Found Deceased MI - Venus Stewart, 32, Colon, 28 April 2010 - # 1 *D. Stewart guilty*

[pufnstuf]

Douglas and Venus still own a home in Schoolcraft, according to the assessor's records. Trying to find where his father's farm is.

 

[pufnstuf]

Looks like a gray extended cab Ford right there in the yard at the Dad's house...Doug's is a silver Dodge.

If he drove a Dodge extended cab from VA to MI, he'd have to stop at least once to get gas. Wonder if anyone's checked gas stations along the route?

 

[pufnstuf]

I've not seen any reports that he hid the vehicles or refused to tell police where they were. If they went to his home to do forensics, that's not very well hidden.

I've also not read exactly when it was they located the vehicles, or who located them. I suspect all this confusion about the vehicles may have more to do with different state and local agencies trying to work together and the resultant red-tape than anything else.

Police could not locate the vehicles from the date of Venus' disappearance until May 4, yet they found Doug on the evening of the first day. His vehicles were missing for eight days. Obviously, they had not been sitting at his house.

Semantics, I guess. Maybe he wasn't "hiding" them (although it sure seems like it) but just wasn't keeping them at his home. :shrug:

 

[Calliope]

Police could not locate the vehicles from the date of Venus' disappearance until May 4, yet they found Doug on the evening of the first day. His vehicles were missing for eight days. Obviously, they had not been sitting at his house.

Semantics, I guess. Maybe he wasn't "hiding" them (although it sure seems like it) but just wasn't keeping them at his home. :shrug:

I don't think the reports have been clear enough to state that. JMO

 

[Natal]

Police could not locate the vehicles from the date of Venus' disappearance until May 4, yet they found Doug on the evening of the first day. His vehicles were missing for eight days. Obviously, they had not been sitting at his house.

Semantics, I guess. Maybe he wasn't "hiding" them (although it sure seems like it) but just wasn't keeping them at his home. :shrug:

The media reported on the 4th, LE probably got the warrant issued and "found" them officially likely on the 3rd, which is a monday. Before that was the weekend, plus a few days getting the documents for an interstate warrant ready. LE probably knew where the vehicles were mid week last week, which would make it, umm... 7-8 days?

 

[CharlestonGal]

Douglas Stewart speaks to reporter...

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=phsoi9VdCVE

From the news report:

"Officers located him in the VA town where he lives days after the disappearance, and say his alibi is solid."

So according to police, the husband's alibi is "solid." What does that leave?

1. Husband hired someone to do the dirty work.
2. Victim left voluntarily.
3. Victim was abducted by stranger/acquaintance.

Number 1 is plausible. They need to be checking hubby's bank and phone records and tracing his contacts over the previous few weeks.

Number 2 is plausible, except there is evidence of a struggle in front of the house. They need to be checking the victim's bank and phone records and tracing her contacts over the previous few weeks. Is there someone she'd have voluntarily left with (like Tiffany, who also would "never have left her children")? Also, does she have any history of mental illness? Was she on medication? Has she taken off in the past?

Number 3 is plausible. An acquaintance or stranger could have been watching her and waiting for an opportunity to snatch her. They need to ask neighbors about anyone hanging around in the area in the weeks previous to her disappearance, not just that morning.

The fact that her husband has what the police describe as a "solid" alibi throws a monkey wrench into this thing.

 

[CharlestonGal]

Question. Who is the last known adult to have been alone with Venus, and has that person been cleared by police? And hopefully polygraphed? I hope so, but I haven't seen any reference to that and police usually start there.

 

[pufnstuf]

Here's the precise address on Driftwood from which Venus was abducted:

 

[CharlestonGal]

From the news report:

"Officers located him in the VA town where he lives days after the disappearance, and say his alibi is solid."

So according to police, the husband's alibi is "solid." What does that leave?

1. Husband hired someone to do the dirty work.
2. Victim left voluntarily.
3. Victim was abducted by stranger/acquaintance.

