Morgan Harrington Murder: FBI, Metallica and Virginia State Police Ask You To Help Them Find Her Killer
Morgan Harrington disappeared from the John Paul Jones arena on October 17, 2009. Morgan’s remains were located and recovered the morning of January 26, 2010 on the Anchorage Farm in Charlottesville, VA.
Reported exclusively on www.blinkoncrime.com, Morgan’s alleged attacker was tied via DNA to a sexual assault in Fairfax, VA in September 2005.
With the help of a multi media campaign, the FBI, Virginia State Police and Fairfax Police are asking for the publics help to catch her killer.
Revised Sketch of Harrington Suspect
Metallica offered this public service announcement:
Metallica Statement On Harrington Case
FBI Press Release:
Authorities Launch Multimedia Campaign in Morgan Harrington Murder Case
Murder Suspect Linked by DNA to Sexual Assault in Fairfax City, Virginia
| FBI Washington June 13, 2012 |
Today, federal, state, and local law enforcement launched a multimedia campaign that includes two enhanced composite sketches of a suspect in the 2009 murder of Virginia Tech student Morgan Harrington. The unknown murder suspect is also connected by DNA to a 2005 sexual assault in Fairfax City, Virginia.
Authorities recently enhanced the composite sketch created in 2005 from a description by the sexual assault victim. One of the composites shows the suspect with facial hair, as the suspect was described at the time of the attack. The second composite sketch features him without facial hair.
The two attacks were connected through DNA after a forensic profile was submitted by the Virginia Department of Forensic Science to the FBI’s national DNA database. The search found that the suspect in the Harrington murder investigation matched the DNA profile of the attacker in Fairfax City.
The multimedia campaign includes a public service announcement by Metallica lead guitarist James Hetfield appealing to the public to come forward with information concerning the Morgan Harrington investigation. The composite sketches of the suspect are being featured on bus shelters in Washington, D.C., as well as on digital billboards in Richmond, Virginia; Roanoke, Virginia; Washington, D.C.; and in 23 other states along the East Coast. Social media outreach and alerts via Facebook, Twitter, and YouTube, along with a website dedicated to the Harrington case were also launched Wednesday. Podcasts are now available on iTunes, and radio spots are airing to further raise awareness of the ongoing investigation. The multi-pronged effort is designed to develop new leads and renew the public’s attention in the attacks. The campaign implements techniques similar to those that have led to the arrests of the East Coast Rapist as well as Ten Most Wanted fugitive James “Whitey” Bulger.
The Jefferson Area Crime Stoppers is offering a $100,000 reward for information leading to the arrest and conviction of the person or persons responsible for Morgan Harrington’s murder. In addition, the band Metallica is adding $50,000 to the reward, for a total of $150,000.
Morgan Harrington Murder
On the evening of Saturday, October 17, 2009, Harrington attended a Metallica concert at John Paul Jones Arena on the University of Virginia (UVA) campus in Charlottesville, Va. At approximately 8:30 p.m., she left the arena and was unable to re-enter the facility. She was last seen hitchhiking for a ride from passing traffic.
Harrington was dressed that night in a black T-shirt with the word “Pantera” spelled out in tan letters and was wearing a distinctive Swarovski crystal necklace made of large crystal chain links, which investigators have yet to recover. Harrington’s “Pantera” T-shirt was found on November 11, 2009, in front of a row of apartments along 15th Street, NW near Grady Avenue in Charlottesville. Harrington’s skeletal remains were later discovered on January 26, 2010, in a remote field on an Albemarle County, Virginia farm along Route 29. A camera that Harrington had in her possession that night has never been recovered.
Sexual Assault in Fairfax City, Virginia
On the evening of Saturday, September 24, 2005, a 26-year-old victim was walking home from the Giant Food Store located on the 3700 block of Jermantown Road in Fairfax City, Virginia. The suspect grabbed the victim from behind as she walked down Rock Garden Drive toward her residence. He then carried the victim to a grassy area behind a maintenance shed, where he sexually assaulted her. The suspect was last seen running from the area.
