Found Deceased UT - MacKenzie "Kenzie" Lueck, 23, Salt Lake City, 17 June 2019 #5

[c.lynn]

Anyone else perturbed that the cameras at the park "aren't real" or "don't work?" What is the point of the signs then? Because when something like this happens and you actually need the cameras, it's a dead end. JMO.

 

[Peppery]

@yellowmoose

In your opinion, would the details of her personal life becoming known to her parents/family have been extremely upsetting or no big deal? If she is voluntarily off the grid, could all these details coming out make her less likely to return? I’m going off the assumption that most of her friends/sisters were at least vaguely aware and accepting of her dating status but perhaps her parents were not?

I think it’s very unlikely this is voluntary but on the off chance she just wanted a few days away, the judgement and accusations being thrown around all over the media could make it very difficult for her to choose to go home.

 

[Inthedetails]

I’m going to respectfully suggest that given the mods’ current overload and Tricia’s general aggravation with us and that topic that we skip having a thread (that would still have to be moderated) and instead people who are interested start a group PM for further discussion. Just my opinion based on the last couple of days at WS.

Edited typo

Basement, private conversation....whatever works. Take it away, imo.

jmo

 

[MassGuy]

We agree, I see. BBM

Ha! We do, which I realized after the fact.

Just a thought ... could the person who was supposed to pick her up have not shown up or canceled (hence the long wait time before getting the Lyft) so she reached out to someone else (maybe one of her newer contacts) and they said they wouldn't drive all the way to the airport but would meet halfway at the park?

If you look at the timeline, the delay makes sense.

It apparently took a while for her to get off the plane, she had to walk to baggage claim, and then she had to wait for her bag to come off. She likely had to wait a few minutes for her Lyft to arrive as well.

We were confused until yesterday, as there were lots of potential explanations for the delay (using bathroom, charging phone, etc).

So I’m not sure she was ever expecting a ride.

 

[MissMalowe]

This keeps being asked by myself as well as others, yet I've not seen it answered (or even simply discussed) in media, by LE, or by Kenzie's friends in their interviews or by our VI.

What made alarm bells not go off Monday, Tuesday, Wednesday or Thursday morning when MacKenzie was not around and not heard from?

There is a lot of overlapping not only in relation to the ways that people know MacKenzie but in relation to one another as well.

This isn't a case of "people at school noticed she wasn't in class and her social friends noticed she was unreachable by phone but neither parties overlap, so social friends didn't know she also wasnt in class and classmates didn't know her friends were unable to reach her by phone as well.

Some people know MacKenzie via at LEAST 3 different realms of life: School, Sorority AND friendship. I imagine there is also some additional possible overlapping with colleagues and/or roommates.

But no one local reported to Campus Police or SLC PD. There has to be a reason for this. Had she had a 3 day unexpected "off the radar" break in the past. Were friends she reportedly had daily contact with unaware of what day she was supposed to fly back? Were friends afraid a missing persons report may be overreacting or jumping the gun for some reason? Did she have set or loose posdible plans to go away after the funeral but was supposed to be back Wed night/Thurs morning?
Was there something about MacKenzie's life or actions the days/weeks prior that lead people to the conclusion that this wasn't actually surprising or as out of character for her as claimed?

ETA: In one interview, (I believe it was her BFF and sorority sister?) She commented that she reached out to MacKenzie offering support or to see if she needed anything over the weekend, while she was still out of state for the funeral. She received no reply. Yet MacKenzie was active on social media during that time? Is that odd: she already wasn't responding to her BFF prior to her disappearance, but was active on social media?

 

[Steelslady]

This person didn’t necessarily have to know that she had her location available.

Even if this is not the case, a phone is basically a tracking device (which many criminals are aware of).

Here’s my issue with this:

There seem to be strong indications that she knew this person, as I can’t imagine a first time meetup at that time and that location.

The Lyft driver also apparently gave indications that there was some familiarity (she was happy to see this person).

So why pick her up and tip your hand immediately?

You probably can’t turn her phone off, or have her turn her phone off without drawing suspicion.

There’s the chance that she could escape, a struggle could ensue, and whatever you’re planning goes to hell.

