Found Deceased MT - Selina (Selena) Not Afraid, 16, I-90 rest area between Billings & Hardin, 1 Jan 2020

[catch_22]

The scratched up woman in the ditch was a RUMOR, repeated by Selena's aunt and thus published by several mainstream news outlets. The complete rumor was that it was a partially unclothed, shoeless, dazed woman with scratched up legs who was found standing in a ditch along Sugar Factory Road, north or Hardin. She admitted having taken drugs, but could not remember how she got there. Interstate 90 does not have ditches. The roadway is actually built up above the surrounding terrain, with steel culverts under the roadway at the level of the prairie to allow free natural run of rare excess water. Sugar Factory Road has shallow irrigation ditches lining either side, along it's entire length. It has never been said exactly where this woman was standing, but it's not a long road. I picked a spot sort of in the middle, and went to Google Earth Street View for this shot, showing the ditches on either side. I've also included a Google Earth overhead view showing the original search area defined by Sheriff Big Hair as a blue circle, and an "air distance" red line showing the 19 miles from the spot of my street view to the rest area.
There is a yellow pin, farthest to the left, which shows approximately where Selena was found. At the very least, I think this demonstrates how quickly a search can blow up into an impossibly broad area, and end with a lot of questions as to what might have been done differently. JMO
(Both illustrations done by me in Google Earth Pro)

Thanks for the info. Unfortunately, I'm confused. So are you saying that there wasn't a second woman from the van that was left at the rest stop with selena? If there was a second woman, where was she found/picked up?

You lost me with the "actual rumor". If this was a rumor, I don't understand the relevance of it. Also, that is a lot of detailed information about a "rumor". What does this have to do with anything?
Was there a woman picked up on sugar factory road, or not? Also, your post makes it sound like the aunt telling this rumor had a huge effect on what became the "original search area"? Didn't the authorities know if this "rumor" was true, or not? I think I am just missing something.

So the original search area was not centered around the rest stop?

 

[rkendmar]

Thanks for the info. Unfortunately, I'm confused. So are you saying that there wasn't a second woman from the van that was left at the rest stop with selena? If there was a second woman, where was she found/picked up?

You lost me with the "actual rumor". If this was a rumor, I don't understand the relevance of it. Also, that is a lot of detailed information about a "rumor". What does this has to do with anything?
Was there a woman picked up on sugar factory road, or not? Also, your post makes it sound like the aunt telling this rumor had a huge effect on what became the "original search area"? Didn't the authorities know if this "rumor" was true, or not? I think I am just missing something.

So the original search area was not centered around the rest stop?

It is very confusing.
It was a very good idea that the Big Horn County Attorney subpoenaed all documentation from the Sheriff's office.
They will need extra clerks to sort all this out, IMO.

 

[catch_22]

The story now seems to be that Selena stayed the night with a friend, and didn't join the van until just before it left Billings. Earlier in this thread, I pointed out that police visited the party twice in response to disturbance complaints. The party being a factor seems really doubtful at this point. IMO

Is this the true story? Or just the new story?

 

[Dave F.]

First off, thank you for the information. Unfortunately, I am now confused.

Wow, that is a detailed "rumor". So was there a second woman from

Thanks for the info. I'm confused. So are you saying that there wasn't a second woman from the van that was left at the rest stop with selina? If there was a second woman, where was she found/picked up?

You lost me with the "actual rumor". If this was a rumor, I don't understand the relevance of it. Also, that is a lot of detailed information about a "rumor". What does this has to do with anything? I think I am just missing something.

So the original search area was not centered around the rest stop?

This has never been clear, but the confusion was somewhat lifted in the announcement she had been found.
There was a second woman, who walked to the fence of the rest stop with Selena but refused to climb over. She is the woman who watched Selena walk off into the field. The van took off without her and Selena. She remained, alone at the rest stop, unharmed.
The woman found on Sugar Factory Road had nothing to do with the van or Selena, but there were multiple witnesses in people who stopped to help her before Hardin city police arrived. That's how rumors start.
Someone told Selena's mother and aunt that the the "scratched up girl in the ditch" must have something to do with the van, and the aunt repeated it. Mainstream news picked it up from her and ran with it.