The suspect is described as an African-American male with black hair and facial hair at the time of the attack. He is approximately 6’0” tall and was believed to be between the ages of 25 and 35 years old at the time of the attack.
The public is asked to review this information and consider whether they know someone who generally fits this description, who lived or had ties to the area around the times of the assaults, or who may have been known to spend considerable amounts of time in those areas.
People who know the suspect may not believe that he is capable of committing these crimes. He may not necessarily have a violent criminal history. Because investigators are in possession of DNA evidence that can either positively link the suspect to his crimes or exclude innocent parties, citizens should not hesitate to provide information, even if it is just the name of a potential suspect.
The following agencies are cooperating in the investigation of these crimes: the Virginia State Police, City of Fairfax Police, University of Virginia Police, Charlottesville Police, Albemarle County Police, Albemarle County Commonwealth’s Attorney, Virginia Tech Police Department, George Mason Police Department, and the FBI.
Law enforcement agencies are asking anyone with information to contact the FBI at 1-800-CALL-FBI (1-800-225-5324) or the Virginia State Police Tip line at 434-352-3467.
Press Contacts:
Virginia State Police
(804) 263-5547
City of Fairfax Police Department
(703) 273-2889
FBI Richmond Field Office
(804) 261-1044
FBI Washington Field Office
(202) 278-3519
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It sounds like he looks like sketch. ?
and the right age too
Atta Girl, go get em!
B
what do you think of this post? from the Taxi story: uva abduction on the Readthehook website:
“Hard work” is the name of the poster.
Hard work wins the game February 24th, 2013 | 8:43pm
I’m glad she talked to police, because it’s true he’ll just try the same game on another girl. At least the police know what’s going on, which is important. The next time he does something similar, they’ll have a better idea of who they’re looking for.
As far as the Harrington case, I doubt he’s involved. The main suspect is black, and I happened to have been assaulted (non-sexual, just hit me hard, apparently trying to knock me over) by a similar-looking man on the same night, and long story short he was with three other dark white males, and then there was another older white male who I saw with one of the men from the night of the abduction separately, a few days later. The circumstances in both sightings were incredibly suspicious.
Of course I’d love to see what the other witnesses saw, because I’d like to know whre my piece of the puzzle fits in. But I guess none of us will know the whole story unless they finally take it to trial.
Here’s one tidbit — one of the white accomplices I saw has a loooooong history of predation from out of state and Northern Virginia, and you guessed it — cops never took him very seriously that I know of. Once again, it appears he’ll get away with murder (or at least being an accomplice) in the Harrington case. Apparently the cops only have DNA from the black guy. Just like a serial criminal — as long as he gets off, who cares how many accomplices go to jail or die for helping him out with his crimes? Black guy is hunted down, white guys get off (although it’s possible two of the white guys have been in trouble since, one may even be dead). It’s not only giving Virginia’s law enforcement the appearance of prejudice, but it leaves men on the streets who are incredibly dangerous.
I’ve come to the conclusion that Morgan Harrington’s death is the culmination of everything that’s wrong with our criminal justice system. It was no accident — these men had histories, and they could have been caught earlier if people had done their best to protect other women from them. That includes numerous law enforcement agencies in various jurisdictions. And the predator I knew changed jurisdictions a lot, as if it was a criminal strategy with him.
They really should beef up the sexual crimes portion of the FBI, or at least give interstate stalking a higher priority than zero. If I told everyone what I’ve seen of that one predator since the year 2000, possibly even 1993 or 1991, your jaws would drop. Why is this guy still on the streets? I have no idea. It’s not like I haven’t given the cops and FBI the full license tags of almost every vehicle he and his accomplices have used through the years.
Ummm, what did Dr. Pepper do or say??
