Jessica Ridgeway Murder: Investigation Focuses On Suspects Of Prior Kidnap Attempts, Points To Local Suspect
Jessica Christine Ridgeway , the grape-hued bespectacled 10 year old who lit up the court as a Stadley Lake pee wee cheerleader, left her Westminster home at 8:30am on October 5, 2012.
She was due to meet her walk-buddy Jeremy after speaking to him briefly from her Mom’s cell at 8:25am. When she did not show by 8:40am, he hitched a ride from his Dad to avoid missing the 8:50am bell. The drive route would not pass an “enroute” Jessica if she were to take the normal path to school.
Jessica never made it to Witt Elementary School (WES) and the school called her Mother’s cell by 9am to alert her to her absence.
Sarah Ridgeway, Jessica’s Mother, worked the night shift and never heard the cell phone she left downstairs. Later in the afternoon Sara retrieved the voice mail from WES, got in her car and began looking for her daughter.
Ridgeway reports her only child she shared with Jeremiah Bryant missing via 911 when she was unable to locate her. Jeremiah Bryant, Jessica’s Father, was alerted first by his employer when police were trying to determine his whereabouts, and then directly by investigators.
Despite the 6 hour delay Westminster Police reacted swiftly. They had interviewed children that normally walked to school with Jessica by the end of the school day and issued an amber alert by 9:15 PM Friday evening.
Victorious. This is the word splashed across Jessica’s pink backpack found by a neighbor in nearby Superior in the early hours of Sunday October 7th. It was believed to have been placed there between 6:45PM Saturday and midnight Sunday morning.
By Sunday afternoon Jessica’s family had confirmed the backpack ,complete with water bottle bearing her name , was hers. By Sunday afternoon investigators knew the chances of this ending well were lost when a clear and deliberate placement of a missing ten year old child’s backpack was a definite calling card intended for them.
The complete contents of the bag or any other evidentiary clues it yielded have not been released.
Hours before Waste Management crews would stumble across the horrific mutilated partial remains of the little girl whose abduction had thousands of law enforcement assets scrambling to find her and the rest of us with cable-holding our collective breath, Jessica’s parents were cleared of any involvement in her disappearance. An unknown predator was responsible, and HE was out there.
While it has not been disclosed publicly, sources inside the investigation speaking to BOC on the condition of anonymity have confirmed that both Sara Ridgeway and Jeremiah Bryant were administered and passed polygraph examinations.
Panic Button
82nd St, west of Quaker. Across from a series of abandoned buildings and near a dilapidated mine shaft, Jessica’s torso was discovered by a maintenance team routinely scheduled to clear debris from the area. While her remains were partially concealed by a dark garbage bag, it was clear whoever placed them where they were intended for them to found quickly. Close to a drainpipe that would have likely hidden the fate of the little girl indefinitely, her killer chose instead to traverse a culvert placing the bag inside the barbed wire fence on an elevated area visible from the road. Sources indicate to BOC that the the dismemberment was intentional and several body parts remain missing.
The state of her dismembered corpse delayed her identification from the prevailing methods of dental records and fingerprints and had to be confirmed via DNA through the Colorado Bureau of Investigation’s (CBI) lab. It did not delay a thinly veiled and uniform look of panic among law enforcement officials in Westminster, Arvada, the FBI and the Jefferson County DA during the press conference announcing what everyone already knew.
An autopsy preformed last week awaits toxicology and other anthropologic study results to make a final determination on her cause of death, however, as police have established she was murdered there is no question her manner of death is listed as homicide.
Jessica Ridgeway was the victim of a child predator of the darkest variety, and he is likely a member of the immediate community living among those in their extreme fear and grief.
Something Wicked This Way Comes
Last Fall, and as recently as a few weeks before Jessica was abducted, police in Jefferson county had been alerted to what they believed amounted to two different men suspected of attempting to lure children into their vehicles. A letter was sent home from Jessica’s school in September.
While it is not known if these suspects and composites are connected to Jessica’s murder, police would still like the public’s help in providing any information about their identity and whereabouts.
Last November a series of attempted abductions of young girls in Arvada caused Arvada police to release a composite of an as-yet unidentified suspect.
Attempted Child Abduction Incidents
- On Saturday, November 12, 2011, just after 3:00 p.m. in the area of Danny Kendrick Park (7000 Ward Road) and the Apex Recreation Center. Arvada Police were called to the area on a report of an attempted child abduction involving a 12-year-old Arvada girl.
- On Wednesday, November 16, 2011, just after 8:00 p.m., a 6-year-old child was contacted by a man as she sat in a lounge area of the YMCA located at 6350 Eldridge Street. The suspect lured her outside and she was able to break free and return to her parents inside the building.
Indecent Exposure
- On Friday, November 4, 2011, three 12-year-old girls were playing outside in the area of 69th and Robb Street when the suspect approached the girls and exposed and touched himself in their presence.
Suspicious Incident
- On Monday, November 14, 2011, Arvada Police were called the area of 77th and Parfet Street where a 15-year-old girl was contacted by a man driving a silver or white four door car who began asking her for directions.
