CA CA - Jeff Joseph, 45, Hoopa, 21 June 2014

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Shiressleuth said:
Who is CH and can he be sleuthed?
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The link to Mathew Dix’ thread has most of the info on him. But in connection with Jeff, according to this article, he is someone who might have seen Jeff before he disappeared. He’s technically not a POI or suspect, so I’m on thin ice mentioning him on either thread, and probably shouldn’t have. So it might be best to drop it. Sorry. Frustration with these dead-end cases sends me over the edge sometimes! :mad:

Several people who might have seen or spoken to him while he was here have failed to respond to numerous attempts to communicate with them, Kaplan said

In an effort to get those people to contact the investigator or police, Joseph’s family have turned to the media for help. One individual is Robert Chris Hunter. Kaplan believes Hunter may have met with Joseph. He is currently wanted by the Trinity County Sheriff’s Department — see photo from his wanted poster on the right — and efforts to contact him have been fruitless.

$10,000 Reward for Information About Missing Man Jeff Joseph
 
Has there been any new information in the Jeff Joseph case? Any new searches with fall here and trees shedding their leaves?

The fact that he seemed to be driving before he and his green Toyota Rav4 disappeared has always made me think this case could be some type of accident, even though I know the area where he disappeared is known for drug activity. According to what I read on here his cell phone pinged off the Bloody Camp cell tower at 11:20am on the day he disappeared, and he had not gotten a lost of rest the night before(according to news reports I read). I think this case will be solved someday.
 
somequestions said:
Has there been any new information in the Jeff Joseph case? Any new searches with fall here and trees shedding their leaves?

The fact that he seemed to be driving before he and his green Toyota Rav4 disappeared has always made me think this case could be some type of accident, even though I know the area where he disappeared is known for drug activity. According to what I read on here his cell phone pinged off the Bloody Camp cell tower at 11:20am on the day he disappeared, and he had not gotten a lost of rest the night before(according to news reports I read). I think this case will be solved someday.
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I haven’t seen anything new except some posts on the FB page. Nothing about new searches.
Help Find Jeff Joseph

I agree that an accident is certainly possible. Family seems to believe it’s foul play, partly based on the lack of cooperation by Jeff’s associates. I certainly hope it will be solved soon!
 
Has anyone ever created a timeline of Jeff Joseph's trip from the night before, when he left up until his last known general location on June 21, 2014(supposedly the 11:20 am Bloody Camp cell phone tower ping)?

Sometimes what people do leading up to their disappearance is as important as the disappearance itself. I think Jeff Joseph's case would be a good case for the show Disappeared.
 
somequestions said:
Has anyone ever created a timeline of Jeff Joseph's trip from the night before, when he left up until his last known general location on June 21, 2014(supposedly the 11:20 am Bloody Camp cell phone tower ping)?

Sometimes what people do leading up to their disappearance is as important as the disappearance itself. I think Jeff Joseph's case would be a good case for the show Disappeared.
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Good idea. Here’s the original article with some info. Quoting:

According to his brother, David Joseph, Jeff flew into California on the 16th. Then after visiting with family until the 20th, he told an uncle that he was headed to Arcata and then afterwards, he said, he would go on to Eureka. He never arrived at his destination.

Jeff’s last cell phone call was on the morning of June 21. (He last accessed his email about the same time.) The family was able to access his phone records and believes he made the cell phone call from Redding.

Louisiana Man Believed Missing Was Headed to Humboldt County

More times from this article. Quoting:

Joseph’s phone records show cell phone tower pinging that is consistent with him driving up I-5 on the 20th and apparently stopping in Sacramento for some time.

Then, later, the cell tower records show a ping from near Williams. But Cook says they don’t know what route he took from there. Cook said that Joseph made a call to an acquaintance on the East Coast about 7:30 a.m. on the 21st and shortly later texted a friend in Louisiana. The first acquaintance stated that Joseph said he driven all night from Southern California, he was in good spirits and “killing time” waiting to meet up with someone. The next ping from Joseph’s phone comes about 11:20 a.m. from the Bloody Camp Cell Tower. The cell tower is about 20 miles from Joseph’s intended destination and provides coverage for a large area.

