OR OR - Tammy Pitkin, 54, realtor from CA, was in Sutherlin, has 2 dogs, car found on dead-end road in Linn Co, 17 Oct 2022

[Chimera]

The manner in which Tammy disappeared makes me think there was outside involvement.
Omo.

 

[jjbnum3]

I forgot all about the missing Tammy Pitkin case until someone posted an updated missing person poster on a local Albany FB group.
I live in Albany for part of the year and also have a house in Placer County, California.

Been extra busy these past 3 years or so, and usually try to follow local missing persons, murders, and true crime in the general area where I live.

First off very weird missing person case. I will not be able to post all
my thoughts tonight.

Here is a link to Finding Tammy Pitkin's FB page. where I found most of the info about her case.
Finding Tammy Pitkin

She was in the process of divorcing her husband.
Sounds like it was long overdue.
It was finalized in August 2023. If she stays missing, her share goes to her son. Not sure about the amount of time needed for this to happen.

The son has been very quiet. maybe not close?
Wow, one of her dogs showed up about 3 months + later in good health in the general area where they found Tammy's car.
I have never been past Sweet Home, so do not know the area east of SH.

Seems her mental state was not good, and she wanted to disappear but did not plan it right.
She might have made the mistake of going down the old logging road and letting her two dogs out without Leashes. Ran after them and get hurt?

My dog did to once about 30 years ago in a national forest in California.
Not as woodies as this part of Oregon.
Tired to find my dog for about an hour, thought he was gone for good.
Went back to my truck and he was lying right under my truck and had a happy face, and so did once I saw him safe.

more later

If the IMPORTANT INFORMATION on the FB is correct, it has some good info.

 

[NeverPersonal]

idk about this one. interesting info about the husband in the comments of the last few posts on the find fb page.

 

[Dargon335]

It's been over a year and still no sign of Tammy. Most unfortunate for her family and friends.

Oct 29: car found abandoned in Linn County (report received at 10:52 am), approximately 30 miles E of Sweethome off Hwy 20, on a dead end logging road. (This is approximately 130 miles drive from Sutherlin.)

IIRC, it was reported that her Toyota Camry was found in this general area, somewhere on the logging road NF-245.

Highyway 20 logging road

This area looks very remote, and I can't image there would be much cell phone service out there. I'm not familiar with NF-245, but forest service logging roads in my state are generally not much more than very narrow gravel or muddy paths leading out to dense, wooded areas. Typically these roads are not maintained very well so they are difficult to drive on without a 4WD vehicle. Not saying that is the case with this road, quite but possible.

Assuming Tammy was driving her car at the time it was abandoned I'm wondering why she would choose to go down that remote logging trail? If Tammy wasn't actually driving, then that brings up a different series of questions.

 

[Dargon335]

Based on what I've read in this thread and in various MSM reports, Tammy was likely not familiar with the Highway 20/Sweethome area. If that is indeed the case, then it seems curious why she would drive down a desolate logging road like NF-245. Unless she's an avid hunter, hiker, or outdoors enthusiast, it seems unlikely she would drive several miles on such a road.

Judging from satellite images, NF-245 is a very narrow, winding trail, but IMO there are likely a few places where Tammy could have turned her car around if necessary before reaching the end of NF-245.

However, based on MSM and LE reports, we don't know for certain that Tammy was alone or actually driving her car at the time it was parked on NF-245.

 

[Dargon335]

I find this quote from Tammy's sister, from last December, interesting.

[...]
"Currently, she is not mentally well. And, I believe, she got a little bit scared," Laughlin responded. "And, maybe, in the midst of her traveling wherever she was planning to go, she decided to pull off to the side of the road because she got scared by something. Maybe she thought she was being followed—I’m not sure."
[...]

Latest on missing Red Bluff woman Tammy Pitkin: sister says she was likely running away

IMO it's unclear what her sister means by "she is not mentally well". However, assuming this statement from her sister is correct, then logic alone may not be able to provide the answer for Tammy's car being found abandoned at the end of NF-245.

In addition, this quote from the same MSM source is noteworthy:

[...]
There were things that were happening prior to her disappearance that... skewed their (law enforcement's) impartiality.
[...]