So I’m struggling to understand the timing of her phone being shut off.

Either that’s wrong, she did it herself, her phone died, or this guy lives very close to that park (or they traveled to a location nearby).

Weird.

I am with you on this one. The only scenario that I can think of that her phone would turned off like that immediately after she met this person and she is not voluntarily missing, is that once the Lyft driver left and the coast was clear, he/she killed her, turned off her phone, and from there, who knows where he/she went after that.

This is the only way that it makes sense, in a foul play situation.

 

[SoCalGirl]

My hunch is she has plenty of bags to chose from and could easily get more if she wanted them. I think she would consider proper traveling items as part of a pampered person's possessions.

I personally think the bag seems cumbersome to bring on a short trip, but I can also see someone into beauty would need it as it takes a lot of products sometimes.

jmo

I'm a light packer and even I don't consider the bag "cumbersome." It's on 365 degree wheels! It doesn't seem like it's difficult to handle.

 

[JC40]

If as we are led to believe (by the Lyft driver) there was some familiarity with whom she met. Why didn't they arrange to pick her up from the airport?

 

[AN007]

Given what police have said, it sounds like the best thing that friends can do to help locate Kenzie is to share with police all information they have about her online profiles. Her phone was turned off after she met with someone at the park. That tells us that either Kenzie or the driver wanted to eliminate the digital trail at that moment. My guess is that this was the driver's decision. Assuming that it was the driver, that suggests that the driver was very careful to avoid a digital footprint in all communication with Kenzie.

Did Kenzie mention using any new apps? Did she have a normal routine in terms of switching to a particular app after initial contact with someone? For example, I typically switch to WhatsApp after initial contact. The identity of the person she met is somewhere in her digital world.

If she had an iphone and an ipad or other Apple product, the devices are usually paired, so it's easy to see which apps are downloaded. Do you know whether she had an iphone? That would be too easy, but it might be the only hope of following the digital trail.

This is a really good point and something I haven't seen mentioned yet (although LE is probably well clued into this).

In terms of the phone being switched off, moo is that she got into the car, wanted to switch off after an emotionally draining weekend, and some time after that things went downhill. The chances of her phone dying at that moment seem slim to none.

 

[doyoulovemepfg]

If as we are led to believe (by the Lyft driver) there was some familiarity with whom she met. Why didn't they arrange to pick her up from the airport?

Security cameras everywhere.

 

[ksmith3271]

If ML's connection was not present when she arrived, I really hope ML would not get out and strand herself in Hatch Park at 3am. That makes no sense...

It's very easy to continue with your Lyft and/or Uber ride to a revised location -- especially at that hour.

MOO

To add, with very little detail other than LE saying the LYFT driver has been cleared, we’re taking that as truth. I have been at least; however, what we know is the LYFT driver was the last person to see ML alive. Supposedly there was this person waiting at the park (I realize ML entered the destination and a park @ 3am is sketch no matter what) but that’s where the story kind of falls apart. Phone turned off. Luggage missing. No cameras capturing this mystery car. I know the park cams were fake but there are cameras everywhere— bus stops, red lights, on the interstate. This didn’t occur during rush hour; ie there were probably less than a dozen cars on the road without a few mile radius during that time frame. Of course all of this is JMO. I want to take “LYFT driver cleared” at face value but nothing, after 8 days, makes sense after she entered that LYFT ‍

 

[margarita25]

As far as researching other open cases, I’d like to add MAP (Murder Accountability Project) to the list of resources in addition to our others.

www.murderdata.org

 

[zecats]

Ha! We do, which I realized after the fact.


If you look at the timeline, the delay makes sense.

It apparently took a while for her to get off the plane, she had to walk to baggage claim, and then she had to wait for her bag to come off. She likely had to wait a few minutes for her Lyft to arrive as well.

We were confused until yesterday, as there were lots of potential explanations for the delay (using bathroom, charging phone, etc).

So I’m not sure she was ever expecting a ride.

Waiting for baggage claim just in itself. Tedious most times.

 

[Teche]

Yes I have and it is unrelated to the sugar lifestyle in general.

