GUILTY NC - Thomas Bryson, 68, Mills River, 26 July 2017 *Arrests*

[CluelessWonder]

Evidently, the guy was doing a lot of driving. Possibly in circles. I bet he was trying to meet up with someone he knew.

I assume that he snagged the car in Mills River. Then it seems that he went northeast to the area around Mt. Mitchell. Then he headed southeast through the forest on Highway 80 and ended his journey at the intersection of Highway 80 and Highway 70. I wonder where he was headed and where he had been. It seems like something caused him to turn around and head back south after he had already left the immediate area heading north.

 

[Capebluff]

I don't think he would have tried to fight with this perp. So there would be no point in the creep hurting Bryson.


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I hope & pray this was the case. [emoji1317]


Whenever I hear, “It can’t be done,” I know I’m close to success!!

 

[Henry2326]

Stroupe faces charges in Yancey County and is wanted in Buncombe County for failure to appear in court in regard to a kidnapping charge.

http://www.wyff4.com/article/manhun...ans-vehicle-stop-sticks-sheriff-says/10363216

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[Gardener1850]

Anyone have a live link to the presser at 11 AM?

ETA: Found one: http://wlos.com/live/event

 

[Gardener1850]

Here's what I got from the presser until I lost my video:

Suspect Apprehended
Still searching for Tommy Bryson
When suspect arrested, Mr Bryson was not with him
Believe suspect is responsible for Mr. Bryson's disappearance
Family desperately wants their father and husband back
Search will focus on Henderson County
LE will continue to work at the same intensity to find Bryson
They have relied on public info and are MORE in need of that now
The vehicle was located near Barnersville? Sp?

Reporter questions: Can you give timeline of when he was on the parkway?
Answer: Sometime between 8:30 and 8:40 is when they believe contact took place...
(He's giving street and place names of where the subject might h ave gone and I'm lost, Lol)

Q: Did Stroup say anything about Bryson?
A: From interviews they can tell contact was made....

And I lost my video...

 

[Gardener1850]

Investigators aren’t sure how Phillip Michael Stroupe II spent his time since he stole a mountain bike at gunpoint Saturday and pedaled into the Pisgah National Forest, but authorities have put those questions on the back burner as they try to retrace Stroupe’s final 17 hours of freedom and find the missing 68-year-old man, Henderson County Sheriff Charles McDonald said.

“We are still in a search mode for Mr. Tommy Bryson. We are holding out hope we will be able to locate him,” McDonald said. “But time is of the essence.”
Bryson was last seen around 8:40 a.m. Wednesday on a surveillance camera driving away from his home in Mills River to pick up a family member for a medical appointment. He never made it there.

Stroupe was arrested after a two-county chase at 1:30 a.m. Thursday on U.S. Highway 70, west of Marion, about 50 miles (80 kilometers) away. He ran into a tomato field before he was taken into custody. Officers found a gun nearby, McDowell County sheriff’s spokeswoman Richelle Bailey said.

http://www.therepublic.com/2017/07/27/us-forest-manhunt-6/

 

[CluelessWonder]

I don't like the sound of all of this. If they interviewed him and the guy didn't tell them where Tommy is, then he probably did something horrible.

 

[Henry2326]

I don't like the sound of all of this. If they interviewed him and the guy didn't tell them where Tommy is, then he probably did something horrible.

That's horrible....hoping for a positive outcome but not feeling it.

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[BlkMtnGirl]

Evidently, the guy was doing a lot of driving. Possibly in circles. I bet he was trying to meet up with someone he knew.

I assume that he snagged the car in Mills River. Then it seems that he went northeast to the area around Mt. Mitchell. Then he headed southeast through the forest on Highway 80 and ended his journey at the intersection of Highway 80 and Highway 70. I wonder where he was headed and where he had been. It seems like something caused him to turn around and head back south after he had already left the immediate area heading north.

Knowing the area well, I can see why he chose the path he did. Seems like he has contacts in McDowell County. To get there from Mills River, you would either take I-26 and I-40, or you would hop on the Blue Ridge Parkway and stay on it all the way to NC 80. (Alternatively, you could go around through Bat Cave and Lake Lure, which are also rural areas, but there are local cops who would have been on the lookout with nothing better to do at night -- and you'd be on I-26 longer than if you hopped on the parkway.) There are way fewer park rangers on the Parkway than law enforcement on I-40. And practically nobody on NC 80 in the middle of the night. So, yes, a long way around, but the better alternative for him.

