Found Deceased CO - Ryan Kirby-Daniels, 19, Eagle County, 22 May 2019

[Dre]

Conjecture :
May 20 parents see him leave, he goes to friends house.

May 21 ? He wakes up and leaves to set up a camp for himself

May 22 his friends show up to visit him and the camp he’s made (out of excitement for his adventure? Or maybe they’re worried about his mental/emotional state?)

 

[PommyMommy]

Conjecture :
May 20 parents see him leave, he goes to friends house.

May 21 ? He wakes up and leaves to set up a camp for himself

May 22 his friends show up to visit him and the camp he’s made (out of excitement for his adventure? Or maybe they’re worried about his mental/emotional state?)

Except we have this from the Sheriff:

Eagle County Sheriff's Office
Last seen May 22, 2019, at 0730 hours at 65 Silver Street in Edwards Colorado

Maybe he was seen leaving the friends house that morning and they went to check on him later that day?

 

[GordianKnot]

Except we have this from the Sheriff:

Eagle County Sheriff's Office
Last seen May 22, 2019, at 0730 hours at 65 Silver Street in Edwards Colorado

Maybe he was seen leaving the friends house that morning and they went to check on him later that day?

I'm going to go ahead and say it:

These different timelines we've linked can't be reconciled.

Somebody's misreported somewhere.

It feels like we're playing MSM's version of the Chinese Whispers game.

JMO.

 

[CluelessWonder]

First of all, I just want to send a big hug to Ryan's parents. I have a teen son, and I worry about him all the time. Young men face a lot of challenges in life, and it can be defeating when something doesn't go the way we'd like it to. I am confident that Ryan can bounce back fast and have a great life with or without the military. The best place for a 19-year-old who isn't sure what to do is home with family members who care. It's clear that Ryan has that to go home to. When I was his age, I went on a camping trip, too. Mine didn't last as long. But I remember thinking that I didn't want to be a part of society anymore. I was wrong. There are lots of great people in the world. Sometimes, you have to look past the problems and shrug off the setbacks. I've done it many times. And sometimes I saw no tomorrow. But guess what? Tomorrow came, and it was better. And the unsolvable problems got solved.

Now, as someone with very little information about Ryan and his activity in May, I just want to point out a few things:

1. It is about 35-40 miles between where Ryan "left on foot" and where he decided to camp.
2. Any good friend would pick you up before you had to travel that far. I don't know if that happened for Ryan. But I certainly think it's a possibility. I'm not saying he couldn't walk that far. I'm just saying that there's really no reason for him to do it.
3. It was more than a day and maybe more than two days before he set up a campsite. Why did he do it at all and why so close to his friend(s)? Was he not allowed to stay at the house where his friend lived? Was there an issue that caused him to be kicked off the property?
4. He set up camp very close to where he was last seen. This leads me to believe that he left his previous shelter (his friend's house?) at an inconvenient time. For example, if you were told to get your stuff and leave a house at 4 a.m., you probably wouldn't hike 20 miles before pitching your tent. Also, we don't know his state. Was he drunk? Sober? Angry? Happy?
5. It's unclear whether 7:30 a.m. is when he left his parents' house or when he left this house in Eagle. It does make a big difference for the reasons previously stated. It's important to know when he left the house in Eagle because it might help to explain why he was camped out so close by near a rest area.
6. It's possible that he was at the rest area location because he was waiting for someone. That someone could be a specific person. But it also could be a stranger like a truck driver, who might allow him to travel a long distance. This seems highly unlikely given what he left behind.
7. In another case, there is mention of snow melt and how it made the river very cold and swift. I assume this is the case in Eagle, too.
8. Because of some things I read in the news articles and because of my experience following other cases involving young men who are last seen with friends, I have a lot of questions I'd like to ask to the people he was hanging out with. Do any of them have drug arrests?
9. There is no good way to say this. But it's sometimes a fact that people are missed during searches because nobody thought to look up in the trees.

My own opinion given the details made available is that there's a reward because police KNOW that someone is withholding information. And that probably means that someone is worried about his/her own self. But a clear conscious is worth a lot. it's time for people to come clean about exactly what transpired. They need to put themselves in the shoes of his family and realize what kind of grief they are going through. Do the hard thing and wake up tomorrow with a clean slate.

 

[NervousNellie]

Excellent post @CluelessWonder!

