Found Deceased NC - Stephanie Mayorga, 27, & Paige Escalera, 25, Wilmington, 15 Apr 2020

[Knox]

Thank you for sharing, Gardenista.

Thought I would share my notes. I am mostly paraphrasing, but when you see quotation marks, I am quoting Gray. My apologies in advance for any errors or omissions!

According to Paige’s sister, SJ:
1. On April 15th, Stephanie and Paige went to work for “a highly recommended roofing company”;

2. At 7 PM, they got off work;

3. They gave a coworker (a female, whom they had known “for a while”) a ride home (Gray speculates that perhaps she is the one who recommended the roofing company to Paige and Stephanie);

4. After dropping the coworker off at home, they went home;

5. Stephanie and Paige “apparently knew each other for seven years, but how well they knew each other, we don’t know”;

6. Approx. 10:45 PM: They were captured on security camera leaving their apartment. Their apartment is located in a well lit area of the complex;

7. Stephanie was holding a wallet and a cell phone, Paige a beer;

8. Paige’s phone was found on the bed, turned off: “They said it was turned off, not out of battery” [Who are “they”?];

9. They were looking for a dog, but they had no plans of going to get one that night;

10. 10:49 PM: According to bank records, they spent $21 on snacks at a nearby convenience store, K & D’s Mini-Mart. It is the closest one to their apartment. The clerk did not observe anything unusual;

11. They were selling their own watches to make money. They were not making a lot of money. They had two roommates;

12. Gray has been talking to an ex-girlfriend (“just prior to Paige”) of Stephanie’s (he points out that this person is in some of the photos still posted on Stephanie’s Facebook page). According to her, when Stephanie drank, she would “go off the rails.” The ex also shared with Gray Stephanie once said she would kill herself in the bathtub, but she was able to “rescue her.” She went on to say Stephanie punched her in the face one time, promoting a visit to the hospital. It resulted in a cracked eye socket. She also told Gray Stephanie was a little bit controlling;

13. Parking garages and junk yards in the area have been searched;

14. The car belongs to Paige;

Directions from their apartment complex to K & D’s Mini Mart:
خرائط ‪Google‬‏‏

Thank you for summarizing <modsnip>

So they buy snacks and then what? Go for a drive, go meet up with friends? Unfortunately, over two weeks went by before LE really got involved in this case right?

I appreciate SM's ex is willing to share what she knows, but I will weigh that information carefully. The experience she had with Stephanie may have been due to a role she also played in the relationship.

 

[kaseychick9]

10. 10:49 PM: According to bank records, they spent $21 on snacks at a nearby convenience store, K & D’s Mini-Mart. It is the closest one to their apartment. The clerk did not observe anything unusual;
‬‏‏

Thanks for the summary! $21 of snacks at a gas station? There’s a Food Lion within walking distance of this, same side of the street, and a Dollar General right across. JMO If they were selling their own watches for money wouldn’t a grocery store make more sense? I didn’t listen to Gray but are we just assuming all snacks no gas/cigarettes/lottery tickets from the clerk’s statement?

 

[borndem]

Yeah IMO it looks like they are both in comfy clothes heading out somewhere where they don't plan to be gone long. For one, I don't think anyone would purposely leave their cell phone behind if you didn't plan to come back that night (unless she forgot it? But most younger people always know where their phone is). Also, I don't know the ins and outs of COVID restrictions where they live, but there just isn't all that much to do right now, at least where I live. No bars to go hang out at, etc.

Like someone above mentioned, maybe a quick drive to a gas station for snacks or something? And knowing they had a dog and had not left any plan in place for someone to care for that dog, I feel they ran out for a quick errand or maybe even just a drive to get out of the house and had every intention of coming back within an hour or two (or less). MOO.

Very little was open at that time other than what has been the "usual" for most US states -- no clubs, bars, theaters, restaurants, book stores, museums, dept stores, etc., etc. Yes to grocery, pharmacies, etc., and all kinds of places offering "take out/delivery only" type eating places, essentially what we've seen country-wide.

 

[wvredhead]

Thanks for the summary! $21 of snacks at a gas station? There’s a Food Lion within walking distance of this, same side of the street, and a Dollar General right across. JMO If they were selling their own watches for money wouldn’t a grocery store make more sense? I didn’t listen to Gray but are we just assuming all snacks no gas/cigarettes/lottery tickets from the clerk’s statement?

