What will it take to crack the "missing person" case of Beth Bentley? Is it really a missing-person case? I don't think so. If it were, then wouldn't the Woodstock Police open the files of their year-long race around the track and give the public a chance to learn what has been done, so far, to find her?
The Illinois State Police (ISP) have finally listed Beth on their website, at http://www.isp.state.il.us/crime/missingdetails.cfm?ID=78 No listing date is shown, so it might have been there for a while. It took forever to get it listed there. Unfortunately, ISP refers to the Myth of the Train Station. Is there any involvement of ISP beyond this listing? The contact for ISP is its Zone 7 Investigations office; phone 618/542-2171. What would it take to get ISP to come up to Woodstock and interview a dozen people intensively? Like, start from Square One?
The wording in the denial of my FOIA request for access to the file indicates to me that Woodstock Police are still "investigating". Are they investigating a concealment of a death case? Are they investigating a murder? If so, keep the files closed and get on with it.
The bashing that is taking place on the Susan Murphy Milano blog and Facebook is inexcusable. If you haven't read some of the rants and barbs there and if you want to waste some of your valuable time, just do a search for Susan Murphy Milano AND facts AND Beth Bentley.is missing. I mean, some of those posters are vicious!
But back to the question. What's it going to take to crack open this case?
Sooner of later, one of the people from the fateful week-end in Mount Vernon and the circle of so-called friends in Woodstock will crack. What, exactly, happened in Mount Vernon that week-end?
Let's start with about 2:00AM, when Beth and her traveling companion, friend, co-worker, alibi, etc., Jennifer Wyatt, rolled into Mount Vernon, Ill. Did they go straight to the house that Ryan Ridge was rehabbing? Phone records for that Thursday evening are really light. Did they call along the way? Was Jenn anxious to see Ryan? Was he anxious to see her? What was Beth going to do for the rest of the night? If the house was being rehabbed, was it furnished?
OK, you super sleuths out there. Help out here. What happened next?
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13 comments:
Gus, I stopped reading the Facebook page months ago, and never read the Milano blog, so I can't comment on those.
I have done a lot of thinking about this case. It was pretty obvious months ago that this woman didn't just take off on her own.
I've never met Beth. Many that joined the Facebook page have never met Beth. Speaking only for myself, things written on that page led me to believe Beth was somewhat wild, a party girl, threw money around recklessly on party trips, drugs, and drinks all around. Anyone reading the page couldn't help but to believe this portrayal of Beth. The admins. on the page, one in particular (a lawyer), kept the "Beth took off on her own" theory for as long as he could, that is, until it became obvious this woman met with foul play.
When the nasty attacks started on anyone that asked important questions, I washed my hands of the page.
I think the investigators should start a good couple of months before the last time Beth was seen alive by anyone, which was her son's baseball game.
Was there evidence on her computer? Was it deleted? By whom and why? A forensic examination can be done even if everything was deleted.
How about her phone records?
The rental car? Even if it's been sold, it can be tracked down and examined.
I'm sure many questionable aspects of this case have a simple explaination. Many do not.
To keep things simple, if it doesn't make sense, it's not true.
It makes no sense that a best friend would not tell you who she was going to be meeting (IF she was indeed meeting anyone).
It makes no sense that she would give up her rental car to be dropped off "near" a train station and other various versions of this obvious lie.
It makes no sense that everything that could possibly help law enforcement track down Beth's movements, or help give insight to any possible motives someone may have had to want Beth to disappear, are either deleted, destroyed, or buried under a ton of bullshit.
I've said it before, I've read about many missing persons and cold cases. They're solved because one detective refuses to stop digging or give up finding justice for the victim.
Is there anyone that has resources and the determination for Beth Bentley?
Thanks for a great comment, Karen12359.
Yes, investigators should start afresh from a good couple of months before May 20, 2010. Maybe even back to November 2009.