Although Westminster Police have publicly ruled out any connection to the Ridgeway case, about 8 hours away in Cody, Wyoming, Jesse Paul Speer, an acclaimed wilderness and wildlife photographer with ties to Colorado was arrested for abducting and sexually assaulting an 11 year old girl he forced into his vehicle after she declined along with her friends to help the man search for his imaginary dog.
On Monday October 8th, Speer is alleged to have sexually assaulted the child in his vehicle over a 4 hour period, finally releasing her with a bag over her head in a remote stretch of wilderness in temperatures under 30 degrees and known for heavy predatory wildlife. Speer , a highly experienced outdoorsman, knew the chances of his victim succumbing to hypothermia or worse- were strongly in his favor.
Fortunately, Speer’s victim was found wandering by a hunter and amazingly was able to provide a full description of her attacker, the route she was taken although her hands were bound behind her back and Speer’s repeatedly pushed her head down into the seat AND described that while she was being assaulted Speer’s had hundreds of pictures of naked girls strewn about the vehicle.
Westminster Police have not elaborated on the FBI’s exclusion of Speer in the Ridgeway case and the only known and verifiable whereabouts of Speer are based on video of him entering the Yellowstone National Park at 4PM October 7.
While I have faith in the FBI, I admit that that the likelihood of two separate and distinct perpetrators engaging in the stranger abduction and assault of similarly aged girls when the same also occurred a day earlier in Westminster being two different offenders is very slim- gives me great pause. Speer fits the suggested general FBI profile found below.
Speer is being held on a $2 Million dollar bond in Montana.
Much closer to home, as recently as last May, a female jogger was attacked by an unknown man who attempted to shove a cloth in her face she felt had some sort of chemical on it. It was the second attack on a jogger reported to police since 2010 and is currently unsolved. An 8 year old on a dry trail was similarly assaulted a few weeks before that about a mile away a few weeks prior to the May incident.
It is unknown if any of these incidents are related to the Ridgeway case, but until they can be excluded the possibility this suspect is not necessarily fixated on child victims should be of great concern.
If in fact Jessica did attempt to walk to school by cutting across 106th St, she would have been walking on the gravel open space trails that connect with the Ketner and Countryside loops.
The Suspect Profile
Well, sort of. The FBI, through Agent Dave Joly has released a public request for citizens and especially parents to remain vigilant and in particular to take notice:
FBI spokesman Dave Joly on Thursday asked for the public’s help in identifying possible suspects. He said the suspect could “be your boss, your friend” or a family member.
The FBI Behavioral Analysis Unit said that often, someone in the community will unknowingly be associated with the offender of the crime, and may be in a position to observe behavioral changes in that person. They will recognize the changes, and may even question the person about it, but may not relate the changes to that person’s involvement in the crime.
Immediately following the incident, he may miss work. The absence will be sudden and unplanned. He may either be a “no show” or he may offer a plausible excuse such as illness, death in the family, car trouble, etc.
He may miss scheduled appointments/commitments and be unaccounted for during this period. These appointments/commitments may include such things as medical appointments, meetings with a probation officer, prior commitment to a friend or family member, drug test, etc.
He may suddenly leave town, either with no explanation or with some plausible reason.
This individual may express an intense interest in the status of this investigation and pay close attention to the media. However, some offenders may quickly turn off media accounts or try to redirect conversations concerning the victims or their families.
There may be changes in the usual consumption of alcohol and/or drugs.
He may make a change in his appearance or alter something to prevent identification, such as changing the look of his vehicle, cleaning or discarding his vehicle.
Joly said the FBI is “working on an abundance of leads” in the case. He would not discuss specifics of the body that was found Wednesday and said the FBI is only wanting to give a profile to the public so that they might notice the behavior of the suspect.
Anyone with information should call the tip line at 303-658-4336.
(Editors Note: Ask for Suzie Salmon sweet girl- over by the canopy)
Research Credit: BOC editor Jacqueline Beaufort
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With regard to the cross being handmade (Mom3.0)
Does anyone have any strong feelings about whether the cross would have been handcarved or made with a band saw? That might narrow the options of where/when the cross might have been made and by whom.
In addition to youth ministers, a necklace or rosary with a cross like this could have been made at a Christian/Church summer camp or even in a Sunday school class. A counselor or older male volunteer/church member could have cut a number of crosses like this to be given to younger children to sand, stain, paint, string on rope, bead, etc.— Thus the crosses could be once-removed from the source/maker.
I also thought of woodshops in Prison. Interestingly enough, inmates serving time for SEXUAL ASSAULT at Arrowhead Correctional Center, a minimum-security prison in Freemont County, CO has a woodshop in which prisoners make fly fishing rods. Only about 10 inmates work in the rod shop. “From fiddleback maple to canary wood, there are about 25-plus different kinds of wood.” Inmate Jack Serbis says “They had to teach me from scratch. They have high standards. I spend a lot of time redoing things.”
So. Inmates right in Colorado have access to all types of wood and a woodshop. They have to practice a lot in order to learn the skills they need to produce items of the quality they intend to sell. Other inmates make furniture, which likely gives them similar access to wood and to tools.
