CA CA - Barbara Thomas, 69, from Bullhead City AZ, disappeared in Mojave desert, 12 July 2019 #2

[katydid23]

Have we ever received confirmation she was even there?

Feel free to answer my rhetorical question.

Reportedly, there is evidence that she left her home with her husband that morning, to go camping.
And it is thought that he has a timestamped photo of her, from that day in the desert. per the VI...

 

[MsBetsy]

Well, I kinda thought it was the husband immediately suggesting she had been abducted that created the speculation that she had been abducted.

It was probably a little of both, since the other missing case happened just before she disappeared.

He is also the only one who has said in both of his interviews that LE is treating him as a suspect and that he didn't pass a polygraph test.

He doesn't seem to be making a very good case for himself. Imo

 

[wary]

Reportedly, there is evidence that she left her home with her husband that morning, to go camping.
And it is thought that he has a timestamped photo of her, from that day in the desert. per the VI...

And, LE is making an extremely serious effort to search for her, in a place that would be consistent with her getting lost on that walk, or consistent with foul play while she was out on that walk. We don’t know what evidence LE has.

 

[PommyMommy]

Well, I kinda thought it was the husband immediately suggesting she had been abducted that created the speculation that she had been abducted.

It was as far as I'm concerned. Maybe SBCSO has seen speculation based on the SP case on their SM page or something. Who knows.

Have we ever received confirmation she was even there?

Feel free to answer my rhetorical question.

Not from LE. VI's opinion:

Unfortunately this is my own opinion. I can only confirm Robbie's family told me he was going through the photos with detectives, and was unavailable to speak on the occasion I tried to get through to him. I deduce that his story and the photos, particularly the well referenced 360 photo, has Barbara on the scene at the correct time. Otherwise, with no proof of her on the scene, why would they spend 9 days searching? To prove she isn't there?


Strongly feel Robbie has provided substantial evidence of Barbs being there that day, within his stated timeline.

 

[MsBetsy]

And, LE is making an extremely serious effort to search for her, in a place that would be consistent with her getting lost on that walk, or consistent with foul play while she was out on that walk. We don’t know what evidence LE has.

It seems like they definitely think she was there.
In the video of the dogs searching it looked like the light colored dog picked up her trail. Unless that's how they act when they follow any scent they pick up.

Whatever it was, that dog looked like he was up to some serious business. Imo

 

[GordianKnot]

Have we ever received confirmation she was even there?

Feel free to answer my rhetorical question.

I love fielding tough rhetorical questions, so I'll go ahead and take a stab at this one:

"That's a negative, Ghost Rider."

We do not have confirmation BT was there when she disappeared.

Unless, of course, you consider her husband's account to be verified confirmation?

Answering a rhetorical question with a rhetorical question.

Also, I think I should be awarded bonus points for working a Top Gun quote into my answer.

JMO.

 

[IceIce9]

Did she commonly wear a bikini when she hiked in the dessert? Or was this the first time?

 

[Tallulah. Lakkey]

Just that jumble of boulders that they were searching yesterday could take considerable time to sort through (so many crannies). That presumes that she, after leaving her husband because she wanted to go to the RV, instead got off trail and headed (back) to the rocks (passing where he was?) or went on to distant rocks past their RV (but they seem to be searching near the trail to the Granite Hills, which is the walk I assume they took).

So...she'd have to be really disoriented (or pissed off) to have taken off for those rocks instead of just going back to the RV. There's enough scrub and enough bends in that dirt road/trail that he could have lost sight of her quickly. He just doesn't seem to ever say how long he stayed out there photographing rocks.

Those of you who have been following missing person stories closely for longer than me...what's your take on his video appearance(s)? Why isn't he at a campground closer to where his wife was lost? If LE considers him a POI (as he seems to say) they would ban him from the search area. Is it possible he was told to go home and remain in contact? Are there other missing persons cases like this one?

