Morgan Harrington Case: 2 Unidentfied Bodies Found in Different Locations (Updated)
Breaking News
Roanoke, VA Laurel, MD– Two bodies of unidentified individuals, one confirmed female, were found this morning in Roanoke, VA and Laurel MD, respectively.
The remains in Roanoke, which is also the town Morgan Harrington’s family home is located, were spotted by a coal train employee near the tracks under the Wasena Bridge. The Medical Examiner is on the scene and it is believed to be the body of a female.
In Laurel, MD Prince George County, Homicide detectives have been called to the scene at approximately 6 am this morning following the discovery of a deceased individual in the Encore Recycling Plant. Police are not commenting on the victims gender or age at this time.
Blinkoncrime.com will be updating this developing story as information becomes available.
Update #1 11:58 EST. The Female Body recovered near the RR tracks in Roanoke is tentatively classified as a suicide. Press Release forthcoming from Roanoke PD
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I just read that the body found at the Laurel recycling plant is a 45 year old man.
manhttp://www.wusa9.com/news/local/story.aspx?storyid=93813
I am very sorry for this man and his family but I am relieved it is not Morgan. I hope and pray they find Morgan soon and that she is ok. I pray for the Harrington’s. They seem to be an amazing family.
According to the link posted above by Suz, the story has been updated to say they have identified the body. It is a male. http://www.wusa9.com/news/local/story.aspx?storyid=93813&catid=158
Prayers for his family, and a sigh for Morgan, what else to say?
B
Lindolph Marcellouf, may you rest in peace.
Amen, Blink.
What a sad day this has been for so many families. I feel somewhat guilty, for breathing a sigh of relief to hear that neither of these two bodies found dead today, was Morgan Harrington’s. And yet, these two were someone’s wife, father, husband, mother, sister, brother, and child.
Gil Harrington’s words and grace, in the face of such heart breaking circumstances, make the world seem less over run with evil. She is such a remarkable woman. She deserves to know what happened to her beloved daughter Morgan. My heart wishes so deeply that Morgan would return home to her family alive. With the love of such a woderful family, whatever Morgan has endured in this past month, would be healed by being cradled in the arms of her family.
The sun is shining here today. I think I will go take my dog for a walk, and get away from the computer for a while. I do my best praying when i am outside in God’s great cathedral. Please take care everyone. Hugs and prayers, ~Moonchime
The WUSA9 story got his name wrong, as did I.
Marcellous Lindolph, may you be at peace.
Howdy!
I bet you have all missed me… I was in the Intensive care in the hospital for a week and now home for a week tryin to get better GGGG……
I have been reading a little bit and had to comment on this one post today!
Comment by Eli B. — November 17, 2009 @ 3:44 pm
That bridge is only a few blocks from me, it is high enough to jump off of, and the river last week was flooded so high that the greenways were covered…I’m thinking someone just either got caught in the flood or was just a transient that od’d or froze under the bridge. Prob nothing.
Prob nothing?????!!!! WTH?
Snark or not? Had to be said?
~Moonchime~
I was thinking the same of Mrs. Harrington’s words. Her strength and grace brought me to tears. I pray that she gets her happy ending as the Elizabeth Smart family did.
When Shaniya Davis went missing and the news showed markers of all the sex offenders in the area, I was taken back at how out numbered our children are. I know that every neightborhood has just as many. At times all the evil in this world can bring you down.
Then I read here on Blink all the comments from caring and quality people that pray for this family and I am reminded of the good in people.
Be safe out there~
goodness. R.I.P. to the deceased of course, but here we are again at square one. Where are you, Morgan?
#57 Probably nothing????? I feel the same way about Eli’s comment. WTF? Any life lost, no matter what the circumstances are, is a life lost. So sad!
And so the search for Morgan goes on…as I have not seen this information posted: University of Virginia Family Weekend was October 16-18. Events schduled Saturday on grounds (campus) which overlap the timeline include Dome Room Dinner (Rotunda) 6:30-8:30, Choral Showcase (Old Cabell Hall) 7:00-9:00, Women’s Vollyball vs Ga Tech (Memorial Gym) 7:00-9:00, Academical Village People Fall Concert (McLeod Hall) 8:30-11:00, Virginia Gentlemen (a capella)Concert (Old Cabel Auditorium) 9:30-11:30. Note the UVa Family Weekend website states that parking for these events is available for a fee at the central grounds garage and parking is also available at U Hall. A shuttle between U Hall and central grounds is stated to begin service at 12 noon, however an end time is not mentioned.
