Does somebody of you have suggestions on what sites we can put our new flyer (almost finished) to bring it to attention for all possible target groups of people who might to have seen Jin Fang and/or John Root Fitzpatrick and/or the blue Toyota Tacoma from 21st of July or later ? We only need to put it digital or we also need printed versions to spread them on certain spots ?
These are good questions. I would start with a digital flyer, I think. I say this because I tried using paper flyers in a different case and most businesses were not willing to put the flyer up. Also, if you send the digital flyer to various businesses and agencies, they can choose to print it out.
Target groups should include all ranger stations/public land managers in the region, gas stations (some of the bigger ones may have an online presence - travel stops, we call them). I'd also send to as many different LE stations as possible, in four counties (San Bernardino, Riverside, Imperial and San Diego).
I'd focus hard on businesses, churches, community groups in the Thermal and Julian areas. If the truck is abandoned somewhere, the people you want to engage are people who truly care and will keep the truck in mind as they go about their regular lives.
So, if you're going the digital method, you want to bring the flyer to the attention of Facebook users. The thing is, most of the California state lands use one email address and I"m not sure it's well-monitored. Then, most of the bigger parks have some kind of Facebook presence. For example, Anza-Borrego State Park's main office has almost no online presence, but out of the same physical office, they run a Foundation:
Anza-Borrego Foundation, Borrego Springs, California. 13,448 likes · 300 talking about this · 220 were here. We preserve land in and around Anza-Borrego Desert State Park, educate the public on its...
www.facebook.com
Easy to stick a flyer in a comment (be interested to see if the Foundation will allow it to stay - they have an email connected to that account and I bet they'd listen carefully to your story and might be very helpful.
Then, there are the Salton Sea area communities. If Jin Fang and JRF were victims of a crime somewhere out there (which is possible), the criminal(s) might be out in that area, as it is (to me) more or less lawless. There aren't police stations in every little town. There are a high number of released criminals (IMO) living out that way. But, each of the towns out there has some kind of business somewhere.
If someone stole their truck, my imagination goes to "they took it to Mexico" because although car theft is rare in my own neighborhood, our neighbor's truck did end up in Mexico (as did the car of another neighbor, possibly the same thieves, as the crimes were just a few months apart). I don't know what to tell you about trying to get word out in Mexico, as almost no one is going to take the risk of turning someone else in, even if they do know where the truck is.
I may be making it sound as if Jin Fang went missing in a very uncivilized part of the world, and to some extent, that's true - but overall lots of decent people DO go out into those lands occasionally for various reasons. So...I'd look up boron mining facilities, rock collecting shops (including in Arizona), and other venues where desert lovers tend to work. Send to any businesses/churches/civic organizations you can find along the California/Mexico Border and the Arizona/Mexico Border. Naturally, some of us will help send the flyers out too. I sent flyers to casinos along the Nevada side of the Colorado River area when Barbara Thomas went missing. I didn't get any responses - but then, she wasn't out that way as it turned out. I asked each casino to look for a particular vehicle - and I'd like to think they DID do this, but didn't find anything.
coyotechronicle.net
