Maura Murray: A Little New Info
Maggie
A family waits and wonders: What happened to Maura?
By JOE McGEE
The Patriot Ledger
WELLS RIVER, Vt. - Kathleen Murray scatters the belongings on a motel room
floor like pieces of a puzzle. The bag of stuff is what her sister, Maura
Murray of Hanson, left behind when she was last seen Feb. 9 in Woodsville, N.H.
- clothes, CDs, makeup and a copy of ‘‘Not Without Peril,'' journalist
Nicholas Howe's story about people who died hiking New Hampshire's Presidential
Mountain Range.
For Kathleen Murray, the book is unnerving because it talks about the rural
region of northern New Hampshire where Murray was last seen.
‘‘My father gave it to her. I don't know what it could mean,'' the Hanover
resident said.
The conditions couldn't have been worse for 21-year-old Murray when she
disappeared. It was dark and freezing on the stretch of Route 112 that runs
along the Wild Ammonoosuc River near the Vermont border. Police believe Murray
was on her own. Nobody knew she left the campus at the University of
Massachusetts at Amherst where she was a junior studying nursing.
Then she crashed. The only roadside help was a 350-pound man named Butch
Atwood, an imposing figure whose presence wouldn't be that welcoming to a young
woman in the dead of the night, according to his wife.
Murray's family has lived in a nearby motel ever since, trying to piece
together the mystery of her disappearance. After two weeks, there are few good
leads. All they have are the bag of items she didn't take with her, wherever
she went.
‘‘I know she was up here on her own will, but something altered her plans
along the way and it could've been foul play. Nothing else makes sense,'' said
Fred Murray of Hanson, Maura's brother.
The scene of the accident in the Woodsville section of Haverhill, N.H., is at a
sharp bend of Route 112, which is marked by an old red barn that at one time
was a gift shop for summer travelers visiting the White Mountains. Police
believe Murray left UMass that afternoon, possibly upset over cracking up her
father's car days earlier, or for some other reason nobody knows about.
It's not certain if she was going west on Route 112 toward Vermont, or east
into New Hampshire, but the car went off the road into some brush at about 7
p.m.
The accident couldn't have been that bad. One little nick on a tree is all that
marks the scene other than the ‘‘missing'' posters family and friends
stapled up. Damage to the Saturn sedan was minimal, but Murray's head cracked
the windshield. The front of the car was pushed in.
Bus driver Butch Atwood was coming around the bend in his school bus after
dropping off a group of skiers who had been in North Conway for the day. He
stopped, offered Murray help, and kept going when she said she had called AAA.
Atwood parked the bus at his home, about 100 yards up Route 112, walked inside
and told his wife Barbara what happened.
Another neighbor called police, who arrived within minutes. They found the bag,
some bottles of alcohol, and that was it.
Maura Murray was gone.
Police searched the area for days but there were no obvious clues. There were
no footprints and a bloodhound lost a scent on the road near the Atwoods house.
Ever since, Fred and Kathleen Murray and other family members have been staying
at a motel in Wells River, a town just over the border from New Hampshire.
Police are treating the disappearance as a missing persons case, and a stagnant
one at that. The only significant lead turned up in Burlington, Vt., but it
went nowhere. Authorities said Murray had downloaded Internet directions to
Burlington. Fred and Kathleen Murray say they're growing frustrated but won't
give up.
The chapter of Howe's book titled ‘‘A Question of Life or Death'' is
book-marked with a Hallmark card and a photograph of Maura's brother Kurtis in
a Little League uniform. Kathleen Murray got emotional looking it.
‘‘We have to find something just to get this going again. We need every
lead followed up,'' she said.
For the family, trying to find the clue that will escalate the search is
literally like trying to find a needle in a haystack in such an open, rural
area. Every morning Murray family members search snowmobile trails, snowy
fields, general stores and frozen ponds to look for footprints, and people to
talk to. They're looking for anything.
It's all anyone's talking about these days around the area, and everybody has a
theory.
‘‘Without fail, everybody who comes in here asks, ‘Have they found her
yet?' One kid came in telling me, ‘They found her in Berlin (N.H.).' I
would've known that if they did,'' said Bill Matteson, owner of Swiftwater
Stagestop, a general store on Route 112, close to the accident scene.
Many people who live in this part of the state are ‘‘immigrants'' from
Massachusetts, who came here ‘‘to get away from stuff like this,'' said
Jeannette Wrigley, a Dorchester native and manager of the McDonald's in
Haverhill.
‘‘Personally, I think somebody picked her up,'' Wrigley said.
Butch and Barbara Atwood are from Raynham and Taunton, respectively. They
consider Haverhill much safer than where they grew up in Southeastern
Massachusetts.
