Update from Georgetown Sheriff concerning Rachel Cooke.

Discussion in 'The Search for Rachel Cooke' started by Tricia, May 21, 2003.

  1. Scarpetta

    Scarpetta Member

    "A second couple was pulling into their driveway and Rachel was walking (cooling down). They had to stop while she walked across their driveway. This was less than 2 blocks from our house and Rachel was heading towrds the house."

    RC...is this the house that we all stopped at when we were there searching last year? It's just up from the corner you turn towards your house. Were the neighbors really confident it was that day that they had to wait? It would be nice if that were a fact. Did the couple that were walking happen to notice any vehicle/s that may have been circling the neighborhood the same time Rachel was running? Did any neighbors say they saw a vehicle in your driveway that morning(other then yours of course).

    I know you said that she usually took her shoes off at the front door...on the porch...any chance she would have gone through the garage? Is there any place for someone to hide in the garage without being seen?

    One more question, did you and Janet lock the front door when you left? Did Rachel ever lock the door when she went running?

    I wish someone had fingerprinted the door handles.

    Scar
     
  2. RC

    RC FFJ Senior Member

    Scarpetta,
    The neighbors in the car were pretty confident on the date because af a doctor's appointment that day. Several supisicous cars were seen in the area and were checked up on the best they could without a license plate.

    The frotn door was unlocked. Most people in our neighbor did not lock their doors.

    Rachel could have gone through the garage, but I looked for clues there and found none. The garage was pretty open to the street and it would be hard to hide in there. It would have been much easier to hide inside the house.
     
  3. wordcharmer

    wordcharmer Guest

    I haven't made any posts lately, but I have been reading all of the comments and just wondered if anyone has thought about sending Rachel's picture and info to Michigan authorities. If this has already been discussed, forgive me. If not, Please look at this link:

    January 15, 2003

    Sex ring busted by kidnapped girl's tip

    Escaped teen leads them to home on east side where she was held.

    http://www.freep.com/news/locway/ring15_20030115.htm

    Excerpt:

    "When police raided the house at 11 p.m. Monday, they found seven girls and women, ranging from 13 to 21, along with two infant boys, 4 months and 10 months old. They also arrested the two suspects and found six other men who have not been charged.

    Police began investigating the case Sept. 8, when a juvenile girl came into a precinct and said she had been kidnapped, sexually assaulted and finally managed to break free. The girl was unable to provide specific descriptions of people or the places she was kept, Simon said.

    After the September incident, police investigated six other complaints from young girls with similar stories. Some were from Detroit; others were from out of state. Sometimes they mentioned a man named Tony, or Chicago, who police now believe is the 32-year-old alleged ringleader from Chicago."


    More:

    "Simon said the 32-year old man initially sexually assaulted the girls when they were kidnapped, then they would dance at illegal after-hour clubs, where some were also prostituted, he said."

    "They always had someone overseeing them," he said. "At the after-hours clubs and other places, they were always under the lookout and influence of somebody in the group."



    My thoughts: Maybe one of those girls could identify Rachel as someone who had been there. Maybe she is still being controlled by someone who worked with this ring. It is a possibility that I think should be looked into. Just my opinion.
     
  4. "J_R"

    "J_R" Shutter Bug Bee

    wordcharmer

    I believe RC asked the SO to follow up on this when the news first broke on this story. If I am remembering incorrectly, I am sure he will now. Thanks!
     
  5. Scarpetta

    Scarpetta Member

    RC, how can we find out all that the Sherriff's Office has done? Do you know who was interviewed what evidence if any was collected from the spot by the driveway to in and around your home. Is there anything they picked up when they interviewed certain people?

    There has to be a way to give us this info so we can all put our heads together. Are we just supposed to sit here and shrug our shoulders and say well...what else is there to do? Believe me, there's lots to do.

    I don't want to step on toes but as Tricia was trying to do, we need to keep pressure on and find out what the SO is doing. If they need money, let's raise money. If we need to drag lake Georgetown...let's find a way to get it done.

    There answers out there and I know we can find them by working together.

    RC, I know you've been dealing with this for over a year and I don't really know how you've been able to do it. I'm sure you never want to give up until you find Rachel and I know that I want to do all I can to help.

    Any info you can give would be very helpful.

