VA - Amy Bradley, 23, Petersburg, 24 March 1998 - #1

[FindAmy]

With the exception of the bar in the Otrobanda hotel, all of Amy's sightings have been in the daylight, with at least two handlers. Is something going on during daylight hours or are the witnesses possibly just missing her at night? This group doesn't seem uncomfortable about moving Amy around in crowded tourist locations. I have to think that they have probably just done it alot and gotten away with it. What else have they gotten away with?

 

[neesaki]

I personally agree with you. I do believe that Amy was chosen by someone on that ship and she was chosen for a specific purpose. I believe her captors were looking for a woman with certain characteristics and Amy fit the need. They were obviously very organized by the way in which they were able to disable her and get her off of the ship, without a trace. A prostitute would not be seen so many times, guarded by two or more handlers. She's not a prostitute. What is Amy's purpose and where are they keeping her? Is Amy the only woman this group has?

And Yellow, the one she was seen with on the ship early that A.M. she disappeared, apparently stayed up all night just waiting for an opportunity. She must have been watched 24/7. Probably the only time they didn't know what she was doing was when she was in the family suite. I guess they could even have had that bugged. Then they'd have known from the conversations, what the plans were and where she would be going before she even left the suite. Just speculating the possibilities, of course. jmo

 

[neesaki]

Pier 39 Fisherman's Wharf, San Francisco is a very, very busy spot. I was there in 2003 but it was in June and the area was teeming with peoples. I was in the San Fran/Oakland area for a memorial service for a dear friend and colleague Dr. Pat Radin so I know it was June 2003.

In 2003 there was a fair amount of personal video being taken. In particular I remember Pier 39 as the area where the Bushman does his act and he is in a central location on the Pier as near as I can remember. Some of those videos have made their way to YouTube and I am just wondering if anybody has reviewed any of those videos to see if they can spot Amy in any of the crowds of people that were on the Pier on that day.

I will review YouTube videos later on today and will start with videos of the Bushman as I recall he is in a central spot on the Pier.

Just a thought and something that we can do on the internet to try and help bring Amy home - it is a total shot in the dark but sometimes that is what it takes to get a good break in a case. If there is video it may provide some more clues as to her captors meaning that I am NOT disputing that Amy was on the Pier but rather to look for more clues.

Kudos to whomever spotted Amy on the Pier on that day to be able to pick her out of a crowd like that.

We were there years ago, '94 or '95 I think it was. I remember the Bushman, he jumped out and scared my son, but he was really cool. Wonder if he's still there now and if it's the same one. I'll have to check out the youtube videos. Good idea Elepher.

 

[neesaki]

The more theories I read in this forum, the more I wonder if you're on to something with the child-abduction angle. Amy's All-American looks could put children at ease. They could be targeting busy tourist locations with a lot of distractions that could take a parent's attention away from their child(ren) for just the minute needed for someone to take their kid. In this case, it makes perfect sense why they'd be out in broad daylight in very public places -- and having been to Fisherman's Wharf, there's a lot of activity going on at the same time.

Not sure if this has been covered, but were there surveillance cameras nearby that picked up images of these people for identification?

I have been wondering if there have been any child abductions reported in any of these areas of the Amy sightings. I googled a search the other day just using the time period that she was seen in San Francisco, but didn't have much time and didn't find anything.

If something like this is happening, then a child could have been abducted by someone else in the organization, from anywhere really, another part of the state or even the surrounding states, then transported there where he/she is put on a private boat. I would think that less travel on U.S. soil would be preferable to the abductors though as to lessen their chance of being caught and arrested.

 

[FindAmy]

And Yellow, the one she was seen with on the ship early that A.M. she disappeared, apparently stayed up all night just waiting for an opportunity. She must have been watched 24/7. Probably the only time they didn't know what she was doing was when she was in the family suite. I guess they could even have had that bugged. Then they'd have known from the conversations, what the plans were and where she would be going before she even left the suite. Just speculating the possibilities, of course. jmo

I agree. Amy was chosen in advance and this group set a plan into motion. It was probably pre-arranged and they were just waiting to find a suitable victim.