‘‘I might be afraid if I saw Butch. He's 350 pounds and has this
mustache,'' Barbara Atwood said.
But she said there would have been no reason for Murray to fear anyone in an
area where people know and look out for each other.
Said ice fisherman R.O. Richards of Lisbon, N.H., in his ice shanty on French
Pond in Haverhill, ‘‘We have some thieves that might steal the teeth off a
billy goat, but maybe that's it.''
Matteson said people know not to ‘‘mess with each other'' in this part of
rural New Hampshire. Nearly everyone has a gun, he said. Matteson said he
thinks that Murray walked away on her own, and got lost in the woods. It has
happened before, according to locals.
‘‘An armed society is a safe society, that's why we have no crime,''
Matteson said.
‘‘In my opinion, it's a numbers game. On a Monday at 7 at night, maybe
three cars went by here, at best. What are the odds that one is a predator?''
he said.
Locals are conditioned to deal with the weather, but wandering off could be
fatal for a tourist. This week it was considered mild, even though the
temperatures were below freezing and even colder with fierce winds. Without a
good jacket and supplies ‘‘good luck,'' log cabin builder Mark Hesseltine
said.
‘‘Not if you're not from around here, no way you're going to survive,''
Hesseltine said.
New Hampshire State Police and FBI agents in Massachusetts are now focusing on
Murray's reason for leaving school. Nobody is thinking harder about Murray's
state of mind than her sister Kathleen, one of her closest confidantes. The
Saturday before Murray left school, she and her father, Frederick Murray of
Weymouth, were shopping for a new car in Amherst because her Saturn was running
on three cylinders.
It is also known that Murray got a phone call the Thursday before she left that
disturbed her to the point that she needed to be escorted to her dormitory room
by a supervisor. Friends in Amherst told the family they don't know what the
call was about. Her father didn't think she seemed upset that weekend.
Looking at her sister's personal effects, Kathleen Murray wondered what went
wrong.
‘‘She always told me everything. At school she had a few friends, but the
people she was closest to was her boyfriend, or me, or my sister Julie. We
would've known,'' Kathleen Murray said.
Maggie
"Objects in your mirror may be closer than they appear." --John Edwards after
the WI primary
Kris Baker
"Maggie" <maggi...@aol.comSPAMBLOC> wrote in message
news:20040228083704...@mb-m27.aol.com...
> From The Patriot Ledger (Quincy MA):
>
> A family waits and wonders: What happened to Maura?
>
> By JOE McGEE
> The Patriot Ledger
>
> WELLS RIVER, Vt. - Kathleen Murray scatters the belongings
> on a motel room floor like pieces of a puzzle. The bag of
> stuff is what her sister, Maura Murray of Hanson, left
> behind when she was last seen Feb. 9 in Woodsville, N.H.
> - clothes, CDs, makeup and a copy of ''Not Without Peril,''
> journalist Nicholas Howe's story about people who died
> hiking New Hampshire's Presidential Mountain Range.
>
> For Kathleen Murray, the book is unnerving because it
> talks about the rural region of northern New Hampshire
> where Murray was last seen.
>
>
> Police are treating the disappearance as a missing persons case, and a
stagnant
> one at that. The only significant lead turned up in Burlington, Vt., but
it
> went nowhere.
>
It almost sounds like she was planning to jump off a
cliff.
> Matteson said people know not to ''mess with each other''
> in this part of rural New Hampshire. Nearly everyone has
> a gun, he said. Matteson said he thinks that Murray
> walked away on her own, and got lost in the woods.
Why would she walk *into* the woods? There were no
footprints in the snow, IIRC. Someone walking away
from the scene of an accident, unless impaired
*severely*, would walk on the road.
Kris
Volfie "Scary Poppins" Jackson
"Kris Baker" <kris....@prodigy.net> wrote
> Why would she walk *into* the woods?
Maybe she had to pee. Or maybe she already did that during the accident.
Giselle (it would explain the panties on the road, wouldn't it?)
Kris Baker
"Volfie "Scary Poppins" Jackson" <vol...@ccrtc.com> wrote in message
news:1041no8...@corp.supernews.com...
If she did it during the accident, she'd have more than
wet panties to take off, and due to the weather, I
doubt she'd disrobe. Someone who's peeing in the
woods, will pull down their clothes.
If those are Maura's panties, the fact that they are
discarded is a crime signal. I'll bet they aren't,
though. Panties and men's shorts are easily found
on the ground, in places where people stop their
cars.
Kris
ponyduck
wrote:
>From The Patriot Ledger (Quincy MA):
>
>A family waits and wonders: What happened to Maura?
>
> By JOE McGEE
>The Patriot Ledger
(snipped)
>The accident couldn't have been that bad. One little nick on a tree is all that
>marks the scene other than the ‘‘missing'' posters family and friends
>stapled up. Damage to the Saturn sedan was minimal, but Murray's head cracked
>the windshield. The front of the car was pushed in.
