Missing Blogger Esther Dingley

[simonsays]

I'm sorry to say your wrong on both counts, Simonsays.

1. Laura Adomaityte said the following to the media and 3 police forces:

"Esther said they were taking a break and didn't know if they were going to get back together again. When you're not 100 per cent okay with your partner, you're not going to be totally balanced emotionally". Source here (one of many).

2. Patrick Lagleize, President of the Pyrenean mountain rescue mirrored what the local police have said:

"When there is a disappearance in the mountains and the victim cannot be found, then it is because we cannot match them with their planned itinerary. It is then necessary to count on luck to find traces of the person, often several months, even several years later. We cannot find the victims in the mountains if we do not understand the logic of their path". Source here (one of many).

3. Esther's last and only statement by text about her route to Dan, Dan says, was:

"Still in the same area. Tomorrow heading for Port de le Glere or something spelt like that. Might dip into France. Hoping Refuge Venasque has a winter room. Keep you posted when can".

Because these ideas for her route are mutually contradictory, it is not possible for rescue services to make sense of them. ED had gone up the same top on two successive days. One group thought it odd that she was ascending so late in the day. You refer to a walker who mentioned a possible route to Esther. In fact, it was a 71 year old man who gave her a lift along the road when she hitched to the hill. It is a fact that Dan did not know her route. The temp that evening was -2 degrees and she did not know if the refuge she 'may' sleep at was open. She did not have a proper tent (no fly sheet). She posted an image of her sleeping arrangements - in the picture she had used the tent as a blanket and had not pitched it. You say she made frequent contact with Dan - this is exactly why it is so strange that he took 3 days to raise the alarm that Esther had gone missing in sub-zero conditions in the Pyrenees mountains.

1. Your definition of a break-up is different from mine. They were in contact daily. Her last message to him on the peak was, "Hoping refuge Venasque has a winter room, Keep you posted when can. Love you." They might have been taking some time out. I think it could be the case. This is quite different from a complete break-up. I doubt people who have broken up from their partner would be sending them messages every day and keeping constantly in touch. This is not to say that she there was no thought in her mind about a change as we can see in the information from Laura Adomaityte.

2. I am not sure what you are saying here. Yes, it looks like she was following the route as recommended by the walker a few days earlier. She wasn't walking around aimlessly. Her remains were found not far from the peak where she last sent a message to Dan. It wasn't like she was completely in the middle of nowhere far from where she was supposed to be.

 

[AlanB]

It hasn't been, to date, anything other than a missing person inquiry so the cops don't have power to demand kit. The NY Times reported the PR group supporting Dan as follows: "An investigation remains ongoing, the group said, although it did not specify which authorities were involved". Source here.

In other words, the cops haven't yet decided if it is sufficiently suspicious to merit a criminal investigation. UK cops in particular will need to investigate per the coroners inquiry which will follow the repatriation of Ethers's body to UK. NB: Cops will be interested in why Dan does not appear to be being honest about the nature of the relationship, Esther's abrupt departure to a lay-by and her then staying away for a month. They will also want to know why he was so confident ED would return on 25th, to the point where he left it 3 days to report her missing. Another NB: if Esther had an accident, it is perfectly possible she was alive for a considerable period of time.


if she had an accident in -2 degrees then, ask around, it is not competent for DC and ED not to have been crystal clear about her route. Waiting 3 days to report a climber lost in sub zero Pyrenees isn't a 'second-best bet' - it would be life threateningly idiotic. If it was totally possible she was fine then it was also totally possible that she was dying on the hill. Which, it turns out, she was.

OK, but that doesn't make much sense to me, as soon as the following were known :

(a) He was close by but she had gone hiking without him.
(b) Her weird stay in the lay-by when that wasn't necessary.
(c) He was the last person to talk to her on the 22nd and yet no alarm was raised until the 25th.
(d) His claim that their relationship was fine was not something the Police believed (with good reason).
(e) He kept talking about her in the past tense (on one occasion correcting himself).

they should have been looking at him as a 'person of interest' and established his whereabouts - even if it was to just clarify the position.

If the Police really haven't done this then I think they are negligent...

 

[simonsays]

I don't think three days going by before an alarm is suspicious. She was hiking in the mountains and there were spots where there was poor or no reception. Her plan as I understand it was to sleep in a unmanned refuge overnight. I think most people would try to contact their partner and wait a little for the response in this kind of situation.

 

[Merpedy]

Esther was missing in sub-zero temperateres, last known to be at height in the Pyrenees mountains. That Dan didn't know her route is bad enough; that he waited 3 days to report her missing is - on its face - idiotic, not a 'second-best bet'. It is perfectly possible she died because of that delay. Imagine this response by a seasoned hillwalker to the cops. '1. I didn't think to ask her route. 2. Then I was worried that she hadn't contacted me and was in sub-zero temperatures in the Pyrenees, and may have had an accident, but left it 3 days before reporting my fears.' You can either allow that Dan is experienced and sensible, or that he was incredibly stupid and lack any safety awareness - but you can't can't allow both. There may, of course, be other underpinning reasoning for Dan's words and actions altogether.