@10ofRods iirc @dbdb11 stated that RT was asked not to be at the scene by LE so as not to mess up the dog's smell or throw them off track. But I believe he also said that RT was going back nightly searching for her.
Honestly his mannerisms during his interview make me feel like he may have had a stroke in the past. Also I'm a horrible person when it comes to grief so y'all would think me guilty as all get-out.
Living here in the desert, I know how many people it swallows up on a regular basis that never make the msm news. It's a sad situation all the way around.

 

[MsBetsy]

Did she commonly wear a bikini when she hiked in the dessert? Or was this the first time?

According to the VI it was common for her, as well as carrying a beer. Imo

 

[katydid23]

Did she commonly wear a bikini when she hiked in the dessert? Or was this the first time?

Family has said that she routinely wore bikini tops when walking in the desert. according to VI

 

[Medstudies]

But...if there’s no evidence of either of these two things having happened...? Then maybe it’s one of the first two options, abduction or getting lost, just with no evidence?

Right? But have they really investigated the two other possibilities yet?

I would think that those other avenues have not yet been investigated as thoroughly as the search effort in the Mojave.

After all, as reported by RT, BT disappeared there, and he even stated that perhaps she had been abducted. He did not state he thought she had ran off. He also didn’t speculate that she disappeared prior to arriving there.

I’m guessing there now are teams scrutinizing bank, phone, and GPS data, as well as CCTV along their travelled route and interviewing friends, neighbors, colleagues. To see if she had a reason to disappear- before her planned trip to Hong Kong. Or if someone had motive to disappear her.

Any likelihood the FBI will be brought in?

Edit: grammar- not that it is much better.

 

[RANCH]

That leaves 2 options that I can think of:

--She left with someone, voluntarily

--She was disposed of by someone, then reported missing

What about leaving with someone involuntarily?

 

[katydid23]

What about leaving with someone involuntarily?

That would be abduction. And that is the 1st option, that apparently LE is saying they doubt.

But I don't see how they can clear it off the table completely.

 

[kkdj]

I appreciate the information as well. I too live on the East Coast and I don't do deserts.

I do deserts but only near rivers and lakes. I need to be able to cool down. I am familiar with the area they are searching for her. Personally, I would never go out there on a hot July or August afternoon, but to each their own. I just keep wondering, why there? What was the draw? Were they en route to somewhere else and just made a short stop? Very odd to me.

 

[artsy1]

I haven't seen anything about searchers being out today. The monsoons have started today. We've already been getting the flash flood watch alerts for Joshua Tree and 29 Palms area of the Mojave. MOO is that searchers didn't go out today so they wouldn't get caught in the flash floods.

 

[mamallama]

I do deserts but only near rivers and lakes. I need to be able to cool down. I am familiar with the area they are searching for her. Personally, I would never go out there on a hot July or August afternoon, but to each their own. I just keep wondering, why there? What was the draw? Were they en route to somewhere else and just made a short stop? Very odd to me.

I agree. I have camped in the area but never in July. It’s possible that they were stopping there on their way somewhere else, but it seems like a strange place to stop at that time of day.

 

[10ofRods]

@10ofRods iirc @dbdb11 stated that RT was asked not to be at the scene by LE so as not to mess up the dog's smell or throw them off track. But I believe he also said that RT was going back nightly searching for her.
Honestly his mannerisms during his interview make me feel like he may have had a stroke in the past. Also I'm a horrible person when it comes to grief so y'all would think me guilty as all get-out.
Living here in the desert, I know how many people it swallows up on a regular basis that never make the msm news. It's a sad situation all the way around.

If true, then RT is messing up the search. If what he said in his interviews is true (he is a suspect) then of course they asked him to stay away.

It is sad all round. Of all the possibilities, her going off trail (when not able to get into the RV?) is a real possibility and then she got lost - could be either side of Kelbaker. I read they were search east of Kelbaker at one point, but the area where the dogs were appears to be west, so both sides are searched.

I have had heatstroke (diagnosed) and it was just outside Needles. Naturally, I knew I was hot (in a truck with no A/C, my then-husband had inadvertently? unconsciously? taken the water bottle into the other car). I was driving the hot section after Kingman because neither of us thought he could handle it. Anyway, I was acting euphoric and beaming happily when we arrived in Needles. Heat exhaustion/heat stroke causes a high. That's why desert people like it, and may not notice it happening. My body temperature was 101 or thereabouts and probably on its way up - but it didn't feel like a fever at all.