I would think that if Murray's head hit with enough force to crack the
windshield, she sustained a pretty good blow to the noggin. Enough to
disorient her, cause her to walk off, get lost, collapse, etc. I
still say there's a very good chance she did just that, and died from
exposure (notwithstanding the no tracks found and the dog tracking
evidence). The thing that makes me doubt that this happened, however,
is I think her body would have been found by now, since she couldn't
have gotten that far, and she wasn't trying to hide.
>Bus driver Butch Atwood was coming around the bend in his school bus after
>dropping off a group of skiers who had been in North Conway for the day. He
>stopped, offered Murray help, and kept going when she said she had called AAA.
>Atwood parked the bus at his home, about 100 yards up Route 112, walked inside
>and told his wife Barbara what happened.
>
>Another neighbor called police, who arrived within minutes. They found the bag,
>some bottles of alcohol, and that was it.
I thought Atwood called the police. Anyway, I could be doing the man
a great injustice, but I keep getting a funny feeling about this
Atwood guy. I don't know why, but he just seems a little on the
defensive side (remember that remark about how bus drivers have an
extensive background check?); and now this comment from his wife about
how big he is. I mean, it's kind of a weird, unnecessary thing to
point out IMO. Maybe they're just nervous because he was the last one
to see her alive (that we know of).
Or maybe he accidently hit her with his bus, freaked out, thought they
might take his bus-driving license away because of it, so he hid the
body. Maybe he had been drinking, and those bottles of alcohol found
in Murray's car actually belonged to him. Just throwing out creative
theories here.
>Butch and Barbara Atwood are from Raynham and Taunton, respectively. They
>consider Haverhill much safer than where they grew up in Southeastern
>Massachusetts.
>
>‘‘I might be afraid if I saw Butch. He's 350 pounds and has this
>mustache,'' Barbara Atwood said.
>Maggie
Weird case. Any chance a serial killer got both Murray and the
Kennedy girl who disappeared from Poughkeepsie?
--pony
Maggie
>wrote:
>
>>From The Patriot Ledger (Quincy MA):
>>
>>A family waits and wonders: What happened to Maura?
>>
>> By JOE McGEE
>>The Patriot Ledger
>(snipped)
>
>>The accident couldn't have been that bad. One little nick on a tree is
>all that
>>mustache,'' Barbara Atwood said.
>
>>Maggie
>
>Weird case. Any chance a serial killer got both Murray and the
>Kennedy girl who disappeared from Poughkeepsie?
>
>--pony
***Emboldened by recent successes, I'll guess that Murray was killed by a local
ne'er do well an Kennedy has committed suicide.
Rock Bottom
> From The Patriot Ledger (Quincy MA):
[snip]
> Bus driver Butch Atwood was coming around the bend in his school bus after
> dropping off a group of skiers who had been in North Conway for the day. He
> stopped, offered Murray help, and kept going when she said she had called AAA.
> Atwood parked the bus at his home, about 100 yards up Route 112, walked inside
> and told his wife Barbara what happened.
>
I wonder if anyone bothered to follow up with AAA:
- Did they in fact receive a call from her? (if not, he's lying)
- What time? (could corroborate his story)
- Was a tow truck dispatched?
- If so, was the tow truck driver questioned?
Rock
Alan R Williams
> Maggie wrote:
>
> > From The Patriot Ledger (Quincy MA):
> [snip]
> > Bus driver Butch Atwood was coming around the bend in his school bus after
> > dropping off a group of skiers who had been in North Conway for the day. He
> > stopped, offered Murray help, and kept going when she said she had called AAA.
> > Atwood parked the bus at his home, about 100 yards up Route 112, walked inside
> > and told his wife Barbara what happened.
> >
>
> I wonder if anyone bothered to follow up with AAA:
>
> - Did they in fact receive a call from her? (if not, he's lying)
Or she lied to him. Maybe she just wanted him to go away and told him
whatever she thought would make him leave.
> - What time? (could corroborate his story)
> - Was a tow truck dispatched?
> - If so, was the tow truck driver questioned?
>
>
> Rock
Alan
--
Alan Williams, Room IT301, Department of Computer Science,
University of Manchester, Oxford Road, Manchester, M13 9PL, U.K.
Tel: +44 161 275 6270 Fax: +44 161 275 6280
SageJelly
>whatever she thought would make him leave.
>
That's what I'm thinking..sounds like she wanted to get rid of him and didn't
want him getting anyone else involved.
Maggie
>>whatever she thought would make him leave.
>>
>That's what I'm thinking..sounds like she wanted to get rid of him and didn't
>want him getting anyone else involved.
