Police seeking to verify trip story (Laci Peterson)

Modesto Bee ^ | 1/3/03 | Ty Phillips

[wimpycat]

Modesto police on Thursday asked the public for help corroborating the story of a Modesto man who reported his pregnant wife missing Christmas Eve.

Police released photos of Scott Peterson's truck, boat and boat trailer, asking anyone who saw Laci Peterson's husband the two days before Christmas to call the Police Department.

[wimpycat]

There's another similar thread on this topic, but this article offers a little more information.

So, forensic evidence has been taken from Scott Peterson's boat and truck and it could take up to 60 days to get the results back from the lab.

And we have this cryptic statement from Ridenour: "He has continued to cooperate to some degree, yes. I cannot elaborate on that."

Just add that to the list of "things that make you go 'hmmmmm'....".

[AppyPappy]

Yup. Random kidnappings are pretty rare. Especially people with dogs.

[wimpycat]

http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/news/815972/posts

Here's a link to your article. It has some of the same information and some different information.

[spectre]

What's with this guy? He should be the first in line for a lie detector test, shouting from the rooftops, "I didn't do it, now let's find who did"! Afterall, it's not only his wife who might be dead, but his unborn child.

sw

[jerod]

99 times out of 100 - it's somebody you know.

It's enough to make you a little paranoid.

Keep a good eye on your spouse. They may look alright, but if you're not careful they may be chopping more than carrots the next time they're in the kitchen. Ouch!

[ncpastor]

Modesto? Has anyone asked Condit where she is??

[wimpycat]

Always leaving room for the possibility that a stranger could have done it, this husband is sadly so predictable.

How many times have we seen or read stories of husbands killing their wives? And how many times have they thought they could outsmart detectives and forensic science? All the husbands who end up being arrested and convicted end up all acting pretty much the same way right after their wives turn up missing or dead.

What was the name of that guy about 15 years or so ago, the one in Maryland I think it was, who claimed he was with his wife in the car when a robber or carjacker shot and killed his wife while he was only slightly wounded? I think she was pregnant, too. They were a relatively well-to-do young couple, IIRC, because I think the car they were driving was a BMW.

[runningbear]

Modbee.com

Modesto police released this photo of Scott Peterson's truck, boat and trailer, and asked for the public's help in corroborating his statement in the case of his missing wife.

"Police ask anyone with information about Scott Peterson's whereabouts between Dec. 23 and Christmas to call 342-6166. His truck is a brown 2002 Ford F150, license plate 6T59718. His 14-foot aluminum boat can be towed behind the pickup."

[FITZ]

I bet he's got a honey on the side.

[Cynderbean]

Leaving your (basically new) pregnant wife to go fishing right before Christmas?

Considering how busy the holidays can get and also the concern that most couples feel in the last trimester of pregnancy I am surprised that the "fishing trip" was made.

As for the witness search I would be more interested in finding a witness who last saw the wife after the time stated on the husbands marina reciept.

[runningbear]

letter to the editor: Shawn Rocha

Chandra Levy's mother, Susan Levy

[spectre]

I'm really focused on the big dog who came home with a muddy leash?

Did the dog go along for the ride and escape after he was tied to a tree or something?

A very pregnant woman walking a big dog is hardly a usual target for a sex offender, but I suppose it could happen...

sw

[wimpycat]

I would be interested in finding out who was the last person to see or talk to Laci other than her husband. That would expand the time frame in which she could have been killed. Scott said the last time he saw her was 9:30am on 12/24, and since he hasn't been eliminated as a suspect, you really need to find out who is the last person besides her husband who saw or spoke to her and when that was. Did anyone else see her or speak to her before 9:30am on 12/24, or more importantly, after 9:30am on 12/24. What phone calls were made to and from the house on 12/23 and 12/24? (I'm sure the police have got the phone records already.)

As a matter of fact, I'm sure the police have got a lot of information they are sitting on.

[Labyrinthos]

Afterall, it's not only his wife who might be dead, but his unborn child.

Unless it turns out that he is shooting blanks. Although that by itself would not absolve the husband, it would certainly increase the list of suspects by one.

[eno_]

If she left her house in a car, as the dog-handler asserts, the loose dog looks like it was set loose to make it look like she was walking the dog. She was probably dead the day before. This is the telling quote: "...asking anyone who saw Laci Peterson's husband the two days before Christmas to call the Police Department."