Beth was on her office computer constantly and, as one person called her, was a "serial texter." When I looked at Beth's Facebook page and all her Farmville activity and the times (before someone got into her account and deleted or hid it), I wondered, "When did she work?"
Is it true that computer files (or even computers) from the office were deleted (or taken)? Why is there no report at McHenry P.D.? How did that rumor start, if that's what it is?
Nothing has been said about the rental car, except that there was one. Nothing has been disclosed about the route driven to Mt. Vernon, to/from Centralia on Sunday, back to Woodstock on Monday. Or the total mileage during the rental period.
It's almost impossible to believe that Jenn doesn't know whom Beth was meeting. What were the plans to meet up and return to Woodstock together?
In a "real" missing person case, most of this would have been released by police, in hopes that some witness or person with knowledge would show up.
Instead? Silence. Which means to many that this is NOT a Missing Person case.
As close-lipped as the Woodstock Police are, I do not believe they have told anyone, except maybe Scott, what is going on.
Karen wrote: "The admins. on the page, one in particular (a lawyer), kept the "Beth took off on her own" theory for as long as he could, that is, until it became obvious this woman met with foul play."
Karen, I just had a theory. I still do, it's the same one. Like you I tired of the trolls.
There is nothing obvious about this case.
Ray, I'll agree to disagree about the "Beth took off on her own" theory.
I'll disagree to some degree that there's nothing obvious about this case.
I think it's obvious that Beth didn't "willingly" disappear.
Other than the regular reasons, being a mother that was always involved with her kids, always in contact by phone or text, no use of credit cards, bank accounts, or cell phone, and didn't take anything with her that would indicate she was leaving behind her entire life as she knew it ...
There's the story that was told by her best friend that's got gaping holes and makes no sense whatsoever. It's obvious she lied. Why?
Is it true that her best friend accompanied Beth's husband to the train station in Chicago to distribute missing flyers? Why would she do this if she knew (and has stated) Beth had no intention taking a train? Why did her story and timeline keep changing?
The same questions have never been answered since the report came out that Beth Bentley went missing. Not a single question has ever been answered.
Why is this any of my business? Early on, the public was asked for help on this case. I am the public.
If this can happen to her, this can happen to me, my loved ones, or people I care about.
What I hope and pray for is a compassionate, justice seeking detective, with resources, that will never give up on this case until it's resolved.
The questions have not been answered because of the trolling that has occurred (that's my guess).
And that's the reason that I don't participate. To some people it's just all fun and games. You can go on but I am done with it.
Good luck, hope you are successful.
Another "obvious" in this case ...
'And that's the reason that I don't participate. To some people it's just all fun and games'.
Exactly right Ray, which is why I withdrew support from the page.
I'm here reading this blog like everyone else.
Like Gus, I often find myself asking the most basic and simple questions. I doubt these questions would interfere with an investigation, if indeed there is one.
These questions, once answered honestly, could end speculation and move this case forward.
This case should never have been allowed to grow cold.
Again, being Jane Q Public, it's a bit frightening to see how a disapperance is handled.
Somewhere out there, this woman needs to be found, her disapperance, resolved.
Anyone that attempts to lie, decieve, omit and otherwise thwart the successful resolution of this case should be examined closley for their motives for doing so. This is simple common sense.
I am a woman, a mother, a daughter, a sister. I care very much, and watching how this case is handled for these reasons.
But there's the problem:
"These questions, once answered honestly, could end speculation and move this case forward."
What questions? (Rhetorical)
How would we know they are answered honestly? (Rhetorical)
I disagree with you. "Answers" lead to more speculation. Speculation to whether they are honest (or accurate).
This is why we have a group of people we call the police, who can find out what is wrong or misleading and what is right.
Having facebook pages, especially ones where people participate with fake names or annonymously, encourages trolls who divert attention with very wild speculation.
I created a page called "Getting to the Bottom of it." The page was designed to demonstrate that when you get to the bottom of facebook pages with annonymous users, the results are quite poor. The page demonstated that in about a week.
