WY WY - Amy Wroe Bechtel, 24, Fremont County, 24 Jul 1997

[mysteriew]

One indisputable fact is that Amy Wroe Bechtel disappeared July 24, 1997.

Eight years ago Sunday, she was last seen in Lander, the central Wyoming town where she had moved with Steven Bechtel, her husband of 13 months, to join a community of ardent high- country athletes. Wearing black shorts and running shoes, she stopped at an art gallery about 2:30 p.m. to discuss matting one of her photographs.

And then the 24-year-old, petite, blond Olympic marathon hopeful vanished.

Steven Bechtel, a rock-climber who is now 35, refused to be interviewed by investigators after he felt initial questioning turned accusatorial. He also refused to take a lie-detector test on the advice of his lawyer. He did not return calls from the Rocky Mountain News to be interviewed for this story.

His refusal to cooperate with authorities frustrates the Wroe family, who accuse him of being selfish, even heartless, not to tell what he knows.
To the FBI and the Fremont County Sheriff's Department, the case remains as active today as the night when Steve Bechtel reported his wife had not come home from a run.

"In my opinion, Steve was the only suspect when she disappeared, and Steve is the only suspect now," former Sheriff Larry Mathews said. "There are no other suspects who had the motive or the opportunity."
http://www.rockymountainnews.com/drmn/state/article/0,1299,DRMN_21_3948118,00.html

 

[georgiagirl]

is this case still open? Has she ever been found??

 

[EdinburghLass]

She is still missing.

 

[concernedperson]

Is he from the same Bechtel family in SF? The ones with worldwide construction contracts? If so, they are so big....bigger than a lot of countries...that nothing may ever be heard about this again. Just speculating I know nothing but the name jumped out at me.

 

[Rle7]

The case of Amy Wroe Bechtel has been cold for several years.

Roger Rizor, lead detective on the case, said it is still considered open, but "I would say it's stalled."

Early in the investigation, friends of Amy put out about 250,000 fliers looking for her, with her photo, description, and a number to call with information. Now, even a toll-free number set up for the case has expired and leads to a salacious "chat" line.

People with information on the case are asked to call the Fremont County Sheriff's Department. Rizor said the last bit of information trickling in about the case was a repeat of earlier information: That a carload of American Indians from the nearby Wind River Indian Reservation were in the area the day Amy disappeared, drinking. They hit her, and buried her on the reservation.

"We never could find any information on that," Rizor said. "Over the years, the same clue has come up from people calling and people saying they have this information. We have never, never been able to pin it down as anything valid."

"When it comes down to the location of a body, no one knows," he said.

http://www.casperstartribune.net/ar.../wyoming/bef703f60a845eb58725731f00210751.txt

 

[Rle7]

[SIZE=+1]Amy Wroe Bechtel case timeline[/SIZE]
1997
* July 24. It's a Thursday. Amy Bechtel is last seen at the Camera Connection in Lander around 2:30 p.m. Her husband, Steve Bechtel, calls a friend at 4:30 p.m. and reports having returned home to Lander from a trip to Dubois. Around 10:30 p.m., the Fremont County Sheriff's Office is notified that Amy Bechtel is missing.
* July 25. Around 1 a.m., Steve Bechtel's friends find her car, a white Toyota Tercel wagon, parked on the Burnt Gulch Road turnoff in the mountains above Lander, where she reportedly was to go running. Deputies get to the scene an hour later, and by 3 a.m., a major search is on, with more and more people coming to the Loop Road scene to look.
* July 26. Search-and-rescue teams using dogs, two private helicopters and at least 100 volunteers search the area.
* July 27. The sheriff's office takes an average 1,000 calls an hour, and expands the search area to a 20- to 30-mile radius of the car. A hand-held infrared detection device is flown in from Cheyenne, and a helicopter from F.E. Warren Air Force Base joins the search.
* July 28. About 80 searchers comb the area around Frye, Fiddler's and Louis lakes on horseback and all-terrain vehicles. A helicopter from the Bureau of Indian Affairs joins the search, along with a dozen four-wheel all-terrain vehicles. Heavy rains hamper progress.
* July 29. Authorities begin to consider the possibility of foul play and discuss expanding the search to include places where a body could possibly be hidden, such as caves, old cabins, mines and culverts.
* July 30. Duplicates of Amy Bechtel's shoes and clothing are ordered to aid searchers. Posters of Bechtel and her description, as well as yellow ribbons, are hung around the region. Investigators say they found a footprint that may have matched Bechtel's shoe east of where Bechtel's car was found.
* July 31. Reporters are told the area is now considered a crime scene, and the search for Bechtel is scaled back as the possibility of foul play becomes more likely. The command post, stationed on the Loop Road, is moved to the sheriff's office, to centralize efforts. Some 25 agents from the FBI and state Department of Criminal Investigation join the investigation.
* Aug. 1. The FBI blocks off both ends of the Loop Road. Motorists must check in before they can drive through. Around this time, Steve Bechtel cuts short an interview with county and FBI investigators after an agent reportedly accuses him of killing Amy. According to Steve, the FBI agent said, "`I have evidence that proves you killed Amy, and we would like to have you take a polygraph test right now to prove that you didn't.'" Steve retains Jackson lawyer Kent Spence, son of famed defense lawyer Gerry Spence, to represent his interests in the investigation. Spence advises Steve against taking a polygraph, as investigators, and Amy's parents and brother, have implored him to do.
* Aug. 5. Checkpoints are in place at the forest's entrances to contact anyone who might have been in the forest when Bechtel disappeared.
* Aug. 6. Steve Bechtel's home and pickup truck are searched by Fremont County authorities who need DNA samples of Amy's, such as hair and toenails. Officials are also looking for additional items that may result in new clues, such as a diary.
* Aug. 7. The Bechtels' friends and family distribute missing person posters to national parks, hundreds of truck stops nationwide, and every chamber of commerce in Wyoming. Steve Bechtel's attorney, Kent Spence, criticizes the search of Bechtel's property, calling agents' behavior "aggressive" and "insulting."
* Aug. 20. Fremont County Sheriff Larry Mathews said the search of the Bechtels' home yielded little to help in the search for Bechtel, and that much of the evidence collected was taken only in case it is needed to help identify a body.
* Aug. 23. Sheriff's officials say the investigation is nearing the "saturation point'' locally. Pictures are requested from NASA from the Russian space station Mir, which was believed to have snapped a shot of the area the day Bechtel disappeared.
* Sept. 11. Reported sightings of Amy continue to pour in from across the country, including in Ralston, Texas; Wisconsin; New Mexico; Salt Lake City, and Colorado Springs. Investigators say they are no closer to finding Amy Bechtel than they were the day she vanished.
* Sept. 28. A 10K race for Amy takes place on the Loop Road. Investigators are also searching for Kelly McLoud, who was allegedly known to follow and call Amy Bechtel before she moved to Lander.
* Oct. 25. A search of old mine shafts in the Atlantic City area fails to turn up new clues.
1998

