NV NV - Steven T. Koecher, 30, Henderson, 13 Dec 2009 - # 4

[Fairy1]

Fairy1, I would consider Anthem Parkway to definitely be the main street through Anthem/Sun City. Granted, from the satellite photos there are just a ton of streets down there but Anthem is what everything else branches off from. And it is just one big loop. And it starts, to put it in the most generalest of terms, where Eastern ends.

So basically, Eastern becomes Anthem Parkway?

Based on the maps I've seen of Savannah Springs, it is literally on the other side of a wall from Anthem Parkway. For this reason, I don't see Steven's car as being "deep" into the community or in a remote area. To me, it looks like he could have been driving along Eastern, which then becomes Anthem, turned right on Evening Lights and turned immediately left onto Savannah Springs, parked his car and ?????

Are you familiar with the CAT bus routes in that area? Do the buses run out there?

 

[fasteddy4]

Fairy1, actually, the directions that he would have needed to take to get on to Savannah Springs are:

South on Eastern
Make a left at the "T". That is SunCityAnthem Dr.
Go to the next "T" make a right on to Anthem Pkwy.
Make a right on Laurel Heights Lane.
Make an immediately left on Savannah Springs.
And then go the whole way to the cul de sac to get where he parked.

Or:

When he is going South on Eastern take the "Y" on to Anthem Parkway, which is before he would have gotten to SunCityAnthem Dr.
Then, Anthem Pkwy kind of loops around and then he would hit Laurel Heights Lane again.

Which way is easier or quicker. . .not sure. Never timed it.

 

[Fairy1]

Fairy1, actually, the directions that he would have needed to take to get on to Savannah Springs are:

South on Eastern
Make a left at the "T". That is SunCityAnthem Dr.
Go to the next "T" make a right on to Anthem Pkwy.
Make a right on Laurel Heights Lane.
Make an immediately left on Savannah Springs.
And then go the whole way to the cul de sac to get where he parked.

Or:

When he is going South on Eastern take the "Y" on to Anthem Parkway, which is before he would have gotten to SunCityAnthem Dr.
Then, Anthem Pkwy kind of loops around and then he would hit Laurel Heights Lane again.

Which way is easier or quicker. . .not sure. Never timed it.

Thank you! So, in your opinion, would someone HAVE to know where they were going to get there or could it have just been a random drive?

And the bus routes?

 

[laytonian]

I would love to know more about the Overton ping. Mesquite is quite literally RIGHT off I-15. You have to drive a little bit to get to Overton off the I-15 - not far but still off the Interstate. It would be great to know exactly where the Overton tower is located and how far its reach would be and if it would extend out to I-15 as well as to the Lake Mead Rec Area.

You start getting into Overton streets, only about four miles off I-15. By the time you've driven through town and gone about 12 miles, you're at an arm of Lake Mead. From what I see on one website (posted in another thread, I can't find it easily), the Overton tower is in a clear area, on "the beach".
If there's another Overton tower, I can't find it.

There's two towers in Mesquite, and the southern Mesquite tower overlaps a bit into the Overton area (ie, it's considered "fringe").

Anyway, that's everything I've learned from reading a lot of websites .... and there were other websites that I didn't understand.

 

[fasteddy4]

As far as the other questions:

Anthem, for your average Las Vegas, is out in the middle of nowhere. I don't live far from there but if you live in one of those plans down there it is a nightmare trying to get to work. It is a sizable community but there are only two roads in and out. . .and really, only one major one. You want to see a nightmare in Vegas be on South Eastern at about 5:30p with all of those people trying to get back to Anthem.

So, is it "deep" in the community? I guess that's relative. To me, I think Anthem and I think anything down that way is way out of the way. To somebody that lives there they probably think it isn't.

But, if you mean it in terms of how many directions. . .like lefts, rights, stops, etc. . .to get on to Savannah Springs from the 215 then it's not that many. Still, as I said in the beginning, nobody that was "lost" in Vegas would randomly end up on that street unless they were trying to get to a location near to Savannah Springs and just made one bad turn. So, the car was not far from Anthem Pkwy. That is true. But it's not like it was parked at the corner of Las Vegas Blvd. and Flamingo either.

I know I'm rambling a bit but I dated a girl that lived in one of the non-age specific plans in Anthem in 2008. To get to her place from where I live. . .it's not that far. . .I had to go through over 10 stop signs. And she's only like four miles away. It drove me nuts. That's why I have said that surely after a couple of stop signs somebody would stop and figure out they are lost. As I think Steven would have if he was lost.