Due to the coronavirus most of the major chains in those parts have been closing earlier than usual so they can restock the shelves and sanitize the stores overnight. My guess is they went to the convenience store because nothing else was open.

 

[inmyhumbleopinion]

Thanks for the summary! $21 of snacks at a gas station? There’s a Food Lion within walking distance of this, same side of the street, and a Dollar General right across. JMO If they were selling their own watches for money wouldn’t a grocery store make more sense? I didn’t listen to Gray but are we just assuming all snacks no gas/cigarettes/lottery tickets from the clerk’s statement?

You are welcome !

It does appear the Food Lion at 45 S Kerr AVE was open until 11 PM, and it’s a 3-minute drive from their apartment:
https://www.foodlion.com/customer-s...social&utm_campaign=coronavirus_letterfrommeg
خرائط ‪Google‬‏‏

But the Dollar General at 68 S Kerr AVE only until 9 PM:
Dollar General

All that Gray mentioned were the snacks (and please correct me if I am wrong, but I don’t believe K & D’s sells gas: خرائط ‪Google‬‏‏).

He did not indicate how Paige’s sister knew what purchases were made.

 

[tarabull]

Stephanie was selling watches on FB. Police is looking into that, possibly a deal that went bad.

Stephanie Mayorga & Paige Escalera Missing: 5 Fast Facts | Heavy.com

RE: Food Lion, FWIW

Snipped from the quoted link under #3...
...After Jenkins shared the missing persons report, a local claimed to have seen Escalera and Mayorga at the Food Lion on Market Street. Jenkins wrote that she and her mother would check out the store’s security cameras.

However, Jenkins wrote on Facebook that “my mom checked the footage and unfortunately, it was not either of them.”

 

[swedeheart]

a little bit more info about the shut down fb page, etc. (live just ended).

 

[MesquiteO21]

‘UNUSUAL’: Newly-engaged North Carolina couple vanish

Newly engaged couple Stephanie Mayorga, 27, and Paige Escalera, 25, vanished on April 15.
''Cops say there were no signs of foul play and most of their property was still in the apartment.

However, Timon cryptically described the two women as “victims.”

Right now, their disappearance is a vexing mystery. Police say they have no idea where the pair went and usual “investigative techniques” of scouring their backgrounds has turned up empty.

Escalera has connections to Spartanburg, South Carolina and it’s possible the pair are lying low there.''

this is really bizarre. Victims but “lying low”? So as in basically they are hiding somewhere out of fear? but then how would they eat if the last bank activity was $21 worth of snacks on the day they were last seen which is now 2 weeks ago? I suppose they could’ve withdrawn money (and/or had cash from a sale?) and that’s just not something that’s being shared right now for some reason. Or...???? Idk

I know he just said possibility, but nevertheless I’m having a real hard time connecting all the dots here.

 

[Yemelyan]

He did not indicate how Paige’s sister knew what purchases were made.

He said that the sister indicated to him that they have family members who are currently (or perhaps previously) in law enforcement and he got the impression that this info was coming either from a defective or from said family members. I'm paraphrasing.

 

[Lusitana]

So, they went to a store to buy snacks. Now, the accident is back on my list again.
I do still have a feeling that they're either alive and don't want to be found for some reason, or that this is a classic case of murder-suicide.

 

[Sillybilly]

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[Iggy2020]

The murder suicide seems kind of out there. It's too bad it took two weeks to start searching. Accident maybe? They look to casual to be a murder suicide. But stranger things have happened...

 

[Lusitana]

The murder suicide seems kind of out there. It's too bad it took two weeks to start searching. Accident maybe? They look to casual to be a murder suicide. But stranger things have happened...

I feel like they looked relaxed and buying snacks doesn't scream "murder-suicide" to me, but the one of the Hart "moms" was buying fruit at a store before driving off a clif with a car full of kids so... nothing really "surprises" me anymore.

 

[Sillybilly]

Definitely some new info in there

Info from Gray Hughes' youtube can be discussed here. Gray is a WS member and Tricia has approved him as a source and we trust his information is well vetted.

On another note, please stop discussing the non-approved Missing FB page or any drama associated with it.

