Posts: 485
Threads: 12
Joined: Feb 2011
This doesn't look good...
http://www.katu.com/news/local/Gresham-w...89061.html
- A 21-year-old Gresham woman has disappeared under what police have labeled 'suspicious' circumstances.
Whitney Heichel did not show up to work Tuesday morning and her vehicle, a black 1999 Ford Explorer (pictured in the photo gallery), was later found abandoned in the parking lot of the Wood Village WalMart...
The vehicle's window was shattered and it appeared as if someone had rummaged around inside.
Gresham police are looking for leads in the case. At this point, investigators do not know if Heichel left of her own accord and is simply unaccounted for, or if she was a victim of foul play....
The following is a timeline from Tuesday that detectives have put together:
6:45 a.m. - Heichel left her apartment in the 700 block of Southeast Highway 26. She was headed to work at the Starbucks in East Gresham near Powell and Burnside, which is just five minutes away from her home.
7 a.m. - Heichel was supposed to be at work by this time but never showed up.
9:56 a.m. - Heichel's husband called 9-1-1 to report her missing.
12:30 p.m. - Friends and family reported that Heichel's ATM card was used at a gas station at Southeast 257th and Stark. Detectives verified that was correct and that her vehicle was at the gas station at 9:14 a.m.
1 p.m. - Family and friends begin distributing flyers and discover Heichel's vehicle at the WalMart in Wood Village at 23500 N.E. Sandy Blvd. The vehicle's passenger side window had been broken out.
http://www.kgw.com/news/Missing-Gresham-...92781.html
...A family member told KGW several transactions were made on Heichel’s debit card, including at ATM machines and 3 different gas stations.
They said that gas station attendants at one of those locations -- a truck stop in Troutdale - remembered seeing her SUV and said Heichel as sitting in the passenger seat with a man driving. They said the man was acting suspicious and hurried, buying only a small amount if gas....
![[Image: megan-heichel.jpg]](http://media.kgw.com/images/megan-heichel.jpg)
Posts: 485
Threads: 12
Joined: Feb 2011
No news stories with any additional details or updates this morning, but this one has lots of photos of Whitney and her husband.
Hopefully LE will able to get prints from the car. From photos of her car being towed away, it doesn't look like the windows are tinted. A witness saw a man driving the car with Whitney in the passenger seat - but there's been no description of the man.
How do you disappear on a 5-min drive to work? Did a neighbor or someone else take her as she left for work? Did someone get in the car with her at a stoplight or if she stopped for gas? Or did someone get her as she arrived at her destination?
http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-...ds-newsxml
Posts: 485
Threads: 12
Joined: Feb 2011
This story was released only an hour ago, but I believe this information has already been reported.
http://www.oregonlive.com/gresham/index....st_13.html
Gresham Police released new information on a missing woman who disappeared under suspicious circumstances Tuesday.
Whitney Heichel, 21, missed the start of her 7 a.m. shift... after leaving her nearby home at about 6:45 a.m.
Police said Heichel's ATM card was used at a Troutdale gas station near Southeast Stark Street and Southwest 257th Avenue at about 9:15 a.m. Her 1999 black Ford Explorer was found abandoned at about 1 p.m., at a Wal-Mart...
Police are interested in speaking to anybody who might have seen Heichel's car between 9:15 and 11:47 a.m., in particular in the areas between Walmart and the gas station....
Gresham police spokesman Lt. Claudio Grandjean said investigators believe the SUV may have been seen east of Gresham and possibly into Sandy between 6:45 a.m. and 11:00 a.m. Tuesday.
Grandjean said 24 detectives from the East County Major Crimes Team are investigating Heichel's disappearance...
Interesting blog post about Whitney's disappearance:
http://thestir.cafemom.com/in_the_news/1...missing_in
Whitney Heichel had the kind of drive to work that commuters dream about. It would normally take the missing Starbucks barista two minutes to drive from the Oregon apartment she shared with her husband to work. ...
... In two minutes she disappeared. It's so strange that it's downright chilling.
Something doesn't feel right. How does someone just up and disappear in two minutes? From their car?
Think about how you gauge your own safety. You stand at the door of the mall at night and think, "OK, it's just a quick dash to the car." You tell your kids they can walk to the neighbor's house because it will only take a few seconds...
Whitney's husband said she left for work around 6:45 a.m. for a 7 a.m. shift. Her boss called him around 8:15 to ask why Whitney hadn't shown up. An hour and a half later -- after reportedly calling Whitney's cellphone, calling her parents, then driving around looking for her -- Clint Heichel called the cops and reported his wife missing.
Her car has since been found, abandoned at a Wal-Mart with a window smashed out. Cops also say her debit card was used at a gas station where surveillance video also shows her car (although it's too grainy to tell if Whitney was behind the wheel or not).
...I hate to say it, but if it happened in that short a time span, it had to be something pretty darn bad. It means someone was moving quick. It means someone knew what they were doing....
