CA CA - Barbara Thomas, 69, from Bullhead City AZ, disappeared in Mojave desert, 12 July 2019 #4

[Stripehaven]

Snipped for brevity
Bolding mine

Ita.

This post is directed solely at R.T.:
One would surmise that if you noticed or had any interaction whatsoever with anyone-- you'd have reported it to LE by now !
And you'd certainly have given LE a general idea of what vehicles --- so LE could be on the lookout for a car/suv/truck that had taken Barbara !!!

Afaik; RT hasn't mentioned anyone he flagged down , nor any individual to whom he may have given a description , of which vehicle she might have been abducted with !
Since, after all --RT thinks she was kidnapped.

If he spoke to anyone or saw a vehicle suddenly driving away-- he should have shared this with LE by now.

None of this is making sense.

All I can conclude is this: if something happened to BT elsewhere, it may have been very impulsive. Her absence would require an explanation. She was never going to be found in the area near Kelbaker/Hidden Hill so an alternate story was needed. How about a convenient kidnapping? That story being so far-fetched is what makes me think whatever did happen was impulsive; if it was planned, I’m sure there would be a much better cover story.

 

[Twistinginthewind]

Right, but he apparently told his family that he called around noon, since it was getting hot by that time.

So it's the discrepancy between what was reported in the media and what he told his family that I think is significant.
Why tell them that he called more than three hours earlier?

It's the discrepancy between when RT told BT's family BT disappeared (around noon) and when the 911 call came in (3;26 pm) as confirmed by the LE dispatch records that is significant to me.

What was reported in the media (she went missing around 2;30 pm) was based on the actual time of the 911 call (3;26 pm) minus the 1 hour RT told LE he thought he had been looking for her. LE told the media this based on what RT said about how long (1 hour) he thought she had been missing before he called 911.

There's no telling why RT gave his family a different timeframe from what actually occurred based on the documented 911 call. He must have been confused all around to be giving different times to different people, IDK, JMO.

 

[MsBetsy]

Maybe he didn't realize there were public dispatch logs that would dispute his claims.

I doubt he did.
He may have also been confused about the time, or it was a miscommunication.
We really don't have all the facts. Imo

 

[rkendmar]

ITA, 7 hours is ample time within which to make a 2 hour drive and take a 2.2 mile walk, for RT to look around for BT when she disappeared, and to do other things and go other places, IMO. No info whatsoever on anywhere else they might have been from RT or LE.

Certainly LE has to know exactly where their truck and the cell phone were between 8:15am and when LE arrived at the scene, due to GPS and cell phone pings.

 

[MsBetsy]

It's the discrepancy between when RT told BT's family BT disappeared (around noon) and when the 911 call came in (3;26 pm) as confirmed by the LE dispatch records that is significant to me.

What was reported in the media (she went missing around 2;30 pm) was based on the actual time of the 911 call (3;26 pm) minus the 1 hour RT told LE he thought he had been looking for her. LE told the media this based on what RT said about how long (1 hour) he thought she had been missing before he called 911.

There's no telling why RT gave his family a different timeframe from what actually occurred based on the documented 911 call. He must have been confused all around to be giving different times to different people, IDK, JMO.

Yes, that is the discrepancy that I was referring to. It is the same time that was reported in the media.

 

[DianaElaine]

More pictures .... and also added to media thread.

This is the side they walked .... if she has to cross the road to get back to the camper.

 

[Micheline]

Well, the bottle may have been empty but she still would have been carrying it until she returned, I would think.
It wouldn't matter whether she walked 30 minutes or an hour.
Robert may not have known whether it was half gone, empty, or full. Imo

Robert said she was carrying a beer, his exact words. If finished he would say she was carrying an empty mug because we drank a beer, or put the empty mug in his bag, because it is inconvenient.

If she was still carrying a beer, on the way back 1000 ft away from the RV, they did not walk for an hour, which does matter imo, since walking in that heat for an hour or 15 min is a huge difference. IMO

 

[glamourkitty1922]

Also, well, there'd be a body to drag and dispose of. I guess he co


Accuweather may be going from a regular town (lately wunderground.com has been completely off for my little area).