It's also not clear what that statement means, however IMO it's a good indicator that we do not have the full story of events leading up to Tammy's trip or Oregon and her subsequent disappearance.

 

[imstilla.grandma]

Each time human remains are found in Oregon, Airaka Laughlin-Bento, of Reno, Nev., holds her breath. More than a year has passed since her sister disappeared. Two of Tammy Pitkin’s birthdays have come and gone since she vanished.

"I love my sister no matter what,"

According to law enforcement, a hunter in the area near Sweet Home, Ore. reported to authorities that he found her gray Toyota Camry with California license plates parked at the end of the road with no one around. Investigators believe Pitkin’s car was at the dead-end forest service road the entire time from Oct. 17 to Oct. 29, based on the amount of gas remaining in the car, dirt had no tracks and there had been snow a week prior, which could have covered/removed the tracks, according to Laughlin-Bento.

Linn County Detective Sergeant Paul Eves, the case agent, said several different Search and Rescue teams, including a K-9 team have conducted searches for Pitkin. He said the case remains active and open. He continues to investigate tips as they come in.

Detectives found in the car: Pitkin’s purse with her identification, her passport, Social Security Card, birth certificate, an overnight bag with toiletries, her regular medication, a gun, leashes for her dogs and two Home Depot moving boxes — one containing clothing the other containing shoes. Linn County Sheriff’s conducted a three-day investigation and search of the vehicle.

More than three months after Pitkin disappeared, Trooper was found in fairly close proximity to Pitkin’s car, running along Highway 20, according to Eves.

The dog has since been adopted by an Oregon couple. Laughlin-Bento said she receives photos and updates of Trooper from the dog’s new family.

A sister’s sorrow: The search for Tammy Pitkin

A Red Bluff woman and well-known local realtor, Pitkin, has been missing since mid-October 2022.

www.redbluffdailynews.com

 

[Knox]

The dog reappearing more than three months later is a huge mystery?

 

[jjbnum3]

I find this quote from Tammy's sister, from last December, interesting.

[...]
"Currently, she is not mentally well. And, I believe, she got a little bit scared," Laughlin responded. "And, maybe, in the midst of her traveling wherever she was planning to go, she decided to pull off to the side of the road because she got scared by something. Maybe she thought she was being followed—I’m not sure."
[...]

Latest on missing Red Bluff woman Tammy Pitkin: sister says she was likely running away

IMO it's unclear what her sister means by "she is not mentally well". However, assuming this statement from her sister is correct, then logic alone may not be able to provide the answer for Tammy's car being found abandoned at the end of NF-245.

On the link below, the arrow points to where Tammy's car was found.
Not sure how many miles off 20, but it looks very far off the main 20 highway.
This is very unusual, but most of this missing person case is strange.

Also, I find it a little odd stopping in Glendale for fuel about 5 miles off of Interstate 5. Maybe Tammy's red fuel light came on?
I have driven Interstate 5 over the last 20 years over 20 times at least, we or I always stop in Grants Pass, Canyonville ( they have a great little burger spot), and casino or the Roseburg area in that part of Oregon.

Glendale is close to Wolf Creek, where in 2020 Fauna Frey picked up a female hitchhiker and headed south to around Grants Pass, and later went missing her car was also found on a remote dirt road, but in a different part of Oregon. Probably overthinking the case.
But her one dog showed up in the general same area where Tammy's car was found 3 or 4 months later, and it got me scratching my head.

Finding Tammy Pitkin

www.facebook.com

 

[Dargon335]

Detectives found in the car: Pitkin’s purse with her identification, her passport, Social Security Card, birth certificate, an overnight bag with toiletries, her regular medication, a gun, leashes for her dogs and two Home Depot moving boxes — one containing clothing the other containing shoes. Linn County Sheriff’s conducted a three-day investigation and search of the vehicle.

Interesting list of items found in Tammy's car. I have heard of some realtors, especially women, carrying weapons for self defense, so the fact that she owned a weapon is not surprising IMO. The moving boxes of clothes and shoes seems rather unusual.

However, we still do not know why Tammy was in that area so it's difficult to know whether the clothing and shoes are a significant clue. Was she relocating to that are temporarily? Was she planning on meeting someone and took her possessions with her?

