CA CA - Barbara Thomas, 69, from Bullhead City AZ, disappeared in Mojave desert, 12 July 2019 #10

[fictionisbetter]

Barbara Thomas was hiking with her husband in the Mojave Desert and they became separated. She has not been seen since.

Search underway for lost hiker in Mojave Desert

"Thomas does not have supplies or a cell phone, and she was last seen wearing a black bikini, red baseball cap and tan hiking boots with black socks."

"She is a resident of Bullhead City, and she is 5 feet and 9 inches tall, weighing about 130 pounds, with blonde hair and green eyes."

Media, Maps, Timeline *NO DISCUSSION* thread

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Thread #5 - CA - CA - Barbara Thomas, 69, from Bullhead City AZ, disappeared in Mojave desert, 12 July 2019 #5
Thread #6 - CA - CA - Barbara Thomas, 69, from Bullhead City AZ, disappeared in Mojave desert, 12 July 2019 #6
Thread #7 - CA - CA - Barbara Thomas, 69, from Bullhead City AZ, disappeared in Mojave desert, 12 July 2019 #7
Thread #8 - CA - CA - Barbara Thomas, 69, from Bullhead City AZ, disappeared in Mojave desert, 12 July 2019 #8
Thread #9 - CA - CA - Barbara Thomas, 69, from Bullhead City AZ, disappeared in Mojave desert, 12 July 2019 #9

 

[ChuckMaureen]

Wondering if the RT lawyer is still trying to "get information" that will bring BT home, and from whom....

 

[10ofRods]

That's a bit much to assume or 'diagnose' across the airwaves.

Not diagnosing. Just pointing out alternatives that offer non nefarious reasons-for some puzzling parts of this case.

 

[Nikynoo]

Wondering if the RT lawyer is still trying to "get information" that will bring BT home, and from whom....

I very much doubt it.

 

[oceanstarryeyes]

Here are my humble opinions in answer to your questions, bronbaby, because no facts have been confirmed by LE:

MOO

Is camping in the desert when temperatures are highest, a popular hobby?
No, on the contrary, it's not common and is advised against by all kinds of authorities and an ounce of common sense, IMO (links are in posts upthread to many desert experts saying don't do it!) Most people are sticking to the shade and by the water, in comparison, in my experience.

What do people do in the afternoons?
Hang out in the shade, go swimming, stay indoors with AC/fans on.

Is it known what the Thomas’s destination was on this camping trip?
No, nothing has been stated by LE or her husband publicly on what their plans were, except RT said that they were 'going camping' and while on their way to the spot where they intended to park their RV and 'camp out', they stopped along the way for this 2 mile walk. Presumably they intended to camp somewhere in the Mojave National Preserve they had driven to, since it's over 100 miles from any major cities or towns, and it was their remote destination to enjoy testing out their relatively new truck/5 wheeler RV rig, perhaps for the first time since they purchased it in the last few months according to our VI.

ETA: Also (according to our VI), Barbara had called her brother in HK (who she was going to go visit the following week who was ill) a few days beforehand, and mentioned that she might be out of touch / unreachable for a few days because she and RT were going on a trip. I don't recall the exact words she was reported to have used about the trip (e.g., if it was a camping trip, and if it was in the desert), so this is paraphrasing, and MOO.

It may have been a short trip for them to spend a couple days trying out the new Truck and RV before BT plans to go to her brothers.

 

[MsBetsy]

Wondering if the RT lawyer is still trying to "get information" that will bring BT home, and from whom....

According the the VI he is no longer RT's lawyer. Imo

 

[PommyMommy]

Published on Jul 15, 2019

Published on Jul 17, 2019

 

[PommyMommy]

SEP 10, 2019
Family suspects foul play in disappearance of Bullhead City woman
[...]

Family members suspect foul play and are seeking answers.

[...]

Cindy Bachman, a sheriff's spokeswoman, said that investigators were looking into all leads.

