Monday, April 25, 2011

The Holly Bobo Case: Serial Killer, Bad Boyfriend, or Staged Abduction?

by Pat Brown

Another story of a beautiful, missing woman has taken over the media. Twenty-year-old nursing student, Holly Bobo, disappeared on April 13 from Parsons, Tennessee, and she has not been found.

With so much misinformation, changing stories, rumors, and peculiar behavior on the part of the family and law enforcement, the only thing we really know is that something horrible happened to Holly Bobo. Now, I know a few people believe that Holly ran away or that the family is hiding her and trying to collect money, and some people even think that this is a ruse to further the career of country music singer, Whitney Duncan. None of this I believe to be true, especially the last one. Duncan, who has some lovely songs that have made the charts, is doing fine enough on her own, she will thank you very much, and she doesn't need some horrifying charade like this to get her notice.

The chance of Holly being found alive is slim to none. But the looming question is did one of her boyfriends take her away? Is there a serial killer loose in the area? Or, did a family member do something to Holly, perhaps in a rage over some particular issue, real or imagined? I have worked a couple of Cain-and-Abel cases in which one child became jealous of the other and murdered them to get rid of the competition and gain the parents' attention. It usually works, because parents tend to hang on to the one remaining child left and fight to save him.

So, what happened to Holly? Here are a few known facts.

Fact One: Holly Bobo has not been seen in over a week.
Fact Two: Holly's brother, Clint, claims to be the last one who saw Holly in the company of a man that looked like her boyfriend.
Fact Three: Holly's white lunchbox was found in a creek eight miles from her home.

This is all we know. Everything else we can only wonder about. Many think we know more, but we don't because we are either taking the family's word on it or the convoluted and changing stories from law enforcement or the media. Because of all this confusion, there are four credible theories as to what happened to Holly:

Theory One: A serial killer or stalker abducted Holly
Theory Two: One of her boyfriends (present or ex) abducted Holly.
Theory Three: Holly's brother, Clint, did something to Holly and the family has no idea.
Theory Four: A family member did something to Holly, most likely Clint, and they are all covering it up.

Now, in saying this, I can guess there are those who will become immediately angry that I would even suggest Theory Three and Four. But as a criminal profiler, I cannot eliminate these possibilities unless they can be proven to not possibly be true. Sad as it is to ever question a family's involvement - especially when you understand the pain they must be in - the family is statistically the most likely to be responsible for a member's homicide and they must be looked at first and foremost unless they can be clearly eliminated by the evidence.

As it stands now with the Bobo family, they were the last to see Holly. Actually, the father never stated when he last saw Holly and the mother never stated when she last saw Holly. Only the brother has claimed to have seen his sister on the morning of her disappearance, and it has been stated he called 911 to report her missing. We have no information as to when Holly was last heard from, although there is a claim there was some activity on the phone after she went missing (whether it was a ping or a text, we do not know).

We cannot know at this time if Holly was alive the morning the 911 call from Clint was made. We have heard of a woman, supposedly a neighbor, who reportedly called 911 after hearing a female scream. We have yet to get clarity on the veracity of that call or when it was actually made, although the sheriff sort of stated it was around the time Clint saw Holly with the guy he thought was a boyfriend (but Clint didn't hear his sister scream). The police have not released either the 911 call from Clint Bobo nor this supposed 911 call from the neighbor. Why?

Next, we have some mighty strange stories about Clint Bobo's 911 call. When the story first broke, we heard it was a home invasion. We heard of a man in camouflage who dragged Holly off into the woods. Then we heard that Holly was never dragged off but that what Clint actually saw through a window was a man walking off with Holly into the woods. He thought - because their backs were to him - Holly was with her boyfriend, that he didn't think anything was wrong until he came out some forty minutes later to find her car still there and blood spatter in the area. It is theorized that media got it wrong but it is also stated by law enforcement that they originally believed she was dragged. How can the story change? In the 911 call, did Clint say Holly was dragged but changed his story later when no drag marks were found or did law enforcement misinterpret his phone call or did the media get it wrong? Why isn't Clint Bobo's 911 call being released?

For that matter, why isn't a decent description of the alleged abductor being released? Bobo supposedly claims (we have never heard from him because he has not been spoken to the media or appeared in front of any cameras) that the abductor was 5-foot-10 to 6-feet tall and about 200 pounds. Is that the same height and weight for the boyfriend he is said to have thought was with Holly? I have seen some photos of the boyfriend, and he doesn't look anywhere near 200 pounds. How about hair color? Did he have on a hat? Is he the same build as the brother, whose photo doesn't seem to be anywhere around? Why, if the police believe Clint Bobo's story, have they not released clear information about the suspect?

The police have stated that no one has been eliminated as a suspect. At the same time, they actually stated that Holly was led away into the woods "in fear of her life." What kind of cock-and-bull statement is that from law enforcement? If they did not see Holly being led away on camera and if all Clint said was he saw Holly walking off with a man in such a fashion that he didn't notice her in any distress, how do the police make such a ridiculous claim? And, in making that statement, they are indeed saying that the family has been eliminated. They also have stated that Holly may have been spirited out of the area but she is still in the state! How would they know this unless they know exactly who took her and where that person is? Why are they still searching through the bushes then? Why is law enforcement so inconsistent? Are they purposely giving misinformation or are they simply not very competent? I am not too happy with either conclusion. Even the family spokesperson, Kevin Bromley, appeared on Nancy Grace, stumbled over his words, hemmed and hawed, and was very evasive about the details of what happened at the Bobo home and whether Clint Bobo had taken a polygraph. This does not inspire confidence in the family's noninvolvement.

The community has put their heart out for this family and the search for Holly. They have responded in a way I wish every community would respond. They have given wholeheartedly and without reservation, given their time and money and physical and emotional efforts scouring the dense woods for this missing woman. I would hate to think they have been played by either the family or the police. They have the right to know the truth, as much as is known, at this time.

What needs to be done:
  • The family and the boyfriends need to take polygraphs.
  • The family and boyfriends need to be alibied.
  • The family, including the brother, need to step forward and clearly state where everyone was after the last time Holly was seen or heard of from a non-family member (by voice, not text).
  • The brother needs to give a clear public description of what he saw at the home, when he saw it, and what he did.
  • The 911 calls need to be released to the public.
  • A description of the supposed blood spatter needs to be released by the police, including what it is (human or animal) and whose it is (known person's or persons, or stranger's, or known person's and stranger's).
  • The police need to clarify exactly what items of Holly's were found and where, and what items of Holly's are missing.
One final note that has really raised eyebrows. The media is reporting that the family is selling T-shirts for twelve dollars each and more than 2500 have been sold so far. The sales are going into The Holly Bobo Fund which is described as monies being saved to give Holly a vacation when she gets home, not a fund to help pay for searches or help victims of abduction and homicide. If this is true, it is one more issue that makes people uncomfortable with the Bobo family's behaviors. Not only is this inappropriate for the family of a victim to collect money that doesn't go toward the cause, but it makes me wonder if this is money being set aside for a defense fund.

If this is a true abduction, the police and the family should have no problem complying with the above list and, furthermore, it could only help, and not damage, the investigation. If the incomplete and erroneous information continues to be all that is offered to the public, no one can blame folks out there for questioning whether the family had something to do with Holly Bobo going missing. At some point, they may simply stop looking for her. That they haven't given up is a testament to good neighbors and a strong community. God bless them all.

397 comments:

«Oldest   ‹Older   201 – 397 of 397
mag said...

To Jolie, I think your posts to CH were critcal, though justly so, that's why she took them down. I don't think you attacked her though, I think you were well within your moral rights to post what you did. You asked some hard questions that she didn't like and doesn't apparently have answers for, so imo in her eyes you made her look bad so she deleted them. I honestly think if she had answers she would have definitely taken the oppotunity to reply, other than to post "it has been verified" and then mention the TBI and DCSD, when the "information" says it was a TN Highway Patrol Officer, which I asumme is a different LE office altogether. And I tend to agree it looks like she is doing the same thing she recently critized someone else for doing (Zehnder). Poor Holly is missing and God knows what and there are people who seem to be taking advantage of that for their own benefit. That makes me so sick to my stomach.

mag said...

Does anyone have a take on why the Bring Them Home radio show that was to be about Holly was cancelled at the last minute last night? It seemed very odd too, just like everything else in this case.

mag said...

To Shels, "Why do suspects always go into hiding?" Because they have something to hide??? I guess since no one has actually been named a suspect though (although no one has officially been cleared either according to what report you want to believe), maybe it's not right to call anyone a suspect, but I know what you mean.

I'd like to bring this up again if I may, I'm really curious as to anyones take on it. In my post from May 11, 2011 2:42 PM
the TBI official says "We hope we will have a positive ending to this." Positive in what way, finding her alive, or positive in finding whomever did whatever to her? Now my head hurts again.

melody said...

Thank you, mag! I will try to post the way you explained. We shall see if I can do it! :)

I pray Holly is okay too, and I feel terrible about whatever has befallen her. It does look bleak, but there is always reason to hope because we all know of strange and seemingly hopeless cases that brought miraculously good outcomes. So I pray this is one of those cases.

Women in Crime Ink said...

Just want to let everyone know that no comments have been or are being deleted. Blogger can be pesky when more than one person is posting, so that might be what's happening; when two people post comments at the same time, one makes it in, the other doesn't. We welcome opinions and lively conversation here on WCI. So, if a comment doesn't make it in the first time, please try again. And thanks for stopping by WCI!

Anonymous said...

mag,
I posted like you suggested (URL thing), and and that seemed to work just fine...now there is a "your comment was published," but my comment is not actually posted. Arg! Maybe it is time delayed...so will check back later to see if it went through. Thank you for your help! I had no idea I could post that way...now if I can just SEE my post appear!

I am sending this through the other way (anonymous), and see if this goes through -- or if it gets stuck in cyberspace as well!

Hmmm...sounds like others are having some posting problems as well. Maybe something up on the site.

mag said...

To WCI, thank you, and sorry if it sounded like I was pointing fingers, I honestly was not and figured it was a blogspot issue.

What's weird is that some posts are actually posting, and then disappearing later. Hmmm.

mag said...

To Melody. Yay!! You have a name and aren't Anon anymore. :)

I know what you mean about miraculous things happening, and I too hope and pray this is one of those cases. With all the awful thoughts running around in my brain, I still come back to holding out hope she is still alive and will be found. I can't think about it any other way, no matter what the statistics say.

Tomorrow is Friday the 13, and it will also be 1 month that Holly is missing. I have a bad feeling I'm going to have a hard time making it through the day. I'm not very superstious, but I hope we have a good Friday the 13, not a horrible one.

Jolie said...

to mag,

Thanks for taking the time to read my blog comments on my Gather profile and responding to my comments being removed from Chelsea Hoffman's blog. I think you've correctly assessed her motivations for removing the comments.

This week Hoffman has been posting one to two blog articles a day featuring or mentioning Holly Bobo, including today. I firmly feel she is exploiting Holly's tragedy for selfish purposes, without concern for accuracy of the information she posts. At the same time, she hypocritally writes in today's blog, "...the rumor mill is absolutely out of control--and so-called locals of Parsons are partially to blame for this from the looks of many discussion boards and blogs."

_____

To the Women in Ink commenter:

Thanks for the information and encouragement to keeping trying, when at first we don't succeed.

mag said...

This is sad, in this
http://news.gather.com/viewArticle.action?articleId=281474979317058
article by CH, the first sentence reads "Holly Bobo has been missing for five weeks..." What's worse is it's been out there since yesterday and is still wrong and no one has corrected her. I'm tempted to open a Gather account just to say something. And I took a screenshot of it.

mag said...

To Jolie, you're welcome! I think you were spot on in your posts, and I'm glad you spoke your mind. Sometimes the truth hurts, but I doubt it will change her "reporting". Funny, also in todays blog she says "For those of you who may be a bit hesitant to believe this to be an actual source from someone who is trusted..." I wondered right away if that was directed at you.

------

To WCI, is there a setting somewhere that can be set to return you to the page you were on before you posted. As it is now that we have a Page 2 going, everytime you post it takes you back to Page 1.

Melody said...

mag,
Woohoo! I did it! Thanks! :)

Jolie said...

I just posted a comment on Hoffman's blog of today "Parents of Holly Bobo Sought Help from a Psychic" wherein Hoffman is seeming to criticize the TBI for allegedly persuading the Bobo family not to use the services of a "world-renowned psychic profiler" Carla Baron.

QUOTE

Jolie Adams May 12, 2011, 1:37pm EDT

The Independent Investigations Group's detailed report on so-called psychic Carla Baron:

http://www.iigwest.com/investigations/carla_baron/carla_report.html

Bottom line--she's a fraud.

END QUOTE

No doubt, Hoffman will remove this comment which disagrees with her POV, from her blog, once she realizes it's there, but it still will remain on my profile and here.
_____

On the same IIG website, on another page are links to further information about Carla Baron:

http://www.iigwest.com/media/index.htm

The IIG investigates fringe science, paranormal and extraordinary claims from a rational, scientific viewpoint, and disseminates factual information about such inquiries to the public.

Here is a link to more info. about the 10-year-old group on Wikipedia:

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Independent_Investigations_Group

Jolie said...

I just posted a comment on Hoffman's blog of today "Parents of Holly Bobo Sought Help from a Psychic" wherein Hoffman is critical of the TBI for allegedly persuading the Bobo family not to use the services of a "world-renowned psychic profiler" Carla Baron.

QUOTE

Jolie Adams May 12, 2011, 1:37pm EDT

The Independent Investigations Group's detailed report on so-called psychic Carla Baron:

http://www.iigwest.com/investigations/carla_baron/carla_report.html

Bottom line--she's a fraud.

END QUOTE

No doubt, Hoffman will remove this comment which disagrees with her POV, from her blog, once she realizes it's there, but it still will remain on my profile and here.
_____

On the same IIG website, on another page are links to further information about Carla Baron:

http://www.iigwest.com/media/index.htm

The IIG investigates fringe science, paranormal and extraordinary claims from a rational, scientific viewpoint, and disseminates factual information about such inquiries to the public.