***Absolutely. I always assumed she'd lied about the call to AAA.
ponyduck
wrote:
>Rock Bottom <nos...@spamsucks.org> writes:
>
>> Maggie wrote:
>>
>> > From The Patriot Ledger (Quincy MA):
>> [snip]
>> > Bus driver Butch Atwood was coming around the bend in his school bus after
>> > dropping off a group of skiers who had been in North Conway for the day. He
>> > stopped, offered Murray help, and kept going when she said she had called AAA.
>> > Atwood parked the bus at his home, about 100 yards up Route 112, walked inside
>> > and told his wife Barbara what happened.
>> >
>>
>> I wonder if anyone bothered to follow up with AAA:
>>
>> - Did they in fact receive a call from her? (if not, he's lying)
>
>Or she lied to him. Maybe she just wanted him to go away and told him
>whatever she thought would make him leave.
>
>> - What time? (could corroborate his story)
>> - Was a tow truck dispatched?
>> - If so, was the tow truck driver questioned?
>>
>>
>> Rock
>
>Alan
I think it's possible that Murray planned the wreck as part of her
getaway plan. She arranges with a friend to meet her at the
pre-planned site of the accident. She gives Atwood a bogus line about
calling AAA just to get rid of him. After he leaves, her ride shows
up to pick her up. Now, why she would want to include a wreck in her
plans to stage a disappearance, I don't know. Maybe to focus
everyone's attention in that area, while she took off for parts
unknown. But I think the reason she hasn't used her cell phone or
credit cards is because she's with someone who is supporting her.
She's smart enough to know not to use her own if she wants to remain
hidden.
On another note--remember the article that mentioned a friend of
Murray's at school, who was withholding info because she didn't want
to get Maura "in trouble"? Do we know if she ever did tell
authorities what she knew, or is she still remaining silent?
As far as I'm concerned, everything tends to point to Maura staging
her own disappearance, which so far has been successful.
--pony
SageJelly
>Murray's at school, who was withholding info because she didn't want
>to get Maura "in trouble"? Do we know if she ever did tell
>authorities what she knew, or is she still remaining silent?
This is what leads me to believe Maura is still alive somewhere. Surely if this
friend thought for a moment that Maura's life was in jeapordy, or that she was
possibly dead, she would have spilled the beans about the nature of this
secret. After all, you can't do much to get a dead friend in trouble. She must
have reason to believe Maura is okay somewhere but doesn't want to be found.
Either that or the friend is a real idiot.
Kris Baker
<ponyduck> wrote in message news:40467c51....@news.wf.net...
>
> I think it's possible that Murray planned the wreck as part of her
> getaway plan. She arranges with a friend to meet her at the
> pre-planned site of the accident. She gives Atwood a bogus line about
> calling AAA just to get rid of him. After he leaves, her ride shows
> up to pick her up. Now, why she would want to include a wreck in her
> plans to stage a disappearance, I don't know. Maybe to focus
> everyone's attention in that area, while she took off for parts
> unknown. But I think the reason she hasn't used her cell phone or
> credit cards is because she's with someone who is supporting her.
> She's smart enough to know not to use her own if she wants to remain
> hidden.
>
> On another note--remember the article that mentioned a friend of
> Murray's at school, who was withholding info because she didn't want
> to get Maura "in trouble"? Do we know if she ever did tell
> authorities what she knew, or is she still remaining silent?
>
> As far as I'm concerned, everything tends to point to Maura staging
> her own disappearance, which so far has been successful.
>
> --pony
Pony, your scenario is pretty much what I've been thinking (and
which I posted here previously). I'm not sure the wreck was
planned, though.
Kris
Maggie
>>Murray's at school, who was withholding info because she didn't want
>>to get Maura "in trouble"? Do we know if she ever did tell
>>authorities what she knew, or is she still remaining silent?
>
>This is what leads me to believe Maura is still alive somewhere. Surely
>if this
>friend thought for a moment that Maura's life was in jeapordy, or that she
>was
>possibly dead, she would have spilled the beans about the nature of this
>secret. After all, you can't do much to get a dead friend in trouble. She
>must
>have reason to believe Maura is okay somewhere but doesn't want to be found.
>Either that or the friend is a real idiot.
***Not necessarily. Suppose the secret is something that would tarnish Maura's
memory/reputation, dead or alive. I can think of lots of things I wouldn't
tell about someone in a situation like this. Suppose Maura had AIDS--what
would be the point of telling her parents that? Or suppose she'd killed
someone. What if she'd had an affair with someone who the friend knew couldn't
have been responsible for her disappearance?