Number 1 is plausible. They need to be checking hubby's bank and phone records and tracing his contacts over the previous few weeks.

Number 2 is plausible, except there is evidence of a struggle in front of the house. They need to be checking the victim's bank and phone records and tracing her contacts over the previous few weeks. Is there someone she'd have voluntarily left with (like Tiffany, who also would "never have left her children")? Also, does she have any history of mental illness? Was she on medication? Has she taken off in the past?

Number 3 is plausible. An acquaintance or stranger could have been watching her and waiting for an opportunity to snatch her. They need to ask neighbors about anyone hanging around in the area in the weeks previous to her disappearance, not just that morning.

The fact that her husband has what the police describe as a "solid" alibi throws a monkey wrench into this thing.

Answered my own question. According to one of the applications for a PPO, the victim had a history of anxiety, anger, and mood problems, and that she had gone off her medication. Was she bipolar? Is she on meds currently? Why did her husband have custody back in the day? He claimed to be just as afraid of her as she was of him. I wonder what the real story is.

 

[crystalgenie]

I am probably going to get slammed for saying this but I think these two people loved the drama. Let's see we have restraining orders going back and forth, both getting charged or at least arrested for assaulting the other.


Just an example:

I had a friend who just loved drama. My friend and her husband were fighting driving down the road and "she" caused him to run off the road. He went to jail for stealing dealership cars and she is the one who reported him and got the reward... I could go on and on and on. They were together 10 years and she doesn't leave until the arrest for trafficking??? The unfortunate thing is my friend also had 3 kids by him and now she's on her third husband and the first (one she fought with) is doin 25 years in a federal prison for trafficking.. She's been divorced twice since #1 got arrested.

I seriously doubt he drove all the way to Michigan to abduct and kill her. 10 to 12 hours in a truck, and you will have to stop for gas and then there is all the cellphone pings. If he has something to do with this he paid someone... The neighbor that said that some strange man approach her and asked her if she knew where he was??? How bizarre!!! It would have be someone besides the husband, he's from there. Isn't he? I feel so very bad for the poor kids and like one of the other posters said, I hope noone is getting tunnel vision.

Now I will go back to lurking.. MOO!

 

[maggieo]

If the alibi was rock-solid -- like he's on videotape at work or something -- I think the police wouldn't be interested in his vehicles. There's a lot they're not saying. For instance, a description of the guy who came out of the woods and scared the neighbor. Was he a 250 lb dude with a military haircut, or not?

Still, the weirdness with the cars -- two cars -- makes me think there's a good chance someone else was involved.

 

[pufnstuf]

If the alibi was rock-solid -- like he's on videotape at work or something -- I think the police wouldn't be interested in his vehicles. There's a lot they're not saying. For instance, a description of the guy who came out of the woods and scared the neighbor. Was he a 250 lb dude with a military haircut, or not?

Still, the weirdness with the cars -- two cars -- makes me think there's a good chance someone else was involved.

His vehicles are in Newport News police custody. Forensics was in Virginia yesterday looking at the Ram's tires--hopefully they can reach a conclusion as to whether his truck left the prints in the field near Venus' parents home. I really hope that this case will be resolved soon.

 

[Lurkey Lou]

I was checking to see if they have bears there, i suppose but didn't find anything. They definitely have cougars in that county.

no bears here. As for the cougars, the DNR denies their existence in our area, although there have been 2 photo's in the last year taken that I've seen that prove they are here. I think any scenario like that would be highly unlikely.

 

[pufnstuf]

Answered my own question. According to one of the applications for a PPO, the victim had a history of anxiety, anger, and mood problems, and that she had gone off her medication. Was she bipolar? Is she on meds currently? Why did her husband have custody back in the day? He claimed to be just as afraid of her as she was of him. I wonder what the real story is.

In other words, according to Doug, she had a history of anxiety, anger, and mood problems.

At this moment, he's accounted for, and she's the one missing. That speaks volumes, in my opinion.

