I largely agree with all your thoughts. On your last point - maybe you could email the pastor that Gardner suggested someone contact? I'd be happy to do it but am not having much luck with the people I've contacted so maybe I'm jinxed
TX - 'Lori Ruff', Longview, WhtFem UP9863, *General Discussion and Theories* #4
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BigCityAccountant
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On 2nd thought, I did do that address. I found a Mili & K Cleaners (inactive with Tx Secretary of State) at that address. I also found it at another address as well. Let me did that up! I have the name of the individual somewhere in my notes....LOL
ETA: Ok...found it. it was also the Statler Blvd address. Some alias associated with this person...M N*tt or M*lly H*gg*ns.
https://familysearch.org/search/rec...lly~ +surname:nutt~&residence_place1=10,Texas
Just an update on two of the people I'd contacted previously - Andy Anderson (the film director of Positive ID/lecturer at UT Arlington) and the relative of the FH family who I mentioned upthread who bore the striking physical resemblance to FLEK (more detail on her in the facebook group for those who are interested). I facebook messaged both of these people and can now see that they have both read my messages. Neither of them has replied.
I find this really strange - if someone messaged me with something like that, I would definitely reply even if I couldn't help them. Just out of courtesy to say - got your message, no idea what you're talking about.
I was very respectful and polite and tried to be as non-intrusive and non-creepy/stalkerish as possible in my messages (plus my facebook pic shows I am a real, non-threatening type of person).
So am I reading too much into this to think that a lack of reply means they know something and don't want to get involved?
I find this really strange - if someone messaged me with something like that, I would definitely reply even if I couldn't help them. Just out of courtesy to say - got your message, no idea what you're talking about.
I was very respectful and polite and tried to be as non-intrusive and non-creepy/stalkerish as possible in my messages (plus my facebook pic shows I am a real, non-threatening type of person).
So am I reading too much into this to think that a lack of reply means they know something and don't want to get involved?
Another reason to wonder if this case has had enough publicity. Maybe she had no clients, but she seemed to be really trying hard. This story really needs to get on a major network. Maybe we should all go to either 48 hrs, or Datelines FB and message a suggestion to cover this story. I think I did a year or two ago, but maybe its time again.
Gardener1850
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I think it's great that you have been contacting people sunnynz!
I would draw the same conclusions about a non-reply possibly meaning they know something and don't want to put a denial of knowing her in writing. However, I also want to give them the benefit of the doubt. If a stranger from outside the US messaged me on fb to ask if I knew a woman who committed suicide, I might not reply. I might even go so far as to block that person on fb. Even a seemingly nice person like you. Try not to take it personally. Some people spook easily. The important thing is you tried. Maybe he doesn't know anything but will look into the case and get back to you in a few weeks. Maybe he will become interested in doing a new film that includes Lori's story. Anything that gets more people interested may make the case go viral and help solve this case.
OBrunhilde!
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I know it must have taken some courage to make contact-- I think it is so cool that you tried. I would feel as you do, but really who knows? It is so hard to know what goes through people's minds. Maybe they know something, maybe they don't, maybe they don't want to be involved, or maybe they are still processing and consulting others trying to decide what to do. One or both of them may surprise you yet. And like Gardener said-- anything to get people thinking about her and talking about her is a very good thing.
Alright this is my first post but I have been following this case for a good amount of time now (over a year) and recently came back to it. I've read through virtually every post here in the FLEK subforum as well as done a lot of my own independent research and I'd like to throw a few threads out there that maybe someone more well equipped to follow up on such things can.
One thing I specifically noticed is while it shows up on numerous FLEK pages, the idea of her being Jennifer Marie Wictor is dismissed quite quickly with very little academic followup so while circumstantial, I'd like to put a few interesting things I've noted when you compare JMW to FLEK.
First of all, yes, they do look "different", but I think I can provide an actual (circumstantial) reasoning behind it, so bear with me.
Right off the bat, it's the nose, nasiolabial folds, and smile that are different. From what I've seen this has been enough to dismiss her from candidacy as FLEK with not much more followup. So what do we know about FLEK? For one, she seemed to be concerned with her age as well as her appearance, despite the claims of dressing "matronly" later in life, which I also aim to explain. Allegedly she received a breast augmentation, but before that, there's also talk of her having had a nose job earlier in life. Most of the talk I've seen regarding FLEK and rhinoplasty ends with "But why would she get it to look crooked, what did she look like before?" My theory is FLEK IS JMW, and that JMW received a botched nose job.