I also agree that it's not looking good for Mr. Bryson. Although there seems to be no reason Stroupe would have hurt him, we're talking about a criminal mind, here. :-(

 

[Gardener1850]

Best case scenario at this point would be that he left Mr. Bryson alive but tied up someplace, but time is of the essence if he is still alive. I hope the police are leaning on this perp with all they have, threatening to charge him with murder if he doesn't cough up Mr. Bryson's location. But I fear Stroupe likely killed him and left him in thick brush somewhere.

Here's a little more about Stroupe's criminal background:

Stroupe had just been released from the Yancey County jail July 20 and has spent most of the past two decades behind bars, according to North Carolina prison records.

In 1999, Stroupe was sentenced to more than 18 years, the maximum allowed, for felony robbery with a deadly weapon and as well as breaking and entering and false imprisonment. He was released from prison in April 2015.

Last month, Stroupe was named as a suspect in the armed robbery of a store in Weaverville. A few days later, he was attempting to flee authorities when he rammed a stolen car into a Buncombe County sheriff's deputy's vehicle, authorities said.

http://www.wsfa.com/story/35989801/sheriff-fugitive-capture-turns-into-search-for-missing-man

He did 18 years in prison and re-offended not long after getting out. I would not put it past this violent criminal to murder someone while fleeing police. :moo:

 

[BlkMtnGirl]

Just received a Nixle alert that Stroupe may have traveled to East Tennessee before capture. So, Clueless, looks like you may be right about him driving around in circles. I'm disheartened that there have been no attempts at organized search for Mr. Bryson. I'm afraid of what that means in terms of what LE suspects about his whereabouts. Then again, I guess you can't search without having more of an idea of where to search.

https://local.nixle.com/alert/6079721/

 

[shebot]

Thanks for keeping this thread updated, Gardener1850! My aunt went to high school with Thomas. I absolutely hope he is found alive, but unfortunately the outcome looks grim.

MOO.

 

[CluelessWonder]

Yes, thanks for the updates and the press conference transcript!


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[Gardener1850]

[h=1]Search continues for missing man, family offers reward[/h]

“We have a family who desperately wants their dad and husband back,” Transylvania County Sheriff Charles McDonald said.

In an interview, Bryson's sons said their family is offering a $10,000 reward to anyone who finds him.

Investigators said they want to hear from anyone who saw the Honda Ridgeline with two occupants. McDonald said they are trying to narrow down the search area because Stroupe had been in an area that spans from Highway 276 in Transylvania County to Barnardsville in Buncombe County and the Mt. Mitchell area in Yancey County.

McDonald said Stroupe has family members in Barnardsville, and he described him as the “product of an enabling family.” He said investigators know Stroupe was in Barnardsville at some point, but they do not know how long he was there.

Barnardsville is about 40 miles from South Mills River Road.

Late Thursday afternoon, detectives said they have reason to believe Stroupe may have traveled into eastern Tennessee before he was involved in the chase that culminated in his capture and arrest in McDowell County.

McDonald said that Bryson had a cellphone with him and that it has been recovered, but it “produced little information.”
McDonald said when Stroupe was captured, a weapon was found nearby that was taken from “someone who was victimized in Transylvania County.”

http://www.wyff4.com/article/search...en-by-captured-fugitive-deputies-say/10370443

 

[Gardener1850]

Part of an interview with Tommy's sons:

"The sheriff's department came here about 2 in the morning and told us they had found the truck. And I said, 'Where's dad.' And they said they don't know. So, immediately your heart just sinks," said Joey Bryson.

Both men describe their dad as a man of faith who would have done anything Stroupe would have asked in order to get back to his family.

"He's just the most kind-hearted loving individual anyone can meet, and the fact this happened to him, it's just hard to believe," said Joey Bryson. "Your initial reaction is anger and bitterness, and, you know, 'What have you done to our father.' But please, please just tell us what happened, tell us where we can find him."

The Bryson family is offering a $10,000 reward for information that leads to the whereabouts of Thomas Bryson.

http://wlos.com/news/local/reward-offered-in-search-for-thomas-bryson

 

[Gardener1850]

“So gentle, and humble and kind, and it’s just heartbreaking to know that something like that could happen to someone like him,” Joey Bryson, Tommy Bryson’s youngest son, said.

Both of Bryson’s sons said they never thought much of the manhunt focused on the community where their parents lived.
“I met the deputy coming down the road,” Bryson said. “I assumed he was just patrolling the area, and that’s when he told me my father was missing, and your heart sinks.”

His sons say they immediately thought the worst because their dad is in great health and very punctual. However, they still weren’t quite sure if his disappearance was connected to the days long manhunt for Stroupe.