With all of these events in addition to the Metallica concert at JPJ (plus the threat of rain) I believe traffic was busy on Copely Bridge/Alderman Road the evening Morgan went missing. Many visitors to C-ville use that route onto campus to avoid the light on Emmett (29)at Main/Ivy.
Whether Morgan was or was not on the bridge that night, like many of you I beleive what ultimately happened to Morgan began in the Lannigan Field where her purse was found.
Please let us all learn the lesson from Morgan’s tragedy. Teach your loved ones that there is safety in numbers.
Just a thought about Eli B’s comment…
Perhaps the person meant probably nothing connected to Morgan.
It seems to me that everyone here is hoping for answers about a missing woman who they don’t even know… I just doubt it was meant snarky or callously, and I personally am offering the benefit of the doubt.
Blink, Can we still see our comments even if you do not post them? Thanks for all the great work.
Until they are moderated ( approved or approved and my response) yes, you can see any of your pending posts, but nobody else can.
B
I think Eli meant probably nothing new there to help with Morgan’s case?
I can’t imagine how difficult these discoveries are for her family, each time thinking that this might be her. I hope LE really does have a POI they’re closing in on…
Link to Nov 17 interview with Morgan’s parents from WDBJ
http://www.wdbj7.com/global/video/flash/popupplayer.asp?ClipID1=4309158&h1=WDBJ7.COM%20EXTRA%3A%20Extended%20interview%20with%20Morgan%20Harrington%27s%20parents&vt1=v&at1=News&d1=272167&LaunchPageAdTag=Homepage&activePane=info&rnd=64792737Pop Up Video
Not sure if this has been posted already but thought I would share it. I feel so bad for the Harringtons and am praying for Morgans safe return home.
Sorry if already posted.
http://www2.wsls.com/sls/news/local/article/police_searching_for_minivan_in_childs-metzler_case/63120/
Wpg-
Are you thinking what I am thinking?
B
Exactly Sparrow!
God Bless these people and their families……
Post#57…I am feeling much the same way as the others on this site..I am sure this must of been a text error..we are all children of our maker..no matter what our belief is..we are all part of the human race…Many of these bridge dwellers are Vietnam Vets..some belong to our Mental Hospitals, that Ronald Reagan let out in the 80′s..because it was costing our government to much money,something we no longer could afford..OH YEA!!! But give the very rich a 90% tax cut..many of these poor souls just need a leg up.
&&&&&&&&&
Could either of the other bodies found today belong to Brittney or Christine? Is there still hope here, for these beautiful young women?
&&&&&&&&&
There will be a World Wide Vigil for Morgan on Saturday Night 11/21/09
&&&&&&&&&
As our economy gets worse, these rats start to come out of the woodwork…they think of horrible ways to try an make a dollar, to pay for the life they live…I think it is only just begun.
B
What are we “connected”?
Lol. If I can be the French Mouse and my mouse hole is in Sacre Coeur, then yes.
I find the release of the grey/silver minvan from an August homicide, well, telling.
B
Oh, Blink, I am such a failure at being cryptic.
Yes, the timing of this release of a vehicle description is of extreme interest.
lol
B
Sorry, Blink to mention again…but number 18 post from gigi…my screen name on your site is not mine again. I have been gone all day today, also…Should I just change my screen name…it has been exactly like that one gigi for quite some time, but will do what you want me to do. Thanks for everything you do.
Got it, thanks for the reminder.
B
Blink
Do you think the grey/silver minvan is connected with the MH case?
Thanks for keeping so on top of things Blink. I hope the other db is not MH but I agree totally with you and wpg on the grey/silver minivan. In fact I think spreading the word on the van is prudent. Way past my bedtime but I will post that link on another site, if its not already up there. Great work. I pray they find MH safe still but there is no denying that someone in that area already had gotten away with a double murder. If the place had security cameras or better cameras then maybe LE would have already caught whomever killed Childs-Metzler. How much is a camera seriously in relation to people’s lives. It is a sick and stone cold crazy world we live in. Praying for Morgan and family, and for justice.
Are you going to share? The gray mini-van thought?
Blink,
Just read the news release about the grey minivan. This is getting closer to my worst case scenario, unfortunately. A serial perp who cruises concert lots looking for opportunity and victims.
IF this is the same guy, then he is based somewhere in that general area which lends some credence to Observer’s theory about the 25 mile radius. Roanoke is farther away from Cville, but this perp may be very mobile – going from state to state, staying only for days or weeks depending on the concert activity. Now that Virginia is very HOT, he may have already left the state and moved on.