 

[GordianKnot]

Crime Stoppers offering up $1,000 in Kirby-Daniels missing person's case

SABBM:

Crime Stoppers is offering up to a $1,000 reward for any information on the disappearance of local 19-year-old Ryan Kirby-Daniels, who was last seen in Edwards on May 22. The Eagle County Sheriff’s Office is investigating.
______________________________________

Just bringing forward the info re: the 1k reward for any information about his whereabouts.

Hoping the friends he was with in Edwards are sharing anything and everything they possibly can
with LE about RK-D, i.e., his appearance, actions, demeanor, statements, SM posts, texts, etc.,, when they last saw him.

And speaking of when they last saw him, I hope the friends are able to give LE specific dates and times for when they last saw him in person.

JMO.

 

[CluelessWonder]

Ryan, where are you?

 

[KKirby]

Thanks, Pommy!

From your linked article:
Ryan Kirby-Daniels who was last seen on May 22, 2019 at 0730 hours at 65 Silver Street in Edwards Colorado.

Ryan Kirby-Daniels is 5’6” tall, 110 pounds with brown hair and brown eyes. Ryan’s last photo was with a shaved head in the photo below from May 24, 2019.
______________________________________________

Is this a typo, or did RK-D post a selfie to a SM account on 05/24 after his last in-person sighting on 05/22?

Has anyone found any SM accounts for him?

Did he have a cell phone and if so, when was the last known activity on his phone?

JMO.

That's when they updated the photo, not when it was taken. I asked them to correct, anticipating this question from people.

 

[KKirby]

On May 20, he left his parents house in EagleVail on foot. It is a 2-hour walk from EagleVail to the Silver St address in Edwards where he was last seen. Did a friend pick him up, live in between, or did he walk all the way to Edwards? Google Maps

He set up camp after his parents house and after being with friends. Did he carry his camping gear from his parents house, keep it at a friend's house in Edwards or what?

Why was he living at a campsite?

• Apr 23 – Ryan was discharged from USAF Basic Training due to a hearing deficit.
• May 20 – Ryan left his parents home in EagleVail, CO, was with friends that night, then soon set up camp in the Edwards area near the Eagle River.
• His campsite was about 150 yds from the town's nearest rest area. Rest Area
• He had a couple hundred dollars in his pocket when he left.
• May 22, 7:30 a.m. – He was last seen at 65 Silver Street, Edwards CO.
• May 24 - Last known photo of Ryan (shaved hair); source unknown.
• Ryan was the only one occupying the campsite by the Eagle River on a semi-permanent basis.
• All his camping gear and other items were still at the campsite when his friends discovered it, but Ryan was not.
• His tent was found in good condition.
• Ryan’s family is concerned because of things he left behind that he normally would not.
• One article states that he was not reported to be suicidal or distraught at the time of his disappearance. Another says that he was disappointed and depressed after his Air Force dream was dashed.
• LE says there is no reason to suspect foul play.

Pretty accurate timeline.

 

[KKirby]

Welcome to Websleuths, KKirby. I am terribly sorry for what you are going through and I hope Ryan is located soon and safe. Please let us know if there is anything we can do to help you. MOO

Thank you

 

[KKirby]

Reward offered for info on missing Vail Valley man Ryan Benjamin Kirby-Daniels
SABBM:
His parents, Aimee and Stephen Daniels, have heard nothing since then. They filed a missing report in early June with the Eagle County Sheriff’s Office. Sheriff’s investigators haven’t heard anything either, even after they upped the ante with a cash reward.

“I think some of his friends may know more than they’ve told us. I wish they would share what they know. We’re hoping the reward might incentivize someone to come forward,” Stephen Daniels said.

He had wanted to join the Air Force for most of his young life and did this spring. A month or so later, he was medically discharged because of hearing loss.

His Air Force dream dashed, he was disappointed and depressed.

On the morning of May 22 he left family’s Eagle Vail home on foot. He landed with some friends in Edwards, where he spent several days.

He left his friends and set up camp in Edwards.

All his camping gear and other items were still at the campsite when his friends discovered it, but he wasn’t anywhere around.
____________________________________________

Much more info at link.

This is by far the most informative article I've found so far about RF-D and the circumstances surrounding his disappearance.

I wonder how many organized searches have taken place around his campsite.

JMO.

