Friday, March 24, 2017

Hidden Forest Service Campground: A Crime Haven with a View

Bromen's SUV used in getaway

The fallout from the "Missing Minnesota girl" unfolds 


it's now known that Jon Bromen, the "wanted criminal" who kept Claire Cooney and her mother for 10 days in an "out of the way" forest service campground in Monroe County, was caught because of a "dead battery" which forced him to leave his campsite and walk down Hwy 68 seeking help.


Why did the trio go un-noticed for a week and a half by Forest Service Law Enforcement? The District USFS ranger would have noticed "something wasn't right" if he had taken the time to drive in one of the secluded campground areas just off Joe Brown Rd. The same USFS campground area that a drifter from Alabama made his base of operations for several weeks. 

A man, woman, and child living in their vehicle in one of the coldest weeks of the year: you can bet would have raised a "red flag" for experienced USFS Agent Shawn Reece--who likely would have immediately gotten on the radio and called Monroe County Sheriff Dispatch for a 10-29 check on the vehicle and it's occupants. That's "IF" he had driven in the secluded campground areas--which have become less and less user-friendly over the past few years; it's almost as if they hope that the  large pot-holes on the road, the garbage, and lack of mowing will discourage use of this facility. 

If not for Scott Williams, who recognized the wandering Minnesotans on Hwy 68--the case may have had a sad outcome. See how Bromen was captured HERE