Elizabeth Smart Kidnapping - Daily News/Chat Thread - Day 31

07/05/02 - Friday - Day 31 | Elizabeth Smart Kidnapping - Daily News/Chat Thread - Day 31

[Sherlock]

Especially interesting that no one else noticed him on Jun 8 when the Jeep was covered with mud & pine needles, windshield trashed with bugs, Ricci himself covered with mud and wearing a machette at his waist.

However one of my theories is that Moul was involved in the plot, either as the cover to say the Jeep was at his shop all the time or it disappeared one day and he thought Ricci took it (tieing in to Mrs. Ricci's story about someone stealing a set of keys to the Jeep in mid-April), but he panicked when the police came out and gave Ricci up. Ricci can't point back to Moul without giving himself up, only deny what he's saying.

[varina davis]

Utah Girl, what is the name of the high school Elizabeth would be attending this fall? Thanks.

[Utah Girl]

I'm pretty sure it is East High school...

[sandude]

Even with the burglary charge alone I think that Ricci is going to go to prison for a long long time. He is a career criminal who is now a very high profile individual. The judge in the case is going to sentence him to the longest possible jail term that he can and no parole board in it's right mind will let him out. The charges may give LE more leverage with Rick if he thinks he'll spend the rest of his life in prison.

[Sherlock]

...wouldn't they ususally go for really little ones, so they can be brainwashed?

Very good point. My point is I think someone with money may have been behind the kidnapping. ES was quite a celebrity, she had performed at the Olympics, with the SLC Symphony, and at the head Temple in SLC. A lot of people around SLC had seen her and I think one possibity is someone with money hired these bumpkins to kidnap her. Either that or the kidnapper paid Ricci for the key and his assistance.

[Jolly Green]

Especially interesting that no one else noticed him on Jun 8 when the Jeep was covered with mud & pine needles, windshield trashed with bugs, Ricci himself covered with mud and wearing a machette at his waist.

I haven't seen it reported anywhere that no one else noticed him. Can you cite any news reports convering this aspect? I've been lumping this into one of the things that the cops already know and we don't. It would also seem likely that the convenience store video tapes discussed earlier would corroborate the mechanic's claim. I also haven't seen even a hint in the media that the mechanic might be suspect/implicated.

[TheDon]

LOL!

[The people have spoken]

It is West High School. From the real estate listing ...

Elementary: Ensign

Jr High: Bryant

High School: West

[stlnative]

I agree... It is so hard to feel safe in your home after someone strange has violated you and your home. We had our home broken into one time. The hubby was in bed and I had just gotten of work from second shift. I notice the front door light was not on and thought the bulb had burned out... I came home and went to bed a few hours later. The next morning I notice the storm door on the back of the house was set to stay completely wide open and I went downstairs and the basement window was broken out, they climbed down and on top of the washer and I guess before they entered the house they unscrewed the front porch light bulb and then around back and broke the window out while the hubby was asleep and before I arrived home. It looks like when I came home they may have been getting ready to carry things out the back door (the reason why they had the storm door wide open, but the back door was shut) I had no idea someone might had been in the house that night, they may have been in there when I came and crawled back out the window they came in through. Anyhow it took me a long time to sleep in the house at night. We did get a dog right away, a few small items were taken (items they could stuff in their pockets). But the idea that they may have been in the basement when I came home freaks me out as I did not go downstairs that night... I probably just turned on the TV until I unwound enough to go asleep. The thing is they had to break in sometime between 10pm and 12 midnight. As I got home at midnight and the hubby went to bed at 10pm. The hubby didn't know anything about until I discovered it the next day and called him at work. He got up for work that morning and also never went downstairs and didn't notice the storm door wide open on the back door. The police came and discovered the front porch bulb was unscrewed and they took a report, but they never did catch them.

[varina davis]

I'm pretty sure it is East High school...

Was she on the middle school track team? Did her sister accompany her when she ran or jogged?

[EastCoast]

Thanks for the pings, brigette! My feeling is that this case was mishandled from the beginning (thank you, Uncle Tom) and the police are still scratching their heads. Can't understand why the parents didn't employ a high-powered attorney and PI immediately. Oops, Uncle Tom. It's my opinion that the family has an idea who the abductor is - but, maybe not.

[varina davis]

Thanks.

[sandude]

I also saw the real estate listing. I lived on the border between East and West High when growing up (E Steet). The Federal Hights neighborhood is much closer to East high than to West. Perhaps the bounderies have changed because of some sort of demographic concerns. But West high is at least 2 to 3 miles further from the neighborhood than East high is.

[Sherlock]

I haven't seen it reported anywhere that no one else noticed him.

It hasn't been said he was the only one that noticed him but he is the only person at his repair shop that has been interviewed. I heard the shop was a pretty good sized place with a lot of cars in the lot but none of the employees have spoken.

I also haven't seen even a hint in the media that the mechanic might be suspect/implicated.

I first read this theory in a post here on FR I think, it was attributed to FBI Profiler Clint Van Zandt who has been discussing the case on O'reilly Factor. He thought Ricci, Moul, and the 5'8" man may have been in on it together. I've seen Van Zandt since and think his facts on the case are weak but I think there might be some possibility to this idea.

[The people have spoken]

You're right, Federal Heights is much closer to East. However, I believe that everyone in the Avenues must now go to West. If only westsiders went to West, it would be a very marginal inner-city school. But by forcing those in the Aves to go there, it is actually competitive academically with East. I'm not endorsing this social engineering, just reporting it.

[TheDon]

I would think if someone else was at the shop they would have seen and remembered Dick and the Jeep, considering the state they were in, and the general boredom of people waiting at a shop. You don't think the police are tracking down those people, if any, to see what they have to say?

[stlnative]

I also haven't seen even a hint in the media that the mechanic might be suspect/implicated.

This is true... I personally do not think that Moul is involved in the plot or the actual kidnapping of Liz or that he would have a motive to lie about Ricci. I just question if he is going to be considered a credible witness if he is needed in the future while a trial is going on. What the cops need sooo badly is some strong trace or DNA evidence in or on the Jeep, a muddy shoe imprint from Liz's shoe soles inside the Jeep, fibers off her red satin Pj's, unusual blood pattern that match's Liz's DNA... etc. Not too mention where the Jeep was from the end of May to June 8th

[sandude]

Thanks for the clarification.