He may not have a permanent address, living only in his van. Very possible. Now that colder weather is setting in, he is probably moving south.
I still would like to know about the parking lot where her purse was found. Was it used for concert parking on that night, or not at all?
Thanks.
I do not think this is anyone “serial”. Yes, the UVA BB players and other athletes were parked in the lot as well as some cabs/car services.
B
Blink – Do you believe the grey minivan from the Aug murders is connected to the Harrington case? Was there a minivan at the Metallica concert or on the bridge or something? Just didn’t understand what you were getting at, sorry if I am missing something obvious. Thanks.
I believe there is a possible connection and I actually eluded to it very early on in my coverage of Morgan’s case. On October 26th, an additional $36K was added to the reward money for the Childs/Metzler murders. I believe it is possible that the person or persons responsible for Morgan’s disappearance may be aware of that incident and it would be in their best interests to connect the 2 to throw off individual suspicion. That said, anytime the child of a LEO is murdered, I can tell you the first thing LE looks at are known offenders that may have come in contact with the parent. It is standard. This lovely young woman looks remarkably like Morgan Harrington and in a dark vehicle could have easily been mistaken for her as well.
That said, this looked more like a hit to me. Too much going on in that case and background for the area to isolate.
I am willing to bet though the ballistics are key.
B
One more observation, Heidi Childs, while not looking exactly like Morgan, does fit a kind of general type = pretty, long blonde hair, close to same age. And as we know, serial killers often have a “type” that they look to prey on.
I would like to ask the Virginia State Police if there have been other abductions, murders or attacks of young women over the past year at concerts or others large events in Virginia???? Might help establish a pattern.
Still, 9:30 at night is not that late for a Saturday, and from the schedule of events annieb posted above, there might have been lots of people coming & going in that lot. Would a perp take a chance and force a girl into his van?? Maybe, maybe there was no one around.
There is a possible scenario that would involve Morgan going to that bridge, or slightly beyond it – and then coming BACK to that parking lot, where she was nabbed. Purse was ripped from her in a struggle, and the perp may have then removed the battery to prevent pinging her location of abduction.
the daily progress newspaper in charlottesville just wrote a story that quoted a UVA spokesperson (Carol Wood) saying that the basketball players leaves of absence aren’t connected to Morgan
Link added by Blink:
http://www2.dailyprogress.com/cdp/news/local/article/body_found_in_roanoke_not_harringtons/49011/
I am glad to hear that, but I find it curious Ms. Wood is unwilling to comment on the players that were interviewed by LE but will comment that the issues are unrelated.
B
Hmmm. I’m lost. I really don’t feel like Morgan’s disappearance is connected to the Childs/Metzler murders. Primarily because they were left in plain view, circumstances were different. MO is different.
I agree it may not be, and likely is not.
B
The information on family weekend at UV is interesting. All those activities going on, including the concert. I have been to “family weekend” at my daughters university…ITS A ZOO ! Hotel-motel rooms are even reserved 6 months in advance of it. VERY VERY BUSY….And yet, so little much information . I do not recall “family weekend” ever being mention before the above post. Has it been….?I am sure the police are holding alot back. And now they release info on a minivan from an August murder(s). I have never seen a GREY minivan silver yes. Gray to me would sound like a commerical van….Me thinks its silver if its a mini…..Either way, its amazing how they just so happen to release this information now……They are now just getting this info? Any info on the female body by the tracks yet? Can’t seem to find any?. post #74 makes a good point Blink. With it being parent weekend, I assume it was busy on the roads. That being said, would a perp be that stupid to force her into a van at a chance of being seen doing so? I think not…i am sure the police have alot more info and are releasing it in drips and draps..Not making much sense actually. If Morgan was wearing that nice necklace, that in itself is pretty darn flashy to say the least. Was she really wearing it? could she have found it to be too big and took it off? Did these BB Players see it actually still on her neck? It was way large enough for all to see…..I wondder if any pawn shops have been checked out seeing if anyone pawned it? it was pricey…..So many question and no real answers. Have they searched the bridge area for the necklace. If there was a struggle, since it was so large, there is a good chance it was pulled off her?
Here we go again Blink: Port St. Lucie, Florida. A missing 7-8 year old girl:
According to the Amber Alert, the girl might be with two men who might be traveling in a white van. She is believed to be in danger.
Hey, at least this answers my question as to whether the cell phone battery cover was recovered (it was). I somehow missed this in the article from last Sunday.
