Found Deceased Robert Isaacks, 88, Bandera, 15 Nov 2023 ~ POI: Freda Thomas; surveillance footage available ~ Texas Rangers involved

[Howl]

Housekeeping odds and ends.

From the SanAngeloLive.com web site originally linked upthread by @Seni: "A body wrapped in a tarp and duct-taped, discovered on November 17 between Interstate-10 and the service road just east of Ozona..."

Ozona is in West Texas, about a two and a half hour drive (170 miles) from Bandera.
As is obvious by the photos in the SanAngeloOnlive.com article (and personal experieence), this is open, isolated brush country. Traffic would be sporadic.

Hypothetical: Driver of the Jeep (FMT?) takes the Ozona exit off I-10, stops at the edge of the pavement, gets out, opens the back, pulls out the bundle, drives away within two to three minutes of stopping, zero attempt to conceal. Within a few more minutes, back on the Interstate.

The original BOLO describes FMT as 5'4" tall, weighing 166lbs. However, the Ring photos of FMT on the back patio of Mr. Isaacs' home show a very slender, almost emaciated woman; her pants appear to be barely hanging on. I also found the knit cap very odd as well. It's hard to tell if she is bald under the cap or still has hair.

Also, "Law enforcement officers recognized Thomas from the video having known of her prior to this incident." Still no updates on any prior criminal history FMT.

 

[Howl]

Driver of the Jeep (FMT?) takes the Ozona exit off I-10, stops at the edge of the pavement, gets out, opens the back, pulls out the bundle, drives away within two to three minutes of stopping,

A poster elsewhere noted that one of the photos of Mr. Isaacs' Jeep on SanAngeloLive.com shows a hitch-mounted cargo platform on the back of the Jeep. The sides of it are very low and it's relatively low to the ground.
If this was on the Jeep, it would have been relatively easy to load the bundled body onto it, cover it in some way and drive away. Reverse and even easier to dump the body.

 

[Susikatze]

Odd case. I assume this woman took advantage of a recent widower, grooming him and simulating a love interest. They go undetected by friends and family and ultimately end up alienating the elderly man from family until all the assets are hers¹. I guess that was the case here but then something went wrong and she ended up killing him, maybe with an accomplice, she does look in bad shape physically. Likely him moving in with family and thus being supervised ended Fredas scheme and she killed him.

Jmoo

 

[iusedtofloat]

Odd case. I assume this woman took advantage of a recent widower, grooming him and simulating a love interest. They go undetected by friends and family and ultimately end up alienating the elderly man from family until all the assets are hers¹. I guess that was the case here but then something went wrong and she ended up killing him, maybe with an accomplice, she does look in bad shape physically. Likely him moving in with family and thus being supervised ended Fredas scheme and she killed him.

Jmoo

tbh, i do not think so. jmo. i feel like maybe the day before she met him when he was out and about doing errands, or earlier that morning, and he maybe felt bad and offered her some easy work for some money (getting out thanksgiving decor, etc). she is not very cute imo lol

 

[Howl]

tbh, i do not think so. jmo. i feel like maybe the day before she met him when he was out and about doing errands, or earlier that morning, and he maybe felt bad and offered her some easy work for some money (getting out thanksgiving decor, etc). she is not very cute imo lol

His wife passed away and he had only very recently left Houston to move in and live with his daughter in Bandera. No indication of family alienation - FMT was unknown to RI's family.

 

[daybreaking]

Freda Thomas has been arrested: Woman who allegedly killed 88-year-old Bandera man arrested six months later

 

[mpnola]

What a disgusting human being.

Rest well, Mr. Isaacks. I am sorry you lived such a long life, to then have it end at the literal hands of a monster.

 

[MAHBOOBOO]

From the link in Post# 26, here are the new details (snipped for focus):

"That arrest affidavit written by a Bandera County Sheriff's Office investigator says Chovanec reported about $25,000 in cash was "missing from a safe in the house" and that "blood droplets" were found by law enforcement in multiple places. Additionally, cell phone records showed Isaacks and Thomas were in contact for more than a week before she allegedly killed him.

When authorities went to an area of town where Thomas was believed to have been living in a tent, they found a jacket with "possible blood stains" that Chovanec later identified as belonging to her father. A witness in the area told investigators that a woman matching Thomas' description had recently been seen driving away in a jeep with a "black tarp covering what was being hauled on the rack.

Chovanec said she heard rumors about the arrest Monday but made sure to call the detectives herself. She said they told her they received a tip that she had been staying in a home in Oklahoma. She said the U.S. Marshals waited outside the home until she came out."

So glad she was caught and that she won't be able to do this to another family. Such a bizarre and tragic story. Strange that there's vagrant people living in tents in Bandera. I wonder what pretense she used to befriend him. Personally I think he was just trying to help her. I think the money was definitely her motive. What a strange world we live in where a somewhat young woman will target a sweet older man like this.