NV NV - Steven T. Koecher, 30, Henderson, 13 Dec 2009 - #20

[laytonian]

I was thinking he would have been employed. That said, Johnson is obviously a swindler, so it's not a stretch to think he may have been paying people (or offering to) under the table.

In any case, there may be no direct link to Steven, but perhaps to someone he knew. Johnson did manage to remain an "upstanding" and revered member of the community and the church, and even now appears to have plenty of supporters.

Sure, under the table is possible -- but there wasn't that much work to do. All it entailed, was taking people's money via a website, and it went on for at least 8 years. .
When they complained, a new (fake) authorization was created to use their credit card was used on another "company". It was all done among insiders, and the bank.

The reason I pulled the list of fraudulent companies, was to see if I recognized any, in relation to Steven. I haven't heard back, as to whether Steven had filed a credit card fraud claim.

 

[Fairy1]

Sure, under the table is possible -- but there wasn't that much work to do. All it entailed, was taking people's money via a website, and it went on for at least 8 years. .
When they complained, a new (fake) authorization was created to use their credit card was used on another "company". It was all done among insiders, and the bank.

The reason I pulled the list of fraudulent companies, was to see if I recognized any, in relation to Steven. I haven't heard back, as to whether Steven had filed a credit card fraud claim.

In my mind, it goes to support the fact that not everyone is a good person - even if they may seem to be. It's always possible Steven stumbled upon something accidentally and wound up learning "too much." From what I've seen, Johnson is totally in denial about his wrongdoing but, the fact is, he had much to protect.

 

[hollyblue]

This guy was/is quite the con. Seems he's been facing the SEC since 2001 at the age of 25 and gotten himself involved with political donations ??? in Utah as well.

http://www.sec.gov/litigation/litreleases/lr16920.htm

I did find a Sacramento link with one of his cohorts...involved in minor league baseball...and etc, but think we're hoping for a connection that probably is not there....but who knows?

He does have his own fleet of air transport..........very much into "the lost boys" of Utah with providing them a shelter house in SG, and took a missionary trip to Haiti wanting to bring the Haitian orphans to US. That gives me more concern than anything and the shivers....imo

 

[SassyBenton]

I just saw the Disappeared episode last night and spent the rest of the night read through these threads. Wow, this case really has me stumped! I think this is a case of foul play, I do not believe he just walked away to start a new life or committed suicide. However, I just can’t fathom what kind of danger he could have come upon in that neighborhood on a Sunday afternoon.

A few of my thoughts:

I think there is a possibility that he drove to that neighborhood to meet someone to do some work in another location. He parked his car, walked to a nearby house to meet the person and then left in the other person’s car. Maybe he had found some landscaping, house painting, handy man work? People often work in pairs at these kind of jobs, perhaps he answered an ad for someone looking for a partner to work with. Still can’t figure out how that would’ve ended in foul play though.

The last ping location (which the phone apparently pinged for 2 days until it died) is located right by a highway. I wonder if whoever had his phone simply tossed it out the window, leaving it to lay on the side of the road.

If he was so broke, what was with all the roads trips before he disappeared? Gas isn’t cheap, so unless he really needed to travel, you would think he would be conservative on how much he drove his car. He wasn’t able to put money towards rent for a couple of months, yet he seemed to spend a decent amount of money driving around, I think that is a little strange.

So many things just don’t add up here…

 

[laytonian]

I just saw the Disappeared episode last night and spent the rest of the night read through these threads. Wow, this case really has me stumped! I think this is a case of foul play, I do not believe he just walked away to start a new life or committed suicide. However, I just can’t fathom what kind of danger he could have come upon in that neighborhood on a Sunday afternoon.

A few of my thoughts:

I think there is a possibility that he drove to that neighborhood to meet someone to do some work in another location. He parked his car, walked to a nearby house to meet the person and then left in the other person’s car. Maybe he had found some landscaping, house painting, handy man work? People often work in pairs at these kind of jobs, perhaps he answered an ad for someone looking for a partner to work with. Still can’t figure out how that would’ve ended in foul play though.

The last ping location (which the phone apparently pinged for 2 days until it died) is located right by a highway. I wonder if whoever had his phone simply tossed it out the window, leaving it to lay on the side of the road.

If he was so broke, what was with all the roads trips before he disappeared? Gas isn’t cheap, so unless he really needed to travel, you would think he would be conservative on how much he drove his car. He wasn’t able to put money towards rent for a couple of months, yet he seemed to spend a decent amount of money driving around, I think that is a little strange.

So many things just don’t add up here…

Welcome! You read all THAT? Wow.

You're right. Very little adds up.