Rhinoplasty was the big thing in the mid eighties, but a simple google search can bring up droves of botched nose job pictures from the mid-late 80s and see how much it structurally alters one's face. JMW had a wider, more bulbous nose with thicker nasiolabial folds. If JMW were to get a nose job, it'd (speculation) be to diminish the width and shrink it down a bit, which would mean a loss of depth of her nasiolabial folds. If it were conducted improperly, or not given enough time to properly heal, one could very well easily end up with the crooked, upturned look of FLEK.
Which leads me to the FLEK smile. Always tight upper lip, in fact, one can argue FLEK's upper lip is virtually identical in all of her photographs, regardless of her expression. Almost a straight line across her teeth, with the rest of her mouth making the smile.
From a forum post regarding rhinoplasty side-effects/aftereffects:
Now this post was in 2014, and it is not uncommon nor is the doctor's response. Now, go back to 1988 which nose job full on botches and/or inappropriate aftercare were much more common. Is it entirely possible this happened to her and remained semi-permanent?
As for the financial means, I've bounced a few theories back and forth, but the one that sticks out in my mind as the most plausible is either as JMW or a possible transitional identity, she took out a loan she never intended to repay (as she was planning on changing her identity already) and when the nose job was botched, she had no recourse but to continue on with her life.
Arizona connection:
According to the FLEK note page, she had been in touch with the Tucson AZ CNA line, assumedly to dodge whomever she could be running from. My theory is not that (in this specific situation) she was in all actuality, whether they were aware of it or not, checking in on her parents/family. JMW was a Tempe resident if I recall, the case being handled by Maricopa County, and her car was found abandoned on I-10 which runs through Tempe and Tucson. This use of the AZ CNA as well as noting the time differences (half the year AZ has a 3 hour time difference) could be her trying to ascertain whether or not her parents were still alive, maybe she even gave them a few hang up calls? (totally speculative)
Now to compare the timelines of both rather directly:
BST date of birth: 6/18/69
JMW date of birth: 4/16/67
JMW last seen in Tempe: 3/10/88
BST birth certificate obtained 5/20/88; almost precisely a month before BST's 18th birthday, and almost precisely a month after JMW's 21st birthday.
BST Idaho ID issued 6/16/88, exactly two months after JMW's 21st birthday.
LEK Texas ID issued 4/18/89, exactly two days after JMW's 22nd birthday.
It's reasonable to assume that for sanity's sake, she chose an identity with a birthday already around the time of her own for less track-covering, but just skewed enough that when JMW was already an adult, BST/LEK was in high school, not to mention the vanity effect of being able to tell people she's practically a generation younger than she actually is (When JMW graduated, theoretically "BST" was just entering high school). This also enabled her to "redo" her high school career in a GED with minimal suspicion. The vanity aspect would also lend itself to the accounts of bulimia as well as her later breast augmentation.
Now this has lead me to do some VERY circumstantial dot-connecting with regards to her later life behavior as well as the notes pages. I believe, in addition to an unnamed trauma or traumas, that FLEK's separation from her family, mother especially, was very traumatic for her. If one assumes the Arizona CNA lead to be looking for her parents, it's reasonable to assume she missed them. The 'calculations' note page has held my attention for a great deal of time and I think this framework provides an adequate explanation for it: while early in her run (as the 'dates' seem to stop in 89/90 and go in reverse order) she attempted to create a new parental backstory with accurate ages so as to have something to tell people when they asked (later reverting to the simpler "it's none of your business). However, my theory is she did not keep the note page as a reminder of her backstory, I think it was simple scratch paper. What it SAYS, between the lines, I think is the reason why she kept it.
The first set of dates is calculating her father's age when BST was born, dating back to 69. The second set is to calculate her mother's age. However, it could be assumed her mother has a birthday AFTER the date she began writing the note paper, and so her reverse calculations do not add up properly with what she perceives her parent's ages to be with relation to eachother when she was born. So she starts a third set of calculations, however this dataset dates back to 1967 (JMW's birth year), and, quite possibly, the realization of how she "screwed up": when JMW was 21, she was going on the run and disappearing from her family; when JMW/BST's mother was 21, she was giving birth to JMW and starting a family.