Sounds like a possible match but Sketch certainly looks african-american rather than indian to me. She got in the car because she thought it was a cab. She fought back (good for her!) and she escaped. In my not very old car you CAN unlock from the passenger side and the back.
It was o/t and unrelated to this case. She was graciously thanking me for something she is endeavoring which originated out of my work in Morgan’s case.
B
It isnt about looks with Sketch they have his DNA they know what his make-up is-
The circumstances could be the same as in Morgans case we dont know if she entered a car that she may have mistook for a taxi etc… but besides the age range I fail to see the similarities between the Sketch and the description given by this student..
Olivia – I am thankful this young woman is safe
In truth if we are to gain knowledge from this attempted abduction and assault..then we have to take a look at what the scenario given tells us-
How did she arrive at her descriptors?
she willingly got into said vehicle so the man didnt seem off putting…
we dont know if it was in the front or back but according to the account he locked the doors and proceeded to take her past her destination…
to your point yes that would be a good thing to know may help another potential victim to escape… To your thoughts- If she could unlock the door herself then why didnt she do this before the attempted assault as soon at least as soon as he parked across from the K- house?
He spoke in broken English what was said? was he threatening did he smooth away any fear or concern were they conversing in a nice way until he pounced?
i think these are all important points on figuring out what kind of offender she dealt with and who to look out for-
AJMO Peace
I’m in agreement with Mom 3.0 on the lack of similarities between this most recent case and Morgan’s; however, I remember hearing, maybe mistakenly, that Sketch had an accent, perhaps even WEST Indian. If that’s the case, then, I think that a DNA match is more likely from someone in that part of the world than in S. Asia/ India.
Also, if it’s out of character for Morgan to hitchhike, then hailing what she thought was a taxi on a cold, rainy night would not be unreasonable.
I still don’t feel like this is our guy. Unfortunately, I think that it simply points out that there are few too many predatory opportunists lurking.
I am intrigued by what Mike posted from the comments section of ReadtheHook.com as well as someone else’s similar anecdote in the same thread. I find it incredibly creepy on many levels.
Another set of assaults in Houston with a sketch similar to Sketch. He’s Latino and offers women rides at a place where it might appear that he is a taxi driver or livery. That seems to be a common MO for this type of offender. If Morgan wasn’t attacked in the back lot, it’s the only thing that makes sense. I don’t think that it’s odd to stick out a thumb to a taxi, at least in jest.
Here is the article from Houston (I am not linking this b/c I believe this is the same guy, but offering a plausible scenario where women or men might be duped into believing that someone is legitimate when they aren’t; I’ve gotten into cars of scammers in foreign countries who have, at the very least, intended to extort money after thinking they were with a taxi service).
http://m.click2houston.com/news/Man-wanted-in-2-sex-assaults-near-Hobby-Airport/-/16714936/19043828/-/10ea5mhz/-/index.html
mike says:
February 25, 2013 at 8:50 pm
what do you think of this post? from the Taxi story: uva abduction on the Readthehook website:
________________________________________________
I think it is silly and likely the product of mental illness. It reminds me of the postings on the old morgan site by someone who repeatedly imagined herself as an active part of the story. For some reason, that Hook piece brought the old posters who used to spam all the morgan stories back out of the woodwork.
Lawdy, that is truly sad. I thought those folks had moved on to darker pastures, lol.
B
One alibi re: what l posted above: after watching the video and reading more closely, these women were not offered rides from an airport, but an area in greater Houston that intersects with Airport Rd. Again, my point in posting this is that the predatory nature of these offenders is to present themselves in some sort of trustworthy fashion. In this situation and the recent incident at UVA, that was certainly the case. I think that there are implications that are similar in Morgan’s case.
I also keep thinking about what the poster wrote on Read The Hook and find it more and more disturbing. If this person is credible, I think a media outlet should expose what she says after some careful vetting.