The original search area was a five mile radius circle, with the rest stop at the western arc and Mile Marker 491 (where the van stopped momentarily after leaving the rest stop) at the eastern arc. It was believed by searchers that she had taken off walking in the general direction of Hardin (headed southeast). Selena's body was found not very far southwest of that circle. In a nutshell, a lot of the search was dedicated to looking where Selena wasn't. I think that's typical of any search. JMO

 

[catch_22]

This has never been clear, but the confusion was somewhat lifted in the announcement she had been found.
There was a second woman, who walked to the fence of the rest stop with Selena but refused to climb over. She is the woman who watched Selena walk off into the field. The van took off without her and Selena. lone at the rest stop, unharmed.
The woman found on Sugar Factory Road had nothing to do with the van or Selena, but there were multiple witnesses in people who stopped to help her. That's how rumors start.
Someone told Selena's mother and aunt that the the "scratched up girl in the ditch" must have something to do with the van, and the aunt repeated it. Mainstream news picked it up from her and ran with it.

Thanks. I started freaking out thinking there now wasn't a second woman left at the rest stop. Or that the second woman from the van was found 20 miles away. Thanks for clearing that up.

 

[Dave F.]

Is this the true story? Or just the new story?

In the very beginning, the story was that she was supposed to leave Billings with friends, and at the last minute she jumped, or was pulled, into the van. That has never changed. I think that a lot of people, including me, read into it that she did that as everyone was leaving the party. What has changed now is that it's not clear that she was ever even at the party. IMO

 

[Luckyzmom]

To be very blunt my biggest fears driving up there are hitting a drink or hi person, hitting one of the Rez dogs or horse, coming upon the scene of these occurances . There's miles and miles of nothing. There are cars and trucks abandoned in various states of disrepair. If there's no tag on vehicle I call county dispatch to make sure someone checks. If you ever have the chance drive US 212 from I 90 I'm So Dakota to Hardin My on I 90. It's beautiful and very interesting but very sad for many reasons. We will not forget you Salina Not Afraid. Am still heart sick for Henny and her family. Profoundly sad all the young lives lost .....MOO

 

[catch_22]

My above average hindsight tells me that the search area should have been centered at the rest stop. And not necessarily a perfect circle. Maybe they first focus only south of the interstate. It sounds like that is the direction she started off in. I can understand searching eastward of the rest stop (because that is the way to Hardin), but I think they were giving her too much credit for her sense of direction when she immediately headed south instead of staying along the highway (that runs east (straight to hardin)).

 

[MimosaMornings]

There were two people left at the rest stop, Selena and another female? An adult came along 15 minutes later and picked up this female? Is that correct?

This adult called for help at that rest stop when Selena was not there? When was she reported missing?

 

[PommyMommy]

Excellent post/reply.....thank you so much. I'm not certain the breed and/or training of the canine/SAR teams that supposedly were on this case, but I do know for fact that there are trained dogs to do avalanche rescue, along with water search. Dogs can track scent that emanates up through both snow and even ponds, lakes, and streams.. Not that any of that matters at this point.

Just one example.....

Western Montana Search Dogs

BBM It matters if we are going to criticize the dog teams for not finding her, doesn't it? That is my point - without knowing the dogs' specialties, we can't say why they didn't find her. But, thank you for your response. MOO

 

[AmandaReckonwith]

Thanks for all your work on WS @AmandaReckonwith! Do you have a link for this specific case or is there only one archive? Thanks again.

Either way.
If you go to the main page, there is a drop-down list of cases at the left. Alphabetical by first names.