Here is a link to more info. about the 10-year-old group on Wikipedia:

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Independent_Investigations_Group

Jolie said...

I just posted a comment on Hoffman's blog of today "Parents of Holly Bobo Sought Help from a Psychic" wherein Hoffman is seeming to criticize the TBI for allegedly persuading the Bobo family not to use the services of a "world-renowned psychic profiler" Carla Baron.

QUOTE

Jolie Adams May 12, 2011, 1:37pm EDT

The Independent Investigations Group's detailed report on so-called psychic Carla Baron:

http://www.iigwest.com/investigations/carla_baron/carla_report.html

Bottom line--she's a fraud.

END QUOTE

No doubt, Hoffman will remove this comment which disagrees with her POV, from her blog, once she realizes it's there, but it still will remain on my profile and here.

Jolie said...

As a follow-up to my last comment:

On the same IIG website that I linked above, on another page are links to further information about Carla Baron:

http://www.iigwest.com/media/index.htm

The IIG investigates fringe science, paranormal and extraordinary claims from a rational, scientific viewpoint, and disseminates factual information about such inquiries to the public.

Here is a link to more info. about the 10-year-old group on Wikipedia:

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Independent_Investigations_Group

mag said...

Melody,
You must stick around here. You made me smile again. Thx! :)

Pat Brown said...

I just want to say that no one outside of WCI can take down posts! This can only be done by the administrators. I really am not sure what freaky thing is happening because none of us at WCI are removing them.

As to the psychic issue, if any of it is true, psychics are damaging to cases. Families use them in desperation and sometimes law enforcement uses them just to say we did everything (except ask a profiler in because the profiler will want to actually see the case files).

As to people going into hiding, I can see that they might do this after becoming a target of harassment but it is odd if they do that when they haven't been accused of anything and coming forth would help gain evidence.

mag said...

To Pat, once again I was not suggesting anyone at WCI is removing posts. The reason I brought up the disappearing posts is it is happening to more than one person and I thought you all might want to be aware so maybe you could look into it. That's all. I feel bad I posted about it now.

------

To Jolie, wow, the IIG stuff is interesting to say the least. But at this point in time, I have to admit I might even be inclined to try something like that, although I'm not certain, and I hope I don't ever have to make that choice.

------

To Pat, could you elaborate on how psychics are damaging to cases? Now I'm curious, even though I don't believe in it.

Pat Brown said...

FYI! It has been found that your missing emails were sucked up by Blogger's spam detector...why, I am not sure. But, they are being returned!

mag said...

Something else that has been bugging me, it was reported by LE that the "significant item" found Easter weekend was found because of a phone tip. If so, there has to be some record of who called the tip in, even if it was anon, there had to be a record of the call that can be traced to the person who made the call. This person must know something, I highly doubt that they were just driving down the road and saw something (small enough they had to search for it on hands and knees) and went home and said, go look by the cement plant, I saw something alongside the road that might be a clue. How did this person know whatever it is was there??? And since they knew it was there, they had to know more, imo. I wonder if they traced this person and wrung every bit of info from them that they could?

mag said...

To Pat, THANK YOU!!! That's weird, but I'm glad you were able to track it down and now I'm not sorry I posted about it anymore. :) But it's still weird that some of them would post, and then disappear after a bit of time. Oh well, thanks again for looking into it for us!! :)

-------

To Melody/Anon,

I just now saw your post from 12:12 today appear, I thought it was weird, but I think what Pat just posted answers that.

Jolie said...

I don't want to seem like a complainer, because I am happy we can comment on this blog again, BUT page 2's comments (the most recent ones) are no longer accessible to readers.

That is going make it difficult to keep the conversation among us going, until the problem is fixed.

mag said...

Jolie, sigh, blogger says they removed all posts that were made since some certain time on Wednesday when their maintanence patch took down blogger (which could also explain the mystery of the disapperaing posts), but are working to put the missing posts back. At least they got blogger up and running again, but we do need the rest of out posts back. This stinks. :(

mag said...

"We’ve started restoring the posts that were temporarily removed and expect Blogger to be back to normal soon."

http://www.google.com/support/forum/p/blogger/thread?tid=7b6d0384a4f5fa00&hl=en

Wonder what their definition of "soon" is?

Jolie said...

Eventually, I will stop commenting here about Chelsea Hoffman's blogs on Gather and probably even stop reading them, to avoid rewarding her with site hits.

However, I cannot resist mentioning that on her blog article from yesterday titled "Parents of Holly Bobo Sought Help from a Psychic" that, of the 25 comments posted to it, 21 were removed by Chelsea (only 4 comments (20%) remain). Apparently, in order to keep your posts on her blogs, you have to completely agree with what she has written and praise her for a job well done.

Her explanation for removing so many comments?

QUOTE

Chelsea Hoffman May 12, 2011, 9:52pm EDT

I would like to remind those who comment that this isn't an invitation to debate whether or not any of us believe in psychic phenomena or ESP. This is an article about finding Holly Bobo and bringing closure to her family.

Let's keep that in mind, as this post will be heavily moderated.

Thank you

END QUOTE

The two comments I posted were links to a scientific study conducted and articles written by the Independent Investigations Group (IIG) on the effectiveness of Carla Baron, the psychic Chelsea Hoffman was heavily endorsing as legitimate, just because she was well-known and a regular on TV programs.

http://www.iigwest.com/investigations/carla_baron/carla_report.html

Before she removed my comments, she responded with her own dismissal of the source, stating "Jolie -- the websites you just produced have as much credibility as the national enquirer and other trash mags you find in supermarket checkout lines."

It is likely she never even bothered to take a look at the exhaustive information included in the study to judge for herself, because it countered her own position taken.

I'll try to avoid remarking about her blog from now on, but I did want to follow up here to demonstrate the unreliability of the information on her blog, her unwillingness to consider additional information that might alter her original premise, and the extreme censoring of any comments to her articles that disagree with her or her article, even if fairly and politely stated.

Jolie said...

Thanks for the info, mag. :)

Pat Brown said...

Yes, please remember, Jolie, that Gather is not a free "news source" with no editor. Anyone can write there and, if they write well and get a following, then they can be a source of information and conversation. But, it is a blog, no more, no less. And, as a blog, the blogger does have the right to moderate comments for whatever reason (we do here but only for nasty attacks on the blogger) and one has the right not to read the blog. I don't watch trash reality television but some people love it!

mag said...

To Jolie,
I saw that this morning, that she had removed all those comments, and I thought of you. I also thought to myself when I read "...this post will be heavily moderated." and which of your posts aren't heavily moderated??? I was tempted again to create an account to post that to her, but I don't want to get in a p.....g you know what contest with her because her "reporting" is seriously getting on my nerves. Someone needs to blast her in public (where it can't be deleted by her)like she did to that other person recently. I feel your pain an anger.

You're welcome, to. :)

Jolie said...

Investigators close to cracking Holly Bobo case, published 05/12/11

http://www.wsmv.com/news/27874752/detail.html

QUOTE

Investigators said each new day brings many new leads and sometimes new information. While they're still not naming suspects, they said they are getting closer.

"They're needing one piece of the puzzle," said Bromley. "Someone knows something, and when they find that, I believe we will find Holly."

END QUOTE

That would excellent news, if they are being truthful about being close to solving the case.

mag said...

"I don't watch trash reality television but some people love it! " I had to LMAO, I don't know if that was a purposeful comparison or not, but you sure nailed it! Thanks for making me laugh today! :)

mag said...

Re Blogger:

"We’re nearly back to normal — you can publish again, and in the coming hours posts and comments that were temporarily removed should be restored. Thank you for your patience while we fix this situation. We use Blogger for our own blogs, so we’ve also felt your pain."

http://buzz.blogger.com/2011/05/blogger-is-back.html

Jolie said...

Pat, I agree we all have a right to choose what to read or not to read and that some people eat up the more sensational commentary online and can't get enough of it.

Like you wrote before, though, it's a shame that the Gather and Examiner blogs come up as news sources, which can be misleading to some people.

I think the level of my disappointment in Hoffman is that, in the beginning of her commentary about the Bobo case, I thought she had a interest in learning as much as she could and sharing honest facts with others. It's always a let-down to find out someone is not what they've presented themselves to be, particularly in terms of integrity.

-----

mag, while I was disturbed by her behavior on her blog, I've worked through all that now and am ready to move on, not bringing her name up again, here.

mag said...

Jolie,
I'm glad, for yourself, you've worked through it and are ready to move on. I know that's hard sometimes, so I applaud you. :)

As for the news today you posted that said LE only needs one piece of the puzzle to crack the case, I had seen that and read it over many times. Unfortunately there is no quote from LE in the piece, it's only the family spokespersons quote. The rest was just LE said this and LE said that, but no quotes provided. So, it makes me wonder 2 things.

1. Did LE actually tell the family this, that they think they are so close to solving it? After all this silence that seems very odd.

2. Why, with how secretive LE has been, would all of a sudden they say they are one clue away from solving it??? Would that not make the "suspect" panic and run or do something stupid? Or is that what they want, to flush him out? Thoughts?

Jolie said...
This comment has been removed by the author.
Jolie said...

If you watch the video that accompanies the WSMV-TV article, beginning at about 1 min 34 sec through the clip, John Mehr of the TBI is shown speaking. He says: "We know that there is that one clue that's out there and that one person may have that information, so please call us."

That quote is not included in the written article.

The other information attributed to the TBI in the article I believe is directly from a TBI spokesperson (likely Mehr) and not the family spokesperson.

It is possible the LE may have gathered a great deal of information and are keeping it close to the vest, to protect the integrity of the investigation and will reveal information at the right time. It is also possible that LE are saying what they people want to hear, to give the appearance that they are accomplishing a lot.

I don't think any of us not directly involved with this case have a clue as to what the LE knows or doesn't know.

mag said...

To Jolie, I'm sorry, I didn't watch the video and wasn't insulting you. :( Had a hard day, and this is all driving me crazy. Thank you, it seems it's just you and I here, and I appreciate you being here and you comments!!!

Jolie said...

From the news video accompanying the "Holly Bobo Still Missing One Month Later" May 13 news article at News on 5 in Nashville:

Mark Bellinger, the news anchor, reports that the TBI has stated that FINALLY people with good leads are BEGINNING to call. (Listen to the beginning of the news segment to hear the exact wording but that is the summary of what he says, using those capitalized words exactly, though).

Despite receiving a thousand leads from the public, it took weeks for people to begin providing useful information to the police in such a high profile case? That's incredible, if true, that people held back pertinent information, particularly if they knew it was helpful to the case and waited to share it.

Also, the video shows that the carport is right directly behind the house, not far away as some people posted online. If Holly or the abductor were injured intentionally, someone inside of the house should have heard the commotion, unless there was too much noise inside the home at the time or someone was in the bathroom or shower, I would think.

http://www.newschannel5.com/story/14643985/holly-bobo-still-missing-one-month-later

The name of the TBI agent is mispelled in the written article. It should be John MEHR instead of Mayer.

Jolie said...

I went back and listened to the news report again and got the exact quote from the reporter.

Mark Bellinger, the News Channel 5 reporter, said, "The TBI agent in charge of the case says that finally people with good information about April 13 or the day Holly disappeared are finally beginning to call. And that's good news, obviously."
_____

That does sound as if someone knew something and is only just coming forward with it, doesn't it? Or perhaps someone involved in what happened just recently said or did something that was overheard or observed by a person who then called authorities? It's also possible that the choice of words just leads us to the wrong conclusion.

Whatever the explanation is, it does seem to confirm that the police are closer to solving the case.

Melody said...

Jolie,
I sure hope so. But information from a chunk of the media (and blogs) has been a mixture of sparse, biased, misleading, confusing and downright screwy.

mag said...

Jolie,
I had seen that mentioned elsewhere also. It sounds too strange, but what isn't strange about this whole case? it also says "...people with good information about April 13 OR the day Holly disappeared..." So was the "OR" a slip, or is there something there that leads you to believe she might have disappered earlier than the 13th?

mag said...

I just find it really hard to believe that it took a month for people to start providing "good information", unless like Jolie said someone involved slipped up and did or said something. I certainly hope that's the case. This is tearing my heart up.

I recently saw on another forum where they do not allow discussion of anything FB related, a mod posted a link to something regarding a FB and they are allowing a discussion about it. I went to look and you have to be registered to see it, so I signed up and am waiting for the email so I can access it. I'm really curious as to what it can be that they made an exception to allow discussion about it.

To Jolie,
Thought you might be interested, on the Bring Holly Bobo Home Safe FB, which seems to be pretty legit, I saw yesterday that they posted about rumors and they mentioned CH specifically as to spreading unconfirmed rumors. I was happy to see that brought out in public, although I doubt it will chnage her "reporting".

mag said...

Here's an article by Zenhder with some quotes that I hadn't seen before, although there's no way to know if they are factual or not and she has also been critized for spreading unconfirmed rumors. She does have a pretty good timeline.
http://www.examiner.com/missing-persons-in-national/holly-bobo-abduction-1-month-wrap-up-someone-knows-something-1

Jolie said...

Thanks, mag, for the information about the facebook page and the Zehnder article.

One thing about Isabelle Zehnder's blog I can testify to from my experience is that she doesn't delete comments that disagree with her POV. I notice that she is being specific in listing her references in this latest article.

The timeline Zehnder wrote appears to be accurate in what it does list. I haven't spent the time to see if there is anything missing from it.

I hope LE gets a mjaor break in the case soon.

mag said...

Joile, you're most certainly welcome!

The thing I was talking about in my previous post May 15 3:02 PM about the other forum posting a FB reference and allowing discussion about it, it's about that FB page I posted several days ago, Holly Bobo Search and Info I think is the name of it, that linked to some very strange supposedly "search and rescue" site. I haven't had time to look at it again, nor read all the comments yet, but apparently the owner of the FB is posting pictures without names of what are thought to be his idea of suspects and is supposedly taunting the suspucts. There is also some talk on the forum about Holly's bf's brother. It isn't clear to me yet if one of the pictures is of him. I hate to even go back to that FB, but I guess I need to to clarify things, and I need to catch up on the comments about it on the forum.