This further goes to FLEK's state of mind later in life. Could she have gone to bible study for redemption? Had she been on the run so long (into her 50s) that it wasn't fun anymore and she had more demons than she could handle? People describe her as beginning to dress "matronly" in this era which is I think very very telling when it comes to her state of mind. While that is extremely modest dress for a 2000s mother in her 50s, it's not entirely far off from what a possibly conservative 70s/80s mother would wear. Was she attempting to channel her own mother, perhaps attempting to (in her mind) right some wrongs of her past? This would also contribute to the over-protective nature of the relationship with her daughter, perhaps trying to be the mom she had never had and ensure her daughter would not have the identity crisis so to speak that she had gone through.
Edit: Additionally, her final mental breakdown (from what I've read) occurred that spring leading into summer and worsening towards the fall. Could it have been just being confronted with yet another real birthday missed and yet another fake one celebrated? (JMW being end of April and BST/FLEK being at the end of June) Maybe even reaching the age her real mother was when she left?
But why not fess up in the end if the walls were closing in? Well I think that allllllll leads back to her initial unpaid loan. I think she wanted to tell, but she got in over her head way too many years before that, and realized she would not only alienate her new family but most likely saddle them with 20+ year old outstanding debt if her real identity was ever connected back to them.
So, hell of a first post but this has really captured my attention and I'd really really like to see if anyone can give credence to this theory or even run down some of these connections further in a way I'm not currently capable of.
One thing I specifically noticed is while it shows up on numerous FLEK pages, the idea of her being Jennifer Marie Wictor is dismissed quite quickly with very little academic followup so while circumstantial, I'd like to put a few interesting things I've noted when you compare JMW to FLEK.
First of all, yes, they do look "different", but I think I can provide an actual (circumstantial) reasoning behind it, so bear with me.
Right off the bat, it's the nose, nasiolabial folds, and smile that are different. From what I've seen this has been enough to dismiss her from candidacy as FLEK with not much more followup. So what do we know about FLEK? For one, she seemed to be concerned with her age as well as her appearance, despite the claims of dressing "matronly" later in life, which I also aim to explain. Allegedly she received a breast augmentation, but before that, there's also talk of her having had a nose job earlier in life. Most of the talk I've seen regarding FLEK and rhinoplasty ends with "But why would she get it to look crooked, what did she look like before?" My theory is FLEK IS JMW, and that JMW received a botched nose job.
Rhinoplasty was the big thing in the mid eighties, but a simple google search can bring up droves of botched nose job pictures from the mid-late 80s and see how much it structurally alters one's face. JMW had a wider, more bulbous nose with thicker nasiolabial folds. If JMW were to get a nose job, it'd (speculation) be to diminish the width and shrink it down a bit, which would mean a loss of depth of her nasiolabial folds. If it were conducted improperly, or not given enough time to properly heal, one could very well easily end up with the crooked, upturned look of FLEK.
Which leads me to the FLEK smile. Always tight upper lip, in fact, one can argue FLEK's upper lip is virtually identical in all of her photographs, regardless of her expression. Almost a straight line across her teeth, with the rest of her mouth making the smile.
From a forum post regarding rhinoplasty side-effects/aftereffects:
Now this post was in 2014, and it is not uncommon nor is the doctor's response. Now, go back to 1988 which nose job full on botches and/or inappropriate aftercare were much more common. Is it entirely possible this happened to her and remained semi-permanent?
As for the financial means, I've bounced a few theories back and forth, but the one that sticks out in my mind as the most plausible is either as JMW or a possible transitional identity, she took out a loan she never intended to repay (as she was planning on changing her identity already) and when the nose job was botched, she had no recourse but to continue on with her life.
Arizona connection:
According to the FLEK note page, she had been in touch with the Tucson AZ CNA line, assumedly to dodge whomever she could be running from. My theory is not that (in this specific situation) she was in all actuality, whether they were aware of it or not, checking in on her parents/family. JMW was a Tempe resident if I recall, the case being handled by Maricopa County, and her car was found abandoned on I-10 which runs through Tempe and Tucson. This use of the AZ CNA as well as noting the time differences (half the year AZ has a 3 hour time difference) could be her trying to ascertain whether or not her parents were still alive, maybe she even gave them a few hang up calls? (totally speculative)
Now to compare the timelines of both rather directly:
BST date of birth: 6/18/69
JMW date of birth: 4/16/67
JMW last seen in Tempe: 3/10/88
BST birth certificate obtained 5/20/88; almost precisely a month before BST's 18th birthday, and almost precisely a month after JMW's 21st birthday.
BST Idaho ID issued 6/16/88, exactly two months after JMW's 21st birthday.
LEK Texas ID issued 4/18/89, exactly two days after JMW's 22nd birthday.