Arrowhead Correctional Center is approx. 2.5 hours south of Westminster (Denver). But the Colorado Correctional Center in Golden, CO, some 20 minutes from Westminster. Does this correctional facility have a woodworking program and do sexual offenders work in it?
http://www.gazette.com/articles/inmates-92172-prison-profit.html#ixzz29rDS1siX
Now there’s another missing 12-yr-old girl in New Jersey – Autumn Pasquale. http://usnews.nbcnews.com/_news/2012/10/22/14614746-police-search-for-missing-12-year-old-girl-in-new-jersey?lite
I am being told by sources that contacted me for assistance that she is believed to have left voluntarily.
That is of no consequence when it comes to a 12 year old. Her phone is still pinging.
B
Thank you.
I am tailing Ode’s private post because I need y’all to read this:
http://www.coloradohometownweekly.com/ci_21828096
Inv Matessaro says Fox got 60% of that wrong.
B
It seems to me if a jogger had been attacked & and an 8 yr old was approached around Lake ketner, all parents should have had their attennas up & no child should have been walking alone. I don’t want to place guilt on Jessica’s mom, but it just doesn’t make sense to me to allow your dgt to walk alone in an area where some scary stuff had recently occurred. It’s too late for Jessica.
The other thing I keep thinking is how gruesome the area where the perp dismembered the body must me. There had to be a lot of blood. Blood on tools, the floor, clothes, vehicle used for transport, etc. Somewhere, there is a massive amt of evidence. I wouldn’t be surprised if someone other than the perp is aware too. Something like this would be quite difficult to hide……unless the perp always works around blood (butcher, hospital, funeral home, taxidermy, etc.).
This crime scene has not been located yet, agreed.
Here is what I need, and what I am not seeing from anyone-
In an investigation, specifically one where it is NOT known if the suspect is a stranger or aquaintance of the victim or family- we need to understand her VICTIMOLOGY.
Next to the evidence at the crime scenes/recovery scene, this is the single most important aspect of this investigation and we know virtually nothing.
As a loose example:
1. What type of web access did she have? Was it common knowledge she did not carry a cell phone?
2. Was it typical for her to call about a ride or was there some specific reason she did that? Was it typical for her to make phone calls about such things on her own and not through her Mother/Aunt/Gram?
I could probably list 100 PRELIMINARY questions I would need to assign her risk.
Right now, you have a child abducted likely within a few thousand feet/yards of her home.
She had a Mom, Aunt, and Gram who lived with her, all of which are at work or about to hit the hay at that time.
Due to the lack of witnesses and the razor-sharp timeline, on the surface, this has to be someone who was targeting her. If attached to the jogger, did the jogger run the same at the same time daily, wear similar gear, always wear headphones, etc?
My point is, there could be parallels that tell a story about this suspect and I am not hearing anyone asking those questions.
B
“This does not specify the unsolved attempted sexual attack, I presume it is the May one?
B”
They are going back through 4 months of video from the store where bags were purchased, so I presume the May long weekend is the focus.
ps
The 12 year-old in NJ has returned home.
Or one who came forward since, but since we now are forced to question what parts of that report are correct….
o/t: On Autumn
http://abclocal.go.com/wpvi/livenow?id=8855842
It’s extremely irresponsible for a news outlet to publish erroneous information. 60% wrong is awful!
With that said, it makes me wonder which 40% was correct.
I had some dialogue with WPD over the weekend, I can tell you they are on a short leash for releasing any more details right now.
B
Eloise says:
October 22, 2012 at 10:11 am
“I may have missed this-
Is there a crossing guard routinely present at 106th St & Moore St’s?”
Eloise,
Excellent thought and question. Makes sense regarding LE’s working theory.
Hello Blink,
I have been reading your site for a few years now but I never post comments because you and your other readers cover every detail so thoroughly, I never feel I have anything to add! I’m glad to see that you’re covering this case because it’s an extremely disturbing one to me, and it’s comforting to read your site. To know that there’s good science in the investigation and good, thorough work being done, and this guy WILL be caught. I hope VERY soon. I’m afraid for the Westminster area of Colorado. I can’t imagine how the people are dealing with the fear.
The reason I’m commenting today is that I read about something on another site, and I wanted to make sure you’re aware of it. It may be significant, maybe not. I read on this site:
http://www.justicequest.net/forums/showthread.php?t=69405&page=44
that a film student made a video of Pattridge Park two years ago. He posted it to YouTube:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=y391xST-gdM
It’s an extremely creepy video.
I agree that the cross was meant as a mocking gesture, and I had the feeling that it was also meant to SCARE us. And it certainly has scared me anyway. Just like this video was meant to be scary. I’m wondering if his motive isn’t just a sexual perversion, maybe he’s trying to horrify people. I’m wondering what your thoughts are on this. Do serial killers sometimes kill just to terrify people?
Also, If he did mean to scare us, then it seems to me he has a sense of drama, a sense of the macabre and HORROR, and I’m hoping that he’s caught before Halloween, because he might do something awful and weird. If I lived in Westminster, I would consider canceling Halloween activities.
Anyway, I just wanted to make sure you were aware of this video. And I’d love to know your thoughts on it.
My prayers are with you and all LE working on this case.
Thanks.
Thank You Joan, yes, we turned that video tip over the day she was found. There is also some geocache intel I forwarded as well.
B
Sounds like Jessica had a morning walk routine . . . and it appears the routine did not include waiting or meeting-up at Chelsea Park.