 

[charminglane]

Interesting list of items found in Tammy's car. I have heard of some realtors, especially women, carrying weapons for self defense, so the fact that she owned a weapon is not surprising IMO. The moving boxes of clothes and shoes seems rather unusual.

However, we still do not know why Tammy was in that area so it's difficult to know whether the clothing and shoes are a significant clue. Was she relocating to that are temporarily? Was she planning on meeting someone and took her possessions with her?

It's interesting, isn't it? This assemblage of important documents along with boxes of clothing and shoes.
Trying to leave a rough situation?

 

[Quiet Time]

Almost sounds staged to me.

jmo

 

[TwoDaysL8r]

Interesting list of items found in Tammy's car. I have heard of some realtors, especially women, carrying weapons for self defense, so the fact that she owned a weapon is not surprising IMO. The moving boxes of clothes and shoes seems rather unusual.

However, we still do not know why Tammy was in that area so it's difficult to know whether the clothing and shoes are a significant clue. Was she relocating to that are temporarily? Was she planning on meeting someone and took her possessions with her?

It sure sounds as though she wasn't going back to where she came from. Also, the fact that the firearm was still in the car makes foul play seem less likely IMO. Why would someone who had harmed a person not take a victim's weapon? That's a very sad list of things in her car.

 

[Dargon335]

It sure sounds as though she wasn't going back to where she came from. Also, the fact that the firearm was still in the car makes foul play seem less likely IMO. Why would someone who had harmed a person not take a victim's weapon? That's a very sad list of things in her car.

After reading the list of items in her car IMO it seems logical to assume Tammy was leaving Red Bluff, CA for an extended period of time. We still don't know what she was doing in the Linn County area to begin with, and her family indicated she has no ties to that specific area.

There are many interesting comments regarding Tammy's disappearance on FB that we are not allowed to share here on WS due to TOS rules, however I believe we are permitted to reference posts made by FB group admins. Tammy's sister is an admin in the Finding Tammy Pitkin FB group and made several comments about Tammy's marital situation:

FB link

In the above link Tammy's sister indicates that Tammy and her husband were divorced in August, 2023, which is almost a year AFTER she disappeared.

 

[charminglane]

After reading the list of items in her car IMO it seems logical to assume Tammy was leaving Red Bluff, CA for an extended period of time. We still don't know what she was doing in the Linn County area to begin with, and her family indicated she has no ties to that specific area.

There are many interesting comments regarding Tammy's disappearance on FB that we are not allowed to share here on WS due to TOS rules, however I believe we are permitted to reference posts made by FB group admins. Tammy's sister is an admin in the Finding Tammy Pitkin FB group and made several comments about Tammy's marital situation:

FB link

In the above link Tammy's sister indicates that Tammy and her husband were divorced in August, 2023, which is almost a year AFTER she disappeared.

Good catch.

 

[Dargon335]

In addition, Tammy's sister (FB group admin) posted an aerial photo of the terrain in the general area where Tammy's car was found. it appears to be a most challenging area to search.

Terrain photo

Regarding Tammy's general situation at the the she disappeared, her sister posted this in May, 2023:

[...]
It is believed that she was headed somewhere to possibly start over somewhere else. She was going through a divorce, her job ended, and her son was moving on with his own life by starting a family. It's hard to determine her exact reason, but I definitely do not believe my sister was planning to disappear. She would have wanted to meet her Grandson and go to her sons wedding.
[...]

FB link

 

[elframo]

The Finding Tammy Pitkin page on FB posted that a vigil was held for Tammy last weekend.There will also be a public search for her on July 13th.

 

[GuyfromCanada]

OCT 19, 2024

Two years have passed since Tammy Pitkin mysteriously vanished, and her family is still searching for answers.

More at Oregon Realtor Tammy Pitkin Still Missing Two Years After Vanishing

 

[Cedars]

OCT 19, 2024

Two years have passed since Tammy Pitkin mysteriously vanished, and her family is still searching for answers.

More at Oregon Realtor Tammy Pitkin Still Missing Two Years After Vanishing

The facebook page mentioned above has a new list of facts from her family that clarify some confusion and misinformation about the case.

