CA CA - Barbara Thomas, 69, from Bullhead City AZ, disappeared in Mojave desert, 12 July 2019 #11

[Hatfield]

JMO
Im still very much on the fence as to what I think may have happened.

We have very few things to go on and so I took another look at what statements were made.

According to the linked article there is a couple small things that continue to bother me about the alleged statements. Very subtle and starting to nit pick at the statements but they still kind of bother me a little for some reason.

"He claimed that she had turned a corner, beer in hand and while he was taking a picture, he turned around to find her gone. She had been wearing a black bikini, he said." "

"He described the moment he couldn't find his wife. "I hollered her name and I waved my arms, and I looked around the area and I saw that she wasn’t anywhere around. She didn't respond. I got really panicky," Robert said, "I feel like someone did pick her up because she was wearing a bikini, she had a beer in her hand and she was ahead of me and she had to cross that road," he said. "

This is total nit picking but.....
the first part above doesnt make sense to me because if he was taking a picture and especially if he was pointing back to the higher rocky hills then he should have not known she turned a corner. And he even said he had to turn around to find her missing so that means his back was to her and there is no way he would have seen her do anything except disappear.

The top of the second part bothers me because I am not sure if I would have waved my arms unless I first spotted the person I was looking for. Maybe that is a good tactic that I am unfamiliar with but I dont think I would have waved unless I saw the person I was looking for.

Anyway I can see this case going in a couple different directions still. Including that maybe they had some sort of argument on the trail and maybe she stormed off to cool off and really did get lost. I see that as a real possibility.

Just wish she could be found soon. Its been way too long already.

Cops dismiss husband's claim that his bikini-clad wife who went missing during their hike was abducted

 

[firstsleuth]

Just caught up from being out of town
@HongKongPhooey husband and I have hiked many deserts; most would be hard to be lost in...one glaring exception is Joshua Tree NP (when we are on an out and back hike there, we repeatedly turn around to look behind us for landmarks to spot on our return)
imo, where Barbara was reported to vanish, it would be impossible to be lost whether or not she could see their truck and camper. She only needed to walk directly away from the mountains and she would reach the road. This is why I believe RT and his daughter thought the only thing that made sense was an abduction...
Wish I had more to offer; wish I knew whether LE has any info at all

 

[HongKongPhooey]

Just caught up from being out of town
@HongKongPhooey husband and I have hiked many deserts; most would be hard to be lost in...one glaring exception is Joshua Tree NP (when we are on an out and back hike there, we repeatedly turn around to look behind us for landmarks to spot on our return)
imo, where Barbara was reported to vanish, it would be impossible to be lost whether or not she could see their truck and camper. She only needed to walk directly away from the mountains and she would reach the road. This is why I believe RT and his daughter thought the only thing that made sense was an abduction...
Wish I had more to offer; wish I knew whether LE has any info at all

Thank you, that's what I imagined

 

[MassGuy]

Just caught up from being out of town
@HongKongPhooey husband and I have hiked many deserts; most would be hard to be lost in...one glaring exception is Joshua Tree NP (when we are on an out and back hike there, we repeatedly turn around to look behind us for landmarks to spot on our return)
imo, where Barbara was reported to vanish, it would be impossible to be lost whether or not she could see their truck and camper. She only needed to walk directly away from the mountains and she would reach the road. This is why I believe RT and his daughter thought the only thing that made sense was an abduction...
Wish I had more to offer; wish I knew whether LE has any info at all

Yeah, Joshua Tree is a different animal entirely.

I totally agree that it would have been next to impossible for Barb to get lost in the first place, and coupled with fact that no one was able to find any sign of her, speaks to just how improbable that scenario is.

That’s why I’m all in on foul play.

 

[LietKynes]

Have agreed and will continue to do so about the arm- waving.
It makes sense if the person you're trying to reach is in your line of sight.

Eta. : Not going to perpetuate any absurd theories.

 

[Twistinginthewind]

LBM

Thanks, I didn't realize his daughter agreed about the abduction.
Maybe that explains no further actions or pleas via the media to find Barbara ?
So it explains the silence.
A reward can sometimes get results , so it's a possibility.
There's still time to offer a reward to result in the abductor's capture.

Or has the media not allowed them any more interviews ?
Not everyone gets the coverage they're asking for, so there's always that.

It’s possible if RT and his daughter both still think Barbara was abducted under nefarious circumstances, that they would continue to be ‘circumspect’ about what they think happened and either on advice of counsel and / or LE requests, that could be a reason for not making public statements and such.

No telling, IMO.