The phone hits: that last "ping" was an outgoing call to his voicemail.
It's likely the phone was turned off for long periods, because it would have gone dead while on roam for that long.

On Dec 12th, it's obvious the phone was turned off between the Overton cell tower hit, and the Mesquite tower hit (about 8 hours).

 

[OldSteve]

I just saw the Disappeared episode last night and spent the rest of the night read through these threads. Wow, this case really has me stumped! I think this is a case of foul play, I do not believe he just walked away to start a new life or committed suicide. However, I just can’t fathom what kind of danger he could have come upon in that neighborhood on a Sunday afternoon.

A few of my thoughts:

I think there is a possibility that he drove to that neighborhood to meet someone to do some work in another location. He parked his car, walked to a nearby house to meet the person and then left in the other person’s car. Maybe he had found some landscaping, house painting, handy man work? People often work in pairs at these kind of jobs, perhaps he answered an ad for someone looking for a partner to work with. Still can’t figure out how that would’ve ended in foul play though.

The last ping location (which the phone apparently pinged for 2 days until it died) is located right by a highway. I wonder if whoever had his phone simply tossed it out the window, leaving it to lay on the side of the road.

If he was so broke, what was with all the roads trips before he disappeared? Gas isn’t cheap, so unless he really needed to travel, you would think he would be conservative on how much he drove his car. He wasn’t able to put money towards rent for a couple of months, yet he seemed to spend a decent amount of money driving around, I think that is a little strange.

So many things just don’t add up here…

Like you I am a newcomer to this thread after seeing the ID show...reading what's here.... What stands out is how much of a private person Steven is. That's what's makes this a puzzle. There was no one in this life that he confided with. Even though he was very involved with his church, on one around can say what was really going on in his life/mind...

 

[Ann143]

Like you I am a newcomer to this thread after seeing the ID show...reading what's here.... What stands out is how much of a private person Steven is. That's what's makes this a puzzle. There was no one in this life that he confided with. Even though he was very involved with his church, on one around can say what was really going on in his life/mind...

Same goes for me. This case is so heartbreaking. And to know that Rolf passed away without finding his son makes it that much worse. His raw emotion in his interviews on the show had me in tears.

 

[couggal]

Thinking of you tonight Steven. I hope you are at peace and know you are loved.

 

[believe09]

Thank you to all of the sleuthers who have jumped in after seeing the episode of Disappeared. This is very very heartening!!

 

[laytonian]

The last ping location (which the phone apparently pinged for 2 days until it died) is located right by a highway. I wonder if whoever had his phone simply tossed it out the window, leaving it to lay on the side of the road.

I was re-reading comments, and caught a detail that I've bolded (above).

We haven't talked about cell towers for a long time, and since we have some newcomers, maybe we should.

The "last ping location" is just one of four different cell tower hits in the Whitney Ranch area. See swjaxon's map (CLICK HERE).

The "locations" are the tower names.

In the case of the last hit, it's "I-515/Russell".
It's not "located right by a highway"; it's named after the nearest major intersection (as are most).

For example, the 7:52am Dec 13th call hit a tower named "Pecos".
According to AT&T's list, the tower named Pecos is at 5380 Novak in Las Vegas (a mile or more from Pecos Rd).

We don't know the exact address of the tower named "I-515/Russell". It's not an AT&T-owned tower, so it's not on their list.
I do know that from that point, you can see several cell towers. swjaxon rightly used the location to place the marker, because nothing else made sense.

Depending upon usage, the phone could have been stationery for 24 hours ... or moved around a bit. Cell towers actually cover a pretty large area.

I'm glad this came up; we all got pretty educated on cell towers last year.
It's kinda boring, very detailed stuff, but details are important.

 

[Fairy1]

I was re-reading comments, and caught a detail that I've bolded (above).

We haven't talked about cell towers for a long time, and since we have some newcomers, maybe we should.

The "last ping location" is just one of four different cell tower hits in the Whitney Ranch area. See swjaxon's map (CLICK HERE).

The "locations" are the tower names.

In the case of the last hit, it's "I-515/Russell".
It's not "located right by a highway"; it's named after the nearest major intersection (as are most).

For example, the 7:52am Dec 13th call hit a tower named "Pecos".
According to AT&T's list, the tower named Pecos is at 5380 Novak in Las Vegas (a mile or more from Pecos Rd).

We don't know the exact address of the tower named "I-515/Russell". It's not an AT&T-owned tower, so it's not on their list.
I do know that from that point, you can see several cell towers. swjaxon rightly used the location to place the marker, because nothing else made sense.