Leaving that aside, the issue of a person's vehicle being found deep in any wilderness, is: how could anyone - the missing person, or anyone else - leave the area?

Walking: it looks like more than a day's walk to anywhere (so an overnight in the wilderness in mid-Oct). And that would be to such a small version of 'anywhere', you would still have to get out of there. And might well be remembered if anyone gave you a lift.

Another car: That means there must be at least two people involved and they are cooperating. There's no reason for the lead car to turn off highway 20 and down this forest service road, unless the plan is to abandon/hide the car and return in the 2nd vehicle.

So if anyone was involved in deception, IMO that means two people were involved in deception.

IMO, the details of Tammy's situation and previous actions, as reconstructed by her family, are important. In particular, she was not in her normal, daily routine.

JMO

 

[Knox]

* This is a pinned post on the Public Facebook Group written by an Admin, who is Tammy's sister and most vocal advocate.

UPDATED (10/16/24) IMPORTANT INFORMATION:
Regarding Tammy Pitkin's movement before disappearing.

OCTOBER 14TH, 2022:
Tammy was last seen by her son the night of October 14th, 2022. She told him she was going on a trip and would be back home by Monday.

OCTOBER 15th, 2022:

• • Purchased a pre-paid phone card in Red Bluff
  • Withdrew $1,000.00 cash from a bank account in her name that no one knew she had
  • Purchased Taco Bell in Weed, CA
  • Got gas in Glendale, OR
  • Purchased a pre-paid visa card in Sutherlin, OR for $300.00
  • Made a purchase at a convenience store in Glendale, OR

OCTOBER 16th, 2022:

• • Reserved a room at the Best Western in Sutherlin, OR with her husband's reward card but believed to have paid in cash

OCTOBER 17th, 2022:

• • Purchased Gas in Sutherlin, OR at 6:45am
  • Stopped at Rite-Aid in Albany, OR between 10:30 to 11; she purchased a cigarette lighter and let her dogs go potty. There is video footage from a business across the street from Rite-Aid that shows her with her dogs
  • It is believed that she drove from Rite-Aid to the place her car was later found by a hunter

OCTOBER 17th, 2022 to 29th, 2022:

• • Tammy has not been seen by family since October 14th, 2022 and was not reported missing until October 26th, 2022
  • Investigators believe Tammy's car was at the dead end forest service road the entire time from October 17th, 2022 to the 29th, 2022; they based this belief on the amount of gas remaining in her car
  • October 29th, 2022 a hunter reports an abandoned car on a dead end service road about 40 miles east of Sweet Home, OR
  • October 29th, 2022 to October 31st, 2022, investigators search her car and the area surrounding her car for 2 1/2 days with no sign of Tammy or her dogs

INFORMATION ABOUT THE CAR:

• • Mountain Patrol investigating her abandoned car, report that they believe her car was there at least 1 to 2 weeks before it was found because:

1. • Dirt had no tracks and there had been snow a week prior which could have covered/removed the tracks
   • Rotors on her car showed rusting which indicated sitting in wet weather

Detectives find the following items in the car:

1. • Her purse with ID, Passport, Social Security Card, & Birth Certificate
   • An overnight bag with toiletries and regular medication
   • A rusted and busted gun
   • Leashes for her dogs
   • 2 home depot moving boxes one with clothes the other with shoes
   • Extra Key Fob for the car in the trunk

Detectives believe that Tammy exited the car with her dogs and had the following items on her person:

1. • Burner Phone
   • Pre-paid Visa Card & all her cash
   • Key Fob for car (she locked the car when she exited the car)

• Investigators took DNA swabs from the driver side door and and steering wheel; prints could not be recovered from the car because of weather (DNA has not yet been processed by Linn County)

• • Investigators release the car to Tammy's son after completing their investigation of the car; he drives to the location it was abandoned and drives it back to CA
  • Weeks later her husband sells the car

FEBRUARY 2023:

• • Tammy's white/yellow dog Trooper, was found 1 mile from where her car was abandoned
  • Tammy's husband and son did not want to pick up their family dog, so he was put up for adoption in Linn County

APRIL 7, 2023:

• 
  
  
  • Trooper was adopted by a member in our group.

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