And, MOO, as a constant follower of Barbara’s thread and searching regularly on the Internet for any hint about what has transpired since the first week she went missing.

 

[Twistinginthewind]

Have agreed and will continue to do so about the arm- waving.
It makes sense if the person you're trying to reach is in your line of sight.

Eta. : Not going to perpetuate any absurd theories.

Well maybe that (arm waving) was just a gut reaction RT had to try to get her attention, before or after he spent an hour or so searching for her before he called 911.

I don’t recall if he ever specified if he did that right away when he got back to their RV and she wasn’t there and he then looked under the rock where he said they hid their key to the RV, and it was still there, or if it was later as part of his search for her and he started “getting really panicky when she didn’t respond”.

IIRC, and MOO

 

[rosesfromangels]

Well maybe that (arm waving) was just a gut reaction RT had to try to get her attention,
IIRC, and MOO

Respectfully snipped for focus and commentary response.

Perhaps his eyesight isn't that great and he can't see in the distance very far; thus just waving away not being able to see her,

Amateur opinion and speculation

 

[Twistinginthewind]

Respectfully snipped for focus and commentary response.

Perhaps his eyesight isn't that great and he can't see in the distance very far; thus just waving away not being able to see her,

Amateur opinion and speculation

Equally worth considering what the two of them (ages 69 & 72 years old) were thinking going on a walk in the desert at high noon in July, if either of them had sensory perception issues.

MOO

 

[Stripehaven]

JMO
Im still very much on the fence as to what I think may have happened.

We have very few things to go on and so I took another look at what statements were made.

According to the linked article there is a couple small things that continue to bother me about the alleged statements. Very subtle and starting to nit pick at the statements but they still kind of bother me a little for some reason.

"He claimed that she had turned a corner, beer in hand and while he was taking a picture, he turned around to find her gone. She had been wearing a black bikini, he said." "

"He described the moment he couldn't find his wife. "I hollered her name and I waved my arms, and I looked around the area and I saw that she wasn’t anywhere around. She didn't respond. I got really panicky," Robert said, "I feel like someone did pick her up because she was wearing a bikini, she had a beer in her hand and she was ahead of me and she had to cross that road," he said. "

This is total nit picking but.....
the first part above doesnt make sense to me because if he was taking a picture and especially if he was pointing back to the higher rocky hills then he should have not known she turned a corner. And he even said he had to turn around to find her missing so that means his back was to her and there is no way he would have seen her do anything except disappear.

The top of the second part bothers me because I am not sure if I would have waved my arms unless I first spotted the person I was looking for. Maybe that is a good tactic that I am unfamiliar with but I dont think I would have waved unless I saw the person I was looking for.

Anyway I can see this case going in a couple different directions still. Including that maybe they had some sort of argument on the trail and maybe she stormed off to cool off and really did get lost. I see that as a real possibility.

Just wish she could be found soon. Its been way too long already.

Cops dismiss husband's claim that his bikini-clad wife who went missing during their hike was abducted

He mentions getting panicky pretty much right away, but when he talked to VI’s family, he described the panic as happening after awhile. I wonder which is accurate.

I can’t imagine BT wandering off the trail much if at all, considering it looks pretty hemmed in by cholla (per @sroad’s pix), if in fact she had a lot of bare skin exposed.

 

[MsBetsy]

Well maybe that (arm waving) was just a gut reaction RT had to try to get her attention, before or after he spent an hour or so searching for her before he called 911.

I don’t recall if he ever specified if he did that right away when he got back to their RV and she wasn’t there and he then looked under the rock where he said they hid their key to the RV, and it was still there, or if it was later as part of his search for her and he started “getting really panicky when she didn’t respond”.

IIRC, and MOO

Yes, I think it was after he noticed that the key was still under the rock. He expected her to be back at the RV and when she wasn't there, he searched for her, going back to the cave they had discovered earlier to see if she may have gone there.
Maybe it was after that when he panicked and started yelling and waving his arms. I can imagine after looking for her and not hearing a response he would have been in a state of panic and anxiety. Imo

 

[Cherwell]

It is fruitless to nit-pick the statements, such as they are. We do not know what he said to the police, and we can be certain that they would have got him to clarify anything that seemed contradictory or didn't make sense.

 

[PommyMommy]

Well maybe that (arm waving) was just a gut reaction RT had to try to get her attention, before or after he spent an hour or so searching for her before he called 911.

I don’t recall if he ever specified if he did that right away when he got back to their RV and she wasn’t there and he then looked under the rock where he said they hid their key to the RV, and it was still there, or if it was later as part of his search for her and he started “getting really panicky when she didn’t respond”.

