Utah Couple Claim to Have Seen Missing PA Woman

Joanne Bauer

Joanne Bauer

Published August 15, 2014 2:00 pm
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susan1 HEBER, Utah (EYT) — Sources say there is possibly a new lead in the search for Susan Bachman, the woman who has been missing since July 4, 2014. A Utah couple claim to have given her a ride.

According to a published article in ksl.com, a Utah couple claim they saw 37-year-old Susan Bachman on August 10 around 6:30 a.m.

They told authorities they gave a woman who was walking along U.S. Route 40 a ride who matched the description of Susan.

According to sources, the Utah woman said the female identified herself as “Susan” from Pennsylvania and that she was traveling home.

When the couple dropped off the woman, she was heading eastbound.

It wasn’t until the following morning that the couple saw a story about Susan Bachman on ksl.com.

Earlier this month, employees at a Pilot Flying J in Indiana immediately recognized Susan as a woman who had caused a disturbance at their store on July 11.

Details of the incident at Pilot Flying J in Gary, Indiana:

According to sources, a truck driver picked Susan up in Pennsylvania at a truck stop off of I-80, and gave her a ride to a truck stop near Gary, Indiana. Susan wanted to continue heading west, but this driver was now turning south, so he dropped her off.

Sources say Susan was causing a disturbance at this truck stop, insisting that other truck drivers give her a ride westbound. The drivers asked the security guard on site for assistance. The security guard had a fifteen minute discussion with Susan and then required her to leave the property.

The security guard clearly recalls the incident. During that shift, he wrote it up as an incident report, as required for any time he requires someone to leave the property. When the security guard asked the woman who caused the disturbance on July 11 to provide ID, she said that she did not have ID, and refused to give her name. (This is consistent with the fact that Susan had discarded her wallet in Brookville, Pa.)

The woman had bruising on her lower arms (consistent with Susan having jumped out of her parent’s car on July 4). The wounds did not appear to be fresh – they were beginning to scab over (consistent with Susan’s jump happening one week earlier).

The security guard asked the woman if the truck driver had harmed her, and she said no. When he offered to call the police or get her medical treatment, she refused.

Susan left the property and was last seen walking towards other truck stops in the local area: a Blue Ox and a TA truck stop.

According to sources, the disturbance was not reported to law enforcement at the time because the woman did not commit any crime and left the premises after being asked to do so. At the time, the truck stop had not yet received the flyer.

In an effort to locate Susan on their own, Bill and Nancy, her parents, are traveling across the United States looking for her.

They have been posting updates on the trip on the following social media listed below — Facebook, Twitter, and the website:

https://www.facebook.com/findsusanbachman

https://twitter.com/FindSusanBach

https://www.findsusanbachman.com/

Anyone who sees Susan is asked to contact their local police.

The incident began around 8:30 a.m. on July 4, when 37-year-old Susan Bachman, of Centre County, jumped out of a car near mile marker 77 on Interstate 80 West.susan-bachman

Authorities say the car was travelling approximately 65 MPH.

She survived the bail-out and disappeared into the woods next to the highway.

She was being driven by her father, William Bachman, to an appointment at the Clarion Psychiatric Hospital.

According to sources, Ms. Bachman was experiencing a psychotic episode and was possibly suicidal or at risk of hurting herself.

The State Police responded with numerous search teams including firefighters from Jefferson County, bloodhounds, search and rescue teams, and a police helicopter. The search continued for five hours but she was not found.

On July 7, more than 60 volunteers, including the members of Track & Trail Search and Rescue, participated in a noon search for Susan. The search was unsuccessful.

On July 12-13, the family of Susan Bachman engaged Sarah Platts, Director of VK9SAR, an organization that provides Scent Specific K9 Search Support.

The team of Sarah Platts and her trailing dog Sam was able to trail Susan’s path from her last known location, the barn where she dropped her cellphone and wallet, to Route 28 Southbound, heading towards Pittsburgh.

It is believed that after she jumped out of the moving car, she hitched a ride on 322 westbound in Brookville, and that the vehicle turned south on Route 994 and then south on Route 28.

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