From Jessica’s mother at the family presser, dated October 9:
* excerpts about walking arrangement:
“Last year she didn’t walk up to the school. She didn’t have anybody who was walking at the same time so I drove her.
But then this year her friend Jeremy, his brother went to middle school, and so they made a plan, at 8:30 they were going to meet every morning and walk up to the school.”
“And every afternoon she’s walked with, I mean, since before, I mean probably since the end of third grade she’s walked home with all of the kids in the school. Well not all the kids in the school, but all the kids in our neighborhood. They, there’s a whole group of them that walk home.”
* excerpts upon hearing the phone message from the school
(includes reference to the park):
“So I made sure she wasn’t in the places that I knew she wasn’t going to be, but you know, you have to check. And she wasn’t there. And that’s when I knew. I went straight back home after checking the school and her friend’s house and called directly 911.”
“I went past the park and, you know, I know she likes the park, so I thought well, you know, maybe they made a mistake and she’s at the park playing with her friends. So I passed the park and you know you have that little bit of hope. Then I go to her friend’s and her friend’s not answering, and then you kind of lose a little more hope. You go the school and nobody, you know, had seen her, and you lost a little bit more hope. And you go to her friend’s house, and still you don’t hear anything.”
Above bolded by me.
Could be interpretable, but that suggests to me that they have not executed said plan?
B
well i have been mulling over if she asked a boy to walk with her that day because she was scared,either because she had a recent expierence ,or if she had overheard the news reports of the attempts.and if she was the type of brave little girl ,who thught she was dealing with it smartly,ask a boy to walk you,instead of worrying her mom,or did she have a crush on him.
“Above bolded by me.
Could be interpretable, but that suggests to me that they have not executed said plan?
B”
Not understanding what you mean Blink, sorry.
Sounds to me that mom understood the plan was in place and followed this school year, but the snow fall warranted a phone call to verify the walking routine.
I was referring to the “tense” in the quote.
o/T :Autumn has not been located, fyi. I got a similar vm message from a LEO on the scene, that cut out, so I am guessing that is how that rumor got started, but I believe she is in danger and may have been meeting someone she met online . A 12 year old. sigh.
B
the 40% of the article that is right ,i hope is that ,there is dna from both cases and they match.??? which sketch is from that attack?are we sure that the adult woman didnt pull the cross off the necklace(if it is a necklace piece)off in the struggle that i am assuming garnered the dna.
Thanks, Blink.
Yes, ‘suppose it is up to interpretation, but listening to mom speaking she was recounting a lot so it would be in past tense. “They had made a plan”, meaning back towards the beginning of the school year, at some point.
My point was that Jessica appeared to have a walking routine, and that routine could have been noted by either someone familiar or unfamiliar to her. Doesn’t exclude, of course, a predator laying in wait for a young girl to be on her own approaching the school at a vulnerable spot.
I completely agree, I am just not sure that Mom is correct, or that she ever met up at the park, or that her Mom is clear what at-least- the morning routine is.
I am aware I am sadly not understanding that of a 10 year old child living with 3 “mom’s.”
Especially when I believe her Mom commented during the interview something like “we were not going to let her make that decision on her own” about a statement.
In no way am I placing blame, I am trying to establish the child’s risk factor as it relates to “why her”?
That said, I keep my soap box closer these days. Parents that are not fully engaged with your pre-tween you need to know that you ARE potentially putting them at risk.
B
In the full video of the first statement made by the family:
http://kdvr.com/2012/10/09/family-of-jessica-ridgeway-makes-first-public-statement/
The mother or aunt says, “she gets dressed, gets on her coats, and I make sure she’s gonna meet her friend, because it IS snowing, and you know, her friend says yes, I’m walking too, and I watch her walk out the door.”
So it sounds like they’ve executed the plan, they’ve been walking together to school in the mornings, but this morning, October 5, was different, because it was snowing, and maybe the friend Jeremy would not be walking to school that day.
Blink – I was also reading about the Whitney Heichel murder, and the article below says that the suspect they arrested “volunteered” to be interviewed, which put him on LE’s radar. Do suspects do this to find out whether LE is on to them, or do they want to get caught? Is there anyone who has “volunteered” to be interviewed or displayed other unusual behavior in Jessica’s case?
http://www.cbsnews.com/8301-504083_162-57537131-504083/whitney-heichel-murder-suspect-jonathan-holt-scheduled-to-be-arraigned-today-in-connection-with-oregon-baristas-death/
I am totally confused by what “mom” has to say about walking situation. Did Jessica walk to school each morning by herself? Or occasionally meet up with others? I’m not convinced that she had a regular walking partner.
@ wpg’s post October 22, 2012 at 1:24 pm
IMO the plan was in place and was routine. Its understandable to say that the children “were going to meet every morning” because this plan was carried out in the past, present, and was intended to continue in the future.
Plus, Jess’s mom used other “tenses” and word combos in slightly odd ways (she’s recalling something and is going back and forth between past and present). As an example, I find the use of “you go”, “nobody had seen her” and “you lost” odd here: “You go the school and nobody, you know, had seen her, and you lost a little bit more hope. And you go to her friend’s house, and still you don’t hear anything.”