Ron has mentioned something that may or may not be significant. He said that Amy had mentioned wanting to watch the ship dock at the new cruise terminal. He even talked about this on the Vanished program. I am wondering if Amy had mentioned this to Alister Douglas, the night before. He might have told her that there was a very good view from the upper deck in that open disco area. Is this why she left the family's cabin as the ship was docking? Is this how Alister Douglas lured her to that upper deck? Was the group ready to move into action, because they anticipated Amy coming to that open disco area?

Curacao is only 70 miles from Aruba. That isn't far for a cruise ship. I understand that Rhapsody of the Seas left Oranjestad at 1:00 AM. The cruise ship was probably sitting off of the cruise terminal for most of the night. There has to be a reason why Amy left the cabin just as the ship started to dock. I have always felt that she was looking for coffee, but did she also want a good vantage point to watch the ship maneuver into the cuise terminal?

 

[neesaki]

I agree. Amy was chosen in advance and this group set a plan into motion. It was probably pre-arranged and they were just waiting to find a suitable victim.

Ron has mentioned something that may or may not be significant. He said that Amy had mentioned wanting to watch the ship dock at the new cruise terminal. He even talked about this on the Vanished program. I am wondering if Amy had mentioned this to Alister Douglas, the night before. He might have told her that there was a very good view from the upper deck in that open disco area. Is this why she left the family's cabin as the ship was docking? Is this how Alister Douglas lured her to that upper deck? Was the group ready to move into action, because they anticipated Amy coming to that open disco area?

Curacao is only 70 miles from Aruba. That isn't far for a cruise ship. I understand that Rhapsody of the Seas left Oranjestad at 1:00 AM. The cruise ship was probably sitting off of the cruise terminal for most of the night. There has to be a reason why Amy left the cabin just as the ship started to dock. I have always felt that she was looking for coffee, but did she also want a good vantage point to watch the ship maneuver into the cuise terminal?

This could also explain why Amy was out sitting on the balcony instead of going to bed, if she knew she was going up to watch the ship dock. I have always wondered why she didn't go to bed instead as she had already been up most of the night.
Also, I wonder if it was an ordinary thing for Amy to walk around barefoot. Just curious, as some people have to have shoes everywhere they walk, while others don't.
Also, going barefoot may tell us that she probably didn't plan to be gone long, wherever she was going.

 

[FindAmy]

This could also explain why Amy was out sitting on the balcony instead of going to bed, if she knew she was going up to watch the ship dock. I have always wondered why she didn't go to bed instead as she had already been up most of the night.
Also, I wonder if it was an ordinary thing for Amy to walk around barefoot. Just curious, as some people have to have shoes everywhere they walk, while others don't.
Also, going barefoot may tell us that she probably didn't plan to be gone long, wherever she was going.

Iva has said that Amy brought nine pairs of shoes with her on the vacation. All nine were with her luggage when she disappeared. I think she was planning to return in a short period of time. The Bradleys were planning to have breakfast together. That is the reason why Ron went to look for her when he found her missing at 6:00 AM. By 7:00 AM, the family was in a panic and notified Royal Caribbean that Amy was missing.

 

[FindAmy]

I don't believe that Amy was kidnapped by one of the large South American drug cartels, but I do wonder if one of her purposes is a mule. Is this why she is seen in so many places? Is Amy a mule? Have other Americans been kidnapped for use as mules? This could include older people and even children.

This is an x-ray photograph of someone packed with cocaine capsules.

http://photoblog.nbcnews.com/_news/...h-national-caught-with-cocaine-in-brazil?lite

 

[FindAmy]

snip

Drug mules attempting to smuggle concealed narcotics across international borders tend to receive a fee of around £1,000 for their efforts - yet their choice could be fatal.
Mules often swallow carefully wrapped packages of drugs or stuff them in to body cavities to keep them hidden as they smuggle them through airport security and across borders.
But if plastic pellets or condoms housing valuable consignments of Class A drugs burst in transit, the mules face an agonising death.
A high proportion of foreign women in British prisoners are convicted drug mules from the Caribbean or Nigeria while the majority of smugglers entering the U.S. originate from South America.

And it's getting harder for smugglers to cross borders undetected. The latest scanning equipment can expose the smallest of concealed pellets.