[...]

The Sheriff's Department declined The Arizona Republic's request for public records, including an initial police report and 911 recording, stating that they are considered investigatory documents and are exempt from disclosure under California law.

Robert Thomas declined to comment to The Republic. On July 15, he told KTNV-TV, a Las Vegas TV station, that he believes his wife was abducted after rounding a corner during their hike while he stopped to a take a photo. He believes she may have been taken to Las Vegas.

[...]

In a statement written by several members of Barbara Thomas' family based in Hong Kong, she is described as an avid and regular desert explorer along with her husband, Robert.

"The chances she became lost or disoriented in the five minutes between her husband reporting last seeing her, and him (realizing) she was missing, are highly improbable," the family said in the statement shared with The Republic.

[...]

"Barbara does not have a history of any illness that we know of. We have no reason to believe Barbara would walk away from her husband, or disappear in the manner she has. Especially not so near to a trip to Hong Kong to visit her younger brother in (the) hospital," the family's statement reads.

[...]

Initial search efforts were conducted in the area east of Kelbaker and Hidden Hill roads — where officials say she was last seen — with numerous search and rescue members, deputies, K9s, park rangers, a sheriff's helicopter and off-road vehicles, according to the agency's Nixle webpage.

[...]

 

[10ofRods]

Wondering if the RT lawyer is still trying to "get information" that will bring BT home, and from whom....

Apparently that lawyer is no longer retained by RT.

 

[cazador]

Not diagnosing. Just pointing out alternatives that offer non nefarious reasons-for some puzzling parts of this case.

Could explain a lot of things .. As he talks, nothing makes sense.. That brought most of us here..

Not informing others in the first place
Not communicating with family
Timeline inconsistency
Story Telling
Paranoia
Confusion
Hides away from the world

Is he a victim of his own mind ?
Maybe this fellow is suffering from far more then we know ..

 

[al66pine]

Looking for link, to a pdf pls, cited in previous thread(s) re BT.
A procedure doc/internal-use dept doc, for LE re handling missing persons cases.
It has a multi-page checklist of info re the MisPers, the LEO should ask person reporting the MisPers.

IIRC we discussed this when BT was added to the the CA OfcAttyGen 's missing list/database.
Looking at California Missing Persons, I don't see it,but would not expect to, as it would be/is an internal-use dept. document/chapter from a procedure manual or training manual for OAG and for local LE.
Thx in adv.

 

[kay74]

Could explain a lot of things .. As he talks, nothing makes sense.. That brought most of us here..

Not informing others in the first place
Not communicating with family
Timeline inconsistency
Story Telling
Paranoia
Confusion
Hides away from the world

Is he a victim of his own mind ?
Maybe this fellow is suffering from far more then we know ..

But I DOUBT he's a killer.

 

[MsBetsy]

Could explain a lot of things .. As he talks, nothing makes sense.. That brought most of us here..

Not informing others in the first place
Not communicating with family
Timeline inconsistency
Story Telling
Paranoia
Confusion
Hides away from the world

Is he a victim of his own mind ?
Maybe this fellow is suffering from far more then we know ..

Yes, although we know very little about his mental state, he does seem a bit irrational, and maybe paranoid.

He never walks the dog, does not like to spend time in public places, and wanted to buy lots on either side of his house for privacy. This doesn't necessarily mean he is paranoid, but these things have been pointed out and may indicate his need to keep certain things secret. It was also stated that when he took cell phone calls concerning "shipping delivery" for his company, he always took the phone far from others.

His behavior is odd and the kidnapping theory doesn't make sense,
Yet this seems to be along the lines of what his family believes.
Both Matt and the VI have indicated a connection between Barbara's disappearance and RT's involvement with nefarious activities in the past.
The VI has speculated that RT seemed like he was sending a message to the people involved through the media.
This may explain why his theory seems so strange.
Also, RT's calling the area near the RV a "crime scene," indicates that he knows something.

