GUILTY NH - Krista Dittmeyer, 20, Conway, 23 April 2011 - #2

[jjenny]

So then autopsy shows she was obviously deceased before she was in the water. Which now creates quite a few more questions. Still convinced she was not out there alone.

Should have been easy enough to say if she drowned-they should have found water in the lungs. So I'd agree if they don't know cause of death, she didn't die from drowning.

 

[raeann]

Well, it seems pretty simple, if the cause of death was not drowning, then she didn't put herself into the pond and then quickly die right before sinking into the cold water. Someone else was involved in some manner.

 

[MsFacetious]

*I* didn't think law enforcement searched that area well enough. They weren't there long enough to search it thoroughly. I can see why people in the area would think the same thing, without any knowledge of where Krista was.

One of the things that bothers me is the way they phoned in the tip. They described themselves as "aquaintances" of Krista. Yet the one guy has the last name of Acker. Is he related to baby Daddy? And if he is, why didn't he describe himself as such? And why would he remain around anyway when police arrived. He had to know that LE was going to get his name and explore the relationship.

The call was two FRIENDS of Krista's thought they had found something of hers and requested an officer to come check it out.

This article is much more consistent with what actually happened.
THEY called police.
They said they were friends of Krista's.
They had found a flip flop like the one she was supposed to be wearing.

http://www.conwaydailysun.com/node/462253

At this point I don't care about criminal records, I'm not suspicious of these guys until I have an additional reason to be. It sounds exactly like what happened when my cousin(s) went missing and the family and friends had to look themselves. The ones with felony criminal records were the most dedicated to finding them.

Regarding the blood and the speculation of drugs. perhaps she was shooting up and couldn't find a vein and she bled? as aweful as it sounds, my hubby is a recovering intravenous user, i was a drug user but never shot up. he would sometimes bleed quite a bit trying to find a vein. we've been clean and sober 3 and a half years. i'm not implying Krista was a drug user, just speculating on where the blood came from. jmo

I have thought a few times... what would happen if my house or car ever got tested for blood?

It would light up like a Christmas tree.

There is blood all over. My Dad cut off his thumb, my daughter cut off her finger, my other daughter cracked open her head... and my brother and I have bled more than everyone else combined.

It is not uncommon for people to injure themselves and bleed. This happens. In my case, there would definitely be far more than normal because my history is a bit... messier than others. But I would expect there to be some blood in everyone's house and car.

I am not putting anything at all into the blood found in the car... unless it is brand new, it is Krista's and it is somehow proven to be an injury inflicted by herself or someone else, shortly before her death.

At this point I am leaning much further away from a homicide... and more towards some sort of accident and cover up.

 

[MsFacetious]

The duct tape...

Mentioned by a reporter about 2:40 into this video....

[video=youtube;qL3tNHGjcp4]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qL3tNHGjcp4&feature=channel_video_title[/video]

 

[yllek]

I don't in any way condone the Acker brothers' criminal activities, especially dealing drugs and domestic violence. But, IF they in no way caused or contributed to Krista's death and the baby's uncle put his own freedom at risk to help LE find her, that is commendable. (Of course, if it turns out either of the Acker brothers or the friend were involved in Krista's demise, those involved should be punished to the full extent of the law...)

In the midst of this unbearable tragedy, I did manage a slight smile when reading the article Bodhi posted above regarding the uncle's friend's bond conditions. Apparently, he had no criminal record prior to Tuesday night. He now has a record because he was found to be concealing shoplifted merchandise when he was questioned by LE Tuesday night. Being that a condition of his bond is that he "stays away from LL Bean", I take it that's where he lifted the goods.:doh:

 

[Bodhi]

Where did you get the idea there was duct tape involved? I've tried searching for any MSM reports that mention it but haven't been able to find anything. TIA!

I've only seen it stated as a fact once, from a poster on the Conway Daily Sun's FB page on Wednesday. Before it had been confirmed in most MSM that a body had been found, the CDS had posted it on their FB page because of what was heard on a police scanner. Several posters claimed to have heard it too. One poster said duct tape was involved. I don't know whether that was based on local rumor, secondhand knowledge from someone at the scene, or just wild speculation.

At the press conference on Wed., a reporter asked the asst. attorney general a question about duct tape and she said she was not going to respond.

 

[Bodhi]

I don't in any way condone the Acker brothers' criminal activities, especially dealing drugs and domestic violence. But, IF they in no way caused or contributed to Krista's death and the baby's uncle put his own freedom at risk to help LE find her, that is commendable. (Of course, if it turns out either of the Acker brothers or the friend were involved in Krista's demise, those involved should be punished to the full extent of the law...)