SageJelly
>***Not necessarily. Suppose the secret is something that would tarnish
>Maura's
>memory/reputation, dead or alive. I can think of lots of things I wouldn't
>tell about someone in a situation like this. Suppose Maura had AIDS--what
>would be the point of telling her parents that? Or suppose she'd killed
>someone. What if she'd had an affair with someone who the friend knew
>couldn't
>have been responsible for her disappearance?
Maybe it's just me, but I would tell. I think at this point, any information,
no matter how potential embarrassing to Maura, would be helpful. For example,
if she had AIDS, telling her parents might at least give them good reason to
think that Maura had simply left town out of fear or embarrassment. Again, if
she killed someone, it might give the parents hope that she was alive and
hiding out to avoid police. They could then urge her to come forward and not
make things worse. And if she was having an affair with someone, well I would
definitely spill the beans. After all, I might *think* I know this person could
not be involved, but that would be a decision better left to the police.
It just seems all too common for people to withold what they think is trivial
and unimportant information that turns out to be a big piece of the puzzle.
ponyduck
Yeah, the accident might have been, well, just an accident. I bet she
got on her cell phone real quick after she wrecked, and called the
person she was going to meet, saying "come get me." If she's alive,
it's almost certain she's with someone who's helping her. I wonder
what her cell phone records show for the time around the wreck.
I also kinda wonder why she left most of her personal belongings in
the car. Why didn't she just fling them into her friend's car and
take off. The only reason I can think of, is that she just wanted to
get out of there toute suite, before anyone else--especially the
cops--showed up.
I really get the feeling that LE believe she's disappeared on her own
volition. Plus, even the family seems to have quieted down--or is it
just that the news isn't covering it so much anymore?
--pony
Hester888Mofet
If the wreck wasn't planned, then was she just going to ditch the car somewhere
and have a friend pick her up? I can see that happening, too, then calling the
friend when she gets in the wreck, but wouldn't that be a call on her cell that
would have been looked at? I'm reminded of that student couple who just ditched
everything to get a way for awhile, remember them? Still, if my friend had an
embarrassing secret, I would say all bets about keeping it are off when she
disappears. I would be spilling the beans all over the place. What's so
embarrassing that your friends and family have to be so gut wrenchingly worried
about you? I couldn't do that to my family, but maybe the secret was *about*
her family?
Hester Mofet
Maggie
>>Maura's
>>memory/reputation, dead or alive. I can think of lots of things I wouldn't
>>tell about someone in a situation like this. Suppose Maura had AIDS--what
>>would be the point of telling her parents that? Or suppose she'd killed
>>someone. What if she'd had an affair with someone who the friend knew
>>couldn't
>>have been responsible for her disappearance?
>
>Maybe it's just me, but I would tell. I think at this point, any information,
>no matter how potential embarrassing to Maura, would be helpful. For example,
>if she had AIDS, telling her parents might at least give them good reason
>to
>think that Maura had simply left town out of fear or embarrassment.
***I'd never, ever tell in a case like this hypothetical. My friend's wishes
(and she obviously didn't want her parents to know--right?) would be much more
important to me than her parent's pain. Revealing private medical information
of a friend just to make her parents feel better is beyond the pale, IMO.
She's an adult. If she wants to disappear it's her business. It's certainly
not my place to reveal her most private information so that her parents can
stop worrying.
Again,
>if
>she killed someone, it might give the parents hope that she was alive and
>hiding out to avoid police.
***Puh-leeze. No one would be stupid enough to implicate a friend in a murder
just to make her parents feel better.
They could then urge her to come forward and
>not
>make things worse.
***???? Oh yeah, that'd make things a lot better.
And if she was having an affair with someone, well I
>would
>definitely spill the beans. After all, I might *think* I know this person
>could
>not be involved, but that would be a decision better left to the police.
***So if she's having an affair with a professor who is teaching a class when
Maura disappeared, you'd rat them out? Really?
>
>It just seems all too common for people to withold what they think is trivial
>and unimportant information that turns out to be a big piece of the puzzle.
***No. I'm not suggesting that the information is "trivial and unimportant."
What I'm suggesting is that there is some information that is *so* important
that a friend wouldn't reveal it, even under extreme circumstances.
Maggie
>Yeah, the accident might have been, well, just an accident. I bet she
>got on her cell phone real quick after she wrecked, and called the
>person she was going to meet, saying "come get me." If she's alive,
>it's almost certain she's with someone who's helping her. I wonder
>what her cell phone records show for the time around the wreck.
***I'm sure this couldn't have happened because that call would have been
traced by now. Remember that she and her boyfriend shared a cell phone
account, so he'd have instant access to her records (i.e., no privacy,
get-a-warrant concerns).
>
>I also kinda wonder why she left most of her personal belongings in
>the car. Why didn't she just fling them into her friend's car and
>take off. The only reason I can think of, is that she just wanted to
>get out of there toute suite, before anyone else--especially the
>cops--showed up.