“I just thought what are the chances of that happening,” Rick Bryson, Tommy Bryson’s oldest son, said.
They say their dad probably didn’t put up a struggle because he isn’t a fighter.
“As the hours go by, and the days tick on…it reality starts to set in,” Rick Bryson said.
But the family is staying strong in their faith and not giving up hope.
“Incredible, incredible person, and the fact that so many people are praying, we know that God’s going to deliver us from this,” Joey Bryson said.

Law enforcement agencies are offering a $2500 reward for any credible evidence that leads to Bryson’s return, and Bryson’s family is offering a $10,000 reward.

http://wspa.com/2017/07/27/family-of-missing-western-nc-man-pleads-with-public-to-bring-dad-home/

 

[Gardener1850]

[h=1]As search intensifies, Bryson's family copes with uncertainty[/h]

ASHEVILLE, N.C. (WLOS) — Many of the relatives who know Tommy Bryson best live close by.

The family has been in the Horseshoe area for decades, and Tommy grew up there with his first cousin, Barbara Jean Lemmons.

She and her husband Leonard live just down the street from Tommy and often take walks with him in the evening.

"It's been really hard. We never expected anything like this would happen around here," said Leonard.

The couple describe Tommy as a dependable, hard-working man who loves his six grandchildren.

"He is very dependable," said Leonard. "That's why we knew something was wrong when he didn't show up."

http://wlos.com/news/local/as-search-intensifies-brysons-family-copes-with-uncertainty-07-27-2017

 

[Gardener1850]

[h=2]Stroupe may have driven as far as Tennessee[/h]

On Thursday night investigators said they have reason to believe Stroupe may have traveled as far west as East Tennessee before turning back to the N.C. mountains, where he was involved in the chase that culminated in his capture and arrest in McDowell County. Officials urged the public in both Western North Carolina and East Tennessee to continue to provide information that may lead to Thomas Bryson’s location by contacting local law enforcement.

McDonald said Thursday morning that searchers are holding out hope that Bryson will be found alive. The search continues in a wide area where Stroupe is thought to have driven, though McDonald said the fugitive had plenty of time to cover ground investigators do not currently know of.

McDonald issued a statement Thursday afternoon discouraging any independent ground seach attempts.
“We appreciate the heartfelt community support and desire to assist in our search operations," he said. "It is imperative, however, that we leave the search efforts to our professional and capable law enforcement and partner organizations. Systematic techniques and methodical search protocols ensure the greatest amount of success, least amount of risk to personnel, and ensures the preservation of any evidence that may need to be collected in this case.
"The two things that I would ask of our community at this time are; one, continue the prayers going out for Thomas Bryson’s safe return, and two, continue to pass along any information that may assist us in our investigation and search.”

https://www.hendersonvillelightning...w-officers-update-stroupe-missing-person.html

 

[Gardener1850]

Earlier Thursday, Henderson County sheriff's spokeswoman Allison Nock said that law officers had been able to make contact with the drivers of two vehicles, a small, black, 4-door sedan and a gray/silver, full-sized truck pictured in the upper center portion of the attached photos, that travelling on South Mills River Road on Wednesday and were thought to have information to share.

In other highlights, McDonald and McDowell County Sheriff Dudley Green also said:

• Sheriff's deputies, rescue squad members, the ATF, the U.S. Marshals Office and other agencies are all involved in the search of Bryson, whom he described as a gentle and kind man from a pioneer family of Mills River. Law officers believe Stroupe may have gone through the Barnardsville area, where he has "enabling" family members and also may have traveled for some distance on the Blue Ridge Parkway.
• Stroupe was spotted in Yancey County before he drove into McDowell County where a chase of some distance ensued. After stop sticks disabled the vehicle, he jumped out and ran and was captured about an hour later. He was jailed in McDowell County under a $100,000 bond with a first appearance scheduled for Friday morning in that county. He is charged with possession of methamphetamine, fleeing to elude arrest, failure to stop for a steady red light, reckless driving to endanger, resisting a public officer and possession of a firearm by a felon, multiple media outlets reported. He faces multiple felony charges as well in Henderson and Transylvania counties, McDonald said. Searchers found a weapon near where Stroupe was found and it's believed that was his weapon.
• McDonald refused to say that the search for Bryson was a recovery operation but said the family has already been through "a horrific experience" knowing that their husband and father had apparently been kidnapped early Wednesday morning.

https://www.hendersonvillelightning...w-officers-update-stroupe-missing-person.html

 

[AzPistonsGirl]

and meth on top of it all. Lovely.

This is heartbreaking, seeing it play out. So very sad no matter what...