——
“But then this year her friend Jeremy, his brother went to middle school, and so they made a plan, at 8:30 they were going to meet every morning and walk up to the school.”
The phone call in the morning prior to the walk to school seems odd, especially given Jess’s mom’s statement that the kids had a prearranged plan to meet every morning at 8:30. If the kids meet everyday there shouldn’t be a need for a phone call. IMO the weather was not severe enough to prevent the children from walking to school.
So why did Jess call? Did she call everyday to give the friend a head’s up as to about when she would be arriving at the meeting place? Did she normally talk to the friend’s dad when/if she called before leaving everyday, or did she usually talk directly to the child? Why did the dad answer?
And I know Blink has said that the friend’s dad had no responsibility for Jessica’s whereabouts, etc., but it strikes me as really odd that the even though the friend’s father spoke to Jess personally about her heading out to their house/meeting place, that he didn’t call her back (on her mom’ phone) when it became clear she wasn’t at the meeting place. Or at least loop the block/walking path once in the car on the way to school. It’s just so strange to me.
But I do think that her walking to school was a routine and that her abductor knew her walking routine and capitalized on its predictability.
1. kimberly says:
October 22, 2012 at 10:41 am
Exclusive: DNA from Jessica Ridgeway suspect linked to unsolved attack, sources say
http://kdvr.com/2012/10/21/exclusive-dna-from-jessica-ridgeway-suspect-linked-to-unsolved-attack-sources-say/
like I said, no intention of going off the grid. He is all in.
B
********************************************
How did I know you would say that? LOL,
But, sometimes the denial of having it not official is more comforting than the reality.
This is so unbelievably scary and beyond human studying this type of
predator.
when Jess first went missing, I immediately tryed to find her facebook, but to no avail. I did come accross her other gramma who is the Sarah’s mother’s sister. Seems Gramma’s sister married gramma’s ex-husband and they live in Hollywood florida.
Her facebook post, mentions quite alot about Marijuana, and she trys her best to be part of the family in Colorado, although I sense tension there.
I remember reading and not remembering where, but a few weeks before Jess was missing, she had returned from a visit with her dad in MO.
We all have seen his background I’m sure.
I’m not able to find much info on the aunt, and gramma she lived with in Colorado, nor a facebook for Sarah.
What concerns me is the mom’s willingness to grant Jess’s wish to be independent, although I don’t think she did it out of irresponsibility, but because she knew the spirit of Jess and tryed to support that.
Blink – are mom, aunt and grandma all single? Any boyfriends that need to be looked at? I don’t believe it was random. I think she was being watched and someone not only knew Jessica’s routine, but the routine of the 3 ladies living at the home as well.
The mom didn’t suggest the plan was to meet in the park. The plan was to meet (no info about where) and then walk to school together — which is consistent with what she was trying to do that morning.
Agreed, but Jessica was expected at Jeremy’s home.
B
WHOOPS, HIT THE SUBMIT BUTOON TOOOO SOON.
Imo I also believe this family truly felt safe in their neighborhood, and possibly were neive to the sex offenders living in the neighborhood.
I think its way to common that so many folks and parents get comfortable and trusting in their communities and let their protective guard down.
I can’t find much info on the grandma in Colorado, nor the Aunt, but, I do know Jess went to football games of her cousins.
Someone knew and watched for a time the routines of this neighborhood and the joggers, school times and etc. So I agree she was targeted, but by pure opportunity because of her daily walk to school.
I am a long time reader of Blink, but rarely post anything.. This however hits incredibly close to home. As the parent of a 9 year old little girl in Colorado I am absolutely terrified by this horrible tragedy. Especially when we are still healing from the July 20th theater shooting. I’m struggling with how to teach my kids that the world can be a good place too. Haven’t quite figured out how to do that right now with so much bad everywhere.
Anyway, I just wanted to comment on a couple of things.. 1st, I think I read someone say that she may have made a different morning plan due to inclimate weather.. I’ll clarify it hasn’t snowed here yet, and mostly it’s been fairly warm for this time of year. I am of the belief that walking to the park to meet her friend was her daily routine. Also, as for any questioning of the mother, this is a nicer area away from the bigger part of the city. A place where you would probably feel comfortable letting your child walk a block or 2 and play in the front yard. This was random, and this person is a sick individual wwaiting to strike again. He’s toying with the police..
Random thoughts.. The Friday after Jessica was abducted police were called to my sons schoolin Aurora (other side of town from Jessica) because a man in a white van with cages in the back, was photographing students as they left the school.. He did not have a child that was a student. Parents weren’t notified of the incident, I only know because I pushed for information. Police did make contact with the individual but he wasn’t held. In the back of my mind I have been wondering about this incident tho.. I assume police agencies communicate with one another about such things? The attitude I got from the school when inquiring was, more would be done if more happened.. IDK it doesn’t sit well with me.. but I suppose unfortunately there is more than one creepy monster eyeballing children in every state.
I am very glad to see you did a story on this Blink and will continue to follow it until there is justice for that beautiful little girl.
NOW HERE THIS…. As a parent, it is not just your right, but it is your RESPONSIBILITY when you are met with an “attitude” of more would be done if more happened- to demand specifics.
As a citizen, it is your right to request an incident report as a FOIA query, and you should.