Jolie said...

I don't know if this is accurate information, but a lot of people connected to and/or following the Holly Bobo case seem sure of it:

In reading through a 6,000 plus comments post on the Parsons (TN) forum on Topix, many claim that the person responsible for the fake Holly Bobo Search and Info facebook page and SAR website is a man who is allegedly involved in sexual misconduct with young teenage girls. Now we can guess why his SAR website asks people to email tips in to him--to get email addresses for his own activities.

http://www.topix.com/forum/city/parsons-tn/TT4DGDTQ5K4I76JRM/p274

You can read more about this Ohio man suspected of fraud, internet harrassment, stalking, and more at this blog article about him:

http://weexposethefrauds.blogspot.com/

http://wannabeeblog.com/

Jolie said...

I forgot to mention that the initial remarks that led me to search for more information about the person who is allegedly responsible for the fake facebook page, came from the Bring Holly Bobo Back Safe FB page.

http://www.facebook.com/?sk=inbox&setup#!/BHBHS?sk=wall

mag said...

Wow, that's creepier than I had heard Jolie, but I didn't look into it that far. I had seen his name mentioned, but that was all. Makes me shudder. What's worse is on his FB people are actually buying his stories and lies. That's even more scary. I can't beleive LE hasn't shut it down. It gives me the creeps to even go there to see what everyone was talking about, but I did go back there yesterday and saw the pictures he has posted and all the taunts. Makes me sick to my stomach. After the discussion on the other forum about the FB, which is still open but not very active anymore, they removed the link to that FB, saying it was too disturbing (the page) or something to that effect. Sigh, no kidding.

mag said...

Another thing about that FB that I've read, since he started posting pictures gleened from others FB pages, those people have now made their pages private, so if one of them is actually a true suspect, he has now interferred with LE's investigation. Yet the page remains. I don't get it. LE has to be aware of it, yet they let it go on. *shakes head*

I feel I'm talking to myself. Is anyone following this anymore? I know it's frustrating, but it would be so sad to just let it go...

Jolie said...

I don't think that the authorities can do anything about someone's private facebook page unless they are specifically breaking the law and it can be proven.

That's a good point about him possibly affecting the investigation by postings, but still, I don't think there is anything that can be legally done, other than the individuals he writes about suing him for libel, if it can be proven that he is guilty of it.

Mag, it can take years and years for LE to solve missing persons cases and some are left unsolved. It's not something you can predict.

I can't tell you the enormous amount of time I spent following the Madeleine McCann case for the first couple of years, after the parents were named suspects in September 2007, and all of the bizzare twists and turns of that case, still open and officially unsolved. After a few years of closely following every new development (and there were so many), I had to let it go and resign myself to the fact that justice may never be served in that case, yet I still hold onto hope because there are still so many foot soldiers out there blogging and writing comments and taking other action to counter the McCann parents' and the UK media's deceptions, and the Portuguese detective in charge of the initial investigation leading the way, doggedly pressing for the truth to be determined and the persons responsible to be held accountable.

Sadly, these cases: Holly's and Madeleine's, are just two in a very large number of people who go missing each year.

Jolie said...

FOX has announced the cancellation of America's Most Wanted television show, hosted by John Walsh, after 23 years on the air. The show will instead be reduced to four two-hour specials next season.

http://www.cbsnews.com/8301-504083_162-20063582-504083.html

mag said...

Isn't there something called obstruction of justice? I'm not a legal eagle, so I don't know how any of this works. It just seems to me someone meddling/affecting the case, there should be something LE could do about it.

I'm just really saddened that after a month it seems we're no closer to finding Holly than we were on day 1. Or at least that's the way it appears. And less and less people want to even discuss it, civilly. I tried reading a few of those discussion boards to try and see about a few of the rumors going around, but with all the BS, I just can't take it.

Jolie, thanks, I know this may take a long time, or sadly may never be solved, but I'm not ready to give up after only a month. I was actually getting ready to pack my bags and make arrangements to head there and help search just about the time everything came to a screeching halt. And I'm still willing to do that if needed.

Does anyone know where the "things are not as they seem" or similar comment came from? It was quite awhile ago and I don't recall ever seeing it in an actual news article.

Melody said...

mag,
You have a good heart. We will keep praying for Holly, and I just really hope LE knows much more about what happened. It is very sad...I hope it does not end up a cold case.

Jolie,
You are right that these cases sometimes take so long to be solved -- and sometimes never are. I really felt like this case was quirky enough with various elements at the get-go that there may be a quicker resolution, but it just depends on what is going on behind the scenes and lots of factors we are not privy to, so I guess more time will tell.

mag said...

Melody,
Thank you!!! You just made my day. :) I really appreciate yout kindness and thoughtfulness. You're a wonderful person. And I'm sorry if I seem to be crying about it all, but it really is tearing me apart and talking about it with others helps. I'm trying to keep my wits about me.

I also thought at the getgo with the flurry of activity and all the people involved that it would get resolved quickly, too. I'd really like to know what they found and/or what happened on Easter that brought things to a screeching halt and total silence other then the other day when it was reported they are onc clue away from either cracking the case or finding Holly, depending on what you read. If it was indeed her phone, as some have said, I mean what could have been in that phone that stopped everything like it did. I can't imagine.

mag said...

There's a tiny bit of new information here

http://www.newschannel5.com/story/14664721/bobo-search-not-without-success

"Over the last month teams of officers have checked registered sex offenders in the area. The sheriff's in Henderson and Decatur Counties said no one was out of compliance."

And

"In fact, just three days after Bobo's disappearance a team of officers including U.S. Marshals arrested a registered sex offender in nearby Benton County.

39-year-old Jason Everett Nickell was wanted for stalking two young women in Jackson, Tennessee.

Jackson Police said he followed a 19-year-old at a mall. Then he followed another 19-year old at Union University.

Helm said while they won't rule anyone out as a suspect in the Bobo case, Nickell is not their focus."

Melody said...

mag,
Do not apologize for your sensitive heart...if we had more people in the world with such hearts, it would be a better place. :)

And yeah, I agree that it was so weird how everything seemed to halt around the time they found whatever they did along the roadside. I wonder if it really was a cellphone? I sure wish it made some sense, but it just doesn't to me...I keep hoping it means LE is onto something, but maybe that is wishful thinking on my part. :(

mag said...

Thanks again Jolie! You have really brightened my day.

I forget if I posted this before, but the item they found along the road, TBI had said it was unlikely they would describe it to the public. I read that statement over and over. I mean why did they use the word "describe"? Would you need to describe a cellphone? It seemed odd to me, and somehow I thought, omg, they found her underwear. And it made me sick. I mean I could see them not wanting to "describe" that they found her underwear to the public. But even if that were the actual case, what would that show, except that whoever took her was even more sick than we can imagine? Idk, I wish some others would chime in here with some theories.

Melody said...

mag,
Do you remember who the source (news organization/local reporter) was who conveyed that information? You make a great point on the word "describe," in that it does sound like an odd way to say they will not talk about a cellphone. Because although not always true by any means, it seems LE (including TBI) would use the standard lingo they are taught and trained to say -- which typically is a more "no comment on the evidence" reply. They are usually not that loose in their language (like saying they will not describe a piece of evidence) and are more careful in not revealing anything that will either lead people astray or jeopardize the investigation by revealing what they consider to be too much. I am wondering if the word "describe" came from the reporter.

My overall point is that when it comes to the info we are getting, I often look to the media source and analyze how they are covering this -- are they interpreting info from sources and then paraphrasing it back to the public in news stories that are not so accurate? Are they a news organization with credibility? Is the reporter one with experience? Sometimes you can tell just by reading their stories. Because perhaps some of these sources are greatly contributing to the confusion, depending how good they are at their jobs. There is nothing worse than the media misleading us/and or doing sloppy reporting!

Was the TBI quoted on this particular matter, in stating they didn't want to "describe" the item? If so, unless there was clarification by the TBI later, hopefully it was accurate wording...though, in a way, the TBI can't exactly squabble on wording if it was just a paraphrase.

As you can tell, am not at all happy with many of the news stories! I have seen too much bias/and or assumptions being made in the writing on this story (which skews the reliability because it goes away from facts -- to opinion and misleading info, etc.) Some of the reporters/writers seem less than professional in their supposed "news" stories. I am not referring to the blogs of private citizens -- but of those in the field of journalism, who are supposed to be giving us the facts with no spin -- and no inaccuracies from their sources.

There is so little real information coming from LE as it is. I just hope what we are getting is accurate!

mag said...

Melody,
Lets see if I can get your name right this time, sorry! With only 3 of us posting here I shold be able to keep names straight. I'm pretty certain "describe" was a direct quote from Kristin Helm of the TBI. I have to find it again, I'll be back.

Melody said...

mag,
Great! I would really be interested to know. And don't worry about the name -- no biggie!;)

mag said...

Ok, so I could swear I saw that again, in quotes, just yesterday, but I can't find it, even after going through my history from yesterday.

Everything I come up with is almost identical in wording to this, but NOT "quoted".

*A Tennessee Bureau of Investigation spokeswoman said Monday it is unlikely the item found in the hunt for 20-year-old Holly Bobo will be described publicly unless investigators decide there is reason to do so.* Source AP

And since that was from AP, it's a pretty forgone conclusion that all the other news outlets copied and pasted that wording pretty much.

Here CBS News changes it around, but it still reads the same.

*The item most likely won't be described publicly unless investigators decide there is a reason to do so, a Tennessee Bureau of Investigation spokeswoman told CBS affiliate WREG Monday.* Source CBS News

The only actual quote I can now find about it is this.

"We did find an additional piece of evidence that we may link to Holly, but we're not releasing what it is, of course," said Kristin Helm, spokesperson for the Tennessee Bureau of Investigation. Source Reuters

I too am frustrated by sloppy journalism. Wording is important, and one word, such as "describe", can make a huge difference. So I guess we don't know if that is the wording she actually used, but if it were me I would repeat what it was she said, not make up my own version of it.

But to me, if that is actually what was said, it still reads weird - "...will (not) be described publicly unless investigators decide there is reason to do so". Sounds really odd to me.

And my other question is, how come they announced the lunch bag and the duct tape with hair on it??? I would think the duct tape is something I might not want to describe publicly. Creeps me out to think about it. Once again, it doesn't make sense. I wish they'd put out what they have, where they are, and let the public help them find Holly. That's all anyone cares about right now. Then they can work on the who and why imo!

Melody said...

mag,
It's like "Alice in Wonderland"! I appreciate you looking all that up, and it to all confirms the continued weirdness of it all.

I agree. I found it strange they mentioned the lunch bag/box and duct tape. It is all very confusing. It worries me about incompetence of both the media and LE. I just keep hoping these are all clever manipulations (by LE) for a good purpose, but it just seems like a stretch to believe so...it's very frustrating.

And I agree with you. Either LE should keep all this "close the the vest" -- or if they are running cold on clues and getting nowhere, get frank with the public about the investigation.

Jolie said...

mag,

I listened to the WREG news report by Natasha Chen from Monday, April 25, 2011, about the newly discovered item that the TBI confirmed belonged to Holly Bobo. The words "described publicly" were not used in her report, that the other news sources referenced that way. This is how Chen, the reporter phrased the information, at two different points of the segment:

"They will not release what that item is."

"TBI will not tell us what that is."

While not definitive, it does suggest that it was another reporter's summary that chose the wording "described publicly" not Chen, not TBI.

Here is a link to the WREG news video from 04/25/11:

Monday Holly Bobo Update

http://www.wreg.com/videobeta/e23d5cb1-c444-41be-9b7d-f65a018e0b6c/News/Monday-Holly-Bobo-Update

Melody said...

Jolie,
Interesting, very interesting. Thanks!

mag said...

Jolie,
Thank you so much for that information and the link! I'm at work and can't watch the video right now, but I will when I'm home. I haven't gotten to watch a lot of the actual videos for that reson, and I have to rely on the accompaning story, which I always hope includes important information included in the video. What's weird to me is even though she didn't mention the "described publicly" part, it sounds all too much like something that was actually said, not just something a reporter made up in their own words. One can only guess though and like a lot of others things we may never know. I really appreciate you finding that and posting it here!

Melody,
You're welcome, happy to do it! I too wonder/worry about the competence, or lack of, of LE and the media. I mean it strikes me as odd, unless they had a darn good reason/tip/clue/lead, that the first days they had entire areas that could be a crime scene trampled by hundreds of people on horseback, ATV's, etc. I mean how much evidence such as tire tracks, footprints, scents, etc might have been destroyed those first few days?

As far as frustrating, yes, it is, so very much so! And what's even weirder right now, one of the boards with a lot of "stuff" on it, 115 pages of "stuff"
http://www.volnation.com/forum/pub/127130-holly-bobo-kidnapping-115.html
including supposedly locals posting about various rumors and people, has just gone dead. There has not been a post since last night, early evening. Now, I doubt the TBI has somehow stopped them all from posting ;) , but it's really odd.

Here's a little tidbit about me, I used to have a white lunchbag, it was one of those cloth reusable ones. I used it everday. It makes me shiver to think about it now.

mag said...

I forgot, I wanted to add, speaking of incompetence, remember a few days ago TBI said they only want people with actual facts to call, no rumors, because they had more than they could handle? And then the very next day another TBI person said that anyone should call, even with rumors, because a rumor can possibly turn into a lead, and also gave specific information on how to give an anonymous tip. Did they realize they totally screwed up the day before and decided to at least correct their error? Makes you wonder.

Melody said...

mag,
I can understand how that makes you feel. :( Who knows, perhaps that is not a correct fact, though the white lunch bag does seem to make some sense, being that she is going to school for nursing. At this point, I am not sure how much of the info released at the beginning is right!