Looks like the husband read the same book Bobby Blake did.

[Cynderbean]

One more thought : Assuming the husband had nothing to do with his missing wife. Perhaps someone (female gender comes to mind) abducted the wife to get the unborn child. There were several child abductions this summer (in CA) by women who intended on keeping the child they took to raise as their own.

One of the most hideous crimes here in Illinois was when a pregnant mother in the Chicago suburbs was murdered and her unborn child extracted from her abdomen by another female. The baby did survive.

[wimpycat]

Now I remember about that other murder case. It was the Charles Stuart case in Boston in 1989. The Stuarts were also a relatively well-to-do young couple expecting their first child. I don't want to provide any links, because most of the links have to do with the fact that Stuart said a black man robbed him and murdered his wife, so they concentrate mostly on the racial angle.

But the Stuarts, like the Petersons, were a young couple expecting their first child. Charles Stuart drove his wife through a "bad" part of town, shot her in the head, shot himself in the stomach and called the police from his cell phone and said they'd been attacked by a black man after leaving a childbirthing class. Their baby was delivered by C-section just before his wife was pronounced dead, but the baby died 17 days later. Stuart could probably have gotten away with it, had he not got his brother to help him. On the night of the murder, Stuart met his brother to help him get rid of the gun and his wife's engagement ring. His brother came forward after Stuart picked a black man out of a lineup, identifying him as the attacker. After his brother came forward, Stuart ended up killing himself by jumping off a bridge.

Stuart killed his pregnant wife so he could collect the insurance money.

What strikes me about this Peterson case is what the two couples have/had in common. Both young and relatively affluent, and both within a couple of months of having their first child.

[Doc Savage]

Of course, you're right. He should be the first to offer himself up for a lie detector test. He should be the first to go on TV pleading for the lives of his wife and unborn child. (notice how the media switches from "insignificant blob of protoplasm ready for D&C" to "unborn child" when it suits their needs to humanize the story!)

Unfortunately, the poor slob can't do that. Number one, he killed her and to take the test would clearly implicate him. Number two, he's not a good enough actor to cry and plead for their lives. He'd be quickly discovered as a fraud.

She left in car or more likely the boat, weighted and covered with a tarp. That's why the dogs hit on the driveway.

My suspicion is that NO ONE actually saw her inn the park that day. These are your typical mentally deranged attention seekers who are either lying or confused by having seen here there on other days with the dog.

I doubt they will ever find her, but of course you never know. He may crack and say where he hid the body.

[Bella]

He may crack and say where he hid the body.

On last nite's news, they showed a pix of a grave and said they didn't know if it was her body..Has anyone heard anything further on this?

[wimpycat]

For some reason, I'm thinking the boat may have nothing to do with the murder; that's just his alibi. It would be rather hard for a man to haul a 140lb. dead body into and out of a 14 ft. boat without tipping it over or falling in himself (of course that's possible). And somebody would have noticed a man struggling with a huge load. On the other hand, he could have done it in the middle of the night, put the body into the boat before he even left the house, and launched the boat with her body already in the boat, like you said. Then it would be a matter of tipping her body into the water, which I would think would be hard for one man to do without tipping the boat over, especially if the body was weighted down with something, but I guess that's possible. It's been a long time since I've been in a small boat (skiff).

Here are some more questions that I would like to see answered:

1. What do the phone records for their house look like for the 24-48 hours preceding his announcement of her disappearance? Who called who and where and when?

2. Recent life insurance policy or recent changes to existing life insurance policy.

3. When was the last time anyone other than her husband saw or spoke to her?

4. What sort of things did Scott Peterson talk to his friends about? Close friends, co-workers, etc. Likewise with Laci and her friends.

5. Did anyone know that he was planning on going fishing on Christmas Eve? Did he discuss it with anyone else?

6. Recent purchases from Home Depot or a hardware store--rope, plastic sheeting, tarp, duct tape, etc.

7. Anything missing or out of place in the house? If he killed her in the house, if there was any sort of struggle, something likely got broken and when he was cleaning the place up, he more than likely put something out of place and something (lamps, wall pictures, knicknacks, etc.) in the house is not where it normally is. Laci's mother or a female friend or relative who was a regular visiter to the house would know if something was obviously out of place.