Found Deceased PA - Linda Stoltzfoos, 18, Bird-in-Hand, Lancaster County, 21 June 2020 *kidnapping arrest* #3

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Could someone please tell me, why LE have focussed searches in the Welsh Mountain Area, it seems quite specific - clearly is a good place to hide something/someone, I have read back through some of the pages and can't seem to find why? Has there been traffic cam footage showing him in that area?

eta or Mobile Phone data 'pings'?
 
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Ashildir said:
Could someone please tell me, why LE have focussed searches in the Welsh Mountain Area, it seems quite specific - clearly is a good place to hide something/someone, I have read back through some of the pages and can't seem to find why? Has there been traffic cam footage showing him in that area?

eta or Mobile Phone data 'pings'?
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They don't say exactly but this was quoted on WGAL.

"We have reason to believe that Justo Smoker was operating his vehicle within this area in the last couple days prior to and after the incident occurred," Trooper Kevin Kochka said.

MISSING AMISH TEEN: Hundreds of volunteers search East Earl Township
 
Two months coming up on Friday. That's often not a very long time when someone is missing and presumed deceased - we know how long it can take for many of the 'missing persons' cases on here (sometimes years). But for Linda, the area in which her abduction took place was so small, the information LE has seemed solid, and the suspect apprehended so quickly, that it seemed that maybe just this once, the missing person would be found much sooner than usual. But JS knows to keep his mouth shut and I'm betting he won't say anything. Prison time has probably taught him well. We cannot rely on his conscience to keep him awake at night and bring him to confess. If he admits to murder, he's up the creek for life. He's a moral coward.
MOO
 
TwoBlueJays said:
Two months coming up on Friday. That's often not a very long time when someone is missing and presumed deceased - we know how long it can take for many of the 'missing persons' cases on here (sometimes years). But for Linda, the area in which her abduction took place was so small, the information LE has seemed solid, and the suspect apprehended so quickly, that it seemed that maybe just this once, the missing person would be found much sooner than usual. But JS knows to keep his mouth shut and I'm betting he won't say anything. Prison time has probably taught him well. We cannot rely on his conscience to keep him awake at night and bring him to confess. If he admits to murder, he's up the creek for life. He's a moral coward.
MOO
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100% agree with you - sending prayers and love to Linda and her family.
 
"We have reason to believe that Justo Smoker was operating his vehicle within this area in the last couple days prior to and after the incident occurred," Trooper Kevin Kochka said.

I am wondering how specific the information is that places JS's car in that area? Cell phone triangulation or vehicle GPS? It's a big area. If the data was a bit more specific, it would make it tons easier to narrow the search area.
 
Trackergd said:
"We have reason to believe that Justo Smoker was operating his vehicle within this area in the last couple days prior to and after the incident occurred," Trooper Kevin Kochka said.

I am wondering how specific the information is that places JS's car in that area? Cell phone triangulation or vehicle GPS? It's a big area. If the data was a bit more specific, it would make it tons easier to narrow the search area.
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Sorry to hear she is still missing. I check in every now and then hoping she would have been found by now. I havent been able to think of much to be able to help with any new ideas in this case.

IMO the part about him being in that Welsh mountain area before she was taken doesnt make much sense to me unless he had been planning this for some time and was trying to find an isolated area to take her to. I suppose that could make sense but the abduction of her seemed so random to me, unless he knew she walked home after church on certain days.

I was thinking the incident was more random but maybe it was planned out which could make that Welsh mountain area they are focusing on make more sense.

It could fit into why some of her items were buried closer to town too if he had forgotten those items were in his vehicle, and he did not want to drive all the way back to the Welsh mountain area and potentially be seen near where he put her body.

Maybe that is a clue we can use. If that is the reason he deposited the clothes closer to town because he did not want to drive ALL the way back to Welsh mountain area, then that could point to it being on the further outskirts of that area from town. So if I had to search Welsh mountain area, I think I would start with the furthest points away from town.
So thinking it would be the furthest points of Welsh mountain away from town. Almost like if you wanted to drive through the Welsh mountain area and wanted to get out the other side. I would start searching at those furthest points from town, and then work backwards toward the town from there.

The thought about this is he did not want to drive ALL the way back to where he put her body when he found the items he may have forgotten about. And also the fact he would want to be as far away from town as possible to begin with.