    Scar
     
  6. "J_R"

    "J_R" Shutter Bug Bee

    Excellent idea Scar! Now how do <b>we</b> do this without putting additional pressure on RC? IMHO, this needs to be our (FFJ's) effort with RC giving approval. Ideas anyone?
     
  7. Mels

    Mels Member

    I think the Sheriff should give an account as to what has been done. Who has been talked to, who was cleared and why. Were there alibis that really don't fit?

    WHY wasn't the house fingerprinted? I am astounded it wasn't done! Maybe I watch too many crime shows, but that is just common sense, no?

    Here are some thoughts:

    Two college towns close enugh together that kids that age are the ordinary. Odd behaviors would be more tolerated.

    IF that peeping tom was watching her before she left for the semester and IF he had an obsession about her, he would know to expect her home on a certain day for Christmas vacation.

    He could have been watching her, knew her habits to run in the morning before showering for the day.

    An open garage is a shield from view and it seems the home may be occluded somewhat from view from what I am reading.

    If she left her running shoes on the porch after every run, then that would be noted as well by anyone stalking her.

    One of the best ways to get a female to drop her guard is to be asked a question by another female. It wouldn't be at all odd to approach a car with only a female in it to offer directional assistance or help her find her way back to a main road.

    Women have been used like this frequently in crimes. If this were the case, the door to the car or van could easily be opened and Rachel grabbed...a few seconds at the most.

    I guess I see a couple other things as well. Georgetown and Austin both will have kids that do NOT go home for Christmas break for a variety of reasons. So, I would want to know who didNOT go home for C'mas break in G-Town and at UT. Is there someone who said they were staying with friends but didn't.

    Another thing: Many attractive girls have admirers that may not be stable...surely not every guy is nutz, but there are enough to cause concern.

    Her friends might know of a guy and may not have thought a thing of it....look at Ted Bundy, everyone thought he was sane!

    Then, I would be all over that trash collection company because the stories don't mesh. Witnesses say they were late, the company says no they weren't.

    I know they have different situations, but it wouldn't be odd to see a trash truck even in the outer areas where trash is burned.

    I remember G-Town had a LOT of hills and cliffs and barren areas that would be easy to hide in. Lots of rolling hills and endless roads that lead n and on.

    The other thing is that G-Town is easy on easy off as far as the connection to major highways...so the exit could be quick and without much notice.

    So, if the peeper took her shoes off the porch after her mom and sis left that day, then she would have gone back into the house to find them, leaving the door unlocked. He could have entered the house and subdued her there.

    The only thing that doesn't make sense without her voluntarily getting into a car is how he would have gotten her out of the house with out her bolting and running.

    One other thing....were there any contractors or solicitors working the area that week?

    Sorry such a long post.

    I sincerely hope Rachel is brought home alive. I can't imaging the desperation or pain her family has gone through.

    I think its time to get an attorney to start motivating the SO to get busy with something important for a change.
     
  8. Voyager

    Voyager Active Member

    A Number Of Thought Provoking Ideas....

    in your post Mels....Anything resonate with you RC?

    Something I was reminded about when reading a post on the Allen case yesterday RC.....Do you remember when Rachel's case was only maybe about 6 months old, and someone gave you a lead about the possiblity of Rachel being taken and held in a small town in southern New Mexcio, but your family opted, at that time, not to follow up on it.....

    I don't remember if it was a pshyic lead or if some piece of information or evidence pointed that way, but you never told us if that lead was ever followed up.....Can you tell me what town it was and anything about that lead....There are some pretty isolated places in the southern part of our state where some pretty strange things have happened....

    Do you remember reporting to us on that lead RC?
    Voyager
     
  9. "J_R"

    "J_R" Shutter Bug Bee

    There is a interesting article on the Molly Bish case that tells me our SO needs to consider talking to the LE in Warren, MA. There are ways to get the budget needed to do things like drag the lake.


    Officials hope to learn from search
    http://www.forumsforjustice.org/forums/showthread.php?s=&postid=38647#post38647

    "Gov. W. Mitt Romney who met with the Bish family yesterday to convey his condolences, has submitted a supplemental budget request that includes $75,000 for funding related to the Bish case, Conte said."


    "We had multiple agencies here working as one group," said state police Sgt. Alan Joubert, who operated the incident command center at the West Warren fire station. "There was a lot to do in terms of coordinating the search and this went very well."