It troubles me that the VI says the family was told that Robbie got concerned when he hadn't found her "by noon" when it started to heat up (their words). It's possible it was really around 2pm (he called at 3:26 to 911) because that is when a person really notices it's way way hotter than it was at 9 am. I wish we had a better timeline.

This is clearly now a recovery mission and my heart goes out to the family. That includes Robbie, as we have no reason to believe he did anything amiss until we learn more. She might very well have gotten a "second wind," been euphoric and decided to go look for opals or geodes. It wouldn't be the first time someone did that in the desert, to the grief of their family members. She wasn't wearing anything bright, they can't use FLIR, they can only search sources of shade. But she might not have been seeking shade by that point.

 

[GordianKnot]

That would be abduction. And that is the 1st option, that apparently LE is saying they doubt.

But I don't see how they can clear it off the table completely.

Precisely.

That's LE's entire predicament right now. They're in a real quandary here, potentially.

Given the circumstances, there are any number of possible explanations for BT being missing.

I think LE suspects foul play by someone known to her; at least, they can't rule out that possibility right now.

Hence, the reason for the ongoing, exhaustive search efforts.

I don't think they're searching for her out there in that desert because they think she's still alive.

I think they're searching for her so that they can determine the cause of her death.

And, if needed, be able to prove it beyond a reasonable doubt in a court of law.

JMO.

 

[K9Enzo]

It seems like they definitely think she was there.
In the video of the dogs searching it looked like the light colored dog picked up her trail. Unless that's how they act when they follow any scent they pick up.

Whatever it was, that dog looked like he was up to some serious business. Imo

Nah, I see a dog circling back to the handler, probably as instructed. I also see a dog super eager to work. Of course only that handler can speak to their dogs body language and indications of interest. IMO

 

[HopeForTheBest]

I have no strong opinions on any of this; I’m just throwing out some thoughts that might help someone in further brainstorming—or not. All MOO.

First, I am quite failing to understand why what she was wearing matters so much and I’m NOT being hateful. I’m just thinking that there doesn’t seem to be a crowd of people out there in the desert so anyone wearing anything will be noticeable. She is a striking woman in all the photos I saw with, based on what I recall, seemingly distinct, elegant, facial bone structure so it doesn’t seem like she’d be easily mistaken regardless of what she’s wearing even if she did take off down the road.

Next, and I am again NOT being rude or argumentative but ever heard the “When I am old (not saying 69 is old), I shall wear purple” red-hat poem/saying? When I am 69, I hope I wear whatever it is I feel like wearing if I’m in a place where there’s no one much to see me. MOO. Even or maybe especially if it’s scorchingly hot. I don’t know this lady but I can hear some people I know and my future self saying, “I’m 69 and if I want to walk around the desert in a bikini with a beer, I’m going to do it.” Again: I’m not being snide; it’s just a fact. It’s why older women (meaning over 85 maybe) are so refreshing for the world IMHO; at 69, she might be moving toward her own sense of self. MOO.

On the question of the beer can or beverage container, etc., it seems to me that if she did fall into an old mine shaft or whatever, whatever she was holding probably went down the mine or hole or canyon with her.

On the language and words her husband used, it always seems to me that knowing if something is odd like the use of “I” rather than “we” or vice verse requires knowing how the person usually speaks. I hate saying this but many older male relatives of mine DO, unfortunately IMHO, talk about their wives (or daughters, or nieces) in that ownership/authoritative type of way. I don’t think it always means a person is a bully, etc.; I don’t care for it but I see those kinds of terms used by some men who grew up in a time when it was common for where they lived, etc. At the same time, it might indeed indicate more in a given individual. MOO.

Just a few thoughts; I’m not arguing for any likely outcome because IMHO, surprising things happen every day like the man found behind a cooler after years. I just don’t know. I just hope for the best along with you all.