I mean this is all just assumption after assumption from everyone. I understand people feel off about him but as I said, the moment the guy doesn't look 'perfect' or something slightly illogical was done it must be his fault

He could have assumed that she was safe and simply didn't have a way to contact him, especially as the weather was tit. I don't think the first assumption would be that she's missing or dead, though yes worry for safety would exist. Said it already, but the assumption could have easily been that her phone had no signal or had possibly died... so yeah, your second best bet is to see if she turns up if you can't get into contact with her? If she doesn't then there may be something wrong and you go report it

From the texts someone posted it also doesn't seem like she had a straight forward route in mind either, but she was clearly giving him some sort of updates on said route and had an idea of it from the walker she met. It may also explain why she wasn't very sure on whether the place she was going to was open as that something you would probably check before you set off/ask someone you meet

I also think you can allow for a bit of both. No story is ever black or white after all

 

[AlanB]

I don't think three days going by before an alarm is suspicious. She was hiking in the mountains and there were spots where there was poor or no reception. Her plan as I understand it was to sleep in a unmanned refuge overnight. I think most people would try to contact their partner and wait a little for the response in this kind of situation.

You have to take these things in the round, we have a bunch of indicators all pointing in the same direction and that has to at least be worthy of investigation.

 

[petitspois]

In cases where a foreign national dies in disputed territory (such as at sea or, like this, where it could have happened in France or Spain) I don't think any of the police forces actually want the case.

 

[tinkertailorsoldierspy]

RIP Esther. Very sad news but hopefully some closure for her poor family. These past months must have been hell. It's interesting how close the bones were found to her last known contact point. I wonder why she wasn't found in all the early on searches if they were focused in that area and were quite intensive initially.

 

[Damita]

I'm very sorry she's been found dead.

I know it was supremely unlikely but I think I still had a tiny glimmer of hope she was somehow still alive somewhere. RIP Esther, my condolences to her family.

 

[Trixabellee9393]

Hey been following this thread the whole time and am saddened that it is now confirmed that Esther is dead she seemed such a lovely person. I really hope the police are continuing to try an piece this all together as if she was there the whole time they would have found her by now almost certainly she was found so close to her last known location I find that very confusing. That would be way too much of a coincidence for a bird or animal to drop the bones close to where her route was, as if that was the case she would have been found immediately on searching the route. She can’t have been so out of sight that Dan walked for miles searching and the police but then suddenly a random runner can easily spot a skull it’s heart breaking I really wonder what actually happened to her I hope no one returned her to the mountain to make it look like an accident I really hope no one was involved an it was just a accident. Crazy doesn’t make sense!!

 

[simonsays]

Hey been following this thread the whole time and am saddened that it is now confirmed that Esther is dead she seemed such a lovely person. I really hope the police are continuing to try an piece this all together as if she was there the whole time they would have found her by now almost certainly she was found so close to her last known location I find that very confusing. That would be way too much of a coincidence for a bird or animal to drop the bones close to where her route was, as if that was the case she would have been found immediately on searching the route. She can’t have been so out of sight that Dan walked for miles searching and the police but then suddenly a random runner can easily spot a skull it’s heart breaking I really wonder what actually happened to her I hope no one returned her to the mountain to make it look like an accident I really hope no one was involved an it was just a accident. Crazy doesn’t make sense!!

It took three years to find another hiker who died in the same area. I think the snow and conditions can make it very difficult to find anyone or anything in this mountain range.

Yes, very sad that the death is finally confirmed. Condolences to all the family.

 

[SummerSky]

Great points raised by several commenters.

Does anyone else find it odd the boyfriend has gained so much weight since her death?

Especially since he's been hiking in the area for weeks on and off.

 

[Showmethemoonie]

Does anyone else find it odd the boyfriend has gained so much weight since her death?

I reckon if my husband went missing and was presumed dead I might turn to food for comfort

 

[SummerSky]

I reckon if my husband went missing and was presumed dead I might turn to food for comfort

I guess everyone has a different relationship with food. If grieving or experiencing some other upsetting crisis I lose my appetite.

I've just never seen someone's appearance change so dramatically after a tragedy as the boyfriend's.

I'm not sure what it means.

 

[Portiapoo]

The plot thickens

Police probing Esther Dingley's death admit she may have been murdered

POLICE probing the death of hiker Esther Dingley have admitted for the first time that she may have been murdered. A piece of Esther’s skull was discovered in the area of the Pyrenees mountains whe…

www.thesun.co.uk

 

[LaurieLaurie]

I thought it was strange that they hadn’t found any of her belongings.

 

[SummerSky]

If the killer returned her bones to the area... then why?

It was a dumb thing to do. So what motivated them?

Is there a life insurance policy?

 

[PineappleQueen19]

If the killer returned her bones to the area... then why?

It was a dumb thing to do. So what motivated them?

Is there a life insurance policy?

I think more likely that her body was secreted somewhere in the mountains in the hopes that snowfall/winter would halt the search and then wild animals would do the rest, perhaps to the point of being unidentifiable, or at least unable to conclude cause of death. Equipment/clothing taken and disposed of, as it’s bright, recognisable and designed to withstand extreme weather. Also far far easier to get rid of than a body. Eg it’s unlikely anyone was combing through landfill sites for a specific tent at the time poor Esther went missing. That stuff could be anywhere by now - buried on a farm, given to refugees heading to Calais etc.

It seems to me unless there is some sort of incredible breakthrough then whoever is responsible will not be held accountable. Her poor mother. Yes having confirmation Esther is gone is one thing but still so many questions.

 

[CeeCeeBloom]

It looks like Dan has found Esther and her equipment.

 

[SummerSky]

I think more likely that her body was secreted somewhere in the mountains in the hopes that snowfall/winter would halt the search and then wild animals would do the rest

Perhaps but it's a peculiar animal that places human and animal bones together.

That's what many find suspicious.

 

[SummerSky]

It looks like Dan has found Esther and her equipment.

I feel sick. Thanks for updating us so fast though. Poor Esther.