In the midst of this unbearable tragedy, I did manage a slight smile when reading the article Bodhi posted above regarding the uncle's friend's bond conditions. Apparently, he had no criminal record prior to Tuesday night. He now has a record because he was found to be concealing shoplifted merchandise when he was questioned by LE Tuesday night. Being that a condition of his bond is that he "stays away from LL Bean", I take it that's where he lifted the goods.:doh:

He was arrested on a open warrant, though, not for something he did or had on Tuesday night. But I was a bit amused by the LLBean condition too, Yllek.

My husband is an attorney and he says willful concealment could be things like changing a price tag, putting an item in a different box....

 

[IWannaKnow]

This is an old article from 2003, but demonstrates some of the things that can go on there during the "off" season, if there was any question about what could go on there. This sounds like much mischief was done and not heard, centered around same maintenance building:

http://www.conwaydailysun.com/node/133833/18661

Suspects sought in weekend crime spree at Cranmore
By Jacqueline Pottle
May 22, 2003 12:00 am
Pick-up stolen from Seavey St. driveway recovered on side of mountain

According to Sgt. Ed Wagner, the owner did manage to get a good look at the driver -- a young white male.

On Saturday, a maintenance employee at Cranmore reported a missing snow-grooming machine, according to the press release. When police arrived they found the truck halfway up the mountain, the missing grooming machine at the summit, and a host of other criminal mischief that had apparently taken place sometime the night before.

 

[amysmom]

I'm not sure what to think re: the COD :waitasec:

A few other posters mentioned she may have been trying to escape the perp & chose to go into the pond to hide..I had posted days ago I thought it was possible she ran for her life & may have fallen into the pond..I do believe whatever happened was hrs before 6:30a so it would have been dark out & hard to see where she was going..Now it looks like she did not "drown" afterall but it can still be related no? What if she was on the verge of dying from the real cause (OD?) & once that happened she went down under the water..Would there still be "no water in her lungs"?

Are we to believe she wasn't raped or beaten just cos it wasn't revealed & had nothing to do with the real COD? According to a forensic expert on NG her body would still be in very good shape from the cold water (even for 4 days) & it was expected to be an "easy" autopsy..That didn't turn out to be true but she had to be well preserved enough that an immediate ID was made.

I don't think now she was dragged from the car..It feels now more like a pre-planned meeting..When she pulled over she herself put on the flashers, left the car running so the baby could have heat, & left the door ajar before getting out of the car..Many do that out of fear of a lock-out including myself..Some fear carbon monoxide or some other fumes from a running 'idle' car..But was it "ajar" or "wide open"..We've heard both versions & this is extremely imp cos it would make all the diff when trying to figure out what actually happened.

The story of the brother of the X is suspicious to me..I don't know how much he was involved or knew about this but I rule him more 'in' then 'out'..He def wanted her found, that's obvious, & most likely his 'niece' too..Do we know who made the call to LE re: the car? He wouldn't have done it himself but could've got anyone else to do it for him.

I dunno..It's gonna be a long wait for the final report..I hope it doesn't end up staying "undetermined". :maddening:

Most of all we need to know what happened! For the sake of her family & especially her little girl..But even if the one (s) who do know tell it's no guarantee it will be the TRUTH!=we may never know.

 

[yllek]

He was arrested on a open warrant, though, not for something he did or had on Tuesday night. But I was a bit amused by the LLBean condition too, Yllek.

My husband is an attorney and he says willful concealment could be things like changing a price tag, putting an item in a different box....

Thanks Bodhi! It was a little confusing in the article; he had no record Tuesday night, but he had an open warrant? I took it to mean LE issued a warrant then served it Wednesday when they spoke to the men. Your explanation makes more sense. And thanks for the "willful concealment" definition - maybe he worked at LLBean? Doesn't really matter, just curious.

Based on what we've learned the past 2 days, I think:

1. The location was not random; Krista went there for some purpose or she was taken to that specific location for some purpose.

2. This wasn't a random crime of opportunity; Krista may have overdosed and there were other(s) present that panicked and didn't want to implicate themselves by calling police, nor did they want the baby in the car with a deceased body. Or, Krista went into the water for some unknown reason and died, as some speculated, of hypothermia or something other than drowning that did not appear in the original autopsy report. Still possible that she was strangled or otherwise killed and the killer hid the body and spared the child, but it's not feeling that way right now, imo.

3. The baby's uncle and his friend were at the scene Tuesday night to help find and recover Krista. Personally, I think they had knowledge that Krista was indeed there and wanted to point LE in the right direction, but I understand that others believe they were just searching because they didn't think LE's searches were thorough enough. Either could be true; will be interesting to find out who, if anyone, was out at that site with Krista before she died. Hopefully, there are witnesses that know what happened and are just afraid to come forward at this time... If LE suspects as much, I hope they make it clear that no charges will be levied against witnesses if it is proven that this was an accidental death and cover up... Bad judgment and inappropriate reaction if others were present and Krista od'd, imo, but more important to find out what really happened to Krista so her family has answers...