Depending upon usage, the phone could have been stationery for 24 hours ... or moved around a bit. Cell towers actually cover a pretty large area.

I'm glad this came up; we all got pretty educated on cell towers last year.
It's kinda boring, very detailed stuff, but details are important.

Definitely not an exact science! Next time I go by that area, I will make a point of looking for cell towers.

 

[laytonian]

Definitely not an exact science! Next time I go by that area, I will make a point of looking for cell towers.

They're there - but not right at the intersection. In the square mile around that intersection, it's almost like Christmas trees poking up

IIRC, the nearest one's in a large yard of storage sheds with orange doors.

 

[Fairy1]

They're there - but not right at the intersection. In the square mile around that intersection, it's almost like Christmas trees poking up

IIRC, the nearest one's in a large yard of storage sheds with orange doors.

I have seen the storage place, but I've never really looked for any cell towers.

A storage place. Hmmmmm.

 

[carbuff]

I have seen the storage place, but I've never really looked for any cell towers.

A storage place. Hmmmmm.

Yeah, that's what I thought too...

 

[sophieness]

to me it seems like the only people who would really bother to go into that neighborhood are people who live there or people who are visiting those who live there. of course, maybe the car was purposely put there just so people would think that. but I think someone in that neighborhood is involved. probably someone within a few block radius. to me, I think of this more as a homicide. I think it's terrible that the police did not take it more seriously from the get go. what is the harm in dusting a car for fingerprints, or taking it for processing? if that is what the family wants? my first inclination would be to think it was probably an older man that killed steven, likely an older man living alone. it doesn't seem to me that men who kill younger men they don't know well, who do not make their living mostly by crime, are usually married. ie I think it was possibly a sexually motivated crime.

I also am not sure that the person in the video is steven. at first I thought it was him walking purposefully to a job interview, probably for something informal like landscaping etc. no this is not someone who would normally do this on a sunday but this was someone who it seems like was at a crossroads in their life and whose financial circumstances were bordering on dire. this is still in my top two possibilities. but then when I watched the video over and over again, the person seemed like they might be taller and thinner than most of the pictures I saw of the (possible) victim. I know security cameras can be deceiving in this way. but this person did not seem to just walk purposefully but almost rushed, with their head down, not looking really at the car across the street except a very quick glance. like someone who was guilty or did not want to be seen, perhaps. also they got out of the car right when the other car came up, like maybe they did not want to be seen lingering in the car or looking suspicious. it is possible that steven DID drive to this person's house, the person may then have been stuck with the car if the entrance to the community has a video or security camera. maybe they knew about that one, but had to get rid of the car and clean it somehow so drove it to the furthest corner cul de sac and walked quickly away.

 

[Fairy1]

to me it seems like the only people who would really bother to go into that neighborhood are people who live there or people who are visiting those who live there. of course, maybe the car was purposely put there just so people would think that. but I think someone in that neighborhood is involved. probably someone within a few block radius. to me, I think of this more as a homicide. I think it's terrible that the police did not take it more seriously from the get go. what is the harm in dusting a car for fingerprints, or taking it for processing? if that is what the family wants? my first inclination would be to think it was probably an older man that killed steven, likely an older man living alone. it doesn't seem to me that men who kill younger men they don't know well, who do not make their living mostly by crime, are usually married. ie I think it was possibly a sexually motivated crime.

I also am not sure that the person in the video is steven. at first I thought it was him walking purposefully to a job interview, probably for something informal like landscaping etc. no this is not someone who would normally do this on a sunday but this was someone who it seems like was at a crossroads in their life and whose financial circumstances were bordering on dire. this is still in my top two possibilities. but then when I watched the video over and over again, the person seemed like they might be taller and thinner than most of the pictures I saw of the (possible) victim. I know security cameras can be deceiving in this way. but this person did not seem to just walk purposefully but almost rushed, with their head down, not looking really at the car across the street except a very quick glance. like someone who was guilty or did not want to be seen, perhaps. also they got out of the car right when the other car came up, like maybe they did not want to be seen lingering in the car or looking suspicious. it is possible that steven DID drive to this person's house, the person may then have been stuck with the car if the entrance to the community has a video or security camera. maybe they knew about that one, but had to get rid of the car and clean it somehow so drove it to the furthest corner cul de sac and walked quickly away.

Thanks for your input and WELCOME!

So, you're saying the guy in the video may not be Steven, but his killer?

Having been one who has thought Steven did just walk away, for the most part, I'm going to have to think on that a bit. However, it would explain two things that have been questioned. One, what was Steven doing in the hours between the time he spoke to his church associates and the time his car appears on the surveillance video? And two, if his killer actually lived in that area of SCA, why would they leave his car so nearby for days?

