by Robert Scott
But before visiting the friend in Mesa, Gabe had other business to take care of first. Jessica recalled, “He was driving around and it was a relatively new little shopping area. And we thought it was kind of ironic because there were a lot of police cars around, like they were on a break together. He drove around several times and circled and then stopped the car and got out. And when he came back, he gave me a whole bunch of cash and told me to count it. And there was like three hundred dollars.” By now, Gabe was so audacious or crazy, he robbed a business in an area where there were police cars in the parking lot.
After that, Jessica continued, “We called my friend’s house from a grocery store, once we were in Mesa. Gabe told me to tell them we were coming from Louisiana and going to California. Going to San Diego. And that was our story. We were just traveling through and needed a place to stay for the night. And so we did, and Kalea was able to play with their daughter.”
Once again, Gabe should have kept his mouth shut. Instead, he rambled on about secret ops missions and working for the government. Jessica did nothing to keep him from talking about those kinds of things.
Jessica related, “The next morning, we got up and drove again, and there were lots of border patrols around, so we decided to head a little bit north.” This took them up I-17 to Flagstaff, Arizona. From there, they headed east on I-40, through Winslow by the Painted Desert and the Petrified Forest.
“We were driving all day and into the night, and Gabe talked about heading up to Mount Rushmore in South Dakota.” Just why he wanted to go there remained a mystery. “And we were heading toward Colorado, but then I realized a friend of mine I talked about was out of the way in Grand Junction, Colorado. That was back west. So we decided to head east. We drove all day and night, heading across New Mexico to Albuquerque.”
They drove past Gallup, the Malpais Badlands and through Grants. With a journey to Mount Rushmore now out of Gabe’s plans, he next thought of a girl he knew from the Internet, with whom he played Perfect World. She lived in Michigan. With that in mind, it became their next destination, even though it was more than one thousand miles away.
During this time period, law enforcement was trying to figure out exactly where Gabe, Jessica and Kalea were, and where they were headed. What they didn’t know was that Gabe and his family were now heading due east on I-40. This took them across the Pecos River and into the Panhandle of Texas. It was a bleak wintry landscape out on the plains, and the family lived on fast food and little sleep. In fact, Jessica remembered, “I was dragging at that time, and I fell asleep at the wheel. So I kept pulling over so that we wouldn’t crash and die.”
The one thing that kept pushing them onward on this marathon trek was the knowledge of what was being left behind in Oregon. The road took them onward to Amarillo, Texas, and Oklahoma City. From there, they began to veer northeast on the Will Rogers Turnpike across Oklahoma. Then it was on I-44 to St. Louis, Missouri.
The murders made front-page news in Blackfoot, Idaho, where Jessica’s parents lived. The Blackfoot Morning News initially reported a few details of the murders and described Gabriel Morris as a “dangerous double-homicide suspect.” It showed a photo of Gabe and Jessica and related that Jessica was a “material witness” in the case. The article stated that Gabe might have two handguns with him and should be considered armed and dangerous. Then it gave out phone numbers to call, including one to an Oregon State Police tip line.
What the Morning News didn’t know yet was that law enforcement was so concerned that Gabe might be headed to Blackfoot, Idaho, to harm Bill and Rita Pope, they had that couple leave town. Only later would Bill relate, “When we got to our daughter’s house in Boise, we ended up