It's reasonable to assume that for sanity's sake, she chose an identity with a birthday already around the time of her own for less track-covering, but just skewed enough that when JMW was already an adult, BST/LEK was in high school, not to mention the vanity effect of being able to tell people she's practically a generation younger than she actually is (When JMW graduated, theoretically "BST" was just entering high school). This also enabled her to "redo" her high school career in a GED with minimal suspicion. The vanity aspect would also lend itself to the accounts of bulimia as well as her later breast augmentation.
Now this has lead me to do some VERY circumstantial dot-connecting with regards to her later life behavior as well as the notes pages. I believe, in addition to an unnamed trauma or traumas, that FLEK's separation from her family, mother especially, was very traumatic for her. If one assumes the Arizona CNA lead to be looking for her parents, it's reasonable to assume she missed them. The 'calculations' note page has held my attention for a great deal of time and I think this framework provides an adequate explanation for it: while early in her run (as the 'dates' seem to stop in 89/90 and go in reverse order) she attempted to create a new parental backstory with accurate ages so as to have something to tell people when they asked (later reverting to the simpler "it's none of your business). However, my theory is she did not keep the note page as a reminder of her backstory, I think it was simple scratch paper. What it SAYS, between the lines, I think is the reason why she kept it.
The first set of dates is calculating her father's age when BST was born, dating back to 69. The second set is to calculate her mother's age. However, it could be assumed her mother has a birthday AFTER the date she began writing the note paper, and so her reverse calculations do not add up properly with what she perceives her parent's ages to be with relation to eachother when she was born. So she starts a third set of calculations, however this dataset dates back to 1967 (JMW's birth year), and, quite possibly, the realization of how she "screwed up": when JMW was 21, she was going on the run and disappearing from her family; when JMW/BST's mother was 21, she was giving birth to JMW and starting a family.
This further goes to FLEK's state of mind later in life. Could she have gone to bible study for redemption? Had she been on the run so long (into her 50s) that it wasn't fun anymore and she had more demons than she could handle? People describe her as beginning to dress "matronly" in this era which is I think very very telling when it comes to her state of mind. While that is extremely modest dress for a 2000s mother in her 50s, it's not entirely far off from what a possibly conservative 70s/80s mother would wear. Was she attempting to channel her own mother, perhaps attempting to (in her mind) right some wrongs of her past? This would also contribute to the over-protective nature of the relationship with her daughter, perhaps trying to be the mom she had never had and ensure her daughter would not have the identity crisis so to speak that she had gone through.
Edit: Additionally, her final mental breakdown (from what I've read) occurred that spring leading into summer and worsening towards the fall. Could it have been just being confronted with yet another real birthday missed and yet another fake one celebrated? (JMW being end of April and BST/FLEK being at the end of June) Maybe even reaching the age her real mother was when she left?
But why not fess up in the end if the walls were closing in? Well I think that allllllll leads back to her initial unpaid loan. I think she wanted to tell, but she got in over her head way too many years before that, and realized she would not only alienate her new family but most likely saddle them with 20+ year old outstanding debt if her real identity was ever connected back to them.
So, hell of a first post but this has really captured my attention and I'd really really like to see if anyone can give credence to this theory or even run down some of these connections further in a way I'm not currently capable of.
Magnum P.E.
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Well, FLEK and Jennifer Wictor both have DNA listed on their NAMUS sites. If you feel strongly, call it in.Alright this is my first post but I have been following this case for a good amount of time now (over a year) and recently came back to it. I've read through virtually every post here in the FLEK subforum as well as done a lot of my own independent research and I'd like to throw a few threads out there that maybe someone more well equipped to follow up on such things can.
One thing I specifically noticed is while it shows up on numerous FLEK pages, the idea of her being Jennifer Marie Wictor is dismissed quite quickly with very little academic followup so while circumstantial, I'd like to put a few interesting things I've noted when you compare JMW to FLEK.
First of all, yes, they do look "different", but I think I can provide an actual (circumstantial) reasoning behind it, so bear with me.
Right off the bat, it's the nose, nasiolabial folds, and smile that are different. From what I've seen this has been enough to dismiss her from candidacy as FLEK with not much more followup. So what do we know about FLEK? For one, she seemed to be concerned with her age as well as her appearance, despite the claims of dressing "matronly" later in life, which I also aim to explain. Allegedly she received a breast augmentation, but before that, there's also talk of her having had a nose job earlier in life. Most of the talk I've seen regarding FLEK and rhinoplasty ends with "But why would she get it to look crooked, what did she look like before?" My theory is FLEK IS JMW, and that JMW received a botched nose job.