Police are paid for by the public, and are public servants. That makes whatever
It is not natural, normal or permissible for any person to snapping pics of children who do not belong to them.
As a parent, how else could you educate yourself in your efforts to protect your wee ones?
B
Wrt to the mutilation of Jessica’s remains, it was not done to mask her identity.
B
***************************************
Nope, and I believe it was done, because he is the kind of predator who , (how should I say this) “gets off” by watching the torture.
I’m trying to be sensitive here, but by gets off, I mean sexually.
Not watching, inflicting. It is a part of the fantasy continuum, in a general sense for this offender profile, imo.
Yes, I am being intentionally soft in my discussion on this.
B
What’s bothering me about this case right now: by all accounts, we have a group of elementary- and middle-school-aged kids who are permitted to walk to and from school daily – with whom exactly or where they met up, no one seems to know for certain – yet there’s been nothing said about cell phone access or contact amongst them. I know distance is all relative, but from where I sit as a mom of kiddos this age and looking at the routes possibly taken that morning, that ain’t a short walk and it’s mindblowing to think of sending pre-teens off without a means of communication for that kind of journey.
Just wondering if part of the answer to “why Jessica” is the fact that it appears that she didn’t own a cell phone.
Not making anyone wrong, but if you are permitting your 10 year old to be unsupervised by any adult both to and from school, that child should be using that cell phone to communicate where they are on a daily basis.
Not going to lie. My 10 year old would never be walking to school in this scenario.
B
4. Ode says:
October 22, 2012 at 12:41 pm
Thank you.
I am tailing Ode’s private post because I need y’all to read this:
http://www.coloradohometownweekly.com/ci_21828096
Inv Matessaro says Fox got 60% of that wrong.
B
****************************************************
Blink,
What are sources saying is the 60%?
Was there not other evidence recovered as well,
is the 60% wrong, because they don’t have a conformation on the hair
yet?
a lot. None of which I am willing to publish without vetting. There is a leak, and he is low-touch to the case, if you catch my drift.
B
Blink, does a person with this profile start with a murder/mutilation or work his way up to that so to speak? In Other Words has this person offended before and if so was he caught and has a record. Did he torture animals first? Does he want to get caught?
It just seems to me that he is pretty bold, broad daylight, body placement, etc., does he think he is untouchable or does he have remorse about this murder?
This is the most complex of all sexually motivated ( don’t let that fool you, it is way more complicated than that) offenders and there is no way I would ever attempt to profile this person, or explain the subject matter in a comment.
1. He is not in CODIS, and therefore is not likely in any state-held program database.
2. He is devoid of remorse and he never thought of Jessica as anything other than a conduit to his fulfillment.
3. No, he did not start here. He is tied to other crimes, and as far as I know, that could just be via a state-wide link, or match. I do not know if WPD has submitted his strand for State- unknown subject CODIS or INterpol
The triad as we call it, as in, bed wetting, fire starting and animal cruelty, is not always available in an unsub’s background but in this case I would say yes, all three, and other paraphilia.
B
Blink,
Additional sadness that Jessica had a “second chance” that morning if in fact she was abducted after crossing 106th onto the open space . . . and that would have been the parents of the friend to have shown responsibility for the receiving of another parent’s child – - the friend of their child – - especially if it is a fact that the father himself told Jessica his son would wait for her.
The friend’s mother said “Just thought maybe her mom had taken her to school instead.”
Sadly, another lesson, another message there.
Geez, there is some much to remark on I don’t know where to start.
* One thing that might help is if we knew what Jessica’s mom did for work at night. What time did she go in at night? I also recall a comment true or wrong per media that Mom said Jessica’s Grandma was supposed to come over and stay the night with her. This may have been from the family conference as well, need to go back and look. Are we sure these other ppl all live Together on a regular basis? If that were true, where would the regular house ppl be that Gma had to Come over?
* The above issue of what her work entailed may provide clues to her socialization. Say, she works at a mini-mart vs a hospital- does she have co-workers- ppl that would know her schedule and that she has a child etc.
* Mom checked the school, park and friends homes, is it common for Jessica to go elsewhere right after school with no phone call or permission?
* Seems Jeremy’s dad had heads up about Jessica meeting or not meeting his son that morning- what is his story?
* Agree w/ Blink- if there was a set mtg to walk every morning- did she call Jeremy every morning? Where was the “whole school” that walks home together? Seems like something might have been unusual that morning.
* Any recent disagreement with friends, and like you said wpg, had she had a previous uncomfortable encounter?
* I brought of the cross walk bc if she got that far- maybe the guard saw or did not see her. But seems Chelsea Park would be the more opportune snatching place- but I don’t know, having not done that myself. For some reason it is thought she got that far.
* Lastly, the receipt find sounds promising- if true. Obviously they have interviewed folks there for some reason- a child?
It is too late for Jessica, but the adults in this area with children need IMO to get together and form a walk to school with the children program or put together a transportation network to get every child to school safely.
The guy in the van across town posted by Purrdazy needs to be outed to the entire area. There is absolutely NO reason for a person taking pictures of children at a school. Especially is this true if it is determined that he did not have children enrolled at the site.
Where were the school administration regarding this event? Why didn;t they take the lead in announcing this to the media?