As for the bus routes. No idea. My knee jerk impression is that nobody rides the bus in Anthem because it's kind of like saying people who live in Beverly Hills ride the bus. A few may but most people drive. And if there is a bus route down there it would only go on Anthem Pkwy and S. Eastern because the rest of the streets are just tiny subdivision streets. But, in the video, Steven is not walking in the direction of Anthem Pkwy. For him to get back to Anthem Pkwy the quickest, he should have walked back up in the direction from where we see his car come in the videos.

 

[Fairy1]

Here's a map that shows Mesquite, Overton and Vegas - just for a little perspective for those not in the area:

http://maps.google.com/

Please note that the Moapa/Glendale areas are also right off the I-15. I really think he would have had to get off the Interstate and go into or near Overton for his phone to ping there. Maybe he went to the Valley of Fire? OMG!

 

[fasteddy4]

And if you all remember, I drove down there to check it out like two weeks ago. I looked at a satellite map and tried to remember it for when I got down there. I am pretty good with directions and I missed the Laurel road off of Anthem. . .twice! Not to mention that you can only turn on to Laurel Heights Lane if you are going SW on Anthem Parkway. If you are going NE on Anthem there is no break in the divider to make a left hand turn. So, you would have to go up to the next opening, make a U-turn and come back in a SW direction.

It's tricky. All sorts of weird traffic patterns down there. He would have had to have had directions. . . OR. . .and this is the piece de le resistance. . .he had been there before.

 

[fasteddy4]

Man I must be getting tired because I totally messed that up. There is an opening in the divider at Laurel Heights. . .but I missed it. . .twice when I was there. That's what happened. Sorry.

Time to go to bed before I start thinking we are looking for Jimmy Hoffa on here.

 

[Fairy1]

And if you all remember, I drove down there to check it out like two weeks ago. I looked at a satellite map and tried to remember it for when I got down there. I am pretty good with directions and I missed the Laurel road off of Anthem. . .twice! Not to mention that you can only turn on to Laurel Heights Lane if you are going SW on Anthem Parkway. If you are going NE on Anthem there is no break in the divider to make a left hand turn. So, you would have to go up to the next opening, make a U-turn and come back in a SW direction.

It's tricky. All sorts of weird traffic patterns down there. He would have had to have had directions. . . OR. . .and this is the piece de le resistance. . .he had been there before.

I do remember - that's why I'm asking you!!!

Naegle & family were there last weekend and she said there was no way someone could have wound up there randomly. I'm just trying to get a better feel for the area.

Thank you!

 

[laytonian]

I do remember - that's why I'm asking you!!!

Naegle & family were there last weekend and she said there was no way someone could have wound up there randomly. I'm just trying to get a better feel for the area.

Thank you!

Just because it's hard to find if you're aiming for it, doesn't mean you can't get there randomly
....and you CAN get there from either direction. There's a break in the divider that lets you turn
from either direction.

There are also very large entrance walls, on each side of Laurel Heights, that say "Overlook Village".

 

[Fairy1]

Just because it's hard to find if you're aiming for it, doesn't mean you can't get there randomly....especially if you're coming in from the North.

I agree.

I was wondering if we should compile a list of our theories? What do ya'll think?

 

[laytonian]

Here's a map that shows Mesquite, Overton and Vegas - just for a little perspective for those not in the area:

http://maps.google.com/

Please note that the Moapa/Glendale areas are also right off the I-15. I really think he would have had to get off the Interstate and go into or near Overton for his phone to ping there. Maybe he went to the Valley of Fire? OMG!

I dunno. We've driven back and forth through that area, several times -- and never had a gap in cellphone service (my husband gets all kinds of business calls....grrrrr).

Valley of Fire's a pretty place. Not very big. But how would he get there? His car was 50 miles away....unless that's not him on the video.

 

[laytonian]

Naegle did a quick scan of the questions, and has started answering.

I've posted everything, right here: http://sites.google.com/site/parallelcooler/home/koecher-html/qa-100127

 

[Fairy1]

I dunno. We've driven back and forth through that area, several times -- and never had a gap in cellphone service (my husband gets all kinds of business calls....grrrrr).

Valley of Fire's a pretty place. Not very big. But how would he get there? His car was 50 miles away....unless that's not him on the video.

I don't think my Google map translated very well. If he was in Overton, he was very close to the Valley of Fire. It's a state park, surrounded by desert.

I think the only spot between St. George and Vegas that would not have cell coverage is through the Virgin River Gorge. It's between St. George and Mesquite, basically.

 

[laytonian]

I don't think my Google map translated very well. If he was in Overton, he was very close to the Valley of Fire. It's a state park, surrounded by desert.

I think the only spot between St. George and Vegas that would not have cell coverage is through the Virgin River Gorge. It's between St. George and Mesquite, basically.