Her black purse, which could also be worn as a backpack, and battery-less cell phone were spotted by a passerby the morning of Sunday, October 18. Geller says the battery cover was also recovered and that Morgan’s family says the “condition of the phone” meant the battery could come out easily if the phone was dropped. Geller says there was no sign of a struggle.
http://www.readthehook.com/blog/index.php/2009/11/15/concerned-witnesses-before-hitching-morgan-harrington-caused-worry/
Still odd that the battery was never found.
This is what drives me batty. So, was the battery cover ON THE PHONE? Or was it recovered seperately in the purse, nearby or other? That is HUGE??
B
Anyone find these 2 very helpful characters on findmorgan.com a little curious? Blink I know you know who I’m talking about. Creepy.
lol, you will have to be more specific
B
k and bb…is that specific enough?
lol, yes, how telling that was not even who I thought you were referring to. K got red flags all over the place early. He is ok. Not sure about the other.
B
RE: Gray mini-vans. [80] Mini-vans do come in gray. For example, the 2009 Honda Odyssey came in “Sterling Gray Metallic,” while the 2010 Sienna comes in “Gray.” But the distinction may be splitting hairs, especially at night. Even slate green looks gray at night.
RE: Re-entry policies. I also live in a college town, and recently went with my daughter to a sold-out Taylor Swift concert. I had an unanticipated episode of vertigo after we were seated. It was impossible for me to remain in our top-tier seats, so we left the arena (with our food and beverages) telling the attendant on the way out about the problem. Assuming there was nothing that we could do, we stopped at the ticket booth (with a long line of will-calls still waiting) to see if we could drop off the once-scanned tickets for someone else’s use. To my dismayed daughter’s delight, they created some “almost backstage” seats for us and provided a personal escort back in so that we wouldn’t have problems.
RE: Injury at a public facility. I have on several occasions seem someone sustain a minor injury at a public facility. If facility staff became aware of the injury, they immediate called event EMTs to make sure the injury was in fact minor, even over the protests of the injured. To my knowledge, all such events have EMTs on-site at our school. Wouldn’t an “apparently impaired” young woman with blood on her face observed by staff have caused such a call? This leads me to believe there may be far more information that has not been released about what happened inside and/or at the arena entrances.
*seen someone, that is
Blink, exactly! I suppose we can infer from the article that the cover was off the phone, but I sure wish they would say which of these is true:
The cover was off of the phone, in the purse.
The cover was off the phone, on the ground.
The cover was on the phone,in the purse.
The cover was on the phone, on the ground.
(also, whether the phone was in the purse or not)
Blink said…
This is what drives me batty. So, was the battery cover ON THE PHONE? Or was it recovered seperately in the purse, nearby or other? That is HUGE??
B
I know every time you learn something it only leaves more questions. Why cant they be more specific and detailed. Many details can make a difference whether to turn right or left. It is quite maddening. I am sure LE doesn’t want everything released but on the points they do release it should be specific or able to have some way of getting your questions answered. It makes a HUGE difference.
It just like when reading some of those statments from the Casey Anthony case. As your reading them your screaming inside, “why dont they ask this question or that question or did they ever ask a particuliar question” and I really hate it when they get distracted from the original question and never get back to it. It makes me crazy.
#82
Good spotting suz.
Agree that the battery issue is confusing, and agree Blink with your questions.
“condition of the phone” is non-specific, although it obviously infers something about the phone was amiss, but not necessarily related to that evening – - perhaps the cover, previous to that night, had a cracked or missing “snap-in” piece making it apt to coming off. Still, it’s plausible the phone and it’s parts were damaged somehow, that evening.
But then why not clarify the condition of the phone, and where the phone and the battery cover were in relation to the purse as it is likely questions abounded beyond here regarding the battery-less phone.
The observations and actions of the passerby are critical, IMO.
If the phone and cover were lying beside the purse, did the passerby pick them up and put them in the purse? Did the passerby rummage through the purse with good intentions looking for ID, spotted the phone in the purse and then spotted the cover on the ground? Several scenarios here, as Blink points out.
There has been really no information on the finder of the purse – - were they on their way to or from the immediate venues? Were they walking, maybe walking a dog, or were they driving when they spotted the purse. Are they an employee, perhaps part of the after-concert clean up in a sense?
In any event, the passerby touched at least the purse, and at some location common to Morgan. Given that the purse and its contents are those of a missing person, one would think LE asked the passerby to be fingerprinted for forensics elimination.
I would like to know if there was only one person that reported Morgan was HH or more?
Indeed. The wording from Ms. Geller made me think initially one, and then another backed it up.