It is a known fact that there are people who will go to a public location for the express purpose of taking pictures of young children that will later be posted on pedophilia web sites.
If the police have actualy interviewed this guy, I will be suprised.
Purrdazy
You and some of your friends need to visit the local police together and verify that they actually were called to the scene and made a report. Go in person and don’t take an off-hand statement as an answer. Get a copy of the indcident report even if you have to offer to pay for it. Then you need to as a group speak to the officers making the report and let them know of your concerns. You might also inquire if other such events have come to the attention of the police in the area.
The Denver area is just like a lot of other metropolitan areas made up of the central city and many adjacent towns. There are police jurisdictions and school districts that may be across town boundaries. You should know or have access to information that identifies the various areas.
If you get the information about the incident and it is actually true, a visit to the local school superintendents office is IMO in order. Let him or her know of your concerns.
WTH IS GOING ON?
WHOOPS,
LOL,
ok, WTH IS GOING ON,
Are there copy cats at play or what?
Woman’s attempted kidnapping outside bar investigated in Aurora
http://www.thedenverchannel.com/news/local-news/womans-attempted-kidnapping-outside-bar-investigated-in-aurora
My kid walks to and from school — about 10 minutes both ways and he is 11. We get e-mails from the school whenever there is a nearby incident of someone approaching a child, and there is about one such instance every other month. I discuss them with him. There are usually other kids around walking at least half of the way and he has a cell phone and is to text us when he gets to school, leaves school and gets home. It is a bit nerve wracking but there has to be a little risk taking IMO. You try to prepare them the best you can and minimize the risk. If a crazy person decided to do wrong, then it might happen, but the same goes for going to the spa when a crazy estranged husband decides that is the day he is going to burst in and shoot everyone.
I don’t see the benefit of blaming the friend’s dad at this point.
Purrdazy says:
October 22, 2012 at 3:12 pm
___
A 25 year old man drove next to two young girls walking home in our small town neighborhood two weeks ago. He asked them for directions to our library. It was 7:30 at night. They gave him directions and he then told them it was cold outside and he would give them a ride home. He kept riding slowly by them as he talked to them and would not drive away. They ran home and told their dad.
Police caught up to the guy. He lives over 40 miles away and was driving a vehicle that belongs to the company he works for which does not do business in our town. He obviously did not need our library having come so far from his home. IMO he is a predator in training.
The police did not make this incident public. Our school superintendant sent a letter home almost a week after it happened. I called the chief of police who seemed to feel the letter should not have gone out and that the man would not be coming to our town again.
The chief said he could not arrest the individual because technically he did nothing wrong.
kimberly says:
October 22, 2012 at 3:15 pm
Wrt to the mutilation of Jessica’s remains, it was not done to mask her identity.
B
***************************************
Nope, and I believe it was done, because he is the kind of predator who , (how should I say this) “gets off” by watching the torture.
I’m trying to be sensitive here, but by gets off, I mean sexually.
Not watching, inflicting. It is a part of the fantasy continuum, in a general sense for this offender profile, imo.
Yes, I am being intentionally soft in my discussion on this.
B
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
For some reason the case of the Black Dahlia flashed into my mind.
The cross really bothers me.
Well JVM is discussing most of the things that have been discussed in various places today. One man did indicate that there is a connection to the May abduction and was found at one of Jessica’s crime scenes. Did the cross belong to the jogger…did she see a cross… was she offered a cross…is her dna on the cross? This guy is throwing it all in as Blink alluded to. He is ready to go out with a big “15 minutes of fame”. Scarry as Heck.
In my above post I meant a connection between the cross found at one of the crime scenes connected to Jessica and the May abduction attempt at Ketner Lake Loop…Of course who knows.
@Eloise,
Sarah ridgeway works as some sort of computer software tech!
I saw earlier CBS Denver had reported someone walking had found a “cluster of hair” near where remains had been found and alerted authorities. How is it LE from so many agencies are all over this case and they could have missed this? Is that possible? Although it is being tested to determine if human, synthetic, animal…it seems quite an oversight if true.
Ode the cross bothers me as well. Patricia, blink wrote about the profile of this perp in her article. FBI wanted her to publish specific behaviors that the public should be on the look out for. I do believe that yes, he may be a serial killer, he does seems like he watches, and studies his victims routines, times and then carefully plans how he will execute the deed if you will. This is precisely how he has been so far able to elude police up until this point. He was able to snatch little Jessica in broad day light, at perhaps one of the busiest times of the day, with out detection. He also further knew what his deadly, horrific next steps and places he would go. Blink knows about his psychological profile, and hopefully she can add to what she already has published. I pray this monster is found soon. I also believe he has done this before. Here is a link to FBI psychological profiling of the perp if you are interested. At the end of the article, it profiles a case where the perp abducts, rapes, kills, then mutilates his victim. And all the psychological baggage they bring to the crime scene. I know it is horrifying, but these aberrations of life do exist, and they are real. Understanding them is the key to preventing such horror in our society. I pray the FBI is all over this. Thank you for allowing me to post blink. http://newsfeedresearcher.com/data/articles_n42_7/police-jessica-ridgeway.html#hdng2
Whoops, posted wrong link. This was what I wanted to post. It is a good read. This is very very seriously deranged criminal, and a very damaged individual.
http://www.all-about-forensic-psychology.com%2Fsupport-files%2Fcriminal-profiling-from-crime-scene-analysis.pdf&h=cAQF1ywtOAQEmwiD3zI4DKQXyZDqfIkFCvSOni5VP5-bSZA&s=1
Trying again. http://www.all-about-forensic-psychology.com/support-files/criminal-profiling-from-crime-scene-analysis.pdf
Amy’s Sister said: “Blink, do you believe LE knows the point of abduction?”
