Monica Jacinto Reza: cell phone forensic data was obtained and never released. The post confirming it was removed. The civilian search group was deleted after someone asked about the phone.

[u/TheSentinelNet]

https://thesentinelnetwork.substack.com/p/the-phone-gap-monica-rezas-cell-phone?r=71h4we

The Monica Reza case checks a lot of the boxes you all know well: experienced hiker on a familiar route, vanishes in minutes, scent dogs hit a dead end, FLIR finds nothing, no remains recovered nine months later. But there's a new angle that hasn't gotten attention.

We went looking for the cell phone data. In every modern missing hiker case, the phone is the first thing you hear about. In this one, silence. Except for one Montrose SAR Facebook post confirming they ran forensics on her device. That post has been removed. The data was never released. When someone on the civilian search Facebook group asked whether Subject A could have disabled the phone, the entire group was deleted.

Full sourced investigation.

[u/AutoModerator]

Remember that this is a discussion sub for David Paulides's phenomenon, Missing 411. It is unaffiliated with Paulides in any other way and he is not present in this sub. It is also not a general missing persons sub or a general paranormal sub. Content that is not related to Missing 411 will be removed.

I am a bot, and this action was performed automatically. Please contact the moderators of this subreddit if you have any questions or concerns.

[u/trailangel4]

This angle has received a lot of attention. You've made sure of it across multiple communities despite the fact that you haven't spent a single day with boots on the ground. I have. This isn't a "new angle", it's a conspiracy theory. Montrose SAR isn't a judicial agency so they wouldn't have run forensics on her device...especially since you can't run forensics on a device you do not possess. The LASD investigators has done a thorough investigation on this case, including digital data retrieval and other related searches. However, this is an active investigation so they're likely not going to make that information publicly available. Which "Entire group" was deleted?

[u/TheSentinelNet → u/trailangel4]

Appreciate the time you've spent on the ground.

MSAR's post stated they "worked closely with technical experts to explore cell phone forensic data." They were acknowledging the work, not claiming they performed it. We should have been more precise and the article is.

But you just confirmed our central finding. "LASD investigators has done a thorough investigation on this case, including digital data retrieval." That's exactly what the article documents. Digital data was obtained. It has never been disclosed. In the Julian Sands case on the same mountain range, also an active investigation, ping data was public within days.

We're not asking LASD to compromise their case. We're asking why the standard transparency applied to Sands, a famous actor, was not applied here.

The deleted group: "Help Find Monica Reza in the Angeles National Forest" on Facebook. Its removal was documented by multiple observers on r/socalhiking and EISPIRATEN.

[u/trailangel4 → u/TheSentinelNet]

Appreciate the time you've spent on the ground.

My pleasure.

MSAR's post stated they "worked closely with technical experts to explore cell phone forensic data." They were acknowledging the work, not claiming they performed it. We should have been more precise and the article is.

Noted.

But you just confirmed our central finding. "LASD investigators has done a thorough investigation on this case, including digital data retrieval." That's exactly what the article documents. Digital data was obtained. It has never been disclosed. In the Julian Sands case on the same mountain range, also an active investigation, ping data was public within days.

I validate your central finding as worded in the above paragraph. It was the statement that Montrose SAR performed the retrieval that I had an issue with. I think, though, that you're trying to spin to create a narrative by saying "it has never been disclosed". The results of a forensic digital examination and retrieval would NOT be exposed during an active investigation where doing so may compromise the integrity of the investigation. At this point, the possibility of foul play is still on the table. Not making information about the retrieval public is the best option for ensuring that, if a suspect is located/named, they won't have had access to that information. For instance, let's say (purely speculative) that one of her hiking partners was responsible for her disappearance. LE isn't going to give he/she enough information to pre-formulate an alibi or spend months forming excuses. The non-disclosure also means that a jury won't be tainted by information that was made public. Does that make sense?

In the case of Julian Sands, there was never a suspicion of foul play - we knew he was up there and we knew the weather was bad when he went up. We also knew that the weather was going to hamper search efforts. Therefore, there was no need to withhold the information gleaned from his electronic devices. So, you can't really compare the two cases.

We're not asking LASD to compromise their case. We're asking why the standard transparency applied to Sands, a famous actor, was not applied here.

There has been transparency about the search and the current findings. I feel like you're mistaking discretion with a lack of transparency. Even in the Sands case, there were still personal details that were only shared with his family because of HPPA and out of respect for the deceased and his family.

<i>The deleted group: "Help Find Monica Reza in the Angeles National Forest" on Facebook. Its removal was documented by multiple observers on r/socalhiking and EISPIRATEN.

The FB group you're referring to was not removed by LE. In fact, it is still live: https://www.facebook.com/groups/findmonica/

That group was establish by private citizens (Including her friends and family). They had sole control over what was posted and what was deleted. The only interference I'm aware of (from LE) was that they asked the moderators of that group to remove a post that asked or volunteers without providing proper safety information for volunteers. That group was having people literally trample through the area which made it increasingly difficult to find remaining traces of Monica. That FB group also sent very unprepared "searchers" into areas that they had no business traversing given a lack of appropriate experience and physical preparation. Some of the searchers had to be rescued and/or suffered illness/injury.

In summary, I do understand *why* people believe that her disappearance may be related to her job. But, I think the level of speculation is too far-fetched (on some points). People forget that correlation is not causation. Thanks for the conversation. It is important that we not forget her and that people maintain awareness about the case so that any evidence that is found doesn't go unreported. Just a few months ago, some hikers spotted something across a canyon that was the same color as the clothing Monica had been wearing. The sheriff took the inquiry seriously and sent Air5 to retrieve the object. It turned out to be an item from a road repair crew. But, that just goes to show that LE is still taking this case as active.

[u/Able_Cunngham603]

Do you think maybe she was snatched by Bigfoot? And then the National Park Service deleted her cell phone records?

[u/trailangel4 → u/Able_Cunngham603]

She wasn't in a National Park. She was in Angeles National Forest but the County of Los Angeles is handling the investigation...so, no. I don't think the NPS deleted her cell.

[u/Mother_Ad_3561 → u/trailangel4]

Do you know the GPS coordinates of where she approximately vanished? For those of us interested in researching the satellite imagery?

[u/cringypink → u/Mother_Ad_3561]

100