Sheriff's searched in the immediate area. I don't know how expansive that was, as they feel strongly about the river for understandable reasons. However, missing person alert is still active and reward for information will hopefully inspire some of his friends to be more forthcoming

 

[GordianKnot]

Sheriff's searched in the immediate area. I don't know how expansive that was, as they feel strongly about the river for understandable reasons. However, missing person alert is still active and reward for information will hopefully inspire some of his friends to be more forthcoming

Thank you so much for taking the time to come on here and post these updates, KKirby.

I'm sure this must be a very stressful and distressing time for you and the rest of your family.

Have there been any new developments, tips, evidence, etc., indicating what Ryan was doing, what direction he was headed, and/or whether he was with anyone when he was last seen?

Have dogs been brought into the campsite to see if they could pick up/track his scent, do you know?

 

[KKirby]

BBM:

So, reading this, I guess I'm a little confused about the timeline.

May 22nd is the date he officially went missing.

However, in this article it states that after he left his family's home on the 22nd, he "landed with some friends in Edwards, where he spent several days."

How many days is several?

Is May 22nd being cited as the date he went missing because the parents filed the missing persons report, and LE used the date they reported having last seen RK-D?

If that's the case, then we have an official missing date, but a completely different date for when he was actually last seen.

Presumably, he was last seen by either one of his friends, since he spent "several days" with them in Edwards after he left home, or by someone at the campsite where he was staying.

So what is the date anyone actually laid eyes on RK-D, be they family member, friend, fellow camper, etc.?

Last known sighting is a critical piece of the timeline.

Hopefully LE knows that information.

JMO.

That one article is a hot mess. I don't know where they got their timeline. Friends reported Ry missing, not his dad. Report was made on the 3rd or 4th, his dad wasn't contacted by sheriff until the following Friday. He and his dad often butted heads, which is why he left on the 20th. He's left like that before, for extended periods of time, but always kept in contact with me and stayed with friends or camped weather permitting. Obviously I am not in Colorado, and not with his father.

 

[KKirby]

Thank you so much for taking the time to come on here and post these updates, KKirby.

I'm sure this must be a very stressful and distressing time for you and the rest of your family.

Have there been any new developments, tips, evidence, etc., indicating what Ryan was doing, what direction he was headed, and/or whether he was with anyone when he was last seen?

Have dogs been brought into the campsite to see if they could pick up/track his scent, do you know?

So far no new information. The river overflow in that area is very high, dangerously so, so no raft searches, no drone, until next month. More rainstorms over the next 4 days. It's very disheartening. No dogs that I know of.

 

[KKirby]

Conjecture :
May 20 parents see him leave, he goes to friends house.

May 21 ? He wakes up and leaves to set up a camp for himself

May 22 his friends show up to visit him and the camp he’s made (out of excitement for his adventure? Or maybe they’re worried about his mental/emotional state?)

May 20th, leaves dad's house, sets up camp. It starts snowing (snows all 3 days, 20th-22nd), goes to friends house, stays there for a while. Leaves the morning of the 22nd back to his campsite, has not been seen since.

 

[GraceG]

I have a daughter out that way. She and her husband are avid hikers. I've shared his info and photo with them and they are sharing with the people they hike with. Everyone will be looking for him. Prayers for his Mom and Dad.

 

[Darling136]

Any update?

 

[PommyMommy]

Any update?

I haven't seen anything.

 

[KKirby]

Update- Hey all, I just did Tom Martin's Trouble shooter radio show to try to get the word out, since it's nationally syndicated hopefully it will help.
They have done a cadaver dog search in the area and 6 miles down the river, and will do another further down. A hi def drone has also searched, they are studying the footage. Other than that, tgere is not much new to report. Please keep Ry in your prayers. Thanks again.

 

[Dre]

thanks for being here @KKirby! So sad about what you’re going through, the days without knowing can’t be easy and we’re here for you. Is it possible he ran away with someone that was a part of his intimate life? Were there things leading up to this that you felt were indicative of being suicidal (it’s often in retrospect- ie. giving things away, strange comments about existence or maybe the future etc)
Is there a part of the river much further down that has a dam or a blockage? Homeless shelters or camps, maybe a mental institution if he somehow got amnesia?
So glad that you were able to do that radio show, that will definitely help spread the word. Certainly sending you and Ryan prayers and so much loving energy! Please take good care of yourself!