MA MA - Simone Ridinger, 17, Sherborn, 2 Sept 1977

sorry but no way Rip Van Wrinkle’s story is true. Of all the people on 95 that morning, by shear coincidence A Mass State Trooper with a young Simone in his car pulls him for???? And by an incredible stroke of luck you are going to the same place she is going? Incredible! She is going to Marthas Vineyard and you drop her off in Hyannis This girl later goes missing and you never say a word to your wife or LE. Nine years later you tell LE but still cannot bring yourself to tell your wife or son??

If I recall you had her partying with the Kennedys. Really?

The name of the old guy has been mentioned here. I just searched his name and it looks like his wife died in 1975 and his kids would most likely have their own lives to worry about so its entirely plausible that if it happened how he said it did that he didn't mention it to them, especially if they had moved out of state or even just didn't talk regularly.
Speculation and MOO
 
Boyfriend in jail? Curious where that thought came from?

I go back and forth with wondering if Simone could be Walker County Jane Doe. More recently, I decided no, but a boyfriend in jail makes me wonder what I might have overlooked.

I am wondering if Simone could be WCJD too, the boyfriend in jail is interesting.
 
The name of the old guy has been mentioned here. I just searched his name and it looks like his wife died in 1975 and his kids would most likely have their own lives to worry about so its entirely plausible that if it happened how he said it did that he didn't mention it to them, especially if they had moved out of state or even just didn't talk regularly.
Speculation and MOO
I agree. I also see no plausible motive for him to have fabricated the story that he told.
 
That seems very far-fetched to me.

It does to me, in a way, but Simone is not on the rule out list and there are physical similarities. She was independent, and definitely could have traveled to Texas.

I wonder why she has never been compared? Automatic rule out, perhaps?
 
It does to me, in a way, but Simone is not on the rule out list and there are physical similarities. She was independent, and definitely could have traveled to Texas.

I wonder why she has never been compared? Automatic rule out, perhaps?
What physical similarities? I don't see a resemblance.

If they both have DNA on file, it's an automatic rule out (as always). I know that WCJD has DNA on file, but I'm not sure about Simone.

A woman who interacted with WCJD right before the murder said that WCJD indicated that she was from a particular part of Texas, and the woman believed her, so it's reasonable to assume that WCJD didn't have a Massachusetts accent, which would have stuck out like a sore thumb.

Moreover, WCJD was thought to be under 18 in December of 1980, when Simone would have been 20.

You'd also have to believe that Simone took off out of the blue, cut off all contact with everyone she knew, and was murdered three years later thousands of miles away. It's very, very, very far-fetched.
 
I do see some similarities between the two. Again, if you read through, I have never made a strong case for Simone as WCJD, just that I go back and revisit the idea.


And yes, if WCJD really seemed like she was from somewhere other than Texas, I agree that probably would have stuck out, but maybe not? Everyone from Massachusetts doesn't sound like an extra in Goodwill Hunting..lol.

As for Simone traveling cross country or breaking off ties, I personally would not rule it out. She was a hitchhiker, which while not uncommon in those days, I think demonstrates a willingness to take risks and wander around. She had a boyfriend in jail. She had her own money, her own apartment. She worked in a job where she could have met just about anyone. I do not rule it out for any of the older, more independent missing from this era. The cases are so old, why not give them a look and think...what IF?

Another UID was brought up in a different thread, and @Kiranerys was reminded of Simone. Travel would be involved here as well. I could see this as possible. The silver rings on every finger, long blonde to brown hair as described by the killer. I wouldn't say Simone has an unusually long face, but otherwise? Perhaps this is her?

The National Missing and Unidentified Persons System (NamUs)

Investigators hope facial reconstruction leads to murdered woman's identity
Original.jpg Screen Shot 2021-03-07 at 12.03.11 PM.png Screen Shot 2021-03-07 at 12.04.09 PM.png
 
Ridinger is one of the few people suggested for WCJD who has the small delicate nose and overall rather fine bone structure.

I think she's a very good candidate for the California UID. Her forehead really is quite high, making her overall face quite long.
 
Re:" A woman who interacted with WCJD right before the murder said that WCJD indicated that she was from a particular part of Texas, and the woman believed her..."

