Full disclosure: I haven't been to the bridge area, just the area around there, the roads around there and the cemetery. I'm a pretty big guy and thick-skinned to a degree, but walking to the bridge was not in FD's plan on that specific day, although I'd thought about it. People told me I shouldn't, too. People who have been to the bridge. Besides, I'm afraid of heights and just looking at that bridge kinda scares me.
As an avid outdoorsman and hiker, I think I can relate to what BG was looking for, with regards to terrain. If ever there was a spot along Deer Creek to force the girls to walk to and be killed, he found it. MOO is he had the crime scene scoped out well in advance, days, weeks (more likely), or even months. Not only does this guy hunt people, I think he's an avid outdoorsman/hunter and has powers of observation beyond most folks, per his background and maybe even how he's hard-wired in his mind.
He picked the perfect spot, in advance, he needed privacy like any killer that is similar in their MO that come to my mind. The flat-ish area across the creek from the CS would have been a bad choice. He needed a spot with no clear line-of-sight of much of anything, once I found out exactly where the bodies were found it made perfect sense to me why he picked it. it's in the gorge, it's secluded, there's no regular foot traffic through there to speak of (at least during that time of year), and the berms by the gravel pit and vegetation blocked the view from areas close by. Judging by videos and still shots I've seen, even from across the creek say 100 or so feet away there's a bit of an obscured view.
IK is one killer in recent years that fits a similar profile, most of his victims he found in wooded areas he knew well, in some cases very well, and he knew where he could tell his victims to go so he had the privacy he needed to rape, murder, torture, etc. The story of the couple he interacted with in a secluded area in a park in NH gives me chills, that post reminds me of this case. Creepy stuff:
AK, NY Israel Keyes - Who are all of his victims???
I think the actual crossing of the creek was done for a variety of reasons, some known only to the killer at this point. Some may be personal in nature, I often wonder about this. Crossing the creek to a place already picked out for murder is a new one to me, I've sleuthed hundreds of cases in this region of the country, going back roughly 40 years, and this one is truly "for the books". I don't recall any of those cases being like this one, and the crossing the creek part adds a certain element of weirdness and surprise for me.
Here's Falling Down's version of trying to get inside BG's state of mind, before the murders:
1. Scout out various locations to carry out my fantasy, maybe starting with online resources, forums, etc. Maybe one or more locations I'm already familiar with to some degree.
2. Learn everything I can about those locations, drive to them, walk them, time myself walking from point to point, etc. Maybe talk with some people, ask them questions about those locations.
3. People watch at those locations, use my powers of observation to see how people act, that sort of thing. Watch how people act towards me and interact with me, if that applies.
4. Watch YouTube videos of the areas by where I want to kill, if that applies. (There were YT videos taken on and by MHB in the months previous to the murders. I used one to figure out how to get there, when I drove to there in 2017.
There is no indication a bridge is there via signage in the surrounding areas, you have to know how to get to Delphi, where to park, and where to walk. The sign along 300 is off the road and is not really an "official" municipal or government sign, not that I'm aware of at least. Before the murders, I'd imagine the vast majority of people who drive IN 25 regularly never knew the bridge is right near the highway, locals interviewed said they knew a bridge was there but didn't know how to get to it, and had never been to it.)
5. Practice, maybe many times in advance. Get a feel for the area, the people, the trail users, the gorge, etc.
8. Etc.
This was a well-planned attack, I'm not saying this guy's a genius or criminal mastermind, but I think some things in his background helped him carry out these attacks. I can map out things in my mind pretty well, I picture BG having similar abilities. I think he's terribly obsessive, maybe OCD, I can relate some in that regard (probably explains why I'm drawn to this case and other true crime stuff).
When I first mapped the area around that bridge, I made sure to put the distances in feet, especially the distances from the NW approach to the bridge to the CS, the bridge length, and the distance from the SE end to the CS. I'd bet good money he did the same before the murders, or at least knew the amount of time it took to walk those distances from point-to-point. I was surprised to learn the straight distance from the SE end of the bridge to the CS is roughly 550 feet. Media reports have said the bridge is around a half mile from the CS, from the NW end it's under 3/8 of a mile.
I think BG had this all figured out, and having obsessive issues, maybe even OCD, would have helped him plan and carry out his fantasy.
JMO