The only other thoughts that I cant shake about this case is for some reason I feel he may have sunk her in some water with weights. There was that Limestone Quarry that we talked about and I listed some reasons awhile back how Lime is sometimes used to help decompose dead animals. He may have learned of that in prison about Lime and with him knowing there was a Limestone Quarry near town, I think he may have thought it would help decompose the body. I would get scuba divers in that Quarry and search it if I was in charge.

Quarrys are usually very deep too if they have water in it and he may have known how deep the quarry is and about how lime can help decompose dead animals.

There may be a couple in that area. This is the one I think we were talking about.
There may be a closer one than that as there are lots of quarries in PA.

"Workings featured a 600 foot long by 400 foot wide and 60 foot deep quarry. This quarry is now flooded."

Quarryville Lime and Stone Company Quarry (Orchard Quarry), Quarryville Borough (Quarryville), Lancaster Co., Pennsylvania, USA
 
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Bucksharbor said:
A new search is scheduled for this Saturday 8/22. Praying that this upcoming search will lead us to Linda.
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One thing LE could do to help with the search Saturday is they should show the searchers what the previous location looked like where they found the buried clothing items.

That way the searchers could look for anything similar because the perp may have used a similar method to bury Linda.

LE may not want to show the actual place but they could show them pictures of how the ground looked before they did any digging. Or if they did not even want to show the searchers that much, then LE could pick a similar area and simulate what the ground looked like.

I feel that would at least give the searchers an idea of what a buriel site looks like. Not many people would be able to recognize the subtle clues that a fresh but attempted to hide buriel site would provide.

Small things like leaves partially scattered about on top, other brush that is on top that is not around other areas, the ground being slightly darker than the rest of the undisturbed ground, broken limbs on surrounding bushes that have a branch broken or two where the perp broke it walking to the location, etc.

I feel this will help searchers a lot. Because unless these are professional searchers or even if they are, then having a short demonstration before the search on what to look for would be very helpful to the searchers.
 
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Apologies if this has been posted previously, it really bothers me that Linda hasn't been found, and possibly this is because they are looking in the wrong area - i know they have used mobile phone pings, so I wanted to check what the distance could be and then I found this article

What Your Cell Phone Can’t Tell the Police.

maybe Linda is nearer to home than LE previously thought as according to this mobile phone pings are not always that reliable.

just a thought.

ETA - Its is an old article though so prob means nothing
 
Cell phone coverage in that area is spotty from personal experience. My daughter-in-laws family lived on Welsh Mountain until a couple of years back, so I am very familiar with the area. Years ago I had a permanent site at Spring Gulch Campground and biked the entire area frequently. Really wish I had the data that LE has showing JS in the area. It could be the disposal site, it could have been a transfer point to other parties, or it could have been a secluded spot for the unthinkable, before she was moved elsewhere.

One other interesting tidbit I got from one of my sources. There are caves slightly West in Berks County, I'm not sure what the closer caves to Bird-In-Hand are. The one in Virginville called Dragon Cave on private property. My source was chased out of there on one occasion by the Amish landowner at the time. I gather that the Amish will not go into caves. Hopefully local spelunkers would know all the local caves. This type of search requires SAR teams MSHA certified in Cave Mine Rescue. Wind Cave near Pequea is another. There had been a number of cave rescues in Southern Lancaster County as of 2018. I don't have the most recent report. There are also some mines (Nickel Mines) and drainage culverts under roads and the rail right-of-way.
 
Bucksharbor said:
"We have reason to believe that Justo Smoker was operating his vehicle within this area in the last couple days prior to and after the incident occurred," Trooper Kevin Kochka said.
Click to expand...

This bothers me a little too - makes me think more premeditated - sort of like he had been looking for somewhere and spent a few days finding it, finding the best way to access the area, digging a hole :( - was then able to take her straight there and .......... - then spent the following days 'checking' that the area hadnt been found/disturbed or he had hidden any tracks/marks made.
 
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Locals. Somewhere near Elverson there is a closed and abandoned campground. Might even be closer to Geigertown. I have misplaced my directions to it. It is heavily wooded, there is a small lake in it and a number of dirt roads. I have been in there a couple of times. Wonder if JS knew about it. If one of you remembers where it is, PM me or post it here.
 
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