It's clear that Barbara's family fears for their safety, and this is apparently why Matt does not want to get involved.
He seems to be determined that RT knows something.

Yet LE has told the VI as well as the media that they do not believe Barbara was abducted. They have apparently been following up on leads which I'm sure includes the suggestions Matt has made.

So far they have not indicated a change in the investigation.
Maybe Robert does know something and he fears for his life too and that's why he is keeping a low profile. I would hope he shared what he knows with investigators. If he wasn't afraid to call police and go on tv then I would think he would do whatever it takes to find her.

Unless, of course, he is afraid of getting himself in trouble. But if he really fears retaliation by some powerful organization I would think he would be safer in jail.

IMO

 

[Twistinginthewind]

There has been a lot of discussion on Barbara's threads about temperatures in the area RT said they went for a walk that day.

I think it's generally a true statement to say that it was hot weather they went walking in because it was daytime in the summer in the Mojave Desert.

Circling back to the context of the temperature and heat implications, from my viewpoint after following Barbara's missing person case on the thread here and in MSM (but surprisingly very little there, IMO), there are two things of note, MOO:

(1) RT and BT as a couple were supposedly experienced and used to walking/hiking in hot temperatures in the desert --
So the temperatures that day shouldn't have been challenging for them, he didn't say anything to MSM in his two interviews about heat fatigue or that it was a factor as to why she walked ahead to their RV.
So I will assume how hot is was that day on their 'short walk' of 2.2 miles according to RT, is not a factor in her sudden disappearance within the 5 to 10 minute time period he said they were separated and she was from the road and the RV.

(2) It's a hot day and they're experienced desert hikers, and understand the importance of staying hydrated --
So RT said they had a gallon of water and beer with them, but when she disappeared around the corner and he never saw her again, he said she did not have any water with her (but had a beer in her hand).
So I will assume since she was only 5 to 10 minutes ahead of him and from the road and their RV where presumably there was additional cool water or other drinks to keep up her hydration, that she had been drinking from the gallon of water along the way (the mile up to the rock formations, and part of the way back before he stopped to take a photograph and she 'pulled ahead'), and she didn't need to have water with her for that short period of time to get back to the RV, and it was not a factor in her sudden disappearance within the 5 to 10 minute time period he said they were separated and she was from the road and the RV.

This is MOO, just stating two reasons as to why I don't think she became disoriented and got lost due to heat illness that close to her husband and the road and their RV.

 

[kay74]

RT looks like a young version of Jerry Lee Lewis.

 

[PommyMommy]

Looking for link, to a pdf pls, cited in previous thread(s) re BT.
A procedure doc/internal-use dept doc, for LE re handling missing persons cases.
It has a multi-page checklist of info re the MisPers, the LEO should ask person reporting the MisPers.

IIRC we discussed this when BT was added to the the CA OfcAttyGen 's missing list/database.
Looking at California Missing Persons, I don't see it,but would not expect to, as it would be/is an internal-use dept. document/chapter from a procedure manual or training manual for OAG and for local LE.
Thx in adv.

This one? Missing Persons Investigations.pdf

 

[10ofRods]

There has been a lot of discussion on Barbara's threads about temperatures in the area RT said they went for a walk that day.

I think it's generally a true statement to say that it was hot weather they went walking in because it was daytime in the summer in the Mojave Desert.

Circling back to the context of the temperature and heat implications, from my viewpoint after following Barbara's missing person case on the thread here and in MSM (but surprisingly very little there, IMO), there are two things of note, MOO:

(1) RT and BT as a couple were supposedly experienced and used to walking/hiking in hot temperatures in the desert --
So the temperatures that day shouldn't have been challenging for them, he didn't say anything to MSM in his two interviews about heat fatigue or that it was a factor as to why she walked ahead to their RV.
So I will assume how hot is was that day on their 'short walk' of 2.2 miles according to RT, is not a factor in her sudden disappearance within the 5 to 10 minute time period he said they were separated and she was from the road and the RV.