    Warren investigators might also be able to give the SO some new ideas on how to garner leads on Rachel's case. JMH&CPO
     
  10. RC

    RC FFJ Senior Member

    Re: A Number Of Thought Provoking Ideas....

    It was a pyschic lead. The man said he was going there himself to check on it. He said she was in a ditch or gully along the New Mexico/Arizona border. I never heard back from the man.

    I've now had over 25 psychic, channelors, dreamers, etc say she is anywhere from California to Rhode Island. I think trying to follow up on someone's "feeling" which is not within a few hours drive from my house is not worth it.
     
  11. Scarpetta

    Scarpetta Member

    Thanks for the input everyone. AS long as we keep talking about Rachel, the case will stay alive until we get a break.

    I'm so pushing for the SO to come clean and share with "us" what's been done. As in the serial killings in LA, had the poilce shared with the public that they found a wedding ring, or listened to the witnesses that said they saw a black man watching the girls home, well maybe there would have been fewer victims. In fact, I know there would have been fewer victims.

    The SO doesn't want to the make the mistake of pigeon holing themselves into one corner or another. Based on what I know, there isn't a whole lot of "solid" evidence. So, let's start from the beginning.

    I agree with JR that we need to put pressure on the powers that be, to allot money for extra investigating and searching. More flyers need to go out and I think a flyer that specifies what she was wearing would be beneficial. You never know, people hiking in the woods or open areas may have seen something but never thought anything about it.

    RC and his family can't do this by themselves so let's all get behind them and push! Forums for Justice has a big vice and we need to use it.

    Ok, now we have to take the first step...RC...any ideas what you'd like to see happen?

    Scar
     
  12. Voyager

    Voyager Active Member

    Scarpetta....

    Hopefully, you meant "voice" instead of vice, but knowing our diverse and wicked little group, maybe you meant what you said! LOL....

    OK, Scar....just let us know what you mean and let us know what you think we can do to help....I am willing and I know that many of us here are wanting very much to help Janet and RC find their daughter, no matter where she is or what has happened....

    If we need to write, please let us have the addresses...if we need to avocate to a police dept. or to a newpaper etc....where do we send our thoughts?...

    If we need to send donations, please let us know where the most effective use of funds will be, given the passage of time since Rachel's abduction....

    We can only be organized by interested parties on site, so please give us your insights, and your earnest thoughts on what might be of the most help....you know, and JR and RC, and many others there know that we care deeply....It is just a matter of being effective without being overbearing and irritating to those who are dealing with the case on a daily basis....

    Please help us to help,
    Voyager

    PS RC, thank you very much for answering my question....something that has come to mind from time to time and I wondered if I should be trying to do something about that information.....You just never know.....
     
  13. RC

    RC FFJ Senior Member

    The Sheriff's Office

    The information has generally been a one way flow into the Sheriff's Office I bet we only get 5% of the information back on what was followed through and what was discovered. I'd like to see the entire report. I'm sure there's some disturbing information on us at the very beginning before we were ruled out as suspects, but I can deal with that.

    To answer your question about donations Voyager. I am currently looking for a new P.I. to work on the case. I've asked a retired professional law enforcement person (who I've mentioned before) if he knows anyone in the Austin area. There are two people JR and I have always been suspicious about and would like them both checked out.

    I have also been in contact with the Trident Foundation. They brought in a sub and did a sonar scan for missing Erika Dalquist in MN.

    I've always been careful about spending money on the case, but a P.I. is rather expensive.
     
  14. Scarpetta

    Scarpetta Member

    Voyager

    LOL...I guess I did mean "voice"...but I like the idea of having a big vice too...LOL. Maybe we can use it tighten up on the SO!

    I'm sure RC will let us know after he digs a bit more, where the best place to start would be....as far as donating money and writing letters goes. It's nice to know that you and others are there waiting in the wings to help in any way.

    RC...I think it's time that the SO gave you a "substanial" update on the search for Rachel. I know there may be a few things he can't share at this time but they need to share some of what they know so maybe we can do some investigating of our own. As we've said before, maybe a fresh pair of eyes is what this case needs. I can whip up a jacket that says investigator on the back and pick up a fake badge and we're good to go!

    Keep updating us!

    Scar
     
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