IIRC, and MOO

My understanding of the order of events you've mentioned is:

1. RT arrived at the RV and discovered the key was still under the rock
2. He hollered, waved his arms, and got panicky
3. He searched for about an hour, including a cave
4. He called 911

MOO

 

[MsBetsy]

It is fruitless to nit-pick the statements, such as they are. We do not know what he said to the police, and we can be certain that they would have got him to clarify anything that seemed contradictory or didn't make sense.

Yes, I'm sure after questioning him for five hours or so, they would have had a pretty clear understanding of events.
If anything didn't add up or they found evidence to contradict his story, I would think they would have investigated further.
As far as we know they have not issued any warrants, and apparently didn't even question the staff at the kennel.
They have always maintained that the last place Barbara was seen was in the desert at the location her husband saw her going around the corner. Imo

 

[MsBetsy]

My understanding of the order of events you've mentioned is:

1. RT arrived at the RV and discovered the key was still under the rock
2. He hollered, waved his arms, and got panicky
3. He searched for about an hour, including a cave
4. He called 911

MOO

Do we know if he yelled and waved his arms before or after he searched and went back to the cave? Was it after he went back to the RV and found the key where he had left it?

 

[nannymo]

Judicial Procedure re Missing Persons


Briefly. IIUC {ETA: per post 915 in MC's thread} MC's wife did not have him "declared dead" but the TX court proceeding did/does allow her to have some control over (some of) his assets.
----------------------------------------------
Not so briefly. Did not follow that case, but I read post 915, in Thread #1 re Michael Chambers. A verified fam member of MC = Pmerle00, who posted in July 2017, the 'piece of paper' was Letters Testamentary, NOT Death Cert.
In this thread re BT, post 265, I posted a few paragraphs about those kinds of procedures, not specific to TX law, not to MC situation.
Not saying anything about his (purported) widow or MC's disappearance.
In the past couple yrs, there may have been developments in his case.
------------------------------------------------------
In post 265 in this thread, I summarized info re this ^ type of procedure MC's wife filed, as it's possible RT may do the same, seeking control of BT's property/assets/a'cs in AZ .
jmo, could be wrong.

But the family insider was lead to believe it was a Letter of Testamentary when in fact it turned out later it really was a death certificate....so it can be done. Took a Judge to do that which a lot of people have questioned how that ruling came about....IYKWIM!!

 

[PommyMommy]

Do we know if he yelled and waved his arms before or after he searched and went back to the cave? Was it after he went back to the RV and found the key where he had left it?

He didn't give a blow-by-blow account but when I piece together what he told the media and what he told family, that's the way I understand it. MOO

 

[MsBetsy]

He didn't give a blow-by-blow account but when I piece together what he told the media and what he told family, that's the way I understand it. MOO

After he discovered the key was still there or after he searched and went back to the cave?
ETA. Never mind, I think u said it was after he searched. It's never really been clear as to the order of events.

 

[LietKynes]

He mentions getting panicky pretty much right away, but when he talked to VI’s family, he described the panic as happening after awhile. I wonder which is accurate.

I can’t imagine BT wandering off the trail much if at all, considering it looks pretty hemmed in by cholla (per @sroad’s pix), if in fact she had a lot of bare skin exposed.

LBM

Doubtful she ever wandered off the trail; that day or before.
From the photos supplied by sroad; the trail is sandy and clearly defined. The Cholla cactus plants would be something she'd want to avoid; and RT say they'd hiked there before and were familiar with the area.
I believe his statement about that specific trail.
If they didn't know the area-- it's doubtful they'd plan to hike there in the hottest season.

It is fruitless to nit-pick the statements, such as they are. We do not know what he said to the police, and we can be certain that they would have got him to clarify anything that seemed contradictory or didn't make sense.

Fruitless ?
A sad adjective.
No, hopefully not.

Don't really think it's useless or unproductive, since different articles have information that's sometimes at odds with other msm sources.
We are trying to find out the truth , and maybe we're a bit closer to what happened ?
One can always hope.
I think I know what you mean.
Part of what we're discussing is due to the fact that so many details were never made clear.

Fully agree with you -- that we don't know what he said to LE , nor do we know what they said or asked him.

After he discovered the key was still there or after he searched and went back to the cave?
ETA. Never mind, I think u said it was after he searched. It's never really been clear as to the order of events.

LBM

Isn't that the truth.
Can't agree more.

 

[10ofRods]

There is not just one trail though.