By "50 miles away", I meant that Valley of Fire is about that far from where the car was left in Anthem. If he had gone to Valley of Fire, he either drove back out.....or hitched a ride there after ditching the car. Actually, the shortest route is 67 miles between Anthem and VOF...or 75 if you take I15.

There is a place within the gorge where you'll get cellphone coverage: the rest area.

 

[webrocket]

I agree.

I was wondering if we should compile a list of our theories? What do ya'll think?

No harm in compiling them Fairy. at least we can summarize what has been suggested over the course of 4 threads.

 

[dreamweaver]

I decided to check on what to do on that weekend in Las Vegas, Dec. 12/13.
There were concerts. Garth Brooks. Cher.
Although, I don't think he had money for that.

There were conventions. That made me think if there were any
gay and lesbian conventions/conferences.
That led me to a page full of gay 'massage' therapists,
gay clubs, etc.
This led me to gay and lesbian community website for Las Vegas.
Which led me to Sin City website for Las Vegas.
Then, that led me to gay/lesbian counselors.
Gay and Lesbian Comm. Ctr for Southern Nev.
has on its website:
Mormon AFFIRMATION LGBT MORMONS
(702) 765-7041
www.affirmation
And then
that led me to gay/lesbian counselors in Henderson.
There are lots of them.

I do not know if Steven was gay. I don't care if he is.
Just saying there are many resources out there for those struggling with their sexual identity.
IMO.
fwiw.

 

[carbuff]

Assuming for a moment that's NOT Steven in the video -- does that make the last verified sighting the one in St. George when he helped the kids?

 

[laytonian]

Naegle and I have been trying to communicate through yahoo's bouncing email system....and finally had more success this morning:

27 Jan list posted here:
http://sites.google.com/site/parallelcooler/home/koecher-html/qa-100127

http://sites.google.com/site/parallelcooler/home/koecher-html/qa-100125-26
QA-100125-26

NINE questions were submitted.

Q: Going on the premise that Steven is still alive, he needed to get money from somewhere. Neagle can you find out if the family knows of any jewerly or if anything of significant value is missing? There are pawn shops and "we buy gold" places all over Vegas. I was wondering if he could have pawned something to at least have some cash to get by with. Those might be good places to show his poster to as well.
A: I'm not aware of anything like that.

Q: Do we know if when Steven was working for the window washing company and putting up christmas decorations, if he was paid by check or under the table?
A: I believe he was paid cash. He was paid just before he disappeared, but only about $100.

Q: Is there a way to get a list of who has been questioned to date so far by LE? There may not be a specific list out there, but maybe someone that LE has been updating would know.
A: I wish.

Q: Have any of the LE agencies involved given their thoughts on this case to the family. Do they believe we have an adult "Runaway" or is foul play suspected? Any indication of POI's?
A: They haven't told us anything.

Q: Is a reward being offered? I have seen this question before, but don't believe I have seen an answer.
A: Soon. I don't have details yet, but you can be sure we'll make a lot of noise when we offer the reward.

Q: Are fundraisers being set up to raise money for a reward fund, search efforts, travel and lodging, etc? Candlelight vigils? Not only will this help lend financial and emotional support to the families, but it will also keep Steven's name "top of mind." Might be a good way to keep him in the Media as well.
A: There is an account a Zion's Bank accepting donations. Please, find info on the fb discussion. We haven't set up any vigils. We're trying to get a press conference going in Vegas, but it's like pulling teeth. Anyone have any contacts that could help?

Note from laytonian:
On the subject of a "press conference": I contacted a Las Vegas Review Journal reporter who has written a story about Steven, told him about the problem and asked if he could help with this. Gave him family contact email address.
Websleuthers - I know many excellent media contact have been made. Any other ideas? Is a publicist needed? I can't find one attached to WS. Ideas? -- Laytonian

Q: Did Steven Golf?
A: Yes, but not a ton. There's a pic of him golfing on fb isn't there?

Q: Did any other camera views from Mr. Security catch Steven on them?
A: Nope.

Q: Saw the Craigslist post. Do we know who set it up? Who are responses going to? Any luck so far?
A: This was answered by Websleuthers: Believe09 did all of those; so far, she reports "mostly spam".

 

[laytonian]

Mormon AFFIRMATION LGBT MORMONS
(702) 765-7041
www.affirmation
And then
that led me to gay/lesbian counselors in Henderson.
There are lots of them.

I do not know if Steven was gay. I don't care if he is.
Just saying there are many resources out there for those struggling with their sexual identity.
IMO.
fwiw.

Thank you! I used the affirmation.org link to send an advisory to our local (SLC) chapter -- the only one in Utah. I asked them to spread the word down to their folks in St George, Mesquite and Las Vegas.