AZ AZ - James Daniels Jr, 42, from WY, moving friend w/refrig trk b/w Kingman & Wickenburg 21 Aug 2021

[Advocate4]

Ok, so the plot thicken with this question.

(snipped for brevity)

The next day around 8 or 9 am the mutual friend received a message stating he would be there in an hour and to let her daughter know. When asked why he did not show he claims to have been "getting the trailer down off the mountain" and that he broke his cell phone by running over it on accident and broke his foot as well..........

There are no mountains in AZ93 between milepost 144 and Wickenburg, or between Wickenburg and Phoenix (assuming he drove 60 between Wick and PHX which is the usual route if he was coming down 93 to Wick). The roadways traverse flat land. So this part of his story is bogus if he was in fact on 93.

That week was very hot in that area of AZ. Highs ranging around 107. If there was no AC in the driver's cab of the truck, or if JD sat in the cab with the engine and AC off to save gas, he could have become dehydrated and disoriented by the heat. If he wandered away from the truck and the highway in that condition, he could have collapsed out in the brush and not survived.

If the truck was stopped near milepost 144, there is a campground called Burro Creek at about milepost 141 -- within walking distance. Might contact management there to find out if anyone there has any knowledge or info.

 

[Helloyou]

Was there any communication from James Daniels to anyone during the period he was left with the trailer?

If the friend’s cell phone was smashed how was he communicating with the other friend and the daughter that he was going to be late?

Has he offered any explanation for the broken foot?

 

[penelopemcswain]

@GonzoGirl5 how’s it going? Please let us know if there’s anything we can do to help with the search

 

[amoreau25]

Yes, that’s very strange. It looks like they were heading to Phoenix instead for some reason. Maybe to see the friend the guy stayed with? Or other friends. Is there anyone else in the Phoenix area you could talk to who knows JD or the other guy?

Highway 93 is a good cut over from Interstate 15. Highway 93 cuts the need to go in to Los Angeles in the Inland empire to reach the 10 freeway. when I moved to Phoenix a few years ago from the California high desert I took 93 in a U-Haul to avoid the spaghetti bowl that is the 215 the 15 and a 10 interchange around Pomona and Ontario California.

If they were coming from Lake Tahoe they would’ve taken US 395 to Highway 58 to the 15 and then to the 40 in Barstow.. once in Kingman you would take 93 on a diagonal down into the Phoenix metro to connect to the 10 freeway which would’ve taken them east to Mississippi.

 

[Zephyrwolf]

GG a quick question that perhaps someone already asked and you’ve answered. My sincerest apology if that’s the case.
You said you found the truck by using the VIN. how did you get the VIN? Thank you and best of luck.

 

[llcr]

Maybe I've missed it, but would like to know some basics on JD such as age, height, approximate weight, hair color, eye color. Also, is he a smoker? The initial flyer has pix but doesn't answer these questions.

And the dog -- what breed if you know or what it looks like mostly, size, color, male or female?

Wickenburg and the area around it is mostly ranches of different sizes, plus there is a lot of Fed and State open land leased out for cattle grazing and other uses. The dog might show up and be turned over to local Humane Society, for example, but where the dog showed up might clue to a search area for JD.

The dog is a female Cavalier King Charles spaniel. Female, white and brown.

 

[GonzoGirl5]

Highway 93 is a good cut over from Interstate 15. Highway 93 cuts the need to go in to Los Angeles in the Inland empire to reach the 10 freeway. when I moved to Phoenix a few years ago from the California high desert I took 93 in a U-Haul to avoid the spaghetti bowl that is the 215 the 15 and a 10 interchange around Pomona and Ontario California.

If they were coming from Lake Tahoe they would’ve taken US 395 to Highway 58 to the 15 and then to the 40 in Barstow.. once in Kingman you would take 93 on a diagonal down into the Phoenix metro to connect to the 10 freeway which would’ve taken them east to Mississippi.

Totally realize the route they could have taken but it isn't the route they should have taken. Also, in an earlier thread I believe it was where I stated that he was layer back up on I40 at Holbrook where he sold some of his belongings to a pawn shop and then again on I40 in New Mexico Moriarty I believe was the name. So the 93 remains completely senseless. The person he stayed with in Phoenix was the daughter of a friend of ours. He did not intend to go there. He was communicating with this friend during the incident and out of concern for him offered for him to go there to get some rest and regroup. It was never a plan and he showed up a day after he said he was going to. So I hope that adds some clarification for you.

 

[GonzoGirl5]

There are no mountains in AZ93 between milepost 144 and Wickenburg, or between Wickenburg and Phoenix (assuming he drove 60 between Wick and PHX which is the usual route if he was coming down 93 to Wick). The roadways traverse flat land. So this part of his story is bogus if he was in fact on 93.

