting a heartbeat, it doesn't mean that she was deceased. As you say, it could be that the Fitbit was removed or damages at that location, and it was the cellphone that pinged 10 miles SE of Brooklyn.

 

[bluedivergirl]

This may be a dumb question but if you die, does a FitBit stop working or uploading data?

I don't think so. It couldn't upload info it doesn't have, like pulse rate or oxygen levels. But I think the watch would continue to record and upload and info it did get.

They differ in what info they gather and save. DH is an avid runner, and his watch details everything you can imagine, his temp, oxygen levels ~ amazing stuff. It is an expensive one, and as a young college student, she may not have access to an expensive watch.

 

[TL4S]

Exactly. We don't know what the Fitbit did at 8:28PM, but even if it stopped transmitting a heartbeat, it doesn't mean that she was deceased. As you say, it could be that the Fitbit was removed or damages at that location, and it was the cellphone that pinged 10 miles SE of Brooklyn.

But then how can they put 8:28pm as the upper limit on the homicide warrant if they don't know that's when she died?

 

[otto]

I don't believe LE has specifically said where the final security video image was taken. If I'm mistaken, a link would be great to help clear my confusion.

The search warrant states that after reviewing the video it was determined that Mollie was running in the area of Boundary and Middle St. when a vehicle ...

That is, the video placed Mollie at that location.

http://media.graytvinc.com/documents/082118+DCI+Arrest.pdf

 

[duster1979]

What stood out for me was that neither he, nor IM, had Mollie's missing poster on their FB. Everyone in town connected them had done that, why didn't they?

Everyone? All 1400 residents? I doubt it.

When so many people share something like that, there are always a few who choose not to largely because they've seen it dozens of times and figure it's reached the saturation point for their circle of acquaintances.
I seldom share things like this myself.

 

[TL4S]

I tried to respond to Otto, but messed up the quote again. Seems there is no way to fix it if you accidently delete the quote. Anyway, I'm still trying to ask about the last witness sighting at 8:00 pm. Assuming he could be off by 20 minutes or so, would his sighting make sense? If he saw her at 7:40, where would she be on relation to where it is thought the incident began?

She could be at Boundary and Middle by 7:45.

 

[Jeng1810]

The video was at a house near Boundary and Middle St. The location of the incident is 1.2 miles away at 1900 385 Ave., so 8:28 does not correspond to CCTV.

I’m thinking it was the last ping from her phone near where she was found hence the latest time they added to the arrest warrant. JMO

 

[otto]

I tried to respond to Otto, but messed up the quote again. Seems there is no way to fix it if you accidently delete the quote. Anyway, I'm still trying to ask about the last witness sighting at 8:00 pm. Assuming he could be off by 20 minutes or so, would his sighting make sense? If he saw her at 7:40, where would she be on relation to where it is thought the incident began?

What I recall is that there was a witness on W. Pershing Dr. There was another one at the Funeral home, but there was no information about which direction she was running. There's one more witness on 2nd St where Mollie was supposedly running towards Caseys.

The only witness I believe is the one on W. Pershing Dr. The witness on 2nd St. initially said 9PM, a week or 10 days later that was changed to 8PM.

 

[1987]

But there were others out and about.

when you go to the store to buy a apple why do you pick the one you pick, they are all apples. I think it was as simple as that to him.

 

[duster1979]

But then how can they put 8:28pm as the upper limit on the homicide warrant if they don't know that's when she died?

The time likely fits the timeline provided by the perp in the confession.

 

[Karmakazi]

For me and probably for others who fell head over heels into this case, it was the light that was Mollie. I have a Mollie in my life, a beautiful soon to be Daughter in Law. When she enters the room, it is just brighter. There is a naivety and innocence that I remember having before the real world toughened me up. We did get to know Mollie through her SM and her family. I feel that I was watching her grow up as I read through her FB and Twitter. We were seeing her political views develop, her relationship with her boyfriend deepen. So, for me it wasn’t that she was a pretty face, it was something deeper that tugged at my heart. It was the mother, daughter, sister and wife in me. She seemed like she was going to light the world on fire.

Well put. I feel the same. I am 15 years older than mollie but feel a kindred to her because Igrew up in Iowa city, and in college I would run in rural areas out by my parents house. I live in the northeast now but just spent 2 weeks in July between IC and Des Moines with my kids, visiting extended family. In fact, I was running 5 miles in a rural area by my parents house, and my hubby tracked me down on the run after he heard of mollie’s disappearance, because it freaked him out.

 

[TL4S]

The time likely fits the timeline provided by the perp in the confession.

But there was nothing in the statement about what time he got angry and blacked out.

 

[otto]

But then how can they put 8:28pm as the upper limit on the homicide warrant if they don't know that's when she died?

It says on the arrest warrant that they don't know the date and time of the incident, but they do indicate a date, and a lower and upper time range. We'll have to wait until the trial to know why they include 8:28 as an upper time range.

 

[AnnaGrace]

Exactly. We don't know what the Fitbit did at 8:28PM, but even if it stopped transmitting a heartbeat, it doesn't mean that she was deceased. As you say, it could be that the Fitbit was removed or damages at that location, and it was the cellphone that pinged 10 miles SE of Brooklyn.

If her cell phone were taken from her and turned off, the fit bit would have stopped transmitting too. Right?