Blink said: “I do. They believe it to be from the open space area contained in the map I published, crossing 106th. Unverified however, working theory so that could change.”
_________________
This point of abduction does not make sense to me.
On her route, the open space is AFTER her friend’s house. Are they thinking that she arrived at his house, noticed that he was gone and continued on alone?
Could the perp live in Jessica’s neighborhood? Perhaps he has a relative living there? Could the perp work for the Parks and recreation department? If tied to the Ketner Lake attempted abduction, he is one who knows the area well, and would not be “out of place” being seen there. Also perp would know all the sheds, property warehouses, and be intimately familar with the park and the adjoining areas.
http://www.huffingtonpost.co.uk/dr-raj-persaud/the-psychology-of-corpse-dismemberment_b_1577919.html
One more post just a study done in these types of killings (dismemberment and mutilation).
The authors of this study report the key clue from their research which they believe will assist in tracking down these killers in the future is that unlike other kinds of homicide, the offender is always known to the victim, in nearly half of the cases being a family member or a partner.
this article appears to confirm it connects to the ,guy with the cloth. to repeat his stats ,light skin, 18-30,5-6′to 5-8′,baseball cap ,sunglasses,black shirt,blue jeans. i wonder if he had a vehicle nearby the lake,that day,could he carry or drag that far??? http://www.thedenverchannel.com/news/jessica-ridgeway/jessica-ridgeway-case-directly-connected-to-unsolved-attack-near-ketner-lake
Duchess, I removed that link as that “article” title is completely misleading and that reporter has no clue wth she is talking about once again.
B
Thank you Kimberly- I have seen that now.
redly, I respect you as a strong advocate here at Blink On Crime. I hope you’ll understand that I have some questions about your last post.
I am wondering if there is some reason that your son needs to walk to school? Are there any other options available to him/you?
Your words that there are “usually” other kids around, “at least” part of the way to school, and that you get emails when the school is made aware of potential threats to children “about every other month”:
Your words tell me you aren’t entirely comfortable with your decision and are ‘nerve-racked’ about it. Somehow, you’ve been convinced or you’ve been able to justify your decision and you shared your discomfort with us here.
It seems that you may be leaving a lot to chance where your son is concerned. He is very responsible to walk to and from, to text at every juncture.
“It is a bit nerve wracking but there has to be a little risk taking IMO” you say, but I very respectfully disagree.I hope that you will think about this situation and see if you aren’t leaving too much to chance and are expecting an 11 year old to defend himself from the dangers of pedophiles who operate everywhere.
If they can take them out of their beds and off their bicycles, they can scoop up a child at their best advantage. Not too much of a risk for the criminal.
This is a very different scenario than a woman going to a spa and having a possessive lover come in and start shooting. First, because she is a grown woman with an adult brain, she can make decisions about her own safety. She already knows that her lover is possessive.
(More very good reading at The Gift of Fear and in Protecting the Gift by Gavin DeBecker.)
Your son is defenseless at this point against the decisions you have made about his safety. And he, sweet boy, wants to do what you tell him to do and is trying to be vigilant about his own safety.(If only he knew–or maybe he does–that text messages won’t protect him.)
I would be so, so, sorry if something happened to him and I hope you’ll take my words in the way I intend them–in the interest of safety for all of our children.
My suggestion would be the same for Jess’ friend’s father. If the plan involving young children didn’t play out, chase down the reason for that. Yes, he is responsible because he said he would wait for her to arrive and he didn’t do that, nor did he look into the situation any further. We need to be very decisive where safety is concerned.
My heart is heavy and I hope you won’t take my words in the wrong way. I really do care.
Word Girl
~~~~~~~~~
redly says:
October 22, 2012 at 5:29 pm
“My kid walks to and from school — about 10 minutes both ways and he is 11. We get e-mails from the school whenever there is a nearby incident of someone approaching a child, and there is about one such instance every other month. I discuss them with him. There are usually other kids around walking at least half of the way and he has a cell phone and is to text us when he gets to school, leaves school and gets home. It is a bit nerve wracking but there has to be a little risk taking IMO. You try to prepare them the best you can and minimize the risk. If a crazy person decided to do wrong, then it might happen, but the same goes for going to the spa when a crazy estranged husband decides that is the day he is going to burst in and shoot everyone.
I don’t see the benefit of blaming the friend’s dad at this point.”
Blink,
Is the belief a vehicle of sorts was parked in the back lot of the school to the left of the path at the top of the hill – - the path one takes when crossing 106th, leading across and up the open space to get to the school?
I noticed there is also a walkway between the 2 houses at the top of the same path, fenced on both sides that leads into the neighborhood immediately to the right of the school.