Redly commented regarding the HOOK “Fake Taxi”article post by Hardwork………..”I think it is silly and likely the product of mental illness. It reminds me of the postings on the old morgan site by someone who repeatedly imagined herself as an active part of the story. For some reason, that Hook piece brought the old posters who used to spam all the morgan stories back out of the woodwork.”
B said, “Lawdy, that is truly sad. I thought those folks had moved on to darker pastures, lol.”
———————————————————————
As far as I know ‘Hardwork’ was not a member at findmorgan.com but as I mentioned on The HOOK and will also post here (with links):
“Hardwork” has posted about this before, beginning at the time the sketch was released. She says she has talked to all the appropriate authorities. My advice is to call the FBI -AGAIN (all three locations for this case)! Ask specifically to speak to the Agent handling it. (See previous posts below):
Comment by – hesajurseyjurk
It’s great that the Harringtons are trying to raise awareness about this guy in the DC area, where one of his other attacks happened, but I was assaulted by a man who fit his description on that very night, and his tags were from out of state. Also, I think the sketch is a little dated. If he’s the same man who hit me, his facial expressions are more psychotic and he looks older, plus his hair is cut closer to his head all the way around, no more of this “longer on top” stuff from his old 80s hairstyle.
http://www.myfoxdc.com/dpp/news/virginia/parents-and-supporters-rally-fo…
She also says:
GET REAL: …..I had an encounter with a man who may have been her attacker on that very night, and before I even saw or heard him or knew he was there, he slammed into me really hard, so hard that it stung. I didn’t report him to police at the time because it could have been an accident and my past experience with police in other cities is that they don’t like taking reports even on serious crimes, so reporting things that may have been accidental will never go anywhere. But at least now I understand what happened, and you should all understand that the man doesn’t care who you are, he just wants someone to atttack physically. Fortunately for me, I was bigger and heavier than he was, and so I didn’t fall over. Rather I got angry and took down some info on him, toying with the idea of calling police anyway. Police now have that information, even though I decided against calling them on that particular night. And why do they have it? Because the Harringtons made the case public, because the police released the sketch — that’s the only reason I knew the old license tag was significant enough to find and report.
The man attacks women about a second after seeing them, he has no idea whether they’ve been drinking or not and doesn’t care. I wasn’t drinking at all that night, in fact I’m a middle-aged computer nerd who was enjoying coffee and free wifi when I was attacked, he probably saw me through the large windows. And they say that’s what he did to the Fairfax victim too, grabbed her from behind before she saw him and choked her until she passed out. It’s like a martial art he practices, immediately disabling his victims. He’s just a predator looking for a victim, and although alcohol may play a role in some things, based on REAL experience it’s extremely unlikely that the Harrington disappearance had anything to do with alcohol. And everyone can thank the Harringtons and police if he’s caught, so that YOUR daughter isn’t next!
suspicious of him because he was out on the same night and hit me in a sneaky, deniable way that seems to resemble the immediate attempts at disabling his victims like the Fairfax rapist, and he does look a lot like their sketch. But again, we’ll have to wait and see. There’s still a chance that the man I saw just happened to be a jerk on the wrong night, and is someone different entirely. I’d say that’s a small chance, but you never know.
http://www.readthehook.com/66342/morgan-milestone-uva-harringtons-unveil…
If I remember right, the “guy hit me hard that same night” scenario was reported on findmorgan by a poster who wasn’t shy about having a mental illness…but I can’t quite remember the name she went by…was it a Scottish name? I think she at one time said she ran into some shady characters near the railroad tracks on some sort of contraption after attending an event at Morgan’s memorial on the bridge…I believe she also posted here on BOC but again – I don’t know what her “hat” was at the time…the fact that she has a mental illness does not mean her story is not true, but I tend to agree with redly that she is in the group of unstable characters who have gravitated to this case to gain attention.