Posts: 306
Threads: 1
Joined: Feb 2011
#1. Why is this "guy" not on video at the gas station getting out of the car. #2. If he left her unattended in the car to purchase the gas in broad daylight, why didn't she either hop out the passenger or driver door? Either she knew the person and didn't feel threatened, or someones got something wrong.. This makes no sense to me. However, I hope this young girl is ok, but I got a feeling this isn't going to end well..
Posts: 485
Threads: 12
Joined: Feb 2011
(10-18-2012, 12:10 AM)pplrcrazy Wrote: #1. Why is this "guy" not on video at the gas station getting out of the car. #2. If he left her unattended in the car to purchase the gas in broad daylight, why didn't she either hop out the passenger or driver door? Either she knew the person and didn't feel threatened, or someones got something wrong.. This makes no sense to me. However, I hope this young girl is ok, but I got a feeling this isn't going to end well..
I too don't think this is going to end well.
Maybe there's not video? Or they can't tell much from the video? There's also a witness who said a man was driving and a woman was in the passenger seat, and nothing has been said about a description. Maybe LE doesn't think this witness is credible?
As to leaving her unattended - maybe she was restrained or had been knocked out and was propped up in the passenger seat.
For a while, a Mark/Lori Hacking scenario was going through my mind, but with the timeline that's been released, I don't think the husband could have done it.
Posts: 485
Threads: 12
Joined: Feb 2011
http://abcnews.go.com/US/whitney-heichel...d=17505121
Authorities used red tape to mark where they found broken glass and tire marks in a heavily wooded area in Gresham, Ore., as part of their search for a Starbucks employee who disappeared on her way to work.
It's unclear whether they found any significant clues.
Investigators searched the park in Clackamas County and also Larch Mountain Wednesday...
Of the park findings, he said, "I'm not prepared to say that's the broken glass that came from her vehicle, although it's absolutely possible."...
...Police aren't saying what brought them to search the wooded area.
Heichel's husband, Clint, has said she kissed him goodbye and left for her job just before 7 a.m...
...Police say surveillance cameras recorded her vehicle pulling into a Shell gas station around 9 a.m. and her ATM card was used.
Her husband said bank records show the same card was used at another gas station minutes later, but police have not confirmed that.
"One at 9:22 and then one at about 9:30, which was kind of odd, both for gas eight minutes apart," Heichel said.
Police spokesman Grandjean said, "The video is inconclusive in terms of being able to tell who's in the vehicle but we can tell it's the vehicle and we know through bank records it's the car."
Police have not yet released the surveillance video, but they plan on doing a briefing later this morning, according to KATU....
Posts: 70
Threads: 3
Joined: Oct 2011
I'm going to play LC, and ask...when was the last time someone BESIDES the husband actually SAW Whitney? He says she left just before 7am. Does anyone else verify this?
Posts: 16,828
Threads: 188
Joined: Dec 2009
Odd. Whoever the man is, he's either crazy or stupid or both. Stopping at those gas stations (and the parking lot at Walmart), you'd think there would be lots of surveillance pictures of him/the car.
With regards to the husband, he reported her missing at 9:56 a.m. The last gas station activity was at 9:30 a.m. I don't think he could have dumped the car, gotten rid of a body etc. in that short time period (if, in fact, she was in the car at the gas stations).
Posts: 485
Threads: 12
Joined: Feb 2011
Per press conference, the park and lake are being searched. Items relevant to the investigation have been found. There will be another PC at 4 today.
Posts: 5,286
Threads: 35
Joined: Feb 2011
Kip, You're doing a grand job while LC is away, keeping up with all the new leads in several threads. 
Posts: 485
Threads: 12
Joined: Feb 2011
(10-18-2012, 02:32 PM)username Wrote: Odd. Whoever the man is, he's either crazy or stupid or both. Stopping at those gas stations (and the parking lot at Walmart), you'd think there would be lots of surveillance pictures of him/the car.
With regards to the husband, he reported her missing at 9:56 a.m. The last gas station activity was at 9:30 a.m. I don't think he could have dumped the car, gotten rid of a body etc. in that short time period (if, in fact, she was in the car at the gas stations).
The only thing I can think of about those gas station stops is, at the first one, which was a very short stop and he was reported looking nervous, is that Whitney was in the car, restrained and gagged, and she got loose or loosened the gag, and she started making noise, so the guy had to leave in a hurry. He re-secured Whitney, then went to another station.
I agree that the timeline doesn't allow the husband to have done this [now if we find out he had a huge life insurance policy on her, then I'll start thinking hired hit]. Whitney's boss called the husband at 8:15 to find out where Whitney was. If the call was on a landline, that places the husband at home; if on a cell, LE will be able to get the location. For the next 90 min, the husband phoned family and friends, and then drove around looking for her [that's just what I would do in a similar situation]. LE will be able to verify his location from those calls.