I saw your recent post to Jolie. It really is like there is some big gag order over people now -- or some sudden reason why people don't feel they can say much anymore... really perplexing.

mag said...

Melody,
I wonder if any of the information is right, from the very beginning. I'm not pointing fingers at anyone, but there have been some awfully strange things said. No matter what, it's very disturbing that things are so silent, from everyone, not just LE and family. Eerily silent. I for one don't plan to stop, as long as others will talk with me. I still hold out hope, and some of you may think I'm crazy for that, but so be it.

And now on top of everything, that poor dear girl Sarah Townsend from NJ is dead. I grew up right around there and still have some relatives in that exact area, so it hit really close to home. :( RIP Sarah, RIP. Such a tragic shame.

Melody said...

mag,
Another heartbreaking loss with Sarah. :(

And it is not crazy to hold out hope. There is always a chance -- and that is what hope is for -- so we don't give up on those miracles that still do happen in life.

mag said...

Thanks Melody, you always have a way of making me feel better. :)

Melody said...

mag,
Aw! I am so glad that I do. :)

mag said...

Ok, so my mind is wandering thinking of Holly with absolutely no news to go on. Early on in the case TBI said they thought she was still in TN and that the FBI would come in if they thought otherwise. It has also been reported almost throughout the case though that the FBI and the US Marshall's were working the case also. I don't know all the jurisdiction things for these agencies, but it seems odd to me that all these federal agencies would be working a case if they thought it was a local, as keeps being implied by the TBI. Thoughts?

mag said...

I also don't see how if it's a local they could have stayed under the radar for 5+ weeks. Way too strange.

mag said...

So yeah, I'll talk to myself if need be. Sometimes I have some really good conversations. :) Does anyone have anything on the Bill Way radio guy who posted that Holly is alive on his FB? Everything I have seen pretty much says he's legit and not some crackpot and is puting his entire career on the line by posting what he did. And there's the talk about someone (Holly) being airlifted out of the state park and is being kept under wraps. I know, it sounds really, really far fetched, but you know, with the way this whole thing has been...

Pat Brown said...

Mag, I see nothing credible coming from Bill Way. That Holly was airlifted and hidden is ludicrous. There are really only three possibilities:

1) A family member did something to her
2) Her boyfriend did something to her
3) A stranger predator did something to her.

Chances Holly is alive are near zero at this point barring a weird miracle that a stranger is keeping her in his cellar. More likely, either the police know it is 1) or 2) and they are just trying to find her body and evidence to link someone to the crime well enough to prosecute or it is a stranger homicide and they aren't telling the public enough to help (and aren't acting like it is) or they THINK it is one kind of crime when in reality it is another and they are handling the case badly. IF they are doing the job right, the answer to this case should be that a family member is involved and they are just trying to find where Holly has been put before they move in for an arrest.

mag said...

Pat, thanks for taking the time to reply! I appreciate your input very much. It deflates a lot of what I hope and pray for, but I know you know a lot more than I do about this sort of thing. I'm grasping, and in my mind it somewhat adds up. He posted that at the exact time the case came to a screeching halt. I had an argument this evening with a friend, what does a small town radio guy that has a long time good reputation have to gain, 2 listeners? What does he stand to lose, everything, credibility-wise? Just thinking it through in my mind. Like I said, it's all far fetched, but no one has been able to come up with anything better. I mean aside from the Somalian sex trafficking stories one reads about. *rolls eyes* I always wondered about the brothers involvement, you still seem to think so I gather from the last sentence of your post. Really, thanks again, I wish you would post more often. I'm not here for myself, and posts from others that have more wisdom than I really help. I think we all want the same outcome, even if we differ in out opinion of the chances of it.

Pat Brown said...

Well, Mag, I guess I would analyze the radio guy this way. First of all, how would he know Holly was alive? Wait, how would law enforcement know Holly was alive? I would guess they would have had some phone call from an abductor in which he put her on the line and she spoke or she escaped her abductor for a couple minutes and talked to the family. Hmm, no, probably not, because one would think that call would have been traced. But, okay, let's say that happened or a letter arrived from a kidnapper and she had written something in it in her own handwriting. The police want to keep this very quiet because they are doing hostage negotiations with him and don't want him to be spooked.

So, now, radio guy somehow finds out what is going on. So he goes public with the info that Holly is alive? Why would he do that? Wouldn't that be harmful to the plan to keep all this quiet? What kind of guy would he be to do that?

Other than that scenario, there is no way the police would know Holly is alive, so radio guy would just be talking out his ass. What kind of guy would he be to do that?

Maybe he thinks he is a psychic.

Regardless of which scenario it is, radio guy has no business giving cryptic messages that Holly is alive, so my guess the only reason he is doing that is because he likes attention. And, not to worry, so he ends up being wrong. He is just a radio guy and his reputation isn't going to suffer very much; he will just throw a spin on what he said and all will be fine.

mag said...

Thanks Pat, points taken about radio guy. I really appreciate your thooughts on the matter again. I gathered he has a source the way some of the talk went. Not disagreeing with your points at all, but another way the police could know she is alive is they have her somehow. Before you roll your eyes at me, listen, please. :) She's no longer a hostage, but the police still need to build a case against whomever(s). I know this is far fetched and you don't agree, but it IS a very small possibilty in my mind. We all know miracles happen from time to time. Remember early on there were reports that they found Holly, and some search teams came back in based on that. Maybe that did really happen (that they found her) and then the police realized they messed up and don't want it known yet that they found her, for whatever reasons, so they squelch the "we have her 'rumor'". I know, far fetched again, but...you can think I'm crazy. One thing about radio guy though, he lives in that area, has close personal friends in that area, if I was a friend of his and he got my hopes up like that on a silly rumor, I'd be really angry at him, and think a lot of his friends would be too. So he's also taking the chance of losing friends, trust, integrity, so on. Is that worth it, for attention? To me it's not, I value my friends too much. Just thinking out loud here.

I still think it had something to do with drugs, I don't mean Holly using drugs, but maybe the brother did and owed more than he could pay so they either took her or he arranged for them to take her. In my mind I'm not certain he did anything to her personally, but may have been involved in some way. Maybe they are selling the t-shirts in order to pay back what is owed? I know, that's sick. But drugs will do sick things to people.

Anyway, I hope you all don't think I'm totally whacked out of my mind with some of my thoughts. There is just something so odd about this case that it makes one think all sorts of things. Holly, where are you?

Pat Brown said...

No, Mag, the police do not have Holly. They cannot work that way, and if they did, they would have holy hell to pay.

The most likely scenario is simply that they think she was abducted but have no clue who did it (although their actions don't seem to indicate stranger abduction and neither do the family's) or they think the family is involved but they cannot do anything until they can prove it.

Melody said...

Hi, mag.
The problem that I have with the possibility of LE having Holly and not saying so is that I would think that would not be something they could ethically do. Think of the responsibility they would have if others continue the search and someone gets hurt -- or something bad happens to someone who trying to help find her and becomes a target of some crime while trying to help find Holly, etc.

I would think those types of harmful-to-the-public scenarios would all be consideration for LE -- so that they really would be legally and morally responsible for telling the public if Holly was fine. I doI understand how LE has to withhold evidence at times (and understand when people must go into the Witness Protection Program, etc.), but unless other people's live were in danger in releasing the info that Holly has been found, I would think LE would not even consider hiding the fact that Holly is alive and well. Or if LE had to do so (not state Holly is fine) to save others' lives, I would think they would secure the safety of the other lives in fairly short order -- and that they would then release the good news about Holly ASAP.

Just my 2 cent's worth. :)

Melody said...

mag,
I forgot to add that the other problem LE would have in keeping any info from the public about Holly being fine is with that whole t-shirt fund thing. If people are giving money to the family to help find Holly -- but Holly is just fine -- I would think that would end up to be a big legal mess. I am not sure the family is obligated to give that money back, if Holly is found.

Okay, those are all my thoughts on this aspect -- now my 3 cent's worth. ;)

mag said...

Thanks Pat and Melody. Sigh, you all make better points than I do. I feel so stupid trying to come up with something rational. But I'm trying, no matter how pathetic it might be. I appreciate the 1, 2 and 3 cents worth!

Melody, you mentioned the WPP, and I've seen that brought up before. I never bought into that idea, but what with the US Marshalls involved, well, I know, that's another wild idea. :(

Melody said...

mag,
I love that you are throwing out other possibilities and asking a lot of questions about all that is going on surrounding this case! Do not feel stupid one bit! You add to the discussion, and who is to say my 3 cent's worth is right? Honestly, anything in life is possible...I am just going by what makes sense to me and analyzing it from the vantage point of the more simple explanations.

But if you come up with a scenario as to why Holly is fine, I would much rather THAT be the case! :) I will just be throwing my pennies out, but you keep throwing yours out too!

As for the WPP, this does not seem like a probable scenario to me for this case (but that is just given the very limited facts we have and the overall concept of public good vs. LE being capable of securing Holly or others close to her in danger). That said, this is such is a weird, weird case...I cannot understand what LE is doing at this point.

I do think that Pat's assertion seems likely that LE either has no clue as to what happened to her OR suspect those in her inner circle of knowing more than they are saying but don't yet have the evidence to back it up.

I also echo what you said, mag: Holly, where are you?:(

mag said...

Thanks Melody! I'll keep throwing my loose change out there and I hope you and others will too, and keep me in line, and against all odds I'm still working on a scenario where she is alive. I'm going to keep thinking that way until I am proven wrong, no matter what all the odds and statistics say. I do believe in miracles.

It was mentioned recently, why is Holly not listed on the TBI website as missing (aside from a few press releases), but is on the FBI and NCMEC sites?

Anonymous said...

RE:
Helm says TBI will not confirm who made the second 911 call, but she was not aware of a neighbor calling 911.
JS Video: Sheriff Wyatt - Kidnapping (statement of neighbors 911 Call).
http://www.jacksonsun.com/videonetwork/903287890001/JS-Video-Sheriff-Wyatt-Kidnapping



Guess, TBI Spokesperson Helm, hasn't communicated with 911, or Sheriff Wyatt since april 13, 2011 when he made the statement on camera about the neighbor who made the 911 call..
Lack of information, as well as missinformation in the Holly Bobo investigation concerns me deeply..

Wolfscratch

glenn adams said...

RE:
Helm says TBI will not confirm who made the second 911 call, but she was not aware of a neighbor calling 911.
JS Video: Sheriff Wyatt - Kidnapping (statement of neighbors 911 Call).
http://www.jacksonsun.com/videonetwork/903287890001/JS-Video-Sheriff-Wyatt-Kidnapping



Guess, TBI Spokesperson Helm, hasn't communicated with 911, or Sheriff Wyatt since april 13, 2011 when he made the statement on camera about the neighbor who made the 911 call..
Lack of information, as well as missinformation in the Holly Bobo investigation concerns me deeply..

Wolfscratch

Anonymous said...

RE: she also deleted another more recent post of mine that included the title and link to Levi Page's blog where he claims that he received an email response from Kristin Helm of TBI stating there was no hotel card key found.(Jolie)

I was on the Easter weekend search for Holly Bobo. I located the hotel card that TBI Kristen Helm denies being found. It was in like new condition and was discarded on the roadside in the critical search area.
The reason that I posted on Blink and Facebook, is due to the demeanor of the LEO (THP)that was responsible for bagging and tagging for evidence...
His initial response was, 'prolly has nothing to do with Holly Bobo's abduction." I said, "could the abductor not have staged there prior to the abduction"? He said, "mo he staged in his home". I said, "so LE still believes this was a local that took Holly." He said,"We Know that it is"..
Due to his attitude and demeanor, I was very concerned that the evidence was placed in file 9..by the LEO...

Wolfscratch

Pat Brown said...

Hey, Wolf, very interesting. But, I think LE is right on the "not an outsider" thing. outside of the brother's story, there is no proof Holly was abducted by anyone. The police don't seem to be very interested in finding Mr. Camouflage man or a live Holly. All the searches have been to find a corpse or evidence. This tells me either the family is involved or they know who the abductor is but they can't prove it until they find her body and enough evidence to link the person to the crime.

Anonymous said...

I wonder if Wolfscratch is the same person who was posting on that fake Search and Info FB page? Sounds like the same story to me. And I'm sorry, I highly doubt a LEO would discuss the case with a volunteer searcher. JMHO.

Anonymous said...

I have a stumper that I could use some thoughts on.

I posted on WS site about the coon hunt that took place in Parsons, April 7-9. I said that the people who signed in could be a list of people TBI should talk to. Apparently Holly sang at the event. An hour later the Search and Info FB page listed 2 results sheets from the coon hunt. I checked the names against what was in the Decatur County Chronicle:

http://www.decaturcountyonline.com/article.asp?acat=1&archive=yes&art=1709

and some of the names matched. Did someone make up false results sheets or are they authentic?

Anonymous said...

Anon, I'm on WS and don't recall seeing anyone post anything like that lately, about the coon hunt, and I saw the junk on that FB page about it today. Can you tell us where your post is on WS? Sorry to question if it's indeed true, but all of a sudden a few posters here have some odd stuff to post and I just have a funny feeling and would like to validate it. Thanks.

Anonymous said...

Sure, here is the link.

http://www.websleuths.com/forums/showpost.php?p=6535488&postcount=149

Anonymous said...

Thanks Anon,
Sorry for questioning, but I hope you understand. I remember your post now. I was just trying to remember a post that was just about the coon hunt and couldn't. The only thing I saw in passing was on Topix *COUGH* about maybe Holly singing there. I've never seen it as fact anywhere credible.

As for the FB page, nothing on there is credible as far as we know, they have been reported to TBI numerous times by many people, including myself.

Sorrying again for questioning you. Thanks for setting me straight.

Anonymous said...

Hello Pat,

Want to start by praising you on your article... best I have read yet!

Now, as far as for how the false report got started, claiming she was found alive, I found one rational explanation. It is not verified but I read that one of the searchers got hurt during the search and had to be taken to the hospital via helicopter. This person did not want to be identified and it went over the radios as an injured female needed medical help. I can see lots of hopeful people taking that a step forward and saying maybe they found Holly to they actually did.

makes sense to me.