Rhinoplasty was the big thing in the mid eighties, but a simple google search can bring up droves of botched nose job pictures from the mid-late 80s and see how much it structurally alters one's face. JMW had a wider, more bulbous nose with thicker nasiolabial folds. If JMW were to get a nose job, it'd (speculation) be to diminish the width and shrink it down a bit, which would mean a loss of depth of her nasiolabial folds. If it were conducted improperly, or not given enough time to properly heal, one could very well easily end up with the crooked, upturned look of FLEK.
Which leads me to the FLEK smile. Always tight upper lip, in fact, one can argue FLEK's upper lip is virtually identical in all of her photographs, regardless of her expression. Almost a straight line across her teeth, with the rest of her mouth making the smile.
From a forum post regarding rhinoplasty side-effects/aftereffects:
Now this post was in 2014, and it is not uncommon nor is the doctor's response. Now, go back to 1988 which nose job full on botches and/or inappropriate aftercare were much more common. Is it entirely possible this happened to her and remained semi-permanent?
As for the financial means, I've bounced a few theories back and forth, but the one that sticks out in my mind as the most plausible is either as JMW or a possible transitional identity, she took out a loan she never intended to repay (as she was planning on changing her identity already) and when the nose job was botched, she had no recourse but to continue on with her life.
Arizona connection:
According to the FLEK note page, she had been in touch with the Tucson AZ CNA line, assumedly to dodge whomever she could be running from. My theory is not that (in this specific situation) she was in all actuality, whether they were aware of it or not, checking in on her parents/family. JMW was a Tempe resident if I recall, the case being handled by Maricopa County, and her car was found abandoned on I-10 which runs through Tempe and Tucson. This use of the AZ CNA as well as noting the time differences (half the year AZ has a 3 hour time difference) could be her trying to ascertain whether or not her parents were still alive, maybe she even gave them a few hang up calls? (totally speculative)
Now to compare the timelines of both rather directly:
BST date of birth: 6/18/69
JMW date of birth: 4/16/67
JMW last seen in Tempe: 3/10/88
BST birth certificate obtained 5/20/88; almost precisely a month before BST's 18th birthday, and almost precisely a month after JMW's 21st birthday.
BST Idaho ID issued 6/16/88, exactly two months after JMW's 21st birthday.
LEK Texas ID issued 4/18/89, exactly two days after JMW's 22nd birthday.
It's reasonable to assume that for sanity's sake, she chose an identity with a birthday already around the time of her own for less track-covering, but just skewed enough that when JMW was already an adult, BST/LEK was in high school, not to mention the vanity effect of being able to tell people she's practically a generation younger than she actually is (When JMW graduated, theoretically "BST" was just entering high school). This also enabled her to "redo" her high school career in a GED with minimal suspicion. The vanity aspect would also lend itself to the accounts of bulimia as well as her later breast augmentation.
Now this has lead me to do some VERY circumstantial dot-connecting with regards to her later life behavior as well as the notes pages. I believe, in addition to an unnamed trauma or traumas, that FLEK's separation from her family, mother especially, was very traumatic for her. If one assumes the Arizona CNA lead to be looking for her parents, it's reasonable to assume she missed them. The 'calculations' note page has held my attention for a great deal of time and I think this framework provides an adequate explanation for it: while early in her run (as the 'dates' seem to stop in 89/90 and go in reverse order) she attempted to create a new parental backstory with accurate ages so as to have something to tell people when they asked (later reverting to the simpler "it's none of your business). However, my theory is she did not keep the note page as a reminder of her backstory, I think it was simple scratch paper. What it SAYS, between the lines, I think is the reason why she kept it.
The first set of dates is calculating her father's age when BST was born, dating back to 69. The second set is to calculate her mother's age. However, it could be assumed her mother has a birthday AFTER the date she began writing the note paper, and so her reverse calculations do not add up properly with what she perceives her parent's ages to be with relation to eachother when she was born. So she starts a third set of calculations, however this dataset dates back to 1967 (JMW's birth year), and, quite possibly, the realization of how she "screwed up": when JMW was 21, she was going on the run and disappearing from her family; when JMW/BST's mother was 21, she was giving birth to JMW and starting a family.