That said, of course it appears that Kenzie was sexually comfortable and sexually active, when you sum up all the variables. My concern is primarily to prevent misrepresentation of the sugar lifestyle and to reduce the projection of sex work being tied to Kenzie's lifestyle. I definitely agree she appears to be open to sexual encounters, but beyond some hashtags and topless photos, we really do not know how she acted behind closed doors with any partners.

Thanks for getting verified. I feel most on this forum do not believe KL is a sex worker. I do believe online dating, SD/SB, and casual hookups potentially have another layer of risks than being introduced to dates through friends, etc.

Any adult female can make choices to meet their needs, however, one needs an emergency exit plan.
Some of WS long-standing members can rattle off a list of people who’ve either dead or missing after being in relationship with someone they’ve met online.

 

[Peppery]

The FBI gets involved in any case where local LE requests.

In a missing person case, as a matter of cooperation, the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) will, at the request of a state or local law enforcement agency, make available the facilities of the FBI Identification Division and the FBI Laboratory.


https://www.justice.gov/jm/criminal-resource-manual-1035-fbi-assistance-missing-persons-cases

 

[LaborDayRN]

@poppydarling....have her friends looked into walking by the waterways, if possible, to see if they can find anything that may have belonged to her? Maybe her luggage, and/or bags? The large luggage would have been hard to rid of, in my opinion.

Along those lines, have nearby dumpster been checked for her bags? If they had already been dumped, the landfill usually has a record of the area those dumpster would have been emptied at the landfill.

 

[PommyMommy]

Ha! We do, which I realized after the fact.


If you look at the timeline, the delay makes sense.

It apparently took a while for her to get off the plane, she had to walk to baggage claim, and then she had to wait for her bag to come off. She likely had to wait a few minutes for her Lyft to arrive as well.

We were confused until yesterday, as there were lots of potential explanations for the delay (using bathroom, charging phone, etc).

So I’m not sure she was ever expecting a ride.

31 minutes from the gate to the Lyft. I think the Lyft was the plan all along. Makes the most sense to me, anyway. MOO

 

[wary]

Hatch Park is not a very impressive or attractive park. There is really only one long strip of parking, with some other spots back a bit by the tennis courts. I had envisioned more secluded parking.

It’s highly unlikely (IMHOO) that there were any other vehicles in that lot. Maybe away from the street lights a vehicle would be hidden, but I’d think the sweep of the Lyft car’s headlights would reveal a general body type and color ( white sedan, dark large SUV) so I think LE has some general idea of the vehicle. And all the parking in spaces faces the same way - so was the vehicle parked in a space, or had it just pulled inside along the road?

This isn’t a lover’s lane kind of place, either. Right next to a freeway, flat, exposed, apartment complex across the street.

It’s a place to get in the car and drive away from.

It gives me the creeps.

Actually, I fell in love with it, from the first time I saw it in Google Maps. No dark secluded woodlands, no rushing river—just flat and plain—easy to believe that the police could check it and clear it. I’m loving it for all the reasons that it gives you the creeps. It brings clarity to the issue.

 

[Seattle1]

Regarding phone plan, I believe if she were on her parents phone plan the police would not need a warrant, as the parents would grant permission. A warrant is needed bc they are accessing ML without her consent.

While an owner may voluntarily hand over their phone/device to LE, and also request their personal calling records, I believe LE still requires a warrant for the type of information they need to conduct a diligent investigation including tower dump, etc.

MOO

 

[jdog17]

We agree, I see. BBM

She arrives, happy to see someone (who she clearly knows). Gets in person's car, phone is quickly turned off. Why? She isn't going to do it herself. The most likely explanation is there is an immediate argument/conflict/crime and other person takes phone away, disables it or tells her to do so, under duress. There is zero chance, it seems to me, that she would get in the car and turn off her phone. It's possible she could have turned it off if the other person asked her to, but that isn't reassuring either.

Not sure what "drawing suspicion" means in this case. Unless someone is minute-to-minute tracking her whereabouts, there is no one to notice in real time that a phone is turned off. If you harm/kidnap someone the first move is to subdue her, then turn off/hide/discard the phone.