Needles is lower than Kelso (and I don't know the exact elevation at their coordinates - but...it would have been a few degrees cooler, I'm thinking, than down at Needles).

I was checking at the NOAA site (as directed to by the Kelso Depot Visitor Center) here:

National Weather Service

It says it's using a location called MidHills or something like that - but I didn't read the small print. It's definitely too high in elevation to be accurate for Kelso Depot. Ox Ranch data is still a little too high (but if compared to Essex, the temp would be about half way in between). Here's the link:

OX Ranch California

Ox Ranch says it was 95 degrees that day, Needles was 114, so it was probably around 105 that day (which is what I recall a SAR team member tweeting - I follow a bunch of them, can't now find which one it was). That tweet was from Saturday, though (personal reasons for remembering that). But anyway, Mojave Preserve is (to me) really humane temperature compared to Bullhead/Needles, usually about 10 degrees cooler and even cooler than that at the campground areas. Still hot, though (95 is hot)

Temps in all these places remained at their maximum from around 2 pm to 6 pm...

(Yes, I'm a bit obsessed with weather, many reasons - and with maps, I think that's genetic).

Well, Needles was higher than that, I keep track of the temps. We've had several 119 days this month. Accuweather gets much of their information from the National Weather Service (NOAA). I've lived in the desert a long time. 95 is cool. LOL

 

[Cherwell]

Is this time discrepancy based on one conversation, or has he repeatedly mentioned the earlier time?
Because if it's just one conversation to a single family member, they might have misheard, and then passed on the wrong time when relaying the story to other relatives.

 

[Twistinginthewind]

It was posted that if she did not take a certain turn in the trail & went straight instead she would hit Kelbaker Street - how far a walk would that be? How far would it be from the street back to RV? (assuming she could take that street back to the RV?)

This is just about one of the only scenarios I see wherein she may have been abducted. Walking back along the street to the RV.

Has RT said why BT did not wait for him as he requested - ?

Was she feeling tired, overheated? Not feeling well?

Did they quarrel - ?

Or is this her personality - does her thing, she didn't want to stop & stand around in the heat so she just kept on going....?

JMO

I don't recall seeing anything in MSM or from VI that said RT asked BT to wait for him. Not sure where this came from. In one of the two MSM videos of RT speaking to media about her disappearance below, he simply said "she pulled ahead of me", and in the other he mumbled somewhat and turned his head when saying "she wanted to go back to the RV". JMO from watching these videos and reading all the posts here and MSM articles, unless I missed it. TIA if someone can direct me to that statement.

Husband of Woman Who Vanished During Mojave Desert Hike: 'I Just Want Her Back'

Man says police think he is a suspect in wife's disappearance

 

[slowpoke]

Agree. IMO, it was such a basic statement to make.

I have said the following - hey, wait while I stop to mess with my shoe - my trekking pole - adjust my pack straps - take a pic - stop for a long drink - step off the trail to use the bathroom - catch my breath, etc.

It could be BT being stubborn, as dbdb11 wonders, or her just thinking the picture-taking would be only a few seconds so no need to stop and wait for him, knowing where (or believing she knew) where the camper was.

That mindset would remind me of my husband. As a whole, we get along well, don’t worry, but one of those things he does that aggravates me is not waiting for me, sometimes. For example, we’ll be shopping at the supermarket. He’ll ask me to go grab something from the shelf. I’ll get the item, but when I turn around, he’s already moved on with the shopping cart to another aisle! Sometimes not even in the next aisle, so I’m left having to search around for him while lugging around the grocery item. Yes, a bit thoughtless. He thinks I’m a perfectly capable person, so doesn’t see the point in waiting. Grrr.

Or, is RT certain she heard him say he was stopping to take a pic? Maybe she was already a ways ahead and didn’t hear him? (or maybe she’s hard of hearing?)