This further goes to FLEK's state of mind later in life. Could she have gone to bible study for redemption? Had she been on the run so long (into her 50s) that it wasn't fun anymore and she had more demons than she could handle? People describe her as beginning to dress "matronly" in this era which is I think very very telling when it comes to her state of mind. While that is extremely modest dress for a 2000s mother in her 50s, it's not entirely far off from what a possibly conservative 70s/80s mother would wear. Was she attempting to channel her own mother, perhaps attempting to (in her mind) right some wrongs of her past? This would also contribute to the over-protective nature of the relationship with her daughter, perhaps trying to be the mom she had never had and ensure her daughter would not have the identity crisis so to speak that she had gone through.
Edit: Additionally, her final mental breakdown (from what I've read) occurred that spring leading into summer and worsening towards the fall. Could it have been just being confronted with yet another real birthday missed and yet another fake one celebrated? (JMW being end of April and BST/FLEK being at the end of June) Maybe even reaching the age her real mother was when she left?
But why not fess up in the end if the walls were closing in? Well I think that allllllll leads back to her initial unpaid loan. I think she wanted to tell, but she got in over her head way too many years before that, and realized she would not only alienate her new family but most likely saddle them with 20+ year old outstanding debt if her real identity was ever connected back to them.
So, hell of a first post but this has really captured my attention and I'd really really like to see if anyone can give credence to this theory or even run down some of these connections further in a way I'm not currently capable of.
Alright this is my first post but I have been following this case for a good amount of time now (over a year) and recently came back to it. I've read through virtually every post here in the FLEK subforum as well as done a lot of my own independent research and I'd like to throw a few threads out there that maybe someone more well equipped to follow up on such things can.
One thing I specifically noticed is while it shows up on numerous FLEK pages, the idea of her being Jennifer Marie Wictor is dismissed quite quickly with very little academic followup so while circumstantial, I'd like to put a few interesting things I've noted when you compare JMW to FLEK.
First of all, yes, they do look "different", but I think I can provide an actual (circumstantial) reasoning behind it, so bear with me.
Right off the bat, it's the nose, nasiolabial folds, and smile that are different. From what I've seen this has been enough to dismiss her from candidacy as FLEK with not much more followup. So what do we know about FLEK? For one, she seemed to be concerned with her age as well as her appearance, despite the claims of dressing "matronly" later in life, which I also aim to explain. Allegedly she received a breast augmentation, but before that, there's also talk of her having had a nose job earlier in life. Most of the talk I've seen regarding FLEK and rhinoplasty ends with "But why would she get it to look crooked, what did she look like before?" My theory is FLEK IS JMW, and that JMW received a botched nose job.
Rhinoplasty was the big thing in the mid eighties, but a simple google search can bring up droves of botched nose job pictures from the mid-late 80s and see how much it structurally alters one's face. JMW had a wider, more bulbous nose with thicker nasiolabial folds. If JMW were to get a nose job, it'd (speculation) be to diminish the width and shrink it down a bit, which would mean a loss of depth of her nasiolabial folds. If it were conducted improperly, or not given enough time to properly heal, one could very well easily end up with the crooked, upturned look of FLEK.
Which leads me to the FLEK smile. Always tight upper lip, in fact, one can argue FLEK's upper lip is virtually identical in all of her photographs, regardless of her expression. Almost a straight line across her teeth, with the rest of her mouth making the smile.
From a forum post regarding rhinoplasty side-effects/aftereffects:
Now this post was in 2014, and it is not uncommon nor is the doctor's response. Now, go back to 1988 which nose job full on botches and/or inappropriate aftercare were much more common. Is it entirely possible this happened to her and remained semi-permanent?
As for the financial means, I've bounced a few theories back and forth, but the one that sticks out in my mind as the most plausible is either as JMW or a possible transitional identity, she took out a loan she never intended to repay (as she was planning on changing her identity already) and when the nose job was botched, she had no recourse but to continue on with her life.
Arizona connection:
According to the FLEK note page, she had been in touch with the Tucson AZ CNA line, assumedly to dodge whomever she could be running from. My theory is not that (in this specific situation) she was in all actuality, whether they were aware of it or not, checking in on her parents/family. JMW was a Tempe resident if I recall, the case being handled by Maricopa County, and her car was found abandoned on I-10 which runs through Tempe and Tucson. This use of the AZ CNA as well as noting the time differences (half the year AZ has a 3 hour time difference) could be her trying to ascertain whether or not her parents were still alive, maybe she even gave them a few hang up calls? (totally speculative)
Now to compare the timelines of both rather directly:
BST date of birth: 6/18/69
JMW date of birth: 4/16/67
JMW last seen in Tempe: 3/10/88
BST birth certificate obtained 5/20/88; almost precisely a month before BST's 18th birthday, and almost precisely a month after JMW's 21st birthday.