The WS approved Missing Person FB page is the one with family members as Admin.

 

[squareandrabbet]

Thanks for the summary! $21 of snacks at a gas station? There’s a Food Lion within walking distance of this, same side of the street, and a Dollar General right across. JMO If they were selling their own watches for money wouldn’t a grocery store make more sense? I didn’t listen to Gray but are we just assuming all snacks no gas/cigarettes/lottery tickets from the clerk’s statement?

Maybe, with so little cold hard cash in their pockets that they are selling anything not nailed down, they are also on WIC.

In that case, they might choose a non-chain store because non-chain stores might not include line-item descriptions in their cash register coding; in which case I don't think you have to hew to nutritional guidelines. The clerk is supposed to keep you on track vis-a-vis nutritional guidelines, but I lived in the Bronx for a decade and trust me, at the bodegas that just hand you a receipt with dollars and cents on it; no clerk does.

 

[CluelessWonder]

It seems like they went for a little road trip. Perhaps a country cruise during the night or a visit moonlight trip to the beach. I am curious to know if the phone that was "off" was actually off because the battery was drained. I'm sure several unanswered phone calls from friends and family will cause a phone battery to die. In any case, nothing about their behavior that night indicates to me an effort to shut off communication.

 

[borndem]

The footage of the two of them leaving the apartment does not look like it's dark outside. What time does the sunset in Wilmington?

bbm -- Jumping in here -- prolly already said, but sunset in Wilmington is about 7:45 Eastern Daylight Time, so they had a fair amount of time before dark, but few places to go, WRT Covid, other than the usual-type places.

 

[borndem]

Thank you for sharing, Gardenista.

Thought I would share my notes. I am mostly paraphrasing, but when you see quotation marks, I am quoting Gray. My apologies in advance for any errors or omissions!

According to Paige’s sister, SJ:
1. On April 15th, Stephanie and Paige went to work for “a highly recommended roofing company”;

2. At 7 PM, they got off work;

3. They gave a coworker (a female, whom they had known “for a while”) a ride home (Gray speculates that perhaps she is the one who recommended the roofing company to Paige and Stephanie);

4. After dropping the coworker off at home, they went home;

5. Stephanie and Paige “apparently knew each other for seven years, but how well they knew each other, we don’t know”;

6. Approx. 10:45 PM: They were captured on security camera leaving their apartment. Their apartment is located in a well lit area of the complex;

7. Stephanie was holding a wallet and a cell phone, Paige a beer;

8. Paige’s phone was found on the bed, turned off: “They said it was turned off, not out of battery” [Who are “they”?];

9. They were looking for a dog, but they had no plans of going to get one that night;

10. 10:49 PM: According to bank records, they spent $21 on snacks at a nearby convenience store, K & D’s Mini-Mart. It is the closest one to their apartment. The clerk did not observe anything unusual;

11. They were selling their own watches to make money. They were not making a lot of money. They had two roommates;

12. Gray has been talking to an ex-girlfriend (“just prior to Paige”) of Stephanie’s (he points out that this person is in some of the photos still posted on Stephanie’s Facebook page). According to her, when Stephanie drank, she would “go off the rails.” The ex also shared with Gray Stephanie once said she would kill herself in the bathtub, but she was able to “rescue her.” She went on to say Stephanie punched her in the face one time, promoting a visit to the hospital. It resulted in a cracked eye socket. She also told Gray Stephanie was a little bit controlling;

13. Parking garages and junk yards in the area have been searched;

14. The car belongs to Paige;

Directions from their apartment complex to K & D’s Mini Mart:
خرائط ‪Google‬‏‏

Many thanks, @inmyhumbleopinion, for your great post and map (I love maps!). ...

 

[borndem]

Welcome to Websleuths,
Sayana
and
kaseychick9 !!​

 

[hey-Debbie]

It seems like they went for a little road trip. Perhaps a country cruise during the night or a visit moonlight trip to the beach. I am curious to know if the phone that was "off" was actually off because the battery was drained. I'm sure several unanswered phone calls from friends and family will cause a phone battery to die. In any case, nothing about their behavior that night indicates to me an effort to shut off communication.

Does one of them have a young child? WIC is for Women, Infants, and Children. How would you know one of them is on WIC?