***....or the decision wasn't up to her. Remember that the dogs tracked her
about 100 yards (or was it feet?) up the road from her car. Bad guy says, "hop
in." She says, "but I've got to get my stuff." He says, "I'll drive you to
your car." Vrrrroooooooom.
>
>I really get the feeling that LE believe she's disappeared on her own
>volition. Plus, even the family seems to have quieted down--or is it
>just that the news isn't covering it so much anymore?
***There are local stories almost every day or two--the family is desperately
trying to keep it in the news (remember those panties?). But I agree that the
cops seem to think she disappeared of her own volition. Makes their job a lot
easier.
Kris Baker
"Maggie" <maggi...@aol.comSPAMBLOC> wrote in message
> >On Thu, 04 Mar 2004 01:49:00 GMT, "Kris Baker"
> ><kris....@prodigy.net> wrote:
> >
> >>
> >><ponyduck> wrote in message news:40467c51....@news.wf.net...
> >>>
> >>>
> >>> her own disappearance, which so far has been successful.
> >>>
> >>> --pony
> >>
> >>Pony, your scenario is pretty much what I've been thinking (and
> >>which I posted here previously). I'm not sure the wreck was
> >>planned, though.
> >>
> >>Kris
> >
> pony said:
> >Yeah, the accident might have been, well, just an accident. I bet she
> >got on her cell phone real quick after she wrecked, and called the
> >person she was going to meet, saying "come get me." If she's alive,
> >it's almost certain she's with someone who's helping her. I wonder
> >what her cell phone records show for the time around the wreck.
>
> ***I'm sure this couldn't have happened because that call would have been
> traced by now. Remember that she and her boyfriend shared a cell phone
> account, so he'd have instant access to her records (i.e., no privacy,
> get-a-warrant concerns).
Let's throw something else into the mix: IF someone
was helping her make a getaway, maybe she wasn't
using her own cellphone.
> >I also kinda wonder why she left most of her personal belongings in
> >the car. Why didn't she just fling them into her friend's car and
> >take off. The only reason I can think of, is that she just wanted to
> >get out of there toute suite, before anyone else--especially the
> >cops--showed up.
>
> ***....or the decision wasn't up to her. Remember that the dogs tracked
her
> about 100 yards (or was it feet?) up the road from her car. Bad guy says,
"hop
> in." She says, "but I've got to get my stuff." He says, "I'll drive you
to
> your car." Vrrrroooooooom.
Or...maybe it was a good guy (or gal). What about that
friend who doesn't want to get her in trouble, yet this
seems to be a life-or-death situation? That's very odd.
> >I really get the feeling that LE believe she's disappeared on her own
> >volition. Plus, even the family seems to have quieted down--or is it
> >just that the news isn't covering it so much anymore?
>
> ***There are local stories almost every day or two--the family is
desperately
> trying to keep it in the news (remember those panties?). But I agree that
the
> cops seem to think she disappeared of her own volition. Makes their job a
lot
> easier.
>
>
> Maggie
Yes, but it's possible.
The latest "keep it in the news" story is from the sister, today,
about their last phone conversation.....and since Maura called
*her* and then became upset, it's more apt to be staging than
anything else.
This one's a toughie, for sure. Woman disappears after
wanting to purposely disappear, but did she really disappear
or just disappear?
Kris
Silky Boxers
tracing cellphone calls....
Even if Murray did try to call AAA...from a cellphone? i doubt it....
How can they? Most Cell phones just do not get a signal or work up here
in the mountains, unless you are on just the right side of a mountain or
hill....in Haverhill, or Woodsville, like many of our communities, here,
it is like a scavenger hunt just finding a spot where you CAN use your
cell phone.
The simple fact is, this case of the Murray girl only rekindles 20-30
year old fears.....We had a serial killer at work here, dating back to
the late 1970s, early 1980s...i was only 12 or so at the time, but the
memories are vivid of the community fear.
Most or all of the 9 or more victims, were abducted from the
roadside...only to turn up as corpses in the woods, with the same manner
of killing...so it does stir up old fears.
Recently though...I believe it was November of 2001, a woman hiker was
found in Pinkhams Notch, i think, about 40 miles due east of where the
Murray girl was last seen...another puzzling unsolved murder the same
type of method and motiveless killing...as earlier killings.
It does make us wonder..is this modern day Jack the Ripper trolloing the
roads for victims, here, again, like he had before? Is this some
travelling type of Killer who has simply returned?
Yes, for our communities, here, it is a big concern.
For more info...see a book, Philip Ginsburgs, "The Shadow of Death".
Or you might fing info with a web search words including, Connecticut
River Valley Knife Murders....
Lmmr
"Maggie" <maggi...@aol.comSPAMBLOC> wrote in message
news:20040304173614...@mb-m03.aol.com...