That week was very hot in that area of AZ. Highs ranging around 107. If there was no AC in the driver's cab of the truck, or if JD sat in the cab with the engine and AC off to save gas, he could have become dehydrated and disoriented by the heat. If he wandered away from the truck and the highway in that condition, he could have collapsed out in the brush and not survived.

If the truck was stopped near milepost 144, there is a campground called Burro Creek at about milepost 141 -- within walking distance. Might contact management there to find out if anyone there has any knowledge or info.

Exactly my thoughts on the mountain nonsense. I've been through there QUOTE a few times. I have not been previously aware of the campground you mentioned. I am going to give that a shot. Thank you. That is very very useful. Also, I do fear the collapse in tbe desert thing. However; the Sheriff's department has flown a drone over the entire area in question and have not come up with anything unfortunately. So that was a bummer. Sort of. At least he hadn't succumbed to the desert heat. Though the person who called the truck in reported there being a male in the road disoriented. When the trooper arrived there was nobody there. Only the dog. Wtf......ugh. this is getting so hard and very depressing.

 

[GonzoGirl5]

Thank you for your kind words and for taking the time to look around the web for him. I know that they finally got him up in Arizona on Facebook. I've been contacting the news stations about him trying to get them to run his missing person's flyer and only one has gotten back to me. I thought they might grab it up with the whole connection to Teton County. But not so much. It's hard feeling so helpless and like the people who should care and should be looking for him just don't and aren't. Very sad times we live in. I sincerely hope I never go missing. Jeez.

Hi @GonzoGirl5 - thanks, you have answered the questions really thoroughly and I'm getting a better sense of things. It's also helpful to have these answers here so that online investigators can look it up and not have to ask you this all over again.

I do understand what you mean about AZ. In fact, I just took a vacation there over the summer...that's part of why I clicked on this thread to begin with. We laughed about the machine gun rental place that was literally in the driveway of the wildlife safari / sanctuary in Camp Verde, and definitely noticed a lot of things that were different in general. I even remember seeing something with a "Got Milk" sign on it, but I can't remember what or where, and it was probably not the truck.

I think $10k sounds about right. For insurance purposes, insurance agents generally suggest $10k as the contents of a small 1 bedroom house. So that adds up. Even if it's all old stuff or not actually worth that much used.

I think we all agree it's probably not best for you to go and try to physically solve this on your own!
But I think there's a lot you can do, and a lot you can get help with.
Firstly, I think having a lot more eyes on this could help. And the sooner the better.
I noticed on his facebook that only one person or so has asked where he is.
I think you should make sure all his fb friends know that he's missing. Whether it's you posting about it on his timeline or someone else.

I also was really saddened to see that neither of the two towns have anything about this case on their social media pages, police pages, crime watch stuff etc, but they have other missing persons.

Every missing persons notice I found about him was from a Wyoming news page or somewhere in that area, which is a lot less helpful than if AZ sites were posting it. It's very clear that he left WY and also CA.

I would just keep trying to get the word out. There may be podcasts based in AZ that would love to feature this case. etc.

 

[GonzoGirl5]

I am jumping in here because there is a lot of strangeness to this whole story. So AD arrives later than expected at the friend's house. He takes two showers AND does laundry, then proceeds to leave at another time and pawns some of his belongings before eventually selling both the trailer and all his belongings in the trailer that he was supposed to be moving? Something is not at all right with that story/scenario. Hinky meter 100%.
Have police spoken with AD about his timeline and story? Also, have you shared these texts and AD's version of events with the police? I can't imagine that wouldn't raise a lot of red flags with authority if they heard this story.

Yes. I have shared all of these messages and all of this info with the appropriate channels. It doesn't seem to make a difference. When to me it seems REALLY obvious that something isn't fitting. Like ALL of it. It is all i can do to not go to Mississippi myself and get the answers and look him in the face when I ask so I know beyond a shadow of a doubt that he is full of it. Thanks for seeing what I see.

 

[investikater]

The dog is a female Cavalier King Charles spaniel. Female, white and brown.

@GonzoGirl5 @llcr & @ everyone

has anyone been working on the dog angle? she's got some distinctive markings. Have local shelters and rescues been contacted? Has a lost dog campaign on and off line been created?

 

[swanniee11]

I have go back to reread this and refresh my memory. The trooper said he saw a disoriented man and the dog ran into the woods. Did the trooper see the dog run into the woods or is that what the man said?

 

[llcr]

I have go back to reread this and refresh my memory. The trooper said he saw a disoriented man and the dog ran into the woods. Did the trooper see the dog run into the woods or is that what the man said?

The trooper saw the dog and tried to get her but she ran off into the desert. Looking at the road from Google Earth, it doesn't look as if there's any 'woods' around that area.