Oh – just remembered – Campbell was the name…
waaaa? Are sure we are talking about the same poster claiming to have been shoved by sketch or whatever?
B
I wouldn’t be surprised if I’m wrong…I sure don’t want to stir anything up…I just associate the two for some reason.
Tango…wrong….sorry. not the same.
If someone did have an encounter with sketch that night, and told the police about it, I am SURE they would have taken interest in that.
Okay thanks J.me, I stand corrected…my apologies to both Campbell and Hardwork…and to you guys for further muddying the waters.
Tango says “Okay thanks J.me, I stand corrected…my apologies to both Campbell and Hardwork…and to you guys for further muddying the waters”
…………………………………………………………….
Don’t think it can get any muddier than it is. Just hope that Hardwork really did talk with all authorities, and I do mean F.B.I. included.
http://www.nbc29.com/story/21453752/harrington-suspect-sketch-circulated-in-search-for-missing-pa-woman ……………. ….. …….. ????????????????????????
Still reading here….
Maybe too much reading between the lines on my part, but the articles that I read from PA media seem to “emphasize” that the police officer was the last to see the young woman who has been missing there.
I’m hoping that this guy (the bounty hunter) has his ducks in a row and we are making some progress in Morgan’s case. Wow, but yet another family dealing with the same horror that Dr. and Mrs. Harrington have been through.
Blink, you’re far too silent, but I know that you’re burning up the phones and the keys as I write this.
No ducks, no rows.
B
More from the PA side of this release:
http://m.ldnews.com/ldn/db_32364/contentdetail.htm?contentguid=Vl3sy0dS
Well poo …….
Basically it looks like the “bounty hunter’s” theory is that the victim has long blond hair and thus it must be sketch. I wonder if it is that PI guy who used to post on the old findmorgan site. Not useful IMO.
I don’t think so and I agree. Blonde haired victims is going to be a very long list. Pissing off LE your first time out of the gate (new site) when your claim is that you are attempting to help them is not wise. But then, nobody asked me, lol.
B
here’s another news story from newsplex which contains some more detailed information from the bounty hunter. I wonder which presumably army reserve or guard unit he is talking about. In C’ville there is the army judge advocate general’s school (jag). Of course, there are a ton of jag officers and enlisted in northern VA as well. They come through cville periodically for specific courses or continuing legal education.
http://www.newsplex.com/home/headlines/Bounty-Hunter-Believes-Harringtons-Killer-Linked-to-Kidnapping-195130371.html
He’s supposedly in the 224th Aviation Regiment National Guard out of VA. They train in different areas and the bounty hunter claims the POI was in Charlottesville training with his unit when Morgan was abducted and murdered.
The JAG school in Charlottesville is very close to the arena and Copley bridge. I’ve thought for a long time that LE should look into people connected to the JAG school. Along with permanent personnel stationed there, they have temp students in and out all the time. It also has a “motel” type of place for eligible people to stay and regularly has social functions (wedding receptions, too)in the school building at night. They also used to have a restaurant and bar in the building, but I’m not sure if that was still open in Oct. 2009.
I’m sorry, are you saying that this Wright dude is openly stating he knows the identity of sketch, and that his in the National Guard and knows his aviation Regiment number?
B
Blink, apparently the bounty hunter is claiming the guy is probably in that unit. I’m not sure if he knows who the guy is specifically. I guess he’s saying that particular National Guard unit was training in the areas where many of the women on his list went missing.
Just reread what I posted and wanted to clarify something I meant – I didn’t mean that the JAG school is tied into whatever the bounty hunter is claiming. I meant that I think LE should have checked out people working, going to school, attending a social function, or staying over there.
I sincerely hope he is not making such a comment, seriously irresponsible. I have a headache on this one.
B
Blink,
Regarding your question to ChrisM, the article that I linked above from Pennsylvania mentions the 224th Aviation Regiment in that article. That was the first time that I’ve heard his name, however, when you mentioned it.