 

[Kimberlyd125]

In other words, according to Doug, she had a history of anxiety, anger, and mood problems.

At this moment, he's accounted for, and she's the one missing. That speaks volumes, in my opinion.

Yes, IIRC, that is what he told the judge.

I can say that MOST PEOPLE at some point in their lives have had anxiety over something, has been angry, and has a mood problem.

Was she unstable? Maybe.
But, from his statement, we can not conclude that. IMO

 

[AmandaReckonwith]

The album for Venus is updated.

http://s296.photobucket.com/albums/mm166/crankycrankerson/Venus%20Stewart/

 

[TGIRecovered]

Yes, IIRC, that is what he told the judge.

I can say that MOST PEOPLE at some point in their lives have had anxiety over something, has been angry, and has a mood problem.

Was she unstable? Maybe.
But, from his statement, we can not conclude that. IMO

Think about what it is like to be a woman who is being mentally, emotionally, or physically abused in a relationship or marraige, especially when there are children involved. How hard would it be to never fight back, never lose your temper with your abuser, never ever say anything or do anything that your abuser could spin to make you appear to be chronicly paranoid, angry and unstable. Women who are abused are often afraid to risk pressing charges for fear of retaliation against themselves or their children, but men who abuse women jump at the chance to file assault charges when their victim fights back, threatening to take her children, telling her she could never make it without him, etc.

It is easy and common to make a woman appear to be unstable. It is easy to make an abused woman question her own sanity. It is all about control, and when an abuser begins to lose his hold on his victim, the abuse escalates. Everyone knows how dangerous it is to stand up to him and leave. That's one reason why men who abuse get away with it.

None of us know with certainty what has happened in this particular disappearance, but I'd say that the ex's statements about the victim being unstable are par for the course.

 

[mysticrose]

Police are continuing to ask for assistance from anyone who may have seen Venus Stewart or a silver Mercury sedan with Virginia license plate XNP1453 or silver Dodge Ram pickup truck with Virginia license plate XNP1301. Both of the vehicles are registered to Douglas Stewart, Risko said.

Despite locating Douglas Stewart, police have yet to find the car or pickup truck, Risko said.

http://www.mlive.com/news/kalamazoo/index.ssf/2010/04/missing_st_joseph_county_woman_1.html

This is all I can find on the vehicles.

This is what is interesting to me as well why if you had nothing to do with your wifes disappearence why would you not let LE know where your vehicles were ? And how has he been getting back and forth to work without his vehicles before LE found them......

This guy stinks, I can smell him all the way to Colorado

 

[Kimberlyd125]

I agree. That is the one thing that is making my hinky meter go haywire.

If he did nothing wrong, there would not be 1 reason why he would not have let LE look at his cars from the jump. If for nothing else, to exclude himself so LE could place their focus elsewhere.

IMO he did something or had someone else do it.

I agree, and I can smell him down here in Louisiana too.

 

[not_my_kids]

WIC for sure; TANF and food stamps? That's more involved, and it could be the parents' income is calculated too. For food stamps, I believe there has to be separate storage and possibly even cooking facilities (or some way to separate them from the others living in the household).

TANF yes...in 30-45 days from the application date. WIC, yes, for the younger child. Food stamps, after the same 30-45 day wait. And, then Doug would have been immediately hit for child support, since she was receiving state aid. He may have threatened her away from doing that for that reason.

She is over the age of 22, so her parents income would not be calculated, and the only stipulation is that you tell the state that you prepare and eat your food seperately.

However, if her parents were not charging her rent and she had no other documentable expenses, then the state would give her nothing in the way of TANF and it's really hard to get on MI WIC if you are not already receiving state aid, at least Medicaid.

ETA: There is emergency assistance, that you can normally get in a week or ten days, but it's hard to get that unless you have immediate needs, and living with her parents, the chances are that she wouldn't have been eligible. I'm not a 100% sure on that aspect.