Imo, the second car and the alleged fort are possible clues to why Krista was at the ski resort, who (if anyone) was there, and what she was doing before she died. I'm anxious to learn to whom the second car was registered? Was it a stolen vehicle? Is it unrelated; just a car that happened to be abandoned there? Was it operational when LE seized it? Could there have been a party at the site and one of party-goers was unable to drive because of intoxication or because the car broke down? I hope information about the second vehicle is released soon. Also curious as to why the baby's uncle and his friend stated they were looking for a fort when they claimed to be out searching for Krista. I believe that's true; too weird a story to make up on the spot, imo. Does this fort exist? Had they hung out with Krista at a fort there in the past? Had they been told about a fort by others who had been there with Krista the night she died or sometime in the past? Was the fort hidden well and used for anything other than a hang out spot?

Confident that this mystery will be solved soon. Prayers to Krista's loved ones as the story unfolds; may the truth come out soon and may they find some comfort in knowing the answers...rayer:

.

 

[amysmom]

Imo, the second car and the alleged fort are possible clues to why Krista was at the ski resort, who (if anyone) was there, and what she was doing before she died. I'm anxious to learn to whom the second car was registered? Was it a stolen vehicle? Is it unrelated; just a car that happened to be abandoned there? Was it operational when LE seized it? Could there have been a party at the site and one of party-goers was unable to drive because of intoxication or because the car broke down? I hope information about the second vehicle is released soon.

sbm

IIRC, we were told early on this other "car" was located in "Conway"=not at Cranmore where her car was.

eta..first the LE officer said "the village of Conway" & then changed it to "Conway".

 

[olllllo]

My apologies if this has already been posted and I just missed it, but when I am trying to work stuff out in my head, I like to get a visual picture of it to give me a better feel of how things are layed out. Here is a view of the pond and maintenance building: http://goo.gl/maps/EIbo

 

[yllek]

sbm

IIRC, we were told early on this other "car" was located in "Conway"=not at Cranmore where her car was.

eta..first the LE officer said "the village of Conway" & then changed it to "Conway".

Thanks! Thinking LE should have an idea soon as to whether this car has any connection to Krista's case. Hope they can release the info without jeopardizing the investigation...

 

[Bodhi]

Thanks Bodhi! It was a little confusing in the article; he had no record Tuesday night, but he had an open warrant? I took it to mean LE issued a warrant then served it Wednesday when they spoke to the men. Your explanation makes more sense. And thanks for the "willful concealment" definition - maybe he worked at LLBean? Doesn't really matter, just curious.

Based on what we've learned the past 2 days, I think:

1. The location was not random; Krista went there for some purpose or she was taken to that specific location for some purpose.

2. This wasn't a random crime of opportunity; Krista may have overdosed and there were other(s) present that panicked and didn't want to implicate themselves by calling police, nor did they want the baby in the car with a deceased body. Or, Krista went into the water for some unknown reason and died, as some speculated, of hypothermia or something other than drowning that did not appear in the original autopsy report. Still possible that she was strangled or otherwise killed and the killer hid the body and spared the child, but it's not feeling that way right now, imo.

3. The baby's uncle and his friend were at the scene Tuesday night to help find and recover Krista. Personally, I think they had knowledge that Krista was indeed there and wanted to point LE in the right direction, but I understand that others believe they were just searching because they didn't think LE's searches were thorough enough. Either could be true; will be interesting to find out who, if anyone, was out at that site with Krista before she died. Hopefully, there are witnesses that know what happened and are just afraid to come forward at this time... If LE suspects as much, I hope they make it clear that no charges will be levied against witnesses if it is proven that this was an accidental death and cover up... Bad judgment and inappropriate reaction if others were present and Krista od'd, imo, but more important to find out what really happened to Krista so her family has answers...

Imo, the second car and the alleged fort are possible clues to why Krista was at the ski resort, who (if anyone) was there, and what she was doing before she died. I'm anxious to learn to whom the second car was registered? Was it a stolen vehicle? Is it unrelated; just a car that happened to be abandoned there? Was it operational when LE seized it? Could there have been a party at the site and one of party-goers was unable to drive because of intoxication or because the car broke down? I hope information about the second vehicle is released soon. Also curious as to why the baby's uncle and his friend stated they were looking for a fort when they claimed to be out searching for Krista. I believe that's true; too weird a story to make up on the spot, imo. Does this fort exist? Had they hung out with Krista at a fort there in the past? Had they been told about a fort by others who had been there with Krista the night she died or sometime in the past? Was the fort hidden well and used for anything other than a hang out spot?

Confident that this mystery will be solved soon. Prayers to Krista's loved ones as the story unfolds; may the truth come out soon and may they find some comfort in knowing the answers...rayer:

.