Based on what the skeptical prosecuting attorney in that jurisdiction says in the article, it doesn’t appear that this guy’s claims hold much water. Admittedly, I thought that we were on to something at first.
Back to the ole draw-ring board…
I’m going to hope against hope.
Hmm, according Mike’s post #25, the bounty hunter is saying he knows Sketch and Sketch’s name, and has contacted police with this information. But this bothers me: he says Sketch has kidnapped at least 12 women in the areas where they train–12 women???? Couldn’t something have been done about this much sooner and before so many women were taken if his information was credible?
It is not credible. It is provocative, not to be confused with constructive or meritorious.
B
On the bright side, at least the sketch and Morgan’s case are getting some more attention.
At least Morgan’s case is not cold. There are alot of people thinking about this, and that is the good news.
He must be found. Keep looking everywhere, under every stone.
J4M
While I do agree that the Bounty Hunter’s information is provocative, at the very least, it has placed additional publicity on Morgan’s case. However, what I find hard to fathom is that he would go to the press with specifics as to who he believed (not by name) is responsible and the press would print such information. What he is trying to do is fit a perceived profile with a specific person. Although his hypothesis may be accurate, he is way off base and out of line. This case has been filled with such garbage and IMO, has really stalled effective work. Whatever happened to integrity and responsibility, especially in the press?
What Cat said, absolutely.
B
In addition Cat, it may hurt those other cases, or lull people in the areas of those other cases not to be on their guard against people who don’t look like sketch. Though Morgan’s case is important and it may have some minor benefit to that case to publicize the drawing of sketch further, those other cases are just as important to the families and friends of those victims.
I would add that it is my strong belief that there are unreported victims of this offender. I say that with a level of professional expertise and a level of case sensitive knowledge.
At some point it would be super if people that do not have an investigative standing in this case could realize that this is not an offender we want to antagonize into re-offending. And from a profile perspective given the nature of the offenses, do we really think he took 4 years off?
If we are giving the impression nobody knows a lick about this guy past his DNA profile and sketch, wth is coming forward with any level of security?
Frustrating. This is a solvable case. There is more evidence here than most.
B
Dear Cat, I agree with everything you said except that this kind of thing would “stall effective work.”
I think it would light fire under the LE butts to work harder to find Morgan’s killer. I hope so anyway.
March 8, 2013 at 7:27 pm – BLINK: If we are giving the impression nobody knows a lick about this guy past his DNA profile and sketch, wth is coming forward with any level of security?
_____
Blink, I don’t understand what you mean. WTH is coming forward with confidence that their info will be investigated? be taken seriously? If they come forward they have no confidence that they will be protected as witnesses?
Yes, who is coming forward that should they extend themselves by providing information, that it can and will be used to effect a successful prosecution. We are talking about a very dangerous individual who knows if he is caught he will likely never see the outside again.
B
a spouse or significant other.
deetee says:
March 14, 2013 at 11:38 pm
a spouse or significant other.
________
Or other close relative. Father/son/uncle?
here’s a news article about another fake cab driver. I’m guessing that this guy is not our man. I guess he is hispanic and dna has been taken (do you believe that LE tries to match dna with Morgan’s killer?).
This fake cab thing seems to be reaching epidemic proportions in DC and Nova area.
http://wtop.com/109/3185465/DC-man-gets-78-years-for-raping-three-women
If Morgan thought she was taking a taxi, her purse would have been with her. If she were getting a ride on the bridge, she would have had her purse with her. That’s why it looks like she was ambushed in the parking lot.
question B-
in regards to Morgan’s investigation…as well as others that have a substantial reward for info that leads to the arrest of….
would a person who has known Sketch & known that he is the guy for a long time…but failed to come forward say, out of fear (significant other or family member)…if that person decided to come forward….would they be an eligible recipient of the reward money?
If there’s anything that will crack a witness…it’s cash.
Thoughts?