B
Blink:
Last night on the helpfindmorgan FB and website, I posted a copy of a message that was left on one of the Harrington’s blog posts. The message read:
“Bonnie says:
November 13, 2009 at 4:37 pm
My daughter and I were in Baltimore at the Hampton Inn on Nov 7-8. A young girl about Morgan’s description approached us and struck up a conversation. She was pretty battered up. I did not notice this, but my daughter did. Later that night, there was a commotion outside of our room. When we checked out later that morning, the same young girl was behind us with fresh wounds to her face. I got the serious willies. It was as though she was trying to reach out, trying to make herself noticeable to anyone who would listen or notice her. I did not think anything of it until later that day on the way home. Her presence and demeanor was haunting.
Another note – we heard her mention her room number, it was right next to ours. I don’t know if this helps, but it could.”
That post has since been deleted from the comments. Did you by any chance see this and grab a shot of it?
TIA!
Suz, you didn’t miss the battery cover info the first time you read the Hook piece, it was only added yesterday at 5pm, along with other updated information. I posted about these updates -specifically the battery cover- on the HFMDH/facebook diccussions this morning, as this has been a recurring question there as well.
I, too, would like to know *where exactly* the battery cover was found. “Recovered,” to me, suggests it may have been found separately, after the purse was turned in.
Which leads me to another question. Do we know if the person who turned in Morgan’s purse picked up any scattered contents lying nearby and put them back inside the purse before turning it in? I’m sure investigators know the answer to this, however, I haven’t come across any public information that touches on this. Anyone?
Was it added with no notation of the update?
B
Such a sad story today on her parents’ trip to deliver her dental records to VSP.
http://www.newsplex.com/home/headlines/70375132.html
This is on the Facebook site – As a Hokie parent myself, I thank them…
Sean Kotz – In 2007, my company released a documentary on Tech’s football fans called Hokie Nation. We have arranged to donate 100% of the profits above our total cost per DVD on sales at http://www.hokiemovie.com to the Find Morgan fund. Hopefully this will help keep search efforts going forward.
Hokie Movie–Virginia Tech Hokies Documentary
http://www.hokiemovie.com
We were saddened to learn that on October 17, 2009, VT student Morgan Dana Harrington disappeared while attending a Metallica concert in Charlottesville. Morgan is still missing and a fund has been set up to financially support efforts to find her.
[92] It caught my attention that the title of the article was changed to “Missing pieces: Witnesses share their tales of Morgan sightings,” and the content was updated and extended. However, the November 15 dateline was retained. I saw no notation of the update in the article itself.
So I scanned down and the following info was at the end of the article:
“Former headline: Concerned witnesses: Before hitching, Morgan Harrington caused worry
Story last updated Tuesday, November 17 at 5:04pm: battery cover, purse details, 500 tips called in
Story updated Tuesday, November 17 at 11:02am: Gil Harrington’s response to boots, 7-11 surveillance, Sarah Snead’s interview, Harringtons’ media appearances, Sheetz description”
#
not only was info added to the hook article,its title was changed, weird to rework an article,it does note updates,at the bottom in italics,several,but it seems to me to have been reworked did anyone save the original?
On this last news report they claim that LE has no suspects and no idea of the type of vehicle Morgan may have gotten into. I am surprised LE is saying there are no suspects – they haven’t commented one way or another on that previously… if that is true this is very concerning after a full month has gone by.
Blink
This was at the bottom of the updated article:
Former headline: Concerned witnesses: Before hitching, Morgan Harrington caused worry
Story last updated Tuesday, November 17 at 5:04pm: battery cover, purse details, 500 tips called in
Story updated Tuesday, November 17 at 11:02am: Gil Harrington’s response to boots, 7-11 surveillance, Sarah Snead’s interview, Harringtons’ media appearances, Sheetz description
http://www.readthehook.com/blog/index.php/2009/11/15/concerned-witnesses-before-hitching-morgan-harrington-caused-worry/
@ Blink: Notation of the updates appears at the end of the article
Missing Pieces: Witnesses Share Their Tales Of Morgan Sightings
*Former Headline: Concerned Witnesses: Before Hitching, Morgan Harrington Caused Worry
*Story last updated Tuesday, November 17 at 5:04pm: battery cover, purse details, 500 tips called in
*Story updated Tuesday, November 17 at 11:02am: G…il Harrington’s
response to boots, 7-11 surveillance, Sarah Snead’s interview,
Harringtons’ media appearances, Sheetz description.
http://www.readthehook.com/blog/index.php/2009/11/15/concerned-witnesses-before-hitching-morgan-harrington-caused-worry/
@ susan m: Yes, I have a copy of the original article before updates