See, this could be a half-truth. Whoever WCJD was, saying she was "from" Rockport/Port Aransas could have meant she lived there all her life, or it may have only indicated that is where she had been most recently.

Back to Simone, I would really like to know more about Simone's boyfriend at the time of her disappearance. What was he in for? How much older? Who was he associated with? How serious were they?

I wonder if she may have run to hide from someone harmful? Or been involved in something herself?
 
Thinking a bit more, and this has probably been discussed, where did flights from Barnstable go when Simone disappeared? I'm wondering if the duffle bag may have contained something other than her uniform.
 
Thinking a bit more, and this has probably been discussed, where did flights from Barnstable go when Simone disappeared? I'm wondering if the duffle bag may have contained something other than her uniform.

Yeah, I have wondered that too.

The place where Simone was dropped off is pretty much the center of Cape Cod. She could have gotten anywhere quite quickly. I looked quite a bit of this stuff years ago and it's probably earlier in the thread, but to summarize:

Cape Air has and had short hop flights to Nantucket, Martha's Vineyard, and other areas around the region as well as the big airports at Boston, Hartford, and NYC. The exact airports served vary from year to year but you could always get to NYC or Boston, and from there literally anywhere in the world.

Because so many flights come in, there are taxis, car rentals, and other services readily available. She could have taken a cab to Hyannis port and taken a ferry to Martha's Vineyard, where she could connect to ferries to NYC.

It would be a likely place if she was planning to meet somebody coming in, or if she was planning on leaving.
 
In a cape cod article...her sister or step sister, I dont recall, offered her a ride and she declined. I always found this odd...why would you prefer to get a ride with a stranger rather than family? Did she already have a ride lined up with someone? Like mentioned above, was never planning to go to that particular location maybe?
 
In a cape cod article...her sister or step sister, I dont recall, offered her a ride and she declined. I always found this odd...why would you prefer to get a ride with a stranger rather than family? Did she already have a ride lined up with someone? Like mentioned above, was never planning to go to that particular location maybe?
According to this article, her stepsister stopped into the restaurant and offered her a ride, she said she was all set and didn't need a ride.
Cold case: Where is Simone Ridinger?
 
Yeah, I have wondered that too.

The place where Simone was dropped off is pretty much the center of Cape Cod. She could have gotten anywhere quite quickly. I looked quite a bit of this stuff years ago and it's probably earlier in the thread, but to summarize:

Cape Air has and had short hop flights to Nantucket, Martha's Vineyard, and other areas around the region as well as the big airports at Boston, Hartford, and NYC. The exact airports served vary from year to year but you could always get to NYC or Boston, and from there literally anywhere in the world.

Because so many flights come in, there are taxis, car rentals, and other services readily available. She could have taken a cab to Hyannis port and taken a ferry to Martha's Vineyard, where she could connect to ferries to NYC.

It would be a likely place if she was planning to meet somebody coming in, or if she was planning on leaving.

This article (Cold case: Where is Simone Ridinger?) says:

Family members say she was headed toward Cape Cod to catch a ferry to Martha’s Vineyard, where she was excited to meet at the family’s Chappaquiddick home.

So the Barnstable airport would have been a reasonable location for her to have asked to be dropped off.
 
This article (Cold case: Where is Simone Ridinger?) says:

Family members say she was headed toward Cape Cod to catch a ferry to Martha’s Vineyard, where she was excited to meet at the family’s Chappaquiddick home.

So the Barnstable airport would have been a reasonable location for her to have asked to be dropped off.

No, it is really odd, assuming it is true.* I have taken the ferry to the Vineyard. Thank you for the info about Barnstable in the 70s. I wasn't sure where you could go from there at that time, but assumed Boston was definitely a destination. Framingham to Boston is easy. It wouldn't make any sense to go to Barnstable to fly to Boston.

Which would make me think *if* Simone used the airport at Barnstable, she flew into NYC. And from there, who knows?

The mention of the police officers DAUGHTER giving Simone a ride to Framingham weeks after she was last seen is interesting as well. Did Simone return to her apartment, and leave again without anyone knowing?

I wish we knew how far in advance the special visits at the jail were arranged.

(*I feel the older guy is telling the truth. )
 

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