 

[investikater]

The trooper saw the dog and tried to get her but she ran off into the desert. Looking at the road from Google Earth, it doesn't look as if there's any 'woods' around that area.

Is there anyone reading this in the area who has a dog who likes other dogs and would (following searching and desert-hiking safety guidelines and common sense please (we don't want to have to make a thread here for you!)) be willing to do some dog walks in the area the trooper sighted them?

Dogs can find other dogs.
And they do not have to be specially trained search dogs. Just ordinary dogs can do this.

One example that comes to mind;

Community rallies to find missing dog belonging to couple killed by car :

"I headed down towards McDonald Road where I knew there was some water and thought that maybe she was tired, she was exhausted, it was quite a hot day today so she might be near a source of water. "I took my girl with me [Hermy], for no other reason than she's got a reasonably good nose and she absolutely loves dogs. " I thought if I let her off-lead, we might be able to track Frankie down." Ms Gilbert said she, Hermy and some others searching kept following the water source, trekking through water, mud and bushland. "All of a sudden [Hermy] let out a bit of a yip, and there was Frankie lying on a little bit of grass right near the water," Ms Gilbert said.

'A very true hero in a very sad story': Kelpie sniffed out lost dog after owners' tragic death :

Ms Stoneman was overwhelmed when more than a thousands residents flocked to join the the search. In the end, it was another dog that helped locate Frankie. "Hermione", a nine-year-old Kelpie cross belonging to Alexandra Hills resident Kelly Gilbert, sniffed her out. She was hiding deep in bushland. "We really needed a dog's nose to sniff out another dog We can help as much as possible, but when it comes to finding a dog, we really need another dog to do that."

 

[Laughing]

The location mentioned for the truck is in Maricopa County, AZ:

Maricopa County Sheriff's Office | Home

A "trooper" is mentioned, which to me indicates:

Highway Patrol Division | Arizona Department of Public Safety

YMMV (Your Mileage May Vary)
LLR (Lather Rinse Repeat)

 

[JerseyGirl]

PHOTOS: Wyoming launches new missing persons database, listing 71 cases dating back to 1974

Missing Person, August 21, 2021, Teton County, Wyoming: James Daniels Jr, 43, was last seen on August 21, 2021 in Teton County, Wyoming. He is a black male, approximately 5’11”, 185 pounds, with brown hair and brown eyes. James has a tattoo on his back that says “Daniels.” He is known to wear kilts frequently and to drive a white box truck with no plates that says “Liberty Distribution” on the sides and “Got Milk” on the back. Anyone with information or contact with James is requested to call the Teton County Sheriff’s Department at (307) 733-2331 or the Wyoming Division of Criminal Investigation at (307) 777-7181.

 

[Peppermint Patty]

@GonzoGirl5 @llcr & @ everyone

has anyone been working on the dog angle? she's got some distinctive markings. Have local shelters and rescues been contacted? Has a lost dog campaign on and off line been created?

Hi there! I just found this case last evening when I did a filter for AZ missing persons. I'm very familiar with this state as I've lived here for 30+ years and have traveled all over it. I also have started searching lost dog groups on fb and have request to join a few others. I'll update if I am able to find anything or not.

In regards to last known area of James, the dog and truck, there is a very small town 'nearby'. Bagdad. I need to gather some thoughts and will post more on this soon.

I do agree with another poster about the heat. He very well could have been suffering from heat stroke. What I don't understand is why he wouldn't have flagged someone down or called for help. 93 is a very well traveled hwy as it is the main road to get to and from vegas from phoenix and vice versa. The desolate appearance is not an accurate depiction of usage. Weekends and holiday's are even busier.

 

[legalmomma]

Just finding this thread and a few questions. His last fb post said “See you monkeys” with a goodbye America video. Was that a sign he was leaving USA heading to maybe Mexico?

Also I don’t understand that LE said they saw “a man” that was disoriented (had to be JD) and there is no further info on where/what happened at that point ?? Where is that police report? I think more information will be found talking to LE that made that stop. If the semi was impounded then JD must have been one of:
1. Arrested
2. Driven somewhere
3. Left there
4. Detained

Mind boggling that more info can’t be found from that.

 

[legalmomma]

Missing person: James Daniels JR 'Mojo'

Photo in link

 

[Peppermint Patty]

Just a couple of comments. I'm waiting on being approved for an AZ group for lost dogs that seems to encompass the state. There could be a small chance that someone might have picked her up. With that said, I do think it's a very slim possibility. After sharing this case with my mom who also has traveled all around the state and still does from time to time, she told me that when she was driving in that area, she did see a mountain lion in the road. I had forgotten that we do have them out in areas like this around our state. So, the dog could have succumbed to dehydration or what I just mentioned. I will still try to look for any posts that indicate she was found by someone.

edited for a typo