Kat

Jolie said...

New ABC article dated 06/02/11:

http://abcnews.go.com/US/holly-bobo-case-hampered-volunteer-searchers-cops-claim/story?id=13744757

Does anyone really believe there is a real Holly Bobo SAR group in Ohio? I don't. I can't believe that the police believe there is, either. If they do, they are crap cops. I think the facebook and web page and "group" are the work of and composed of only one person: Tony Calabrese, who is quoted in the ABC article linked above.

Pat Brown said...

Wow! Yet another version of the brother's story, this one verified by the TBI who says they believe him.

http://www.tennessean.com/article/20110603/NEWS/306030077/Holly-Bobo-s-family-holds-out-hope-her-return?odyssey=tab|topnews|text|FRONTPAGE

Anonymous said...

OK, I'm really not understanding what is up with these investigators. First of all, WHICH story of Clint's do they believe? This one,

http://www.tennessean.com/article/20...xt%7CFRONTPAGE

or the others, because they bear no resemblance to one another. This story sounds like a tidied-up version that explains away everybody's questions for Clint, such as, why he didn't run after Holly. Hey, guess what? Here, he DID! And right away, too! How could this have never been mentioned before? Then they still say "noone has been ruled out" - well, why not? If you believe Clint's story as you say, then rule the boy out! My BS meter is going off.

Maybe they mean they "believe" him for now until they find her body? Is there a point to stating they believe him? Do cops normally say that stuff, or do they really mean it? All these stories cannot be true, because they are all different! Isn't that classic suspicious territory in a case like this?

Also, each time the mom gets mentioned, I end up scratching my head. Here, it says "Most every day, Dana Bobo searches wooded areas, fields and ponds. Karen Bobo, for the most part, stays close to home in case her daughter comes home."

I may be a cynic - ok, I am - but that seems highly passive to wait around in case your kidnapped daughter walks back in. Anyone else think so? And Dad searching most days in "fields and ponds" sounds like they think she is dead already and not going to walk back home anytime soon - those two things are odd together. Also, there is no mention of how Clint Bobo is spending his time. Isn't anyone curious about that? I know I am.

Anonymous said...

And one other thing. This is not coming directly from the family, but through "relatives," none named - the whole reporting job almost seems like a planted story - there are no direct sources mentioned for the new explanations - it is just stated as fact. The family will not say anything anymore on record, apparently, but still there is this revised story that made it out. I sense they are being coached.
I could be way off here, but this is fishy to me.

mag said...

Well, eveyone beat me to it. But IMHO, this "story" sounds like one that would be written by CH if I didn't know any better. Sounds like total BS, and what a bunch of totally contradicting "information".

mag said...

And yes, WHICH of these stories does TBI "believe"? The previous versions (yes, plural), or this new doctored up one??? I think TBI needs to call in some LE who know what the hell they're doing already!

mag said...

Jolie,
I can't believe the TBI gave this news status and is *complaining that a volunteer group of searchers are hindering the investigation by putting out "false leads."* yet allows it to go on!!!! This story pi**ed me off when I first saw it, and it continues to. If it is "hindering the investigation", shut it the F down already!!! I'm so annoyed with the TBI at this point, which is why I have posted in several days. But I guess it doesn't matter what I say about them, because it seems one can do and say and post anything and get away with it. I'm usually a real easy going girl, but this is really pi**ing me off!

Melody said...

I don't even know what to say...I can't believe how this just gets nuttier amd nuttier!

Ugh. I'm tremendously irritated as well. Is Barney Fife in charge of this investigation or what?!

Pat Brown said...

""Minutes later, the family’s dog barked, waking Clint. He walked to the kitchen window that faces the expansive, treelined backyard to see what the ruckus was about. A man dressed in camouflage had his sister by the arm, leading her into the woods, he later told the Tennessee Bureau of Investigation.

The psychology student went out to his sister’s Mustang. She was supposed to be on her way to school, he knew. Next to her car, pooled a small puddle of blood and a spilled Coke can."

If Clint, sees Holly being led away into the woods, why does he go out to her car?

mag said...

Sigh, where was her car anyway? I got the impression all along it was out back from the way everything was described. Now this story puts her car in the driveway, which is out front. There is no carport out front. There is some little roof overhang off the back of the house on the right side looking at the house from the back that I guess could be considered a carport, and then that building out in the back yard which looks like it could be considered a carport also, but there is NO carport out front.

This "reporter" needs to be questioned about her sources, although she claims it's from TBI. How come TBI NEVER mentioned what kind of shoes Holly was wearing until now and all of a sudden there's a spilled coke that was NEVER mentioned either. The FBI flyer doesn't mention shoes at all, I would think it would if it was known, wouldn't it? I've read both sneakers and black flip-flops before, but I can't remember where. It was awhile ago.

Ugh!!! My brain hurts again!!

mag said...

"West Tennessee law enforcement said Thursday they do not need additional help in the search for missing nursing student Holly Bobo."

http://www.kait8.com/story/14834906/tbi-says-it-does-not-need-interference-in-search-for-holly-bobo

Oh really??? Then were is she??? Tell us. Why haven't you brought her home then??? These people maybe could use Barney Fife!!! SHEESH!!!

mag said...

Yes, I'm frustrated, can you tell??

But IMHO, I feel if they can't find her and they just again said (in that ABC News article Jolie posted about the SAR thing) they still don't have a suspect, then they need to lay it all on the table because they DO NEED HELP finding her. I don't think it's keeping anything "close to the vest" anymore, I think they have no freakin clue who, what or where, and they need help but refuse to ask the public so as not to look incompetent in the publics eye. Well, right now I think that's exactly how they look, and I think they would look a lot better if they asked for help from the public, not this not case SAR dude for sure. Maybe if they tell us what they have and know, it MIGHT jog someones memory about something that is important yet maybe they don't think so. Just maybe. I mean no suspect, no Holly, almost 2 months later??? I think it's time for help.

Anonymous said...

just to inform...

I read on several posts from day one, that Clint was woken by the dogs and that he looked out the window to see Holly out back with the man in camo. It just happens to be the first time an actually TBI is confirming the reports.

Also, the car port is behind the house and there is a paved driveway leading to it... that could be the driveway they are referring to in the article.

The woods they searched at her home was past the carport... so he could of past the car on the way, thus seeing the pool of blood.

Since the sent dogs followed her sent till the woods and back then it is possible the perp had a car to the side of the house where Clint could not see .. or maybe even out front.

One searcher claims... the dogs followed the sent 15 feet in the woods that are behind the home. That it is where where the 4 wheeler tracks where found. The dogs lost the sent over a mile further down.

It also looks to me that the TBI does not want to quote Clint for some reason... I would assume that in part it is because he has stated further details that they are not ready to release.

Pat... I wish you were there doing some investigative journalism! you have amazing insight and perspective.

Kat

Anonymous said...

My comments are not showing up. :(

Jolie

Melody said...

mag,

I get your frustration! For me, whenever there are reports that people can "go home and stop searching/no more help is needed," I find that exasperating! It makes no sense AND just seems wrong. They don't know where she is, yet they are calling off public help?

Forget the TBI. I say the FBI needs to take over the entire investigation.

Pat Brown said...

I am thinking about this new scenario, and,seriously, if this is coming from the brother, his new explanation is far worse than the original. It simply doesn't make sense.

If the dog was barking bad enough to wake him up and he sees his sister being taken off to the woods, wouldn't he think that might be worth a shout out? Oh, wait, yeah, he WAS suspicious enough to go look at her car, where there is a small "pool" of blood. How do you have a small pool of blood without some assault causing blood spatter, especially since something sudden must have happened for Holly to drop her soda? And, why, didn't she scream? Why was the dog barking anyway? Why didn't the dog go after the abductor?

Then, brother runs inside to call 911 and THEN, worried about his sister, does he rush to the woods? No, he calls Mom; THEN, he goes to the woods to investigate...

The "story" blows.

mag said...

Jolie, I've had trouble posting too. All my posts yesterday I had to try 3-4 times before they would post.

Kat, all the pics I've seen show a paved drivway out front and a dirt path around the side of the house, around the pool, to the back yard. I have never seen any pic with a paved driveway to the back yard, and that's all I have to go on.

We don't know anything about the dogs following a scent into the wood for certain, I have never seen anything confirmed by LE about that, it is all hearsay from various sources from what I've seen. And if there was an ATV 15 feet into the woods I'm SURE Clint would have heard it, inside the house or not. Those things are not quiet.

Melody, thankfully people are ignoring the TBI and still searching. One of the legit FB pages was organizing searches last weekend I think it was. I agree with you too about the FBI needing to take over. And I STILL want to know why the Federal Marshall's were there??????? I just saw a video the other day with one of them in it and it reminded me again, WHY????? There's much more to this than some local guy(s).

Pat, maybe the dog bit the abductor and that's where the blood came from. Possible, but then the only thing about any blood elsewhere, such as the "flecks of blood" on the lawn, is from some celebrity gossip magazine. There was never any confirmation of that from anyone relaible. And from what I saw, almost the entire back yard is dirt, there is no "lawn".

Sigh, maybe we should go with the Somalain sex trade thing. :( And that's not even funny. Melody, I need a laugh, and I can always count on you to cheer me up.

Pat Brown said...

Here's the thing: If it were MY daughter who had gone missing and my son was being suspected by many people of having something to do with her disappearance, and, if the TBI wasn't working overtime to find the abductor who might still have my daughter in his shed, raping her day after day, my whole family would be demanding polygraphs and we would have a family member (if not all of us) speaking out on camera as to exactly what happened that day and begging the public to keep looking for the man who has my daughter. THIS is normal family behavior and nothing what the Bobos are doing seems anything but a cover-up of what really happened.

Melody said...

Pat,
Yes, I agree that the "revised" statement (if it did come from the brother) is even screwier. As I was reading the description of him looking out the window at his sister being forced into the woods, my mind immediately went to what I would have done in that situation -- it was an automatic "I would run to grab the phone amd be dialing 911 as I rushed out to help my sibling."

Wouldn't most people do both (or either) of those things if they saw their loved one in danger?

No, it does not make sense.

Melody said...

mag,
I know! Let's interview the dog! It's apparent the doggie knows more than anyone else.

There's your laugh for the day. ;)

mag said...

Melody, lol, you did it again. Thank you! :)

They've got some really smart dogs, maybe one can interview the other. Apparently the dog does know more than anyone else, if this is actually the case. Sigh.

mag said...

Pat, that's what I've been saying ALL ALONG, that there's no way in hell I'd be sitting at home being quiet unless LE had a DAMN GOOD REASON AND PROOF of why I should be doind so. But everyone keeps saying there are reasons for the silence. I don't buy it anymore. It's been too long and NOTHING is happening. In one of those last few articles Helms even said something like "there is no suspect and nothing new in the last couple of weeks" (paraphrased). I'd be talking to every (official) news outlet I could to get info out there and keep people interested and looking for ANYTHING. I'm sure I wouldn't have any trouble getting that attention. Look at the people world wide still following this case, and WANTING TO HELP. There are still unoffcial searches going on (not that whacko SAR dude) from some pretty legit things I'm reading. Sigh.

Pat, I wonder what your thoughts are now of the who and why, after all this time has gone by?

mag said...

Melody, I agree with you, unless for some odd reason the brother doesn't have a cell phone and had to go in the house to use the phone. Hard to believe in this day and age, but possible.

What's really one of the oddest things about this latest story is the brother is no longer thinking it is the boyfriend and then waiting 40 minutes or so to go outside and then call 911, that has all vanished. Hmmm......

And somewhere I just read where the sheriff says they were at the house at 8 (I have to see if I can find that again) so if all this happened around 7:40ish and as per the original story that the brother waited 40 minutes to go outside, that doesn't jive becuase in that case he wouldn't have called 911 until around 8:20ish.

mag said...

Ok, so I got that part about 8:00 wrong, in this video the Sheriff says "the call came into my office at 7:59".

http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/21134540/vp/42605859#42605859

So if this first started at 7:40ish, neither the original story or this latest one adds up.

Anonymous said...

This is me, Jolie, writing:

re. the 06/03/11 news article linked above: "Holly Bobo's family holds out hope for her return" in the Tennessean

I don't think these new details are the truth of what happened the morning that Holly allegedly disappeared. It seems suspicious to me that it took more than a month and a half for this version of what Clint saw and did to make it to the media, considering the public's nearly universal suspicion of Clint's story(ies) reported in mid-April. How simple it would have been to come forward then with a statement to clear up any confusion or misunderstanding. The long delay only adds to the distrust of the family.

Perhaps an attorney is helping to frame this newer, improved story.

It still doesn't address the issue of the search dogs not find any scent along the tree line where Holly Bobo and her abductor allegedly entered the woods.

According to Mark Fuhrman, former LAPD homicide detective, who spoke with Geraldo Rivera on Geraldo at Large about the Holly Bobo case at the end of April, he has talked to the TBI dispatcher and someone in the sheriff's department. He said, "When I called Tennessee, I also found out that the dogs DID NOT SCENT anything in that tree line where they [Holly and alleged abductor] supposedly entered."

Anonymous said...

This is Jolie writing.

This new version of events, according to Clint Bobo, states the dog's barking woke him up. If Holly or the abductor had been injured in a struggle near her car, leaving blood on the ground, the dog would certainly know there was something wrong and keep barking and barking and, if able (not fenced in or tethered down), attacked the abductor, or at least followed the pair to the woods. If Holly was "in fear for her life" as described by the LE, the dog would know that, too, and act accordingly. There is no way that the brother would have been able to misunderstand the dog's alarm barking.

However, the article does not make it clear if the dog was inside the house or outside. That would make a difference in the dog's ability to determine what was happening.

Jolie

Anonymous said...

Pat / WIC editor,

The commenting process on this blog is all messed up. The only thing that is working for me is to use post as anonymous and then identify myself within my post.