I like your line of thinking!

Jobu posted a few pages ago about party spots along ski trails or near lodges that are called "forts." Maybe they did have a hangout spot there (or heard there was one) and wanted to check it. Otherwise, it sounded crazy to me that two grown men were looking for a "fort" and in the middle of the night.

If there was a well-hidden path or markers to it or they'd be there before, they wouldn't have been stumbling around in dense woods in the dark. So, it's possible the explanation for what they were doing could be the truth.

But it stills seems mighty suspicious to me. They could have easily told LE about it and even lead them to it during daylight.

 

[Bodhi]

My apologies if this has already been posted and I just missed it, but when I am trying to work stuff out in my head, I like to get a visual picture of it to give me a better feel of how things are layed out. Here is a view of the pond and maintenance building: http://goo.gl/maps/EIbo

Thanks, Ollllo, for the link. That's helpful! I'd love to find out where the two men were on Skimobile Rd. when they spoke to the officer and how close it is to Duck Pond.

Someone asked a few posts ago who placed the call to police. It was CP. He called on RA's cell phone.

 

[Columbo]

Truly my first impression of her when I saw her picture was the girl next door type. Sweet looking girl with a beautiful smile, so happy in pictures with her baby. I saw a pic of her ex and I was thrown for a loop. I know you should not judge a book by it's cover but I would have never pictured her with someone like that. I am really hoping this does not come back related to drugs but at this point with no obvious cause of death its so hard not to speculate. My heart aches for that family

bolded by me.

I couldn't agree more; I had the same reaction.

 

[mysteriew]

I know many believe that Krista drove to that scene voluntarily. I don't and this is why. Temps got down to 32 that night. It was after dark. It snowed the next day. Yet Krista was in flip flops. Now kids are notorious for running around underdressed. But most will wear shoes when it is cold.

I can see Krista going out in flip flops if she wasn't going far. Maybe to run into a store or she expected to be getting out of the car and going right into somewhere warm. But if she was driving any distance, expecting to meet someone outside or go somewhere outside, I would expect her to at least have tennis shoes on.

Also IF there was duct tape. Two guys meeting a girl outside, in an isolated place wouldn't have need to duct tape her. Duct tape implys controlling her, maybe keeping her quiet. Two guys should have been able to do that. But if you were going to drive somewhere and it was involuntary on her part... duct tape would be needed so the driver could drive.

Soon after the car was found, LE announced that it was their belief that Krista did not get out of the car voluntarily. We don't know exactly why that was their belief, but they saw the scene. There are indications that blood was found. Perhaps it was there in sufficient amounts to convince them. Maybe it was something else. But something convinced an LE who hasn't been talking much to announce that she didn't leave the car voluntarily.

 

[yllek]

bolded by me.

I couldn't agree more; I had the same reaction.

Funny how we can see the same thing and have the opposite reaction. When I saw the photos of the ex, I thought he had a very kind face and looked proud to be with Krista. He didn't look like someone who would be dealing drugs and keeping weapons in the house with his girlfriend and daughter; they looked like a nice happy couple to me. But, that's often the case, you really can't judge a book by the cover. I sure hope the ex and his family are not involved in Krista's death in any way and are instead concerned and interested in helping to find out what really happened. It would be even worse for their daughter to lose her mom if it turns out her dad was involved, imo.

 

[AppleGreen]

Funny how we can see the same thing and have the opposite reaction. When I saw the photos of the ex, I thought he had a very kind face and looked proud to be with Krista. He didn't look like someone who would be dealing drugs and keeping weapons in the house with his girlfriend and daughter; they looked like a nice happy couple to me. But, that's often the case, you really can't judge a book by the cover. I sure hope the ex and his family are not involved in Krista's death in any way and are instead concerned and interested in helping to find out what really happened. It would be even worse for their daughter to lose her mom if it turns out her dad was involved, imo.

Maybe it was the mugshot? He didn't look too sweet in those. In the pics online with Krista, I agree, he looked sweet. But the mugshots looked kinda like a different person. MOO

 

[Abrahamv1]

My guess. She must have known her SO was slinging beans. You don't live with someone and not know that they're dealing. Most likely they were probably both users too. (I hate assuming that sort of thing about someone whose dead.)

Now I'd say she went up there, she was partying somewhere else (maybe where the second car was seized). She died from heart failure or OD. They panic what to do with her body and young baby. They can't do anything with the body right away so they drive her car over to Cranmore and leave it and the baby there hoping the baby will be found. A few days later they still don't know what to do with her body so under the cover of darkness they bring her body back to the pond and leave it there. While they're moving through the woods they know that a flip flop fell off of her foot.

Not sure about any of this, but I do know for sure, when a bunch of folks are doing drugs and one of them dies the others will dump the body. They don't call emergency services to come out and retrieve the body.