Specifically for Selena:
Selina Not Afraid -MT- by amanda reckonwith

Cellphones sometimes don't get you there, so try clicking on this and scroll.
Selina (goes by Selena) Not Afraid

 

[PommyMommy]

The story now seems to be that Selena stayed the night with a friend, and didn't join the van until just before it left Billings. Earlier in this thread, I pointed out that police visited the party twice in response to disturbance complaints. The party being a factor seems really doubtful at this point. IMO

BBM Is there a link for this somewhere, please? MOO

 

[LadyL]

dbm

 

[Jazzy5980]

DBM

 

[Seattle1]

Either way.
If you go to the main page, there is a drop-down list of cases at the left. Alphabetical by first names.

Specifically for Selena:
Selina Not Afraid -MT- by amanda reckonwith

Cellphones sometimes don't get you there, so try clicking on this and scroll.
Selina (goes by Selena) Not Afraid

Excellent -- thanks again.

 

[stattlich1]

BBM It matters if we are going to criticize the dog teams for not finding her, doesn't it? That is my point - without knowing the dogs' specialties, we can't say why they didn't find her. But, thank you for your response. MOO

Not criticizing any canine/SAR team. I'd never do that. I personally know several canine SAR folks, some well known. If the point last seen regarding this young lady was known, a trained canine would have an extremely high probability of following her scent right to her. Something doesn't add up. Like, MOO, her body was placed there after the area was searched, or the canine team never was brought to the point last seen, which, reportedly was somewhere, crossing a fence, at the rest stop.

 

[PommyMommy]

Not criticizing any canine/SAR team. I'd never do that. I personally know several canine SAR folks, some well known. If the point last seen regarding this young lady was known, a trained canine would have an extremely high probability of following her scent right to her. Something doesn't add up. Like, MOO, her body was placed there after the area was searched, or the canine team never was brought to the point last seen, which, reportedly was somewhere, crossing a fence, at the rest stop.

And yet we see case after case where dogs have missed human remains in the exact area they were later found. I wish I had time to dig up examples for you but unfortunately, I do not. If you're interested however, there are a few examples in one of my posts from earlier today (scroll back a few pages). Either way, a scent dog's capability is hindered by snow, and we know it snowed. MOO

 

[Seattle1]

There were two people left at the rest stop, Selena and another female? An adult came along 15 minutes later and picked up this female? Is that correct?

This adult called for help at that rest stop when Selena was not there? When was she reported missing?

The van breakdown at the rest stop was not the first for the driver and passengers heading to Harding from Billings.

Reportedly, they had stopped at least twice before with driver trying to serve as a mechanic, and also keep his passengers (all allegedly drinking) seated inside.

The rest stop facility was closed for the winter. All passengers remained in the van except for Selena and another adult female. They left the disabled van. When the driver could not get them back inside the barely idling van, he called his mother to stop at rest stop and collect the two passengers-- Selena and other women (ditch woman). Weather conditions were reported as mild -- there was no snow. (Selena was last seen around 2 pm, wearing light clothing, and may have been intoxicated).

The driver's mom was actually traveling behind the van driving to Harding and arrived within 1o-15 minutes. She located the ditch woman, but could not find Selena. Search efforts for Selena were immediate -- as soon as the van driver's mom did not find her waiting with the other female passenger. The van driver, his mother, family members were all in contact.

It's not clear from the disjointed media when the formal missing person reports were filed but family and friends immediately came to the rest stop where they stayed searching all night. MOO

Search continues for missing Montana teen

 

[Syxanthi]

The dogs capabilities were mostly hindered because they couldn't search from the start point. From what I can make out they were almost working from outside to in hoping to hit upon a trail, rather than being able to follow a scent out from its origin. That's not a great start.

 

[Jazzy5980]

The story now seems to be that Selena stayed the night with a friend, and didn't join the van until just before it left Billings. Earlier in this thread, I pointed out that police visited the party twice in response to disturbance complaints. The party being a factor seems really doubtful at this point. IMO

The house on Miles Avenue was purportedly rented by the family of the man behaving aggressively toward Selena in the video shot at the Fly Creek Rest Area. This man and his two brothers lived at the house but were evicted following New Years Eve. festivities. No, I cannot provide sources