Jolie

Anonymous said...

Jolie here. :)

I was reading Chelsea Hoffman's blog on the recent article in The Tennessean. She asked a very good question about this particular statement in the article:

QUOTE

The family won’t talk about the case, but TBI spokeswoman Kristin Helm said investigators have gotten this account from interviews with relatives:

END QUOTE

Does this mean that the immediate family did not provide the information to the TBI that was included in the article--that it was supplied to them by other relatives of the Bobos?

I think that is a very good question to ask and I think I'll post it as a comment to the article and perhaps send an email to the author of the article.

Jolie

mag said...

Jolie, that's a question a lot of people have been asking. It seems to depened on how you want to read it.

1. The family is NOT TALKING TO THE MEDIA re the case, but is talking to LE.

2. The immediate family has stopped cooperating with LE and this "info" came from other relatives.

I think the first scenario is the most plausible, but I also continue to think this whole story has been whitewashed to appease the public and questions that have been raised. It smells like a 3 day old fish to me though. And either of the stories you wish to consider, neither jive with the time frame of when the sheriff says they received the 911 call.

mag said...

As per the dog barking, it led me to believe the dog was outside the way it says he looked out the window to see what the rukus was about. Of course indoor dogs bark at things outside, too.

I still question why anyone would hang around to finish a crime with a dog barking and attracting attention. I think I'd be out of there as fast as can be, without anything or anyone to slow me down. But I'm not a criminal, so I don't know how their mind would work, but it just seems human instinct to me.

mag said...

As for the dogs not finding a scent at the treeline, I questioned about that yesterday, because I couldn't remember if there was ever any offcial LE confirmation of that. Not that I don't believe what Mark Fuhrman said, but I'd rather have it firsthand, not from a "dispatcher" or "someone in the sheriff's dept". We've seen before how even TBI's official spokeperson has said things that contradict what other LE have said. But then again, we know absolutely nothing as 100% true except that Holly is missing somehow or another. :(

Anonymous said...

Jolie wrote:

I know journalists are busy trying to meet deadlines, but I wish they or their editors would take the time to make their writing as clear and precise as possible so that it will not be misunderstood.

If there actually was an abductor, it is possible that he thought no one was home at the time he took Holly. With the Bobos not having any close next-door neighbors, he might not worry about someone hearing the dog, as he (and Holly) would be gone before anyone could wonder about it and respond.

If there was a neighbor who heard a scream, I wonder if she was close enough could have also heard the dog barking, if asked to recall it.

I also think that this newest story is stinky. If it came out that first couple of days or so, it would have held a lot more credibility, but almost two months later? That is so weird and appears contrived.

Jolie

Anonymous said...

Jolie wrote:

Twice I tried to post a copy of my email to Erin Quinn, the reporter who wrote the recent article for The Tennessean. It shows up as comment published and then disappears. Maybe it was too long?

In addition to asking clarification on who the Bobos are talking to and who provided the latest details on Clint's story, I also asked her to check on the following:

1) Was the dog inside or outside and if outside, was it confined or restrained?

2) Did the dogs pick up any scent at the tree line? (with reference to Fuhrman's remarks)

3) What times were the two 911 calls received? What time did Clint Bobo place his call?

4) Did a neighbor hear a scream that morning? (gave her reference to AOL article of 04/14/11) If yes, how close was she to the Bobo home at the time? Was she inside or outside when she heard it? If she was close to the Bobo home, why did Clint hear his dog barking but not the scream?

When was the last time Dana and Karen Bobo physically saw Holly? Was it that morning of April 13? If not, did they see her the night before?
_____

It would be good if she would do a follow-up article or at least answer what she can in a response to my email.

Jolie

mag said...

I had considered too that maybe whoever didn't think anyone else was home, hence didn't worry about the dog barking, but that would dismiss the theory that whoever knew their routines and all, otherwise they woould have known the brother was still home.

I hope you get answers to your questions, Jolie, but I have a funny feeling you won't, but I hope I'm wrong. The more I read "how" this story is written, the more it sounds like one of CH's stories conjuring up some "facts" that don't exist along with some additional storytelling to make it sound more...sensational. I know she didn't write this, but I'm saying it sounds like one of her stories.

Anonymous said...

Jolie wrote:

I sent this information as a follow-up to Erin Quinn at The Tennesseean, which I think is critical information:

A link to a video interview with Decatur Co. Sheriff Roy Wyatt, conducted by a Jackson Sun reporter on April 13, 2011--the day that Holly went missing--with him starting off the interview saying "At approximately 7:30 this date, we received a call [from] Swan Johnson Road of a young lady there that had been abducted, supposedly. We went to the scene immediately. (continued)" This is what Wyatt said when the reporter asked "Who exactly saw this young woman taken?" (at 1:01 minute into the video):

QUOTE

"It was a neighbor that lives just up the road there from the house and didn't see it but heard the screams of the young lady as she was leaving the house."

END QUOTE

What is very strange about this interview, particularly in light of that question by the reporter, than not once in the four-plus minutes of the interview does Sheriff Wyatt mention the brother being home and present during the abduction or that he witnessed his sister walking with (or being dragged by) a man into the woods. Now why is that? In the interview, Wyatt states that there was already about 100 LE individuals present in the area and searches of the inside of the home and the scene were currently being conducted, as well as searches by horseback, helicopter, etc. were being done of the surrounding area. You'd think that by that time, the local sheriff would have certainly have known by that time of Clint Bobo's witnessing the abduction.

I'm assuming that the 7:30 am call was from the neighbor but would like clarification of that. What time did Clint Bobo call 911?

Again, why does the latest version of Clint's story (in your article) state he heard his dog barking but does not mention his hearing screaming. He was sleeping, supposedly. You'd think that something like that would get his attention, if his own dog barking would wake him up.

http://www.jacksonsun.com/videonetwork/903287890001/JS-Video-Sheriff-Wyatt-Kidnapping

Anonymous said...

Jolie wrote:

This is another April 13 news story, from WTVF, News Channel 5, in Nashville, titled "Authorities: 20-Year-Old Woman May Have Been Abducted" with a video that mentions the neighbor calling at 7:30 am but does not mention anything about Clint Bobo's witnessing the event. The print story does mention it, though, and shows the story was updated at 9:33 pm, but the original story was posted at 11:38 am.

http://www.newschannel5.com/story/14438754/authorities-20-year-old-woman-may-have-been-abducted

I don't understand how the sheriff would not know about the brother's presence in the home at that time Holly went missing. Could it be that LE already suspected him and were trying to get further information from him before releasing his version of events to the media?

mag said...

If the 7:30ish 911 call time is accurate, and it was from the neighbor, because like I posted in another video, he says 7:59, then contrary to a lot of speculation, she would have screamed while still right outside her house, not off in the woods closer to the neighbors house and away from her house. Surely if the neighbor, what is it, 2/10s of a mile away, heard screaming, the brother would have had to hear it, asleep or not. But this is all speculation since we still don't know for sure who called, or when, because there have been so many different versions. I don't know what to think anymore. And I can't believe there isn't a single investigative journalist out there digging into this whole thing. I mean really, so you might not be able to get anything from the immediate family or LE, but gosh darn it, there HAS to be some locals that would love to talk about it, and I'm not buying that NONE of the locals have any idea what is going on in their tiny community. Sigh. :(

mag said...

Somewhat OT, the rumor about 3 local boys and one being forced to supply DNA after refusing, is starting to find it's way off the rumor boards and onto some more mainstream sites that don't allow rumors to be posted. One is the ex-bf, and he still has a picture of him and Holly on his FB as his profile, how creepy is that? But I haven't found who the other two are. I don't need names posted, but anyone know the connections between the 3?

Melody said...

mag,
Is there any concrete info on how long Casey had been broken up with the boyfriend before she went missing? Anything out there about that relationship?

mag said...

Melody, you mean Holly? :) You're not hooked on the Casey Anothony trial now are you? ;) I haven't personally seen anything about how long they have not been bf and gf. The only other thing I have seen rumored is about a restraining order against him, but like I said, rumors only, so how long does it take to get a RO? I don't have any idea, but that would give an idea if it is actually true.

Melody said...

mag,
I can't believe I typed "Casey"! LOL. And yes, I had just seen an update on the Casey Anthony trial, so it must have been on my brain -- yet another sad, sad case.

I have no idea how long it takes to get a RO. It is so frustrating to feel as though there is no way to know what is actual fact in this case and what is not. I guess we actually have very few "facts" to go on at this point.

mag said...

I'm not sure we have a single fact. I'm not even sure Holly is missing anymore. And I'm not trying to be funny. There's nothing funny about this. Yes, I'm pretty sure she's missing, but we don't know a darn thing for sure. This entire case sux so bad and has my head hurting and my stomach tied in knots.

And the lack of participation on this blog is totally disheartening. :(

Anonymous said...

Jolie wrote:

I found a link (from the Case Signal site) to an April 14 article that states Clint Bobo was in bed upstairs (I thought it was a one-story home) when he heard screams and looked out the window. It also stated that the authorities said it was unclear as to why Clint did not chase after his sister.


JUST GONE
Search continues for Tenn. woman abducted outside her home

By Anthony DeCeglie Thursday, April 14, 2011

http://www.thedaily.com/page/2011/01/05/041511-news-holly-bobo-4-4

-----------
So was it the dog barking that woke up Clint or the screams?

mag said...

I saw that too and also had thought it was a one story house. Just another one of those never ending "facts" that make you wonder if anything is true.

Melody said...

mag/Jolie,

According to this article, it IS a one-story house (mentions that halfway through it):

http://beta252.sungazette.com/page/content.detail/id/135242/Police-search-for-Tenn--woman-dragged-from-home-.html?isap=1&nav=5021

mag said...

Melody, thank you!! I knew I had read it somewhere, and that's where. Although anymore who knows if that is accuarte either. :(

You know, something else I just ran across again, that I had heard several times before but kind of dismissed for some reason, was that one of Holly's friends on FB and a friend of Clint's friend also posted on FB within hours that TWO men dragged Holly away screaming. Someone had posted screen captures of the FB's but I can't locate them now.

I'm also seeing a lot more that the two 911 calls where at 7:30 and 8:00, first from neighbor hearing screams and second from the brother.

I also ran across a long thread (not on a rumor board) re Bill Way's FB post about Holly being alive with some very interesting thoughts. I also learned he actually brought it up on the radio, too. But now all that has been over a month ago and where are we at? I know all the experts and statistics say she's not alive, but untill if and when it's proven to me I'm still not giving up the hope I have.

Melody said...

This investigation stinks! And where are any good investigative reporters in all this?

It's like everyone has been threatened of being sued or there is an all-encompassing gag order against anyone uttering one single word about Holly/ the family/background information/LE, etc. etc.

Weird, just really weird.

mag said...

Yeah, any good investigative reporter could have a field day with this because I know there is stuff out there to be known if someone looked into it. :(

I think I figured out the 3 boys being talked about from digging around, only one has their FB still public and that is the ex-bf. Weird. And even weirder is there is NO mention of anything Holly on it since this began (besides the pic of him and her which is way creepy), unless he deleted it all by now. I don't know if I should post the whole thing here or not, but on April 27 he made a very strange comment about maybe "re-evaluating some things" and he got 2 equally interesting replies. Time for a scree cap in case it goes missing. Also on April 25 he changed his profile pic to the current one and on April 26 there's an interesting little comment about court using the F word.

mag said...

Nothing really new, but a new article, well written for once.

http://news.discovery.com/human/holly-bobo-still-missing-rumors-psychics-hurt-search.html

Melody said...

mag,
Wow, interesting info on the former bf. I sure hope LE is checking out all of this stuff.

Thanks for posting a new article that was actually well-written!

mag said...

If there is anyone of official capacity here from this blog anymore, can some please delete my last post from 6-7 at 5:10 pm? I can't totally confirm what I posted and would really appreciate it not left out there. Thank you!

Pat Brown said...

Done, Mag.

And now we have yet more stuff that makes no sense from LE: the latest is that everyone who knows Holly gave an alibi that checked out and that there maybe more than one person who were involved.

http://www.wreg.com/news/wreg-bobo-two-months,0,7592918.story

Of course, they are still just one tip away.

mag said...

Thanks Pat!!! I appreciate it!

Sigh, yeah, more than one person, but until it's confirmed for certain I thank you for deleting my post.

At least the article gives me a tiny glimmer of hope, that they still are out there trying to figure it out. I've sometimes wondered if they have just given up.

Sorry for seeming grumpy at times here, I'm just so really frustrated.

mag said...

Pat, after reading the article AND watching the video, he doesn't say "that everyone who knows Holly gave an alibi that checked out", he said in the video "Well, that's true. And you know, people that have alibis that we knew, we verified every information." He said that in response to her question "So you've elimintaed perhaps some people, but you're unable to share who those are..." My point here is that it doesn't say EVERYONE has an alibi, it only said those that do have been verified.

He also said it is still a missing persons case, not a homicide, and Holly is definitley not a runaway.

The one thing that was confirmed (and made me feel a little better) that I had thought wasn't the case anymore is they still have a command post there at the armory and are actively following leads and talking to people. I had thought they had packed up and left altogether the way a lot of things were being said.

So what does any of that tell us? Not much, they still dont seem to know who and are still waiting for "that one tip". Sigh. At least it was nice to actually get it straight from the horses mouth for a change. I really wish she would have let us hear the whole interview instead of interupting it to say what he said. Sometimes what he says isn't always translated into print exactly, and sometimes the WAY something is said makes a difference, too.

I still really feel if they are still asking people for tips...

QUOTE

"Mehr said they still receive tips every day. But he still urges those with information to come forward.

"We know people have that information. Just please call us…there's no doubt in my mind. There are people who know what happened to Holly, and there may be more than one person involved," Mehr said.

END QUOTE

...that they really need to open up some and tell the public some of what they know. The total silence routine has gotten really old and could be discouraging people that actually might know something useful from calling.

Anonymous said...

