You mention the possibility that no crimes were committed during the Jeeps absence. Richard was supposedly very saddened by the abduction of Elizabeth because he liked Ed so much. He felt like the police were wasting their time investigating him and the Jeep and hoped they would marshal their resources in another direction. He was in isolation in the prison for his own safety. He was eating sack lunches twice a day. He could not receive visits from Angela or anyone else. He was constantly mentioned in news articles placing a cloud of suspicion over him. As hot as this case was I’m sure his lawyer could have easily gotten a plea bargain for simply clearing up the questions around the Jeep. If no crimes were really committed then it makes no sense for him not to clear the matter up.
What if unrelated crimes were committed by someone else using the Jeep and Richard knew about it? For the same reasons as above he would clear the matter up. He also could have been able to come up with an alibi for the Jeep. Example: somebody took it without his knowledge and dropped it off at the trailer park during the night. He was simply returning it to Moul so that the work could be completed. If the police ever discovered the unrelated crimes then he could tell his story and hope he had an alibi for the time the crimes were committed.
What if Richard had used the Jeep in the commission of some unrelated crime? There was always the offer of immunity for anything like this. He’d still been in trouble but his life would have been much less complicated without the cloud of Elizabeth’s kidnapping hanging over him.
What if someone else abducted Elizabeth using the Jeep without Richards’s knowledge? Not likely because the abductor would have needed access and a layout for the Smart home. If it was some kind of a frame then why did Ricci return the Jeep himself and then lie about it? Once again his lawyer could have and would have cut a deal in a New York minute on this. LE would have had no reason whatsoever to withhold a deal unless they had good evidence tying Richard to the kidnapping.
There is really only one conclusion that can be reached about the Jeep. It was involved in the abduction. Richard could not admit that it had been in his possession because it would have forced him to give up his accomplice and explain the mileage and where it had been to get so muddy. Doing that could have brought him a death penalty. There was also the possibility that there was some telltale evidence in the Jeep like a fiber from Elizabeth’s red pajamas. Stonewalling was his only play.
Add to all of this the failed lie detector test, the surprise confession to theft and burglary charges and the holes in his alibi. It doesn’t paint a pretty picture for Richard no matter how you cut it. And for anybody who wants to believe Angela’s version of events I’ve got some hip waders for them.
I'm in agreement here. I'm only trying to fit the pieces together in this thing. If our pig roaster had a dead body in the back of his SUV then how do you explain the mud on Ricci and his Jeep the day before. I did throw out the idea that Elizabeth might have been held in a remote cabin. We have to remember that this case became white hot because of Mary Katherine’s witnessing the abduction. I don't think the conspirators ever anticipated that. Let's go through a possible scenario. I’m not saying I think this happened, it’s just a possibility.
On the 30th of May Richard picks up the Jeep from Mouls and drives into the country where he meets up with his accomplice at a remote cabin. They leave the Jeep there and Rick’s friend drives him back to Salt Lake in the blue SUV. On the day of the crime the accomplice drives into Salt Lake in the Jeep and picks up Ricci sometime around 1:30 AM and they make the drive to Federal Heights. One of them enters the home and grabs Elizabeth not noticing that Mary Katherine has witnessed the crime. Elizabeth is subdued (drugged, whatever) and they speed away from the Smarts neighborhood. Richard is dropped off at the theme park where he reports to Angela that they got away clean. The accomplice now continues on his journey to the remote cabin hideout. Once he arrives there he puts Elizabeth into the cabin and waits to hear from Richard and Angela.
Once Richard discovers that MK witnessed the crime he is forced to start covering his tracks. After he is interviewed later that day he realizes that they may eventually focus on him and his associates and that they are going to have to get rid of Elizabeth. They can’t bury Elizabeth near the cabin because there is a tie between Richard or Angela to this property (family, friend, etc). It is also clear that the Jeep can’t be left at the cabin because it would be a certain giveaway if LE found it there. The accomplice takes the blue van and makes the trip back to Salt Lake to pick up Richard. They go back to the cabin to take care of business.
Elizabeth is wrapped in plastic and placed under a tarp in the back of the SUV this time. They have to get the Jeep back to Mouls and hope that LE never focuses on Richard and if they do then perhaps they won’t discover that the Jeep was missing for a week. As they are leaving the remote area the Jeep becomes bogged down in the mud because of the wet ground (scaredkat told us of the rain that week). Richard has to dig the Jeep out. He can’t leave it there because it’s too close to the cabin where Elizabeth was held and possibly murdered. The Jeep is muddy and so is Richard as he returns the vehicle to Moul. The man in the blue van takes care of burying the body the next day.
This little exercise is just that. I’m trying to fit the pieces together into a plausible scenario. Many things could vary in the above scenario but the overall theme is that Richard, the Jeep, an accomplice, and a blue van are all tied into this crime. Elizabeth was apparently buried either the 8th or 9th of June. If this is true then may God rest her soul.