 

[sophieness]

well I was thinking, maybe the entrances to the community had security cameras. or they thought there was. so once the car was in there, they didn't think they could drive it out without being seen. it is a very small time window from the time steven talked to his friends so that kind of still makes me think it could have been steven in the video. but it could still explain, if a killer lived in the neighborhood, why they might have been afraid to move the car if they thought they would be more likely to be spotted that way.

 

[Fairy1]

well I was thinking, maybe the entrances to the community had security cameras. or they thought there was. so once the car was in there, they didn't think they could drive it out without being seen. it is a very small time window from the time steven talked to his friends so that kind of still makes me think it could have been steven in the video. but it could still explain, if a killer lived in the neighborhood, why they might have been afraid to move the car if they thought they would be more likely to be spotted that way.

I have always believed it is Steven in the video, but I do realize there are others who aren't so sure.

I have never noticed any cameras at the entrances into Anthem. I have noticed that traffic moves pretty swiftly on Anthem Parkway, so I doubt there are any traffic cameras.

It would be so ironic if the killer moved Steven's car to that spot in an attempt to avoid being caught on camera, only to drive by, park near and walk by what is no doubt one of the only homes in the area with surveillance cameras.

And I still just can't get around the oddness in Steven's behavior prior to disappearing. I can't help but believe it is connected in some way.

 

[sophieness]

he does "walk" like a 30-ish man, it is true. However SCA talks a lot about their security patrols etc so if someone who lived there did something to Steven, maybe they wouldn't want to be recognized driving the car more than a block or two, or if they never drove it maybe they wouldn't want to be recognized driving it out of the community. it is easy to say, no one would be so stupid as to kill someone in their own neighborhood and leave a car nearby, but affluent people do these types of things too, and they can also have mental issues, eccentricities of course etc. And if they DID do it, they got away with it until now! The car was never even forensically processed, at least not in the beginning, and it doesn't sound like the neighbors got more than a cursory interview.
Steven WAS acting odd. I think there was instability in his life that led him to walking into a dangerous situation. But it seems like there would be no point to driving to this specific neighborhood if one was going to kill one's self, and if he had his body would likely have been found by now. As for just walking away, without his passport, money, car, family, friends...etc...it doesn't seem likely to me. He was just starting out in life still, what was there to start over from? financial stress? walking away would just make it harder. being gay? if he was, he already lived hours and hours away from his family where he had lots of privacy. he seemed like someone who loved his family too much to do that. as for being in a fugue state, I think someone dressed nicely in an upscale community would have been noticed more if they were very disoriented. these are why I think it is likely that this poor man was murdered. the other possibilities, just don't make sense to me.

I also wonder about any other homes that WEREN'T right next to the car. Were they questioned about security cameras and all footage reviewed, even if they were blocks away?

 

[Fairy1]

he does "walk" like a 30-ish man, it is true. However SCA talks a lot about their security patrols etc so if someone who lived there did something to Steven, maybe they wouldn't want to be recognized driving the car more than a block or two, or if they never drove it maybe they wouldn't want to be recognized driving it out of the community. it is easy to say, no one would be so stupid as to kill someone in their own neighborhood and leave a car nearby, but affluent people do these types of things too, and they can also have mental issues, eccentricities of course etc. And if they DID do it, they got away with it until now! The car was never even forensically processed, at least not in the beginning, and it doesn't sound like the neighbors got more than a cursory interview.
Steven WAS acting odd. I think there was instability in his life that led him to walking into a dangerous situation. But it seems like there would be no point to driving to this specific neighborhood if one was going to kill one's self, and if he had his body would likely have been found by now. As for just walking away, without his passport, money, car, family, friends...etc...it doesn't seem likely to me. He was just starting out in life still, what was there to start over from? financial stress? walking away would just make it harder. being gay? if he was, he already lived hours and hours away from his family where he had lots of privacy. he seemed like someone who loved his family too much to do that. as for being in a fugue state, I think someone dressed nicely in an upscale community would have been noticed more if they were very disoriented. these are why I think it is likely that this poor man was murdered. the other possibilities, just don't make sense to me.

I also wonder about any other homes that WEREN'T right next to the car. Were they questioned about security cameras and all footage reviewed, even if they were blocks away?

We do know the video footage from the home Steven appears to pass by was reviewed extensively. The area was canvassed, but I don't recall ever hearing how wide a net was cast in terms of the door-to-door searches. Of course, a murderer isn't going to admit anything if you knock on their door and ask nicely if you've seen their victim, so I'm not sure it would have been effective if foul play was involved.