Hey Pep!
As long as their is no level of culpability on behalf of an informant, or anything that might void their eligibility (one has to review it’s stated purpose and eligibility requirements) how long someone waited or did not wait could really remain their own business. I have offered previously and will renew it now for anyone who has information- I would be willing to arrange contact directly with a Cville attorney for it’s transference to appropriate LE if one had concerns about that.
Just looking for a name that leads to his apprehension folks- we don’t care who you are and would encourage you to benefit for the trouble.
BAs long as their is no level of culpability on behalf of an informant, or anything that might void their eligibility (one has to review it’s stated purpose and eligibility requirements) how long someone waited or did not wait could really remain their own business. I have offered previously and will renew it now for anyone who has information- I would be willing to arrange contact directly with a Cville attorney for it’s transference to appropriate LE if one had concerns about that.
I would respectfully disagree Pep that cash cracks witnesses, and in this case their is no doubt we are likely talking about a compliant spouse or significant other- OR.. an accessory. If I said, here is $150K in your bank account today, but I cannot insure you won’t be dead before you ever access it, would you take that deal? Of course not. I feel strongly this person would be in a similar position of fear. I get that. LE gets that. Which is why I want to say emphatically that this person would be in a position to save the next girl, and save herself, all with complete anonymity and structured to support the safety precautions necessary.
B
I thought I’d try doing a reverse timeline starting at the bridge and I couldn’t get any farther than the lot and the last people known by us to have spoken to Morgan – the basketball players. Maybe the curtsy duo was the last to see her – we don’t know for certain – but we do know the last officially to speak with her were the basketball players. I can’t get past them and it’s been that way for 3 years. They know something and I think LE KNOWS they know something. It’s possible one of them is who Rader was speaking to when he mentioned “half-truths.” It’s possible they know something more about the curtsy duo – I don’t know – but they are the key to this case in my opinion.
@Tango
I agree and I think one of the most important things that the basketball players know is where Morgan was trying to go when she asked for a ride. I still don’t understand why that information is not public if it is really true that LE has no idea of the suspect’s identity. Wouldn’t that info have the potential to jog people’s memories or cause someone to make a connection they might not otherwise make? Can LE really be worried they are going to tip someone off after all this time?
Not to reopen old wounds, but the rumor is that she didn’t want a ride to a club/specific location but wanted to go party with them. That info being made public would not aid the investigation and is not really anyone’s business IMO.
Regardless, even if she did just want a rise to the Corner, it seems incredibly unlikely that she wasn’t either ambushed by sketch in or near the parking lot or got in a car with sketch and never made it where she wanted to go, so I don’t think saying she wanted to go to a specific bar would do any good. If she had made it anywhere, there would be dozens of sightings. Presumably LE thinks the same.
probably been asked at least a few times before, perhaps even by me, but have the basketball players been re-interviewed by LE, shown and asked about the sketch?
i remember LE saying the BB players had some other place to go, but if the rumor is true and it was a party, I do think that bit of information is worth noting.
To my knowledge they were never re-interviewed.
B
I think the assumptions and rumors are what has gotten LE into trouble in this case. The rumors here in Cville early on do not seem to have panned out, at least not to my knowledge. I also think that presuming that the information regarding the location to where she was seeking a ride is only valuable if she actually made it to that location is a mistake. For example, if it is true that she told her friends she would get another ride “home,” i.e. Blacksburg or Roanoke, then she most likely wouldn’t have gotten in a local Cville taxi, real or fake (one of the theories floated by many). She would have looked for some kind of a ride that would actually get her to those locations. Likewise, if she was just looking to go to the Corner, there are much simpler solutions than hitchhiking on the side of Copeley Bridge heading away from the Corner (these solutions probably would include a taxi). Not only does this information have the possibility of narrowing down what kind of vehicle she got into (according to LE, she did get into a vehicle), but it might also lead to questions regarding the veracity of certain witness accounts (did she really say she would get a ride “home”–personally, I have never believed that she said that because it is contradicted by common sense, her actions, and the actions of her friends). Right now, it seems that LE and the public are locked into certain facts, and that seems to have stalled any progress. If the only reason not to release that piece of info is to somehow protect Morgan’s reputation, that is bad investigating in my opinion. Their job is to find a killer, not pretend that a college student wasn’t looking to “party.” I think at this point, LE is no longer in a position to determine what is relevant or not—I did at one point think they were because I thought they had a suspect in mind but now it seems they are floundering and I do not see how releasing this information has much of a downside. Of course, I could be completely wrong and they know exactly what is going on—I would be very happy if that turns out to be the case:)
dda- not sure how this went to spam, but I nabbed it, thanks for calling it to my attention.