It is a thorny problem, people are concerned and they don't want to give up on Beth, but there are others who are more concerned with getting in their digs, insulting, drawing attention to matters that simply are not that important (i.e. what the "trust document says," etc. on and on forever, amen.
While I admire your persistence, that persistence I fear will not lead to a successful result. And further, it will more likely lead to more of what we have witnessed.
Gus in one of his posts actually still thinks that the "group of friends in Woodstock" have some involvement with Beth being missing. This is contrary to all evidence, except the fact that the girls (who were mercilessly pilloried for their fundraiser, and beaten up on facebook), have opted to not comment on the matter after all the abuse.
And, there the girls sit. Damned if they do and damned if they don't. Can anyone blame them if they threw their hands up in surrender to such accusations.
Sure, annonymous facebook users, and bloggers can. Again, and again and again and ....
Hope Beth is found someday, but really tired of all the round and round the merry go round stuff. And I haven't even talked about the treatment of Jeremy ....
Gus, do you have a theory, or thoughts on what transpired since this case began?
You wrote a while back that you spoke to Jennifer Wyatt shortly after Beth disappeared.
Did you find her to be honest? Evasive? I can understand her fright and nervousness, after all, she's involved to the hilt and it's her story that she is the last person to see Beth alive.
Do the actions and inactions of those close to Beth sound the alarm to your sensibilities?
I'll never understand the alarm, sense of loss or heartache endured by Beth Bentley's family, and I don't pretend to.
It's my understanding that agency's (CUE for example) offered services early on in this case, and to date, have not been welcomed or utilized. Why?
Week 67, and Beth Bentley has recently been added to the Illinois State Police web site. What was the delay?
There really is no proof that Beth Bentley was in Mt. Vernon that weekend, just the word of Jennifer Wyatt.
Any thoughts?
Gus, you mentioned that the phone records were really light. Do you have the phone records? If you do you should post them to allow others to help.
Rather than the round and round merry-go-round stuff, maybe LE can release something, anything, that might produce a lead in the case. People don't simply vanish off the face of the earth.
AGAIN, the statements made by the last person claiming to see Beth Bentley alive, make no sense. If it doesn't make sense, it's not true.
Beth was last seen at her son's baseball game ... what happened next?
Just a bit of fact and fiction seperation...
For those of you that have been holding on to thoughts of "a running off wife", I'd say your about 12 months to late.
With all the infighting and name calling.
Beth is gone, deceased. That is more probable then not.
She was last scene in Mt Vernon,IL, this is not skecthy, it is supported long before the probability of a death.
The people she was with, if open and honest, would shed the most light. There has been a lot of rumors, some have been substained. A fact is these "friends" she was last with are not the most "stand-up" people you want or expect to watch your back. So don't expect that their going to shed much light, thsat chance came and went.
So a lot of investigation is on going, it's no going to be shared with the public, not at this point. I believe that now you have to look at this case as a death investigation, but since nobody is forth coming with truth, that being what happened in Mt Vernon, then I believe it should be a homicide investigation.
To but it bluntly, there's a couple good motives, rock solid ones in that respect.
Simple fact, just this year an individual was arrested in Kentucky for a homicide in Rond Lake Beach.....22 years after the fact. So it'll never go away.
My thoughts are if your going to do some jail time, might want to do it when your younger rather then when it hurts the most, but thats just me.
So I think those who think they know the law so well may want to rethink that again... it'll never go away, it'll always be right there, ready to get you when you least suspect it.
For those of you that want to ridicule those who are trying to help or to LOOK, well I question why you would...
Oh and by the way...
Gus, keep on throwing the spot light on this.... it's just a matter of time, I think a few people will fall over when the light hits the right spot.
Good Job
Bill, whoever you are, thanks. I agree. It ought to be a death investigation. And concealment of a death. But Woodstock PD doesn't want to call it that; they've never changed it from a Missing Person case.
I won't even grace it with Endangered Missing Person, because no reason for "Endangered" has ever been given.
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