> > ***....or the decision wasn't up to her. Remember that the dogs tracked
her
> about 100 yards (or was it feet?) up the road from her car. Bad guy says,
"hop
> in." She says, "but I've got to get my stuff." He says, "I'll drive you
to
> your car." Vrrrroooooooom.
Here is a part of the story that I am having some difficultly with.
The bus driver was concerned enough to stop and ask her of she needed help.
He was concerned enough to then immediately go home and call 911.
His home is 100 yards from the car accident. Which is only the length of a
football field. Now granted the roads are probably curvy and tree lined.
I would assume ( putting myself in his situation) that he did not simply go
on the couch and then take a nap after calling the police. I would have then
stood on the porch and/or in the road to see if I could see the car and/or
if and when the police showed up.
You would think he would be able to hear another car, or if a struggle
ensued.
SageJelly
>
>What I'm suggesting is that there is some information that is *so* important
>that a friend wouldn't reveal it, even under extreme circumstances.
Then it appears we are in disagreement. I would come forward with any
information I had. And yes, if she was pregnant, or shacking up with a college
professor, or had killed someone, you're darn right I'd come forward, in each
and every one of those circumstances.
Maggie
>news:20040304173614...@mb-m03.aol.com...
>> >On Thu, 04 Mar 2004 01:49:00 GMT, "Kris Baker"
>
>> > ***....or the decision wasn't up to her. Remember that the dogs tracked
>her
>> about 100 yards (or was it feet?) up the road from her car. Bad guy says,
>"hop
>> in." She says, "but I've got to get my stuff." He says, "I'll drive
>you
>to
>> your car." Vrrrroooooooom.
>
>Here is a part of the story that I am having some difficultly with.
>
>The bus driver was concerned enough to stop and ask her of she needed help.
>He was concerned enough to then immediately go home and call 911.
>
>His home is 100 yards from the car accident. Which is only the length of
>a
>football field. Now granted the roads are probably curvy and tree lined.
>
>I would assume ( putting myself in his situation) that he did not simply
>go
>on the couch and then take a nap after calling the police. I would have
>then
>stood on the porch and/or in the road to see if I could see the car and/or
>if and when the police showed up.
***He actually returned to the site when the police came.
>
>You would think he would be able to hear another car, or if a struggle
>ensued.
***I'm not sure how close his house was to the road, but there's no question
that other cars drove by--several reported seeing Maura's car stopped. It
being the middle of winter, I would imagine his house was closed up pretty
tightly, making it difficult to hear anything beyond the usual background
noise. And since I think she entered whatever vehicle she entered voluntarily,
I doubt there was much to hear anyway.
Silky Boxers
news story coming from?....and i live near there....news to me.
Cricket
"SageJelly" <sage...@aol.com> wrote in message
news:20040304191831...@mb-m10.aol.com...
Perhaps she said to the friend "Some really weird shit may happen in the
next couple of months - no matter how it sounds, do not say anything to
anyone." Maybe even embellished with the idea that something really bad
could happen to her if the great secret, whatever it is, becomes known too
soon. I've known a few people who went into hiding until an abusive spouse
was safely locked away, and knowing that their family would worry, they also
knew that no one in the family could keep from blabbing (in all innocence,
they just weren't very bright...) and so swore everyone who knew to claim
total ignorance. If I asked a friend to say nothing, no matter how bizarre
the circumstances seemed, I would expect them to do just that - if I
couldn't trust them, they wouldn't be the one I told.
Salwar Kameez
> year old fears.....We had a serial killer at work here, dating back to
> the late 1970s, early 1980s...i was only 12 or so at the time, but the
> memories are vivid of the community fear.
Ooh, that gives "Cold Case" a new meaning...the snow and all...
Silky Boxers
all seemed to stop in 1990...investigators simply guessed that he moved,
or died.
The common thing though was that, in most, there was no sign of foul
play, immediately....some of the previous victims were reported missing
and a few were "assumed" to have been runaways....until their bodies
were found.
Saddly, all were simply victims of circumstance..they were women at the
wrong place, at the wrong time...often times near pay telephones or
vending machines, at rest-stops, or hitchhiking when they disappeared.
One of the top suspects in these earlier abductions and murders of the
last 30 or so years, is about 50-55 years old, now, He has run an auto
salvage business, wrecker service for the last 30 years....and he has a
long criminal history, including rape, and is known to drive around
alot, all over the states of VT and NH.
Personally i do know of this man, and know that he and his girlfriend
(a cardiac care nurse from Boston area) just split up, within the last
year...they separated, after 10 years living together...i am sure the
police on both sides of the river, VT and NH are watching him quite
closely as they have for the last twenty years or so.