BST Idaho ID issued 6/16/88, exactly two months after JMW's 21st birthday.
LEK Texas ID issued 4/18/89, exactly two days after JMW's 22nd birthday.
It's reasonable to assume that for sanity's sake, she chose an identity with a birthday already around the time of her own for less track-covering, but just skewed enough that when JMW was already an adult, BST/LEK was in high school, not to mention the vanity effect of being able to tell people she's practically a generation younger than she actually is (When JMW graduated, theoretically "BST" was just entering high school). This also enabled her to "redo" her high school career in a GED with minimal suspicion. The vanity aspect would also lend itself to the accounts of bulimia as well as her later breast augmentation.
Now this has lead me to do some VERY circumstantial dot-connecting with regards to her later life behavior as well as the notes pages. I believe, in addition to an unnamed trauma or traumas, that FLEK's separation from her family, mother especially, was very traumatic for her. If one assumes the Arizona CNA lead to be looking for her parents, it's reasonable to assume she missed them. The 'calculations' note page has held my attention for a great deal of time and I think this framework provides an adequate explanation for it: while early in her run (as the 'dates' seem to stop in 89/90 and go in reverse order) she attempted to create a new parental backstory with accurate ages so as to have something to tell people when they asked (later reverting to the simpler "it's none of your business). However, my theory is she did not keep the note page as a reminder of her backstory, I think it was simple scratch paper. What it SAYS, between the lines, I think is the reason why she kept it.
The first set of dates is calculating her father's age when BST was born, dating back to 69. The second set is to calculate her mother's age. However, it could be assumed her mother has a birthday AFTER the date she began writing the note paper, and so her reverse calculations do not add up properly with what she perceives her parent's ages to be with relation to eachother when she was born. So she starts a third set of calculations, however this dataset dates back to 1967 (JMW's birth year), and, quite possibly, the realization of how she "screwed up": when JMW was 21, she was going on the run and disappearing from her family; when JMW/BST's mother was 21, she was giving birth to JMW and starting a family.
This further goes to FLEK's state of mind later in life. Could she have gone to bible study for redemption? Had she been on the run so long (into her 50s) that it wasn't fun anymore and she had more demons than she could handle? People describe her as beginning to dress "matronly" in this era which is I think very very telling when it comes to her state of mind. While that is extremely modest dress for a 2000s mother in her 50s, it's not entirely far off from what a possibly conservative 70s/80s mother would wear. Was she attempting to channel her own mother, perhaps attempting to (in her mind) right some wrongs of her past? This would also contribute to the over-protective nature of the relationship with her daughter, perhaps trying to be the mom she had never had and ensure her daughter would not have the identity crisis so to speak that she had gone through.
Edit: Additionally, her final mental breakdown (from what I've read) occurred that spring leading into summer and worsening towards the fall. Could it have been just being confronted with yet another real birthday missed and yet another fake one celebrated? (JMW being end of April and BST/FLEK being at the end of June) Maybe even reaching the age her real mother was when she left?
But why not fess up in the end if the walls were closing in? Well I think that allllllll leads back to her initial unpaid loan. I think she wanted to tell, but she got in over her head way too many years before that, and realized she would not only alienate her new family but most likely saddle them with 20+ year old outstanding debt if her real identity was ever connected back to them.
So, hell of a first post but this has really captured my attention and I'd really really like to see if anyone can give credence to this theory or even run down some of these connections further in a way I'm not currently capable of.
I can see what you are saying. The only thing I think points away is, we see FLEK as she looked on 6/18/1988 in her ID in Idaho. I assume if JMW had surgery it would have been after her disappearance 3/1988 or we would have her after photos, and that info from her family. I doubt a person would have time to get the surgery, and recover enough to look that good in 3 months. It's not impossible, but I do not see enough resemblance to convince me. I have to say, I can't just call it all impossible. The shape of the head is close, and location is correct, but I think her family is looking for her, and FLEK's family clearly is unable to, or not looking for her.