http://www.casperstartribune.net/ar.../wyoming/a97568946c44e8bd8725731f0020ff28.txt

 

[Mysteries Bother Me]

Outside Magazine has a full story on this case, from 1998, http://outside.away.com/outside/magazine/0398/9803longgone.html

 

[aj1020]

Outside Magazine has a full story on this case, from 1998, http://outside.away.com/outside/magazine/0398/9803longgone.html

That's a good article. It paints a much clearer picture of her disappearance than the news articles do. Such a heartbreaking story.

 

[lymom3]

My heart skipped a beat. I thought maybe they finally found her. Such a sad story. She is one that I always remember...she just looked so vibrant and full of life.

 

[aj1020]

My heart skipped a beat. I thought maybe they finally found her. Such a sad story. She is one that I always remember...she just looked so vibrant and full of life.

I agree. I wish there was a picture of her to link on this thread - none of the linked news articles have pics.

 

[jodierenee]

website:

http://www.fpcg.net/amy/

 

[aj1020]

Here is a link to a missing page on her, with a pic!
http://www.fpcg.net/amy/

ETA: We had the same thought!

Here's her Charley Project page: http://www.charleyproject.org/cases/b/bechtel_amy.html

 

[aj1020]

Also an Unsolved Mysteries link:
http://www.unsolved.com/1103-Bechtel.html

 

[gaia227]

Bumping for Amy. It will be 11 years on the 24th. Has anyone tied her disappearence to Gary Hilton? She disappeared from a state park...just a thought.

I used to live in Wyoming and spent some time in the Wind River Reservation. There is so much vast space that is federal land, therefore undisturbed that it seems like an impossible task trying to find someone's body if they are out there. I cannot think of a better spot to hide a body than the Wyoming back country. Wyoming is one the most beautiful places I have every visited. I worked in Yellowstone and felt like I was living in a painting.

 

[georgiagirl]

Bumping for Amy.....

I think the husband is guilty as sin.....

 

[Trident]

Bumping for Amy.....

I think the husband is guilty as sin.....

I just found this case and started sleuthing. I wonder if Amy was pregnant?
Did you notice Steve remarried? Do you know who he married and when?

 

[Trident]

I just found this case and started sleuthing. I wonder if Amy was pregnant?
Did you notice Steve remarried? Do you know who he married and when?

OK, I answered one of my own questions. Steve remarried in 2004, but I don't know the wife's name. I also read Amy's mother's take on the 911 call. Interesting to say the least.
http://trib.com/news/state-and-regional/article_f289eca2-a639-5a75-a565-814f41b5249c.html

I don't know if this link will work or not, but I got a good update by searching Amy Bechtel 2005.

Interesting case, high time it was solved.

Link works, good info.

 

[SnowAngels]

For what it's worth, I found two interesting things online:

1) Forensic astrology analysis of the case:

http://forensicastrology.blogspot.com/2009/01/amy-bechtel-wroe.html

2) Someone who claims to know who killed her (they even name the individual) and motivation for the crime. Perhaps this should be taken with a grain of salt. I'm assuming this claim was already investigated by authorities?

http://www.unsolvedmysteries.com/usm35004.html

 

[lymom3]

This is one of those cases that haunt me. I hope for resolution for the Wroe family.

 

[EdinburghLass]

Here is her husband's blog -

http://www.blogger.com/profile/16899065264977555925