Just to clarify LE has never stated Morgan got into a vehicle. They stated that it was logical she had- There are no witnesses to that and frankly, the only person that knows that to a certainty is this dear victim and her attacker.
B
So, the last people to interact with her were only interviewed one time? Hmmmmm. I would think that after the t-shirt turned up and again after the Sketch connection was made, re-interviewing those last to see her would have been warranted….but of course I’m not LE, so what do I know.
The rumor is not that they were going to a party, and she wanted to go along with them. The rumor is that she indicated she wanted to go party with them (or one or more of them). I am saying this as nicely as I can. I am confident LE knows exactly where they all went after they left the parking lot.
In answer to first-time’s “after the Sketch connection was made, re-interviewing those last to see her would have been warranted….but of course I’m not LE, so what do I know”
…… Apparently alot more than LE. Where were you when they interviewed for the detective’s job…?
I will add to the headaches you all now have collectively unfortunately. To my knowledge, none of the friends were ever interviewed by the lead investigator of this case. He never met them personally. You are reading this correctly.
I have never heard of that in my life and have not again since.
B
I will add to the headaches you all now have collectively unfortunately. To my knowledge, none of the friends were ever interviewed by the lead investigator of this case. He never met them personally. You are reading this correctly.
I have never heard of that in my life and have not again since.
B
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Well Blink its one thing if the lead investigator was never in the practice of interviewing witnesses on any case…but if he chose not to, for this case, specifically -that would be something…
exactly who was the lead investigator? it wasnt Rader
but it was Rader who said (during the first pc) pp “we” are interviewing her friends and family or re-interviewing them also IIRC he said UVAPD had conducted the interviews up till then
did Rader conduct the interviews?
When UVAPD was on the case did their lead investigator conduct those interviews and was all info turned over?
And IIRC the basketball players did not come forward on their own and then “some” of them were interviewed first by UVApd? and then LE…or never LE?
Regardless, once the case was turned over to whatever team Rader was speaking about- why in the world werent these interviews redone? Seems like the logical next step as Rader himself indicated in that first PC….
No wonder Rader seems to be worried about some ones tip or information getting overlooked or lost..
and it would seem only good police practice to then re-interview all witnesses when the Sketch became available but IIRC you said they were not…
I am not sure what to think, it seems most of the problems stem from two many hands in the cookie jar- and noone really wanting to discuss what they discovered before they all began to scurry around for the remaining crumbs-
AJMO
Mom3.0- I have a concern that publishing what agency conducted those interviews is case sensitive, so I am only comfortable saying that to my knowledge it was not conducted by a member of VSP, but an agency with no jurisdiction in this case. In some fashion that information was provided to VSP. I verified this with an LE source, it is confirmed through the initiation of the Harrington’s civil suit.
I have no information they re-interviewed them ever, but because the friends would be deposed for the civil suit, I should hope that they were.
I hold out no hope for that- these folks were never shown sketch in an interview session and as I have stated before, I am aware of individuals who came in direct contact with Morgan that night who have never been shown a pic of sketch or re-interviewed since he was identified as same.
B