I am a Mississippi mother of two teenage girls. I can't get my mind off Holly. I pray every night she is found safe, and rush to my laptop when my eyes pop open the next morning. Her mom is very umm... peculiar to put it mildly. The case is getting as cold as last nights dinner and what is she doing??? I do not have any trouble telling anyone who will listen my opinion-- CLINT IS LYING !!!!! Maybe he didn't hurt her intentionally but he is involved there I said what Yall all want to. Screw common courtesy people where the hell is she. We must not forget our own children ... How can we rest knowing that they might be snatched and never found because of shoddy police investigations?? To the TBI get your s**t together folks and restore our faith in le.
B

Melody said...

Any new news on this case?

Pat Brown said...

Clint Bobo and the family finally speak out, in a rather minimal way. What are your thoughts?

http://www.newschannel5.com/story/14966489/family-of-holly-bobo-speaks-out-for-first-time

Anonymous said...

There really isn't enough there to think anything. Here is a link to the actual video where you can see Clint Bobo speaking. First time I've ever seen him:


http://s296.photobucket.com/albums/mm166/crankycrankerson/Holly%20Bobo%20%20-TN-/?action=view&current=62211BoboFamilyInterview001.mp4&newest=1



I don't know what to make of this whole thing.

Melody said...

Pat,
Something happened to my last post, so I will try this again.

If the family's news was art, I think it would be called "minimalist."

I appreciate that they finally said something again, but I'm not sure how helpful it was. I think it was lacking:
1) Additional details about what happened, which could help the public know how to be helpful
2) Details/clarifications on the actual investigation, which could also help steer the public to be supportive or
3) Simply putting even more of a human face on Holly (personal info we could relate to) -- so we feel we know her a little better and to keep motivation going on finding this poor girl.

Pat Brown said...

Comments are temporarily being moderated, so if you don't see your post up immediately, don't worry, it will be up later.

Melody, you make excellent points. One thing I am not sure of though is how much of the interviews were cut. Did the Bobos really say this little or did local news do that one sound bit per person thing? They should, however, be making a statement like the first time and not be part of a news story. A statement allows them to get all that information the public needs to hear out there without being cut.

Jolie said...

I was surprised to learn that Clint Bobo finally came out of hiding, after all this time.

I am still mystified as to why it took 10 weeks for Clint Bobo to speak in public on his sister's behalf. Is this latest appearance a sincere attempt to get the public's help or is it damage control to improve the public's perception of their family?

If the Bobos had made this appeal in the first week or two of Holly's disappearance, it would have seemed reasonable--for me, no alarm bells went off watching it). As it is, though, with all the time they've had to gauge public reaction to their behavior, it could be that they've prepared well to put out a certain image, without giving too much away. It appears that no questions were allowed to be asked at this appearance. Now that would have given us much more to evaluate, both in terms of actual information and facial expressions and body language, as well as what they said.

Jolie

Melody said...

Pat,
If they did edit the family, someone needs to tell the news folks that these are NOT people they should be editing! They hardly say two words as it is, good grief! ^_^

Melody said...

Jolie,
That is one of the things I would be most interested in -- how the family dynamics were and also their individual facial/body language and speech patterns, etc. Being that I can't even get the snippet of video to come up to view it (a problem on my end), was there anything at all that you could gleen from what you saw?

And I hate to ask this in such a pointed way and put you on the spot, but what was you impression of Clint? What kind of a guy did he seem to be? How did the Mom seem?

Melody said...

mag,
You still around? Any thoughts on the recent comments from the family?

Jolie said...

New article up today:

http://www.jacksonsun.com/article/20110625/NEWS01/110625010/Mother-Holly-Bobo-gives-statement-press?odyssey=tab%7Ctopnews%7Ctext%7CFRONTPAGE

Jolie said...

Melody,

I rewatched the video clip and want to share my impressions with you about the Bobo family.

First, this was a series of interviews with the Bobos by this particular news station, not a press conference, and as you stated before, the amount of footage of the family talking is very sparse.

The body language of the family when they are standing together is one of unity and very natural in appearance.

Clint Bobo looks more like a boy than a man. He stands about half a foot taller than his mom and his build is small, which you can see in the still shot where the video segment is located in the article. He is the same person who is standing with his mom and sister in the black and white photo that's been posted before on the discredited SAR FB page and elsewhere.

No one gives a false impression to me, but with all the breaking away after a sentence or two in the editing by the station, it's very hard to judge if the same would be true if we could watch the interviews in their entirety.

The brother speaks clearly and keeps his head fairly still when talking--certainly not an animated individual (in front of the camera, at least).

Dad looks careworn, as you would expect. Mom is able to look at the people she is talking to this time around and her eyes and face have a sincerity to them, imo. However, her voice is still incredibly whiney, wimpery, and annoying. I wonder what her normal voice sounded like before Holly went missing, to compare it to how she speaks in public now. I wonder if she was able to use a normal voice at any time during the interview with the reporter.

Her voice was the one thing that seemed off to me.

I wish the entire family had done this right at the start and answered questions the public was asking then. If none of the Bobos are involved in Holly's disappearance, they did themselves a grave disservice by not addressing everything up front.

I'm sorry that you are unable to watch the video for yourself, as I'd like your opinion on it, too.

Jolie said...

Another new article just went up:

http://www.newschannel5.com/story/14976850/more-than-100-bikers-ride-for-holly-bobo

Please explain why money needs to be raised for the family. There are investigators working on the case. There is an $85,000 reward offered by the community and the state of Tennessee. The father is working. Mom's a teacher and is likely off for the summer. Brother's a full-student and not likely contributing to the family finances.

Why do the Bobos need money from the public?

Melody said...

Jolie,
Shoot. I accidentally hit something on this page, and I think I lost the comment I was trying to post for you. So if this comes out as a double-post, oops! I will try this again...

First of all, that was an excellent analysis of the family! You really paint a picture of each of them that I find very believable and insightful. If I do finally get a chance to view the video, I will post my reaction here. But it sounds like you did a stellar job. You picked up a number of interesting details. Like you, I really dislike that they edited that video. It takes away from what we can learn about them.

I also completely agree that if the Bobo family is not invloved with Holly's disappearance, they have done themselves and Holly no favors by being so silent. At first, I thought this may be due to LE working behind the scenes and them not wanting to jeopardize the investigation, but as time goes by, this seems less likely. If the trail is cold, the family needs to speak out much more, IMO.

Finally, the raising of money for the family issue really bugs me. It does not make sense to me. I think they should address this. If there is a good reason they need money to find Holly, state it. If not, I find it entirely inappropriate. I think it also makes many see them less sympathetically, whether that is fair or not. But raising money for themselves (or even "for Holly," if she returns) just does not seem right.

Melody said...

Jolie,
Okay, I finally got the video to come up -- and I do agree with your perceptions. Here are a few other thoughts from me on it...

When it comes to Clint, he does appear more boyish than I imagined him to be. I hate that they cut away at the beginning and did a voice-over when he was talking for a stretch (arg!), as I was left really wishing I could have heard more from him. It is not so much that I want to hear WHAT he says as HOW he says it. But nothing big stuck out to me with him, other than that he seemed really sedate. But that could be his personality or just weariness. But that is what bugs me about that clip -- it is impossible to know what his personality is like. If I had to say anything in that regard, he seems a little remote to me. But again, it could be his personality.

Now the Mom...well, again, I agree with all you said. Here is the problem for me with her. The way she whine-cry-sniffles as she speaks sounds so much like Susan Smith did that is is a little eerie to me. But they were both from the South with that accent amd maybe anxiety can account for the way they both talkednin that situation (quite possibly for very different reasons), so I am in no way saying Holly's Mom is another Susan Smith character...but I also fully admit the Mom's manner of speaking regarding Holly does remind me of Susan Smith, and her pattern of speaking feels odd to me. It struck me even more so this time than when I originally heard Holly's Mom speak.

The Dad...well, whenever he speaks, I get a pretty good feeling about him. He just sounds very forthright, and the "good vibe" I get is just that -- a good vibe. I have to say that out of all three of them, just from the snippets we have, I would be most inclined to take the Dad at face value. That may have something to do with his emotional state/body language seeming to make the most sense to me every time I have heard him speak about Holly. Because I can relate to what I see in him ( thus far) more than the other two, I guess I just respond to him differently. He is believable to me, and I just feel a little uneasy about the other two members of the family...but again, maybe because I do not see enough from them to understand their personalities.

mag said...

Melody,

I'm still around, I had a family issue, sigh. Thanks for asking! I'll comment as soon as I can.

Melody said...

mag,
Good to see you on here! And I hope your family situation has settled down and all is well.:)

Well, gab at us about your reaction to the Holly family new statements when you get time!

Jolie said...

Melody,

Thank you for sharing your thoughts about the Bobo family's recent statements.

I agree that the father seems the most straightforward and genuine of the three.

It was Clint Bobo and Karen Bobo that were first involved in the situation, after Holly's alleged abduction. They may be more guarded because they know more than he does and are keeping something from him. It's also possible that because those two were the ones targeted with extreme suspicion and criticism that they would naturally be wary of what they say and how they appear on TV.

Melody said...

Jolie,
Good point. We're a little suspicious of the Mom and son, which makes them more guarded -- which makes us suspicious, which makes them more guarded...what a Catch 22. :)

P.S. I do feel badly about still feeling a little suspicious of the family, but it is just hard to know what to think, with the communication being what it has been. :(

Jolie said...

Other than the police charging someone else, the only knowledge that would remove much of my suspicion of Clint Bobo would be learning that his story has not changed two or three times since the morning of her alleged abduction (that it was LE's problem in disseminating info. instead) and knowing the exact timeline of events that morning, including the times of 911 calls and who made them. I doubt, though, that we will get that information clarified any time soon, if ever.

Jolie said...

New article posted today at Taste of Country:

http://tasteofcountry.com/holly-bobo-search-whitney-duncan/

For a laugh, read Chelsea Hoffman's comments and then mine in response to them, below the article.

Jolie said...

New article published 06/29/11

Ride for Holly raises $9K
http://www.decaturcountyonline.com/article.asp?art=1735

From the article: [Mary Beth]Duke [of the Tennessee River Riders Association] said the family has many expenses associated with their search for Holly. They may use it for flyers, medical expenses and therapy associated with Holly’s return, or toward the reward fund, which currently stands at $85,000.
Duke said more limited edition t-shirts will be available for a minimum $50 donation through the Association’s website at www.tnriverriders.com. Donations can be made via PayPal and those who order a shirt can contact the Association on the website with size and shipping information. Orders must be placed by Sunday, July 3.

Melody said...

Jolie,
That still strikes me as odd/inappropriate.

Jolie said...

If you want to see an example of genuine, heartsick emotion from a mother whose college-age daughter went missing a week ago in Indiana, look at this video of Lauren Spierer's parents who held a news conference today:

http://www.wishtv.com/dpp/news/local/south_central/lauren-spierers-parents-continue-searching-for-daughter

There is no mistaking that this woman is feeling the real thing when she talks. Contrast that to Holly's mom, Karen Bobo's speech and mannerisms. Very different, don't you think?

Melody said...

I agree, Jolie. The simple truth for me is that I cannot relate to how Holly's Mom behaves/expresses herself. I don't know if it is a guilt thing on her part, or a personality thing or what it is...but it is odd to me. When she speaks out (the two times she has), her body language and manner of speaking is all closed off.

In contrast, Lauren's Mom always has her head up and eyes wide open when she speaks out, like she in pleading mode with the public. She does get very emotional in pain, but her voice is also strong in determination at doing all she can to get word out about her daughter and to convince others to help all they possibly can. Lauren's Mom has been very good at giving as much info as she can, and she is "meaty" in the content of what she says. By this, I mean her comments are purposeful in the pursuit at finding out what has happened to her daughter and she gives out all she can.

I always come back to Holly's Mom at that first news conference, seeming to have totally crumbled and looking down -- as if she was already resigned that Holly was no more. It just struck me that way. She was understandably emotionally very upset, but she was also very closed off, and she did not seem panicked or to be feeling urgent to get help -- she just seemed resigned to me. Her voice also always seems to trail off when she speaks and never seems to stabilize into a solid tone for long, as though she really doesn't want to connect with anyone. She seems to say the least amount possible.

Could this just be personality? Could it be a mood disorder? Could it be medications she is on? Is it a way of jher blocking everything out because she can't cope?

I just don't know, but it is so very odd to me.

Anonymous said...

Could be all kinds of things, I guess. But the first time - the first time I heard Susan Smith speak, I knew she did it. Total fake. I have something of that same feeling here. Instincts are like radar. I would like to be wrong. But there is something off about how this woman presents. If I had to come up with something totally based on instinctual reaction to people, I would say the mother knows what happened. Dad is oblivious, deliberately blind, or not involved. Brother may have aided in cover up story or done something himself. Total instinct, no facts. That's just how it feels, could be completely wrong. Hope I am.

Jolie said...

New local news article with additional, new (accurate?) information about Clint Bobo:

http://www.wmctv.com/story/15037152/three-months-later-what-happened-to-holly-bobo

Here is an excerpt from that article, with the new information:

QUOTE

Decatur County Sheriff Roy Wyatt said Clint Bobo was the only one at home with Holly Bobo.

"This is according to her brother that he had seen her being led into the woods," said Wyatt.

Clint Bobo thought the man he saw wearing camouflage and walking toward the woods with his sister was her boyfriend. Investigators were initially not clear about how long it took her brother to realize something was wrong, but Wyatt said it did not take long.

"A very, very short time," said Wyatt.

Wyatt said Clint Bobo called his mother first. She then called 911. Soon after, people were searching the wooded area around the Bobo family's house.

Investigators said Clint Bobo got only a glimpse of his sister's abductor, who he described as approximately 6 feet tall and weighing 200 pounds.

Aside from some items belonging to Holly Bobo that were discovered along tree lines, Wyatt said they have found nothing.

END QUOTE

A 25-year-old wouldn't know to call 911 first, instead of Mom, to get the authorities involved as quickly as possible?