 

[oviedo]

I doubt he did.
He may have also been confused about the time, or it was a miscommunication.
We really don't have all the facts. Imo

That's an understatement!! We don't have any facts that I can find other than the dispatch time for the 911 call. IMO

 

[Reasonable & Just]

As they were on the way back from the hill, towards their RV, there was a rock formation Robbie implies they were both interested in. He stopped to take a photo of this rock formation and "asked Barb to stay with me," but she went on ahead anyway. Sounds quite stubborn of her. Perhaps they had some kind of disagreement? In any case, he says she wanted to get back to the RV.

This is the quote, per our Verified Insider. Not - "hold up a minute" or something similar. Plus, she didn't do him the courtesy of staying, according to him. There are a few possibilities here. But she was going to Hong Kong soon, without him. He expressed certainty that she was taken (rather than lost out there), and made a point of it because of her bikini and beer. These words might have been spoken at a different time/context than stated by RT to the family. Or, they may mean nothing.

 

[oceanstarryeyes]

Right, but he apparently told his family that he called around noon, since it was getting hot by that time.

So it's the discrepancy between what was reported in the media and what he told his family that I think is significant.
Why tell them that he called more than three hours earlier?

He said when he seen she wasn’t at the camper he looked around the area and yelled for her. Then he walked back to a cave that they found to see if she had walked back there. He said after he called 911 it took LE two hours to arrive or maybe that’s how long it felt to him. All of that would take around three hours.

 

[dbdb11]

please everyone reading, please like and share this article, share with all your friends on social media please. I am hopeful HLN will be interested in a follow up report if they can see peoples interest in the story.

thank you all!

Bikini-clad hiker missing in the Mojave Desert

 

[merrymary]

More pictures .... and also added to media thread.

This is the side they walked .... if she has to cross the road to get back to the camper.

Problem is...I am not seeing any interesting rock formations that would be worthy of "photo shoot" IMO. However...head a little to the Northwest....now that's what I'm talkin' about! (better when looking from Google maps)

 

[Twistinginthewind]

Certainly LE has to know exactly where their truck and the cell phone were between 8:15am and when LE arrived at the scene, due to GPS and cell phone pings.

Good point. I would think so and hope so, however, that's another tricky thing about driving around and walking out in the middle of the desert; sometimes there is no signal / service, which is why some hikers in remote areas carry satellite phones in case of emergency. IMO

 

[MsBetsy]

He said when he seen she wasn’t at the camper he looked around the area and yelled for her. Then he walked to a cave that they found to see if she had walked back there. He also said after he called 911 it took LE two hours to arrive or maybe that’s how long it felt to him. All of that would take around three hours.

Yes, it seems like a lot of time.
If she were lost and walking around in the desert she could have been miles away by then.
I think I would have called after about 30 minutes. Imo

 

[Kapua]

And therefore, even more need to pee. Yet, peeing out there with the cholla and stuff, not so fun. Here's an article on cholla (which you can see in the SAR pictures, in abundance):

The Cholla Cactus

Everything out there is prickly. The only way I can pee outdoors in that area is near sandstone. I try to avoid the entire issue.

Snipped by me.
Imagine that you are within 1/2 mile of that nice RV pictured in post #380. Surely that deluxe model has a comfy, private little bathroom in it. That's where I'd be heading when nature called. If nature's call was particularly urgent, I am sure a veteran camper would know what to do. MOO

 

[HongKongPhooey]

Genuine question: is there any factual reason why the majority of us sleuthers seem to be assuming if (being frank) RT is responsible for her disappearance, it happened in the nearby vicinity where he called it in?

What I'm thinking, hypothetically this could have been planned well in advance. Possibly linked to forthcoming trip to HK, was there a risk of something being confided for instance. So if it was well planned, her demise could have happened anywhere along that route, or another route even. I dont know if you have ANPR cameras or dashcams widely used in the US? What would the risk of being seen in a different location be? He could know the area very well, from past trips. He would know somewhere secluded, with good hiding places.

Just MO.