Posts: 16,828
Threads: 188
Joined: Dec 2009
Not to make light of it, but imagine this guy's reaction if he subdued her, hopped in the car and....
WTF???? YOU'RE OUT OF GAS???
What are the odds? 
Posts: 485
Threads: 12
Joined: Feb 2011
(10-18-2012, 03:11 PM)username Wrote: Not to make light of it, but imagine this guy's reaction if he subdued her, hopped in the car and....
WTF???? YOU'RE OUT OF GAS???
What are the odds?
I hadn't thought of that -- that very well could have been the situation. Whitney had a 2-min drive to work. You don't need much gas to get that far; maybe the car was on empty and she was planning to fill up after her shift.
That could also explain why the first gas stop was so short - maybe that gas station was too busy and had too many people around, walking past the car from pump to cashier etc. Maybe he decided to just get a couple of bucks worth there and then after driving out to the park/lake, had to put some more gas in on the way back.
Posts: 16,828
Threads: 188
Joined: Dec 2009
I can't fathom any reason to stop for gas in an abduction scenario unless you absolutely had to. I would think that's what will get him identified/caught.
Posts: 485
Threads: 12
Joined: Feb 2011
I listened to part of the 4 pm press conference. Mostly, it was just thanking various agencies who are taking part in the search. They also said 21 new leads had come in today. They've been searching Larch Mountain today.
Posts: 601
Threads: 5
Joined: Feb 2011
(10-18-2012, 03:11 PM)username Wrote: Not to make light of it, but imagine this guy's reaction if he subdued her, hopped in the car and....
WTF???? YOU'RE OUT OF GAS???
What are the odds? Very clever Username and the odds in this economy are high that she would have been out of gas. Gas prices fluctuate so much I only put in 25$ at a time. I am always on E.
Posts: 485
Threads: 12
Joined: Feb 2011
http://abcnews.go.com/US/whitney-heichel...d=17514873
Children playing in an apartment complex in Oregon found a cell phone that apparently belongs to missing 21-year-old woman Whitney Heichel.
Parents of one of the children told ABC affiliate KATU that the children found Heichel's phone in bushes outside the Troutdale Terrace Apartments Thursday evening. The family says the phone had a screensaver of a picture of Heichel and text messages asking if she was okay.
"I was pretty shocked. I mean I knew right away ... I recognized the face," April Fletcher, the mother of one the girls, told ABC News.
"[The kids] started flipping through some of the text messages ... from [her] uncle, and there was one from Scott that was trying to find out 'where are you. Are you OK?' So I mean it just kind of confirmed it to me that it was her cell phone," she said.
The apartment complex is about four miles away from Heichel's home ...
...On Thursday, police searched a wooded area nearby and examined the surveillance video at a gas station that captured Heichel's black Ford Explorer around 9 a.m. the day she disappeared. Police said they have also interviewed the gas station attendant, but would not elaborate on what was said.
Investigators have not released any specifics about the video or who was driving the vehicle. Many other businesses have provided police with security footage, reported KATU.
Police said they recovered potential evidence during searches of Dodge Park and Larch Mountain on Wednesday and Thursday. Police used red tape to mark where they found broken glass and tire marks in the heavily wooded area near Heichel's home....
Posts: 485
Threads: 12
Joined: Feb 2011
Aaahh....sorry, posted in the wrong thread.
Posts: 16,828
Threads: 188
Joined: Dec 2009
I was just reading one of the articles on this case and I didn't realize it was the passenger side window of her car that was broken. I believe I also read that glass was found on the ground. I'm just wondering if someone was trying to break their way out of the car or in. You would think breaking out, you'd end up with more glass outside the car and of course, the reverse would hold true.
Posts: 90
Threads: 1
Joined: Oct 2011
(10-18-2012, 12:10 AM)pplrcrazy Wrote: #1. Why is this "guy" not on video at the gas station getting out of the car. #2. If he left her unattended in the car to purchase the gas in broad daylight, why didn't she either hop out the passenger or driver door? Either she knew the person and didn't feel threatened, or someones got something wrong.. This makes no sense to me. However, I hope this young girl is ok, but I got a feeling this isn't going to end well..
I can actually say I have knowledge about your question. Even if there is no camera on the gas station. There is one in the ATM. Unless it's an ATM from the stoneage. All transactions on an ATM is either recorded by video, or still shot camera. As soon as the card in inserted into that machine it takes a picture. Old ATM's are usaully a still shot. It's to insure a bank of fraud being claimed by a customer. But it could take days for this I would assume. I can't be for sure if they have to get a warrant for this, being that this is property of that certian bank. I worked at a smaller branched bank, but we had to investigate small crimes often. With no warrant. So they would have at least the ATM video. Hope I actually could provide some info!
YOU CAN'T FIX STUPID!
|