Haven't the authorities repeatedly stated that Clint Bobo called 911?

Melody said...

Yeah, I am not understanding why he called Mom instead of 911 either...unless he was uncertain if it was one of her friends with her, so he called Mom to check. ?

Pat Brown said...

I see a couple of possibilities. One, he is kind of a Momma's boy, very sensitive, maybe unsure of himself. This could explain why he wasn't more proactive in chasing into the woods to save his sister. He might shoot animals because he feels tough and powerful when he has a rifle with him, but standing up to a dangerous man is too scary. Maybe he is slow to put two and two together and so this is why he didn't react like one might expect.

So, he saw a man going with Holly into the woods and naively thinks she is just with a friend. When he sees the blood, he becomes confused and calls Mom. Mom gets it right away and calls the police.

The other possibility is he didn't want to be on the 911 call. He was smart enough to know that he might screw up. So, he let Mom do the calling.

I don't have a problem with the first scenario, and I had considered something along those lines earlier, but the family and police behavior was what really made one wonder. And, now, this is finally coming out. Why? Why didn't the police and family just say this to begin with? And why has no one been ruled out?

Jolie said...

Clint Bobo has the appearance and demeanor closer to that of an adolescent instead of a 25-year-old adult man, imo. I agree with your assessment, Pat.

Still, it doesn't explain why the mother then didn't clarify things immediately when speaking to the public/media and still hasn't.

If she had gotten a call from Clint close to the time he had seen Holly and the alleged abductor walk off, why isn't she being more forthcoming with what she's been told and what she told the authorities?

Why would the authorities previously report that the two 911 calls were from Clint Bobo and an unidentified woman?

What about the neighbor who heard screaming?

Why won't the authorities confirm whose/what blood was found on the ground near the carport? Or at least confirm if it was Holly's or not? I wish they were able to give us at least that much information.

Melody said...

I agree with both of you on your insights.

What a frustrating case! What do they have to lose in releasing at least some pieces of info to the public??

Jolie said...

New campaign announced today to help the search for Holly:

http://www.wreg.com/news/wreg-holly-bobo-poster,0,6562843.story

http://www.newschannel5.com/story/15069836/truck-car-decals-hope-to-raise-awareness-of-holly-bobo

I think it's a great idea.

Anonymous said...

Jolie wrote:

NEW interview with Bobo family posted on WREG on 07/22/11. Video is 2:48 min. long.

http://www.wreg.com/news/wreg-holly-bobos-family-recounts-the-day-she-vanished-20110722,0,6800717.story

Karen Bobo says when she woke up, Holly was at home. She had gotten up very early that morning to study for an important test.

Karen received a call that morning at work (her school) from a neighbor who heard screams. She then called Clint and then called 911. She said it wasn't until Clint received her phone call that he realized something wasn't right. (Reporter says that the neighbor hearing screams and Clint seeing Holly walk off with the man happened about the same time.) Karen says she also had spoken that morning with her own mother and with Holly's boyfriend but she doesn't put those calls into time sequence with other events.

Clint says he saw Holly walking with the man but that he was not leading her and he wasn't dragging her.

There is mention by the reporter of the blood found near the cars but no one in the family mentions it in the interview portions included in the video. What happened to the version of the story that Clint went outside and saw the blood and then realized there was a problem and called 911?

It is stated that no one started searching until the canine units arrived.

Family is critical of the LE in not doing enough that first day (not setting up roadblocks early on).

Karen will not be going back to work and Clint will not be going back to school. Searching for Holly will be their full-time jobs.

Why the family's long delay in giving the details of that day in a public interview? Now, more than three months' later, they're willing to speak up?

Sorry, but that just doesn't make sense to me, particularly with the extreme suspicion directed at Clint Bobo from the beginning. Why didn't the family set the record straight then?

Melody said...

Jolie,
I don't get it either.

Jolie said...

CNN's Issues with Jane Velez-Mitchell interviewed the Bobo family last night (08/04/11). No video is available yet, but a transcript is (see the second half of the program, after the segment about Warren Jeffs):

http://transcripts.cnn.com/TRANSCRIPTS/1108/04/ijvm.01.html

New information:

Dana Bobo confirms that the blood in the garage was Holly's.

Clint says dog's barking woke him up. He saw two people in the garage attached to the home kneeling and talking, called his mom who said Holly was supposed to be in school. Watched Holly and man (thinking it was boyfriend) walk to woods. Thought that when they were kneeling, they were over a turkey that boyfriend had killed and when he saw the blood, thought it was from the turkey (which was nowhere at the time).

-----

We've recently had it confirmed by Karen Bobo in another interview that a neighbor had heard screams that morning and called her at school and then she called Clint at home which is when he got first got concerned.

Question 1: Why didn't Clint hear screams? He was sleeping but woke up to their dog barking. Why wouldn't he hear screams the neighbor could hear and thought belonged to Holly, enough to call the mom at work?

Question 2: Why couldn't Clint tell there was a problem, if Holly had already been injured by the man before they walked off to the woods? Why wouldn't Holly call out for Clint's help?

Question 3: Why didn't Karen Bobo mention that Clint had called her at work to say there were people in the garage BEFORE she got the call from the neighbor? Did she and the local news didn't air that portion of the interview? That seems unlikely as it is fresh information unheard before.

Either Clint is s-l-o-w or he is full of crap. If he's not mentally challenged, his story(ies) are full of crap.

Melody said...

Jolie,

Thanks for posting the transcript. A bunch of questions popped into my mind while reading through that...

Like you also mentioned, why did Clint not hear the scream that the neighbor apparently did? And what time was this in the morning? Because Clint mentions the two figures are "sillhouettes" in the garage, like it is too dark to make them out, but wasn't it light enough to see them -- especially since I assume the garage door was up, since there is no mention it was opened later when Holly was "lead away"?...

And I am STILL really confused on why Clint would call his Mom and not take a better look at who was in the garage. I mean, he's in the house with the door locked -- and it's not like he is 10 years old -- wouldn't the natural inclination for a young man his age be to assume it is family or friends amd just check it put until he knew -- and would someone his age automatically call Mom to run it by her? That seems odd to me. Either you are scared something is really wrong and call 911, or you see what's up, especially since I don't think most young men would think hearing a few people talking in a garage would automatically be a reason to freak out. And, just in general, with the way he worded things...it is almost like he is saying he has no idea who the two people are -- but is also saying he figured it was Holly and her boyfriend. HUH? I should go back and read the transcript again. Maybe he meant that he came to the conclusion it was his sister amd boyfriend AFTER talking to Mom. ?

I have a lot of other questions about what he said, but I will just leave it at this for now. Oh, except one thing on the Mom...

Unless the Mom is responding to questions in a pat-answer manner just for media purposes, she seems pretty passive on finding out what LE knows. Like with the cellphone -- not even knowing if LE has it. Yes, LE will surely keep some things to themselves, but I really think they also have latitude to share some things with the family -- and the Mom acts really passive about the progress LE is making. Perhaps it is just me (and hard to tell in a transcript), but she doesn't even seem curious. She still strikes me as being very "remote" with her emotions. Jane also gave her ample opportunity to say what her daughter is like, and she sure did not respond in a very glowing or personal way. Still seems ODD to me. Is she just a stoic type of person with less than great social skills -- just not real personable or reacts kind of strangely when under stress? Is she one of those people who just doesn't connect well with others? Again, I don't really get it, but there could be many explanations.

Amd yes, Clint could just not be an analytical or common sense type of guy...either that, or something is really wiggy there.

I wish that JUST ONCE I would hear statements from the family that made more sense to me, but I always end up feeling even more leery/confused...and I am not an overly suspicious person!

Jolie said...

Another thing I notice about the mom is her canned answers in the last few interviews. Each time she mentions the same thing about how the family always spent Sundays together... I would think you'd feel like putting new information out or tell a personal little story about Holly each time you get an opportunity to talk with the press, instead of rehashing the same few remarks.

I don't think the interview video with Jane Velez-Mitchell has been posted yet (at least I can't find it). When it is, I'll post a copy of the link here. Watching and listening to the family speak may give us more insight.

Melody said...

Yeah, I got the same impression...almost like the Mom has her talking points to make the family look good. I hate to even think that, but it does hit me that way. I don't see how any of that helps find Holly.

Yes, please do post the video if you find it -- that should be helpful to hear/see them.

Wonder-ful said...

Pat- Like you I think the family's behavior is somewhat "off" in its totality (lack of specific details, changing details, Clint as the only one actually "seeing" Holly that morning, Clint mostly MIA, Karen's utterly hopeless demeanor at the press conference, etc.). My concern also lies with Clint's statements from that morning and how much Clint (or any normal sighted human being could see from the back windows of the Bobo house. Moreover, Clint's statement references seeing Holly and mystery man before his shower, not hearing her because he was in the shower, and after the shower seeing her dragged/led/walking into the woods with mystery man. The shower reference bothers me in conjunction with the alleged timeframe, details, lack of other details, and changing storyline. We're told Clint called 911 upon finding the blood, but then it's he called 911 on hearing a scream. It can't be both.

I'm sorry, but the last thing on a parent's mind with a missing child is buying/giving them anything on their return. For some reason, this reminds me of parents who promise the moon if their runaway child will come home. It feels like the unspoken message is if the child will come home, she can go on a vacation or have whatever she wants. Straight up, I don't believe Holly ran away, but the whole vacation/buy whatever she wants thing isn't sitting well with me. It almost seems to scream complicity and guilt on the family's part. Why not use those monies for a reward or set aside for counseling/medical care if you believe she is alive? There's way too many holes in this story, in my opinion.

I'd like to see some more info on Clint Bobo-his interests, interviews from former girlfriends, info on current girlfriend (if there is one), his job (if he has one), who his circle of friends are, etc. It's rare to find a 25 yr old male these days with no electronic presence, particularly a college student. Just saying.

Jolie said...

@ Wonder-ful

Clint Bobo does have a FB page but since the disappearance of his sister and the public's interest in him, he has set it to private.

From recent interviews in their own words:

Clint Bobo says he woke up because he heard their indoor dog barking. From inside the house, he saw two "silhouettes" in the garage which is connected to the house. Concerned, he called his mom at work while the two were still in the garage and looked out again and saw them walking to the woods. He said later, when he saw the blood on the garage floor where the two had been sitting/kneeling, he thought it was blood from a turkey that Holly's boyfriend had killed and that it was Holly and her boyfriend in the garage.

Karen Bobo, the mom, says she got a call from a neighbor's son who heard screams coming from the Bobo house. Karen says Clint was sleeping at the time which is why he didn't hear the screams. Karen said she called Clint who was not worried until she called, panicking, thinking something was wrong. But by this time, the couple had already left the home/yard and Holly's blood was in the garage (Dana Bobo confirmed in an earlier TV interview that the blood found was Holly's.)

Karen Bobo never mentions in her interviews (or at least the portion that are aired) that Clint called her first when he saw two people in the garage, before the neighbor called her to report the screams.

How can Clint have not heard the screams but a neighbor could from further away, yet he woke to his dog barking? How could he not notice something was wrong in body language, when he saw the two people together, as Holly had already been injured, particularly when they were walking away together? Why did Clint Bobo go to the garage at all, after the two left? He didn't want to go out there when they were in it. He's concerned enough to call his mom, though, even though she's not there. Karen Bobo says she called 911 twice after she got the call from the neighbor and Clint called 911 after she called him, after the neighbor's call.

Is it any wonder that people are suspicious of Clint Bobo's story. Even when he has the ability to tell it in his own words, to eliminate any misconceptions and end confusion, it doesn't come out right--it doesn't make sense.

Pat Brown said...

Another eye-brow raising interview with Mrs. Bobo. I will be interested in what you see in this story compared with previous bits of information.

Clint saw his sister with the man but thought it was her boyfriend. Investigators think she went with the man because she was in fear for her life.
A small amount of blood was found outside the home.
The abductor was described as a white man about 5 feet 10 inches to 6 feet tall who weighed about 200 pounds. Holly is 5 foot 3 inches tall and weighs about 110 pounds. She was last seen wearing a pink T-shirt and light blue jeans.
Karen said she was in her school's cafeteria when she got the message that a neighbor's son had heard screams coming from their home.
"I think at that point I knew something was wrong because I knew Holly had a test, a big test, that day," she said. "And at the time she came and told me that, Holly should've already been gone to school."
Karen said Clint, who was at home asleep at the time, did not hear screams.
"I had shut his bedroom door that day because she was studying, and I think he had a paper to write so he was planning on getting up later in the morning," she said.
Holly had been an honor student since high school and was engrossed in her studying, Karen said. She attended nursing school on scholarship.
"Well, when I spoke to Clint, and he asked me did Holly not have school today because her car was still here, then I really knew something," Karen said.
He also asked his mom if Holly was going hunting with her boyfriend. Karen said no and that her daughter should have already been at school because she had a test.
Karen panicked, making two calls to the police as she made her way home and informed her husband, who also rushed home from work
She said when her son realized what had happened, he also called the police.
By the time her parents made it home, Holly was gone.

http://www.jacksonsun.com/article/20110821/NEWS25/108210309/

Pat Brown said...

Two things that struck me: that Mom said Clint was asleep and yet doesn't say when he then say Holly going off with a man, and, it seems the message came to her in person at the school, not via phone, and the neighbor did not call the police.

Anonymous said...

I am wondering... what time all of the calls happened. Would the brother have time after someone herd the scream to run and throw her belongings into the woods.. (how far away from the house) and then call mom or speak to mom?? I believe it sounds very fishy, but I can also see a goofy older brother just waking up and not really thinking about what the heck is going on. Some people just dont pay attention to their surroundings.

Pat Brown said...

NEW timeline and fascinating added elements that make me go.....hmmmm. Thoughts?

http://www.jacksonsun.com/article/20111009/NEWS25/110090330

Anonymous said...

TN DCSO Sheriff Wyatt's plea for help from hunters is very telling & doesn't sound very optimistic, IMO:

http://www.facebook.com/l.php...

Wolfscratch

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