(2) It's a hot day and they're experienced desert hikers, and understand the importance of staying hydrated --
So RT said they had a gallon of water and beer with them, but when she disappeared around the corner and he never saw her again, he said she did not have any water with her (but had a beer in her hand).
So I will assume since she was only 5 to 10 minutes ahead of him and from the road and their RV where presumably there was additional cool water or other drinks to keep up her hydration, that she had been drinking from the gallon of water along the way (the mile up to the rock formations, and part of the way back before he stopped to take a photograph and she 'pulled ahead'), and she didn't need to have water with her for that short period of time to get back to the RV, and it was not a factor in her sudden disappearance within the 5 to 10 minute time period he said they were separated and she was from the road and the RV.

This is MOO, just stating two reasons as to why I don't think she became disoriented and got lost due to heat illness that close to her husband and the road and their RV.

I do see your point but both my daughter and myself ended up with heat stroke without noticing. We are both pretty experienced with heat. Many desert people play with heat, as Native Americans did. You’ve probably all heard of sweat lodges.

They are a thing because as people start to be hyperthermic they enter an altered state of consciousness which for many people is...euphoria. Anthropologist Joan Halifax includes it as part of “solarization,” a manic-like state. While it is nearly all North American Indians who practiced sweat lodges, there were some that simply learned to respond to heat (and early stages of severe heat stroke) with optimism, singing songs, and general happiness. You’ve heard of “Runner’s high.” It’s like that.

The Tarahumara of northern Mexico (Sonoran Desert) used to run in the hottest time of the year - marathon length runs. The various Pai tribes (who used to live near Bullhead City) ran down to the Gulf of Mexico (well, the men did). Some of them died, but most survived. Euphoric, hallucinatory visions were and are common in that region. The desert “rats” that I have mentioned (friends and family) have had similar experiences, not always with good outcomes and sometimes helping bring on manic like states

SO, when asked about heat and its effects on humans, no matter how “experienced” people are, I do always mention that early symptoms of hyperthermia are sometimes sought after. Colorado River guides have told me that they wouldn’t have much repeat business were it not for this effect.

Unfortunately, a person who is starting to get to the point of delirium and then collapse is easily mistaken for someone who is just tipsy. My daughter collapsed and was not rousable last May. Everyone just thought it was alcohol.

I had no clue my internal body temp was 103.5 the time I got hyperthermia in Needles. I was traveling with an M.D., who noticed. I was exhibiting some unusual behaviors but would never had said I was having “issues.” I was probably a danger to others on the I-40, but I didn’t know that.

 

[Nikynoo]

This one? Missing Persons Investigations.pdf

Thanks @PommyMommy ! are you able to locate the latest version (this one is 2011), I would like to check that this is the latest version if poss?

Has lots of useful info, including about photos and also about the investigation process - looks like it will be carried out in Cali and Arizona.

 

[rosesfromangels]

Could explain a lot of things .. As he talks, nothing makes sense.. That brought most of us here..

Not informing others in the first place
Not communicating with family
Timeline inconsistency
Story Telling
Paranoia
Confusion
Hides away from the world

Is he a victim of his own mind ?
Maybe this fellow is suffering from far more then we know ..

This thread has offered all sorts of theories about the Victim Husband from running some vitamin cartel to potential nefarious activities with his private plane to lounge lizard to befuddled to double knot spy. Sounds like a movie in the making.

Where is Barb?

Amateur opinion and speculation

 

[PommyMommy]

Thanks @PommyMommy ! are you able to locate the latest version (this one is 2011), I would like to check that this is the latest version if poss?

Has lots of useful info, including about photos and also about the investigation process - looks like it will be carried out in Cali and Arizona.

Yes, it's the latest one on their site. Scroll down to the alphabetical list of publications here and select Missing Persons Investigations:

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