Well if you do some research, a lot of doctors say it only takes 7-10 days or as much as two weeks to be "restaurant ready" so to speak after rhinoplasty. Conceivably, she could have even disappeared by going to Mexico to have the operation on the cheap or quickly, and still have more than enough time to recover (or improperly recover leading to numbness) before her photo is taken for BST Idaho ID. Regardless of JMW's family looking for her, there is a stark absence of information and vital web presence about it, merely just files in the doe network, namus, etc. I know it sounds absurd, but as a graphic designer having done photo retouching on models etc, (and I may even post a picture to back this up) shrinking the nose of JMW and reducing the nasiolabial folds gives her very much a similar look to FLEK. To the other poster that suggested contacting NamUS for positive DNA corroboration, is it really that easy? Do I just contact them and say "Ayyy I got a hunch Jennifer Marie Wictor is Lori Erica Ruff, wanna check that out?"
I am no expert on plastic surgery, though I could use it lol. I do remember two coworkers years ago, and at different times who had nose jobs. Quite frankly they came back after couple of weeks still looking like they had been beat up. Their noses were huge. Their eyes were black. And there was discoloration in their face and eyes for at least 2 if not 4 weeks. I admit this was over 20 years ago, so my memory might be faded. I just remember thinking I don't see any difference even after a few months. I have to say, JMW looks as close as I have seen. I just don't think she would achieve that radical of a change just from a nose job. I did find one source online about rhinoplasty recovery I will paste below:
[h=3]Rhinoplasty Recovery[/h] July 2nd, 2009
+37
SWELLING
The nose undergoes significant changes in the first 2 to 12 weeks following rhinoplasty. The swelling gradually dissipates over the first several months and thus the appearance of the nose changes gradually.
- When the cast is removed after one week, the nose will look swollen.
- Usually by the end of the second week, the swelling and bruising have subsided enough that the casual observer will not readily notice that the nose has been operated on.
- To the patient, the nose will look swollen or "puffy" for several months.
- By about 3-4 months, the majority of the swelling will be gone but will look larger in photographs.
- It can take as long as a year for the final shape to become apparent.
- You should give yourself several months if if there are any work or social engagements that would cause concern.
Yeah, I had found that too, it is one of the more difficult things to reconcile about the whole case. But, I did include a (quickly edited) photo explaining what I'm talking about, if you reduce the nose width of JMW, the nasiolabial folds, turn up the tip, it's basically FLEK to me, minus the implied constricting numbness.
Attachments
In fact, taking is a step further, if you tighten the mouth of JMW, again only speculation, but tightening the mouth in the implied restrictiveness of a botched nose job, the resemblance almost becomes uncanny.
Again, I stress that this is only my personal research, but I also want to point to other established circumstances (the claim that FLEK did have rhinoplasty) along with the (largely circumstantial) evidence regarding the dates and the Arizona connection.
Again, I stress that this is only my personal research, but I also want to point to other established circumstances (the claim that FLEK did have rhinoplasty) along with the (largely circumstantial) evidence regarding the dates and the Arizona connection.
Attachments
Not to mention FLEK's stats, the height (a real standout as both JMW and FLEK were 5'10"+), the hair color, the eye color, all line up. Hell, this is admittedly 100% reaching and 90% coincidental, but the way JMW's bangs flow in relation to FLEK's BST ID picture's bangs, they're INCREDIBLY similar.
Linda9681
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I have personally had rhinoplasty for medical reasons ( car accident) and it took over a month to recover. Not only the bruises swelling and pain but the nausea and dizziness that go with it due to the sense of balance being disturbed. Different people heal at different rates based on genetics and diet, but two weeks is a stretch. I believe I had read she was genetically ruled out on another forum but I am not sure which one honestly.
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CoverMeCagney
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Hi all, just wondering what the upshot was with the professor dude who reckoned DNA had been matched?
I recall he was working on the Somerton Man case - but I can't find it anywhere, what happened to that thread?!
I recall he was working on the Somerton Man case - but I can't find it anywhere, what happened to that thread?!
Magnum P.E.
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Yup. The NAMUS sites always have contact people. Give them a call. There are seven exclusions for FLEK, Jennifer Wictor is not one of them. But we don't report hunches. Sit down with a sheet of paper, list the reasons you think it could be a match, because you will be asked why you think so.... physical similarity, timeline, etc.A well reasoned idea will be welcome but if you have been reading tea leaves or just feel it in your bones you won't get far.
You can't find out anything about JMV, and I would really like to know why they would be so secretive on a case nearly thirty years old.
Would the information in my previous post (http://www.websleuths.com/forums/sh...ssion-and-Theories*-4&p=12720264#post12720264) be (outside of speculations) adequate enough to warrant that? IE the notes about physical similarity, and the timeline
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