Computed topography scans use digital processing to generate a single three-dimensional image of the inside of an object using a series of two-dimensional X-rays around a single axis of rotation.
It has several advantages over traditional X-rays - one of the most important being the higher level of contrast.


http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/art...lengths-desperate-drug-mules-prepared-go.html

 

[FindAmy]

If an unwilling captive was packed with a kilo of cocaine, would that person need two handlers?

 

[arielilane]

Although, off topic, I wonder if it will come out that the suspected attackers are employed by the ship.
http://www.cbsnews.com/8301-504083_...ng-rape-of-teen-girl-on-cruise-ship-feds-say/

 

[arielilane]

She could be out in both daylight and at night, but she just hasn't been recognized. I do believe that there are many Americans who have seen Amy in the Caribbean, but they don't recognize her. It has been 14 years since she disappeared and her face did not get the coverage that Natalee's did. Amy disappeared before the Internet forums took hold.

You are so right. I knew nothing about Amy's disappearance back then or at least I did not know she was seen in the SF area. I was in SF in 2004 and I would have been so engrossed in looking for Amy. The Pier 39/Fisherman's Wharf area is a busy area as already stated, and people would not even pay any attention unless they had a face to look for.

 

[PeggyAnnMcKay]

If an unwilling captive was packed with a kilo of cocaine, would that person need two handlers?

Thinking out loud...Drug mules would obviously have some incentive for risking their life as well as their freedom to move the drugs. Maybe the incentive is money, maybe the incentive is safety of loved ones, maybe it is debt.

Having said that, someone with no incentive for being a mule would need someone to keep them in line. So yes, I would think that if she's being used as a drug mule then she'd need two handlers.

I don't really know the drug mule business, but it seems like an anonymous person could be bought off fairly cheaply with much less risk. It seems risky to use an internationally known kidnapping victim as a mule as well as the cost for paying the handlers to babysit.

 

[FindAmy]

Thinking out loud...Drug mules would obviously have some incentive for risking their life as well as their freedom to move the drugs. Maybe the incentive is money, maybe the incentive is safety of loved ones, maybe it is debt.

Having said that, someone with no incentive for being a mule would need someone to keep them in line. So yes, I would think that if she's being used as a drug mule then she'd need two handlers.

I don't really know the drug mule business, but it seems like an anonymous person could be bought off fairly cheaply with much less risk. It seems risky to use an internationally known kidnapping victim as a mule as well as the cost for paying the handlers to babysit.

What if "drug mule" is just one of her job descriptions? I have no doubt that this group is probably making every dime they can off of Amy and possibly others.

 

[PeggyAnnMcKay]

What if "drug mule" is just one of her job descriptions? I have no doubt that this group is probably making every dime they can off of Amy and possibly others.

This is totally just my opinion, but if one of the reasons she was kidnapped was because of her all-American look (which would go far in not being suspicious as a mule) then they've done her no favors in regards to that all-American look. The heavy make-up and wild hair make her much more conspicuous then if she was more natural looking.

 

[FindAmy]

 

[FindAmy]

This is totally just my opinion, but if one of the reasons she was kidnapped was because of her all-American look (which would go far in not being suspicious as a mule) then they've done her no favors in regards to that all-American look. The heavy make-up and wild hair make her much more conspicuous then if she was more natural looking.

I agree, but I suspect that they think they are changing her appearance from what she looked like when she disappeared.

 

[JaimeSommers]

This is totally just my opinion, but if one of the reasons she was kidnapped was because of her all-American look (which would go far in not being suspicious as a mule) then they've done her no favors in regards to that all-American look. The heavy make-up and wild hair make her much more conspicuous then if she was more natural looking.

I was right there with you on that point, but now am not so sure it's not an intentional ruse to throw people off. They want everyone to think she's a prostitute/escort. That's my theory this week, anyway. And IMO, of course.

 

[FindAmy]

 

[FindAmy]

I was right there with you on that point, but now am not so sure it's not an intentional ruse to throw people off. They want everyone to think she's a prostitute/escort. That's my theory this week, anyway. And IMO, of course.

Maybe that was also the purpose for the escort resort photographs.