It is easy to speculate, this Murray girl could have "wanted to
disappear"..but it is odd she has not used credit cards, or
anything..and how far can 280 dollars last, really?
From childhood, remembering the others, the unsolved abductions, on a
local level- it is equally easy to be concerned too.
Maggie
***Thanks for all the info. Wonder if your guy has an alibi for the evening
of the 9th.
Silky Boxers
http://www.geocities.com/verbal_plainfield/coldcases/valleykiller.html
This article/posting seems to cover some of the unsolved cases, but it
is missing a few (I believe- Elizabeth Critchley, Heidi Martin, Sylvia
Gray..and a few others..homeless and hitchhiker men also killed in a
similar manner)..i guess i will have to go back to digging ....beginning
in 1979 thru 1990 or so.
Silky Boxers
presumed first "Valley Killer" case in 1979...of the Bird watcher in New
London, NH.
TheWMURChannel.com
Family, Friends Continue Search For Woman's Killer
Police Have No Leads In Killing
POSTED: 5:46 p.m. EST November 21, 2003
PINKHAM NOTCH, N.H. -- Friends and family of a Canadian woman murdered
two years ago in the White Mountains are launching a new effort to solve
the case.
Fliers Describe Missing Woman
Louise Chaput was killed on a hiking trail on Nov. 15, 2001, hours after
she arrived in New Hampshire. Police have been unable to identify a
suspect, but her family and friends have not given up hope.
Chaput traveled from Canada to Pinkham Notch for a short vacation. She
decided to take a short hike before dark up the Glenn Boulder Trail.
About a week later, her body was found stabbed multiple times not far
from where she started the hike.
"Numerous tips led us into Canada and New Hampshire, as well, and to
this date, the homicide remains unsolved," state police Sgt. Mark
Mudgett said.
On the second anniversary of her murder, Chaput's family and friends
have blanketed much of the North Country with fliers asking for the
public's help in solving the mystery. The fliers have been posted from
Berlin to Gorham and into Lancaster, with the hope that someone can
provide police with a vital tip.
Police said they need help solving the case. It has been two years since
the murder, and even at the time of the crime, police had very little
evidence with which to work.
Chaput's body wasn't found for several days. She was killed near dark
off a remote trail. Police haven't ruled anything out, but on the
surface, the attack seems random.
"Even with limited information, somebody is in possession of information
that could lead us to solve this case," Mudgett said.
Anyone with information about the case is asked to call the New
Hampshire State Police at (603) 271-3636.
Copyright 2003 by TheWMURChannel.
Rock Bottom
>
> One of the top suspects in these earlier abductions and murders of the
> last 30 or so years, is about 50-55 years old, now, He has run an auto
> salvage business, wrecker service for the last 30 years....and he has a
Wrecker service? Is that like a tow truck? Like, one that might be
dispatched by AAA to an accident site?
Just wondering.
Rock
Cricket
"Rock Bottom" <nos...@spamsucks.org> wrote in message
news:40498...@127.0.0.1...
That would be it. Must be sort of a regional thing?
>
Silky Boxers
triple A people would see his business as a possible liability.....BUT
for his salvage business, used car parts, etc....many garages and shops
all over VT and NH do buy from him...engines, wheels, transmissions
which he does deliver...which ofcourse put him out on the road, all over
at all hours.
He does travel around a lot picking up junk cars, to supply his
business, also.
In previous years, he has been known to drive around out in snow storms,
looking for people on the roadways to help with his wrecker and make
some money, he claimed....when the police began to watch him very
closely about 20 years ago, he stopped doing that.
In the area for wrecker services, his is 1 of about 40.
Rock Bottom
>>dispatched by AAA to an accident site?
>>
>
My reason for asking about the tow truck was to point out how this story
might possibly tie in with the speculation I posed earlier when I asked
whether AAA was questioned regarding the dispatch of a tow truck, the
point being to raise the possibility that she might have been picked up
by a tow truck driver.
Rock
Sherman
That's interesting speculation. It seems reasonable that this lead has been
followed. Especially since the family has now hired a PI. Someone hired a
tow truck and someone removed the vehicle at some point in time.
That area is very sparsely populated and it is not anywhere one would go to
"get" somewhere. Every once in awhile, a body shows up in NH and then I
never read anything about it again.
It's possible that she suffered a brain injury and is off somewhere - safe.
I sure hope so.
Sherman
TheDailyBuzzherd
Why wasn't The Amber Alert activated?
Region? Age? Or, lost opportunity?
The problem with finding missing
persons is lack of information.
I merely stumbled on this story
a few days ago.
da Buzzherd
Maggie
***Amber Alerts are for children--not adults.
TheDailyBuzzherd
Kinda leaves parents of
young women in the lurch.
THAT's the real crime.
da Buzzherd