There has been no phone activity since 11:20 on the morning of the 21st, Cook noted. But the phone records have been helpful. “It narrows down our search somewhat,” Cook explained.
BBM
Missing Man's Phone Last Pinged off Bloody Camp Cell Tower Near Hoopa

In the post linked below, I discuss the times mentioned in the article above and show that the time from the 7:30 a.m. phone call (assumed to be from Redding) to the 11:20 ping would mean that he would have driven 299. Other routes would take longer.

CA - Jeff Joseph, 45, Hoopa, 21 June 2014
 
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Lilibet said:
Good idea. Here’s the original article with some info. Quoting:

According to his brother, David Joseph, Jeff flew into California on the 16th. Then after visiting with family until the 20th, he told an uncle that he was headed to Arcata and then afterwards, he said, he would go on to Eureka. He never arrived at his destination.

Jeff’s last cell phone call was on the morning of June 21. (He last accessed his email about the same time.) The family was able to access his phone records and believes he made the cell phone call from Redding.

Louisiana Man Believed Missing Was Headed to Humboldt County

More times from this article. Quoting:

Joseph’s phone records show cell phone tower pinging that is consistent with him driving up I-5 on the 20th and apparently stopping in Sacramento for some time.

Then, later, the cell tower records show a ping from near Williams. But Cook says they don’t know what route he took from there. Cook said that Joseph made a call to an acquaintance on the East Coast about 7:30 a.m. on the 21st and shortly later texted a friend in Louisiana. The first acquaintance stated that Joseph said he driven all night from Southern California, he was in good spirits and “killing time” waiting to meet up with someone. The next ping from Joseph’s phone comes about 11:20 a.m. from the Bloody Camp Cell Tower. The cell tower is about 20 miles from Joseph’s intended destination and provides coverage for a large area.

There has been no phone activity since 11:20 on the morning of the 21st, Cook noted. But the phone records have been helpful. “It narrows down our search somewhat,” Cook explained.
BBM
Missing Man's Phone Last Pinged off Bloody Camp Cell Tower Near Hoopa

In the post linked below, I discuss the times mentioned in the article above and show that the time from the 7:30 a.m. phone call (assumed to be from Redding) to the 11:20 ping would mean that he would have driven 299. Other routes would take longer.

CA - Jeff Joseph, 45, Hoopa, 21 June 2014
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I looked at your post regarding possible routes and have to agree that 299 appears the most logical route to take to get to his destination, either in Arcata or Eureka. The problem is we really have no idea where Jeff Joseph might have gone after he left the Redding area. Maybe he decided to do some sight seeing? According to google maps it only takes about 3 hours to travel from Redding, CA to the Arcata/Eureka, CA area if you drive straight through without stopping(using 299).

Since the cell phone either died or went off sometime after 11:20 am, I would personally would want to search anywhere 299 crosses or is close to a body of water from where his cell phone would have entered the Bloody Camp reception area to his destination in Arcata or Eureka. Was this done?

If this was done and assuming police scoured Rt. 299 and did not find his green Toyota Rav 4 above ground, I think I would a lot more likely to agree that there might have been foul play involved in his disappearance. Whatever the answer is, it is a very strange disappearance.
 
Yes, it certainly is a strange and sad disappearance.

Along 299 after Willow Creek it is quite high above the creeks below, winding and steep. A crash along there is possible. There isn’t another river until the Mad River just past the town of Blue Lake, when the road levels out more. I don’t know for sure if his friends searched this area.

If Jeff didn’t go toward Arcata, he would have crossed the Trinity River at Hoopa and the Klamath River at Weitchpec along Highway 96 after leaving 299 at Willow Creek. The highway follows those rivers closely. At that time of year, I’m not sure the river would have been swift enough to carry his car very far, but anything is possible. I believe his friends searched along 299 from Redding for signs of a crash and helicopters searched closer to his destination after the leaves fell in the autumn. Of course, if his car is upside down, covered in leaves it would be hard to spot.

I really don’t think he went to Arcata/Eureka. If he went straight from Redding at 7:30 to Arcata (almost 3 hours) and turned right around and went to Weitchpec (1 hour 20 minutes), it likely would have been later than 11:20 when his phone pinged off the Bloody Camp cell tower near Hoopa, about 20 miles from his destination past Weitchpec. It’s an hour from Arcata to Hoopa at best...awful road. I suppose if the Bloody Camp tower reaches as far as Willow Creek (44 minutes from Arcata), it’s possible. But it would still be a quick turn around in Arcata and I don’t think he would want to drive that road again without a break.

If he didn’t crash in some hidden place, it could be that he met with the person he was planning to meet sometime after he was on the phone at 7:30. Who and where that person was is the mystery, although his family has named someone (mentioned earlier on the thread). Just because his phone pinged from a tower near Hoopa, doesn’t mean Jeff was with his phone. :(

Missing Man's Phone Last Pinged off Bloody Camp Cell Tower Near Hoopa
 
Lilibet said:
Yes, it certainly is a strange and sad disappearance.

Along 299 after Willow Creek it is quite high above the creeks below, winding and steep. A crash along there is possible. There isn’t another river until the Mad River just past the town of Blue Lake, when the road levels out more. I don’t know for sure if his friends searched this area.

If Jeff didn’t go toward Arcata, he would have crossed the Trinity River at Hoopa and the Klamath River at Weitchpec along Highway 96 after leaving 299 at Willow Creek. The highway follows those rivers closely. At that time of year, I’m not sure the river would have been swift enough to carry his car very far, but anything is possible. I believe his friends searched along 299 from Redding for signs of a crash and helicopters searched closer to his destination after the leaves fell in the autumn. Of course, if his car is upside down, covered in leaves it would be hard to spot.

I really don’t think he went to Arcata/Eureka. If he went straight from Redding at 7:30 to Arcata (almost 3 hours) and turned right around and went to Weitchpec (1 hour 20 minutes), it likely would have been later than 11:20 when his phone pinged off the Bloody Camp cell tower near Hoopa, about 20 miles from his destination past Weitchpec. It’s an hour from Arcata to Hoopa at best...awful road. I suppose if the Bloody Camp tower reaches as far as Willow Creek (44 minutes from Arcata), it’s possible. But it would still be a quick turn around in Arcata and I don’t think he would want to drive that road again without a break.

If he didn’t crash in some hidden place, it could be that he met with the person he was planning to meet sometime after he was on the phone at 7:30. Who and where that person was is the mystery, although his family has named someone (mentioned earlier on the thread). Just because his phone pinged from a tower near Hoopa, doesn’t mean Jeff was with his phone. :(

Missing Man's Phone Last Pinged off Bloody Camp Cell Tower Near Hoopa
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I think you have established quite well the particular routes Jeff Joseph may have taken that day before he disappeared. The mapping I looked at really makes it look like a rather rugged yet scenic area. My only hesitation to any theories regarding foul play is that there are a lot of common sense things that need to be eliminated, and THEN I think the foul play theory becomes more likely to me.

According to what I read about his year Toyota Rav4 that he was driving, one of the problems people complained about on those vehicles was the brakes. And then we have to take into account that it is not drunk driving that kills the most people. It is sleepy driving.

Maybe some company might volunteer sonar to search all of the particular areas his Toyota Rav4 could have gone into the water(based on your established routes and the assumption his phone was on him when he might have crashed)? Once this is done, then I think as an investigator you can try to eliminate the accident scenario. You should always keep open to every possibility, but I think a good detective starts with what is most likely to have happened to Jeff Joseph(or what they think is most likely to have happened to Jeff Joseph). And they go from there.
 
somequestions said:
I think you have established quite well the particular routes Jeff Joseph may have taken that day before he disappeared. The mapping I looked at really makes it look like a rather rugged yet scenic area. My only hesitation to any theories regarding foul play is that there are a lot of common sense things that need to be eliminated, and THEN I think the foul play theory becomes more likely to me.

According to what I read about his year Toyota Rav4 that he was driving, one of the problems people complained about on those vehicles was the brakes. And then we have to take into account that it is not drunk driving that kills the most people. It is sleepy driving.

Maybe some company might volunteer sonar to search all of the particular areas his Toyota Rav4 could have gone into the water(based on your established routes and the assumption his phone was on him when he might have crashed)? Once this is done, then I think as an investigator you can try to eliminate the accident scenario. You should always keep open to every possibility, but I think a good detective starts with what is most likely to have happened to Jeff Joseph(or what they think is most likely to have happened to Jeff Joseph). And they go from there.
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It is a very rugged area and you make a good point about bad brakes and driving sleepy. One lapse can take you off the road. I was always terrified on some parts of it. I believe that the initial theory was an accident. I doubt sonar was ever tried and that’s a good idea.

I think the theory shifted to foul play because Jeff’s friends and partners at the grow site were not particularly cooperative. But refusing to allow a search isn’t proof of foul play. There may be other reasons his family thinks he was murdered, of course. Jeff was in a dangerous line of work in a dangerous area. Either scenario requires a car to disappear along with Jeff.
 
Lilibet said:
It is a very rugged area and you make a good point about bad brakes and driving sleepy. One lapse can take you off the road. I was always terrified on some parts of it. I believe that the initial theory was an accident. I doubt sonar was ever tried and that’s a good idea.

I think the theory shifted to foul play because Jeff’s friends and partners at the grow site were not particularly cooperative. But refusing to allow a search isn’t proof of foul play. There may be other reasons his family thinks he was murdered, of course. Jeff was in a dangerous line of work in a dangerous area. Either scenario requires a car to disappear along with Jeff.
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And it is that last part of the scenario about the car that has always made me think this could possibly be an accident.

I recently watched a Crimewatch Daily episode about 5 missing women in Humboldt County, located in the Emerald Triangle. It certainly is possible too that Jeff Joseph is the victim of foul play. The whole area seems to have a lot of criminal activity and missing persons cases.

I guess the longer Jeff Joseph and his Toyota Rav4 are not found, the more likely it is that he was the victim of some sort of foul play. It would look kind of bad for the police department if after over 4 years they find Jeff Joseph and his Toyota Rav4. But if I was a detective on the case I would want to make absolutely sure that every possible area was searched on the possibility that it could have been an accident. Because like you wrote, it was not just Jeff Joseph that disappeared.
 
In order to search for Jeff Joseph if his vehicle went off the road, I think you would need to look for an area that would be relatively close to the water with little tree cover alongside the road and no barrier to going over the side of a hill. It is assumed his Toyota Rav4 was traveling 299 in California since that is the road most likely to take him directly to his destination.

I came up with an example of the areas I would look at. At address 125759 CA-299 west of Salyer and south of Willow Creek on google maps there is a call box near an area with little tree cover lining the road and the river down below. In fact if you look closely one of the small trees does not have any leaves on it for some reason. That probably does not mean anything because of when the google map picture was taken.

Anyway, this is an example of the type of area where I think searching should take place because if Jeff Joseph fell asleep while driving then there would not be skid marks until he is off road. I thought I would submit my mapping coordinate as an example of an area to search.
 
Murder cases are bad, but missing cases persons are sad. Whenever I go into Walmart, I see all these missing persons posters and wonder what has happened to the person. Was the person murdered or did they disappear voluntarily? Or if they were in a dangerous area like Jeff Joseph, was it an accident and they just have not been found? I know many missing persons are eventually found, but what about those that are not? There are always discussion about murder cases that get solved years later, but you do not hear as much about missing persons cases unless the person is found alive.

With a murder case there is usually evidence and suspects to discuss, but with a missing person's case it is hard to discuss the case until you know what happened to the individual involved.

And the missing person, like their poster, just fades away.
 
somequestions said:
Murder cases are bad, but missing cases persons are sad. Whenever I go into Walmart, I see all these missing persons posters and wonder what has happened to the person. Was the person murdered or did they disappear voluntarily? Or if they were in a dangerous area like Jeff Joseph, was it an accident and they just have not been found? I know many missing persons are eventually found, but what about those that are not? There are always discussion about murder cases that get solved years later, but you do not hear as much about missing persons cases unless the person is found alive.

With a murder case there is usually evidence and suspects to discuss, but with a missing person's case it is hard to discuss the case until you know what happened to the individual involved.

And the missing person, like their poster, just fades away.
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It’s very sad and leaves so many families wondering and grieving. And often young children are left without a parent.

Even with a named suspect (as in my signature case), there is only so much that can be said until there is an arrest. It’s really frustrating. I would rather think Jeff was an accident victim rather than a victim of foul play. I hope we find out someday soon.
 
Lilibet said:
The trailer to the new show “Murder Mountain” about those missing in the Emerald Triangle was posted on the FB page for Jeff. Murder Mountain actually refers to a very specific area near Alderpoint, several miles from Garberville in southern Humboldt County. It seems to have been adopted to refer to the whole area.

Video at link:
WATCH: The Trailer for 'Murder Mountain: Welcome to Humboldt County,' the New Docuseries on Fusion TV That Premieres Sunday, Has Been Released
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It was just released on Netflix for all those who may have missed it on Fusion. Very well done. It certainly has my attention. So many missing in this area :(
 
As this case nears its 5 year anniversary, Jeff Joseph is still missing.

FYI, Jeff Joseph's last phone call was thought to have been made from Redding, CA, and he was on his way to Arcata, CA. It is thought that somewhere in the Hoopa, CA area he disappeared while on his trip. This drive from Redding to Arcata, CA runs mostly along CA 299 for about 2 hours, 45 minutes and covers nearly 140 miles. The last cell phone ping is thought to have been from the area of Bald Hills Road(also known as Bloody Camp road) area. This last ping was at about 11:20 am on June 21, 2014. He was driving a green 1998 Toyota Rav4.

If you want to hear and see Jeff Joseph there is a youtube video if you type "Jeff Joseph Organica". If I did not know that he was involved in the "drug" trade, I would never have thought it. He comes off more as a businessman who was looking to try to get the medical marijuana industry regulated in order to help others who needed medicine.
 
somequestions said:
As this case nears its 5 year anniversary, Jeff Joseph is still missing.

FYI, Jeff Joseph's last phone call was thought to have been made from Redding, CA, and he was on his way to Arcata, CA. It is thought that somewhere in the Hoopa, CA area he disappeared while on his trip. This drive from Redding to Arcata, CA runs mostly along CA 299 for about 2 hours, 45 minutes and covers nearly 140 miles. The last cell phone ping is thought to have been from the area of Bald Hills Road(also known as Bloody Camp road) area. This last ping was at about 11:20 am on June 21, 2014. He was driving a green 1998 Toyota Rav4.

If you want to hear and see Jeff Joseph there is a youtube video if you type "Jeff Joseph Organica". If I did not know that he was involved in the "drug" trade, I would never have thought it. He comes off more as a businessman who was looking to try to get the medical marijuana industry regulated in order to help others who needed medicine.
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Bald Hills Road starts at HW 101 in Orick and goes through Redwood National Park and then the Yurok Reservation to join State Route 169 at Martins Ferry, 5 miles down River from Weitchpec where the Trinity River joins the Klamath and Route 169 joins HW 96.

If the cell pinged near Bald Hills Road, the nearest cell tower is on the hill east of Hoopa. Joseph would have left 299 (Highway from Redding to Arcata) 100 miles west of Redding at Willow Creek to travel down the Trinity River and through the Hupa Reservation and onto the Hupa and then Yurok Reservations. To get to Bald Hills Road from Hoopa one usually drives down the Trinity to Weitchpec on 96 and then down the Klamath on Route 169 to Martins Ferry. However, Dowd Road and Bloody Camp Road are back roads, partially gravel not paved, that take one direct from HW 96 in Hoopa to intersect Bald Hills Road.

Cell tower coverage is not good. Cell strength is weak down River to Martins Ferry and non-existent on the dead ended (not a through road to HW 101) Route 169 below Martins Ferry and there is no cell service up the Klamath from Weitchpec for about 50 miles to Happy Camp. The terrain is steep, heavily wooded river canyons with many former logging roads and isolated parcels. The area is known for lawlessness and pot grows, but not as many now as once because the Yurok Tribe is against pot grows and there are not legal grows not as remote.

To me the key to finding a path to Joseph is to find his Toyota vehicle. There are many opportunities to hide the vehicle or the vehicle could be not yet found from driving off a highway into a River or off a road and not yet found. There is much crime in the area and not much LE, the area is vast, heavily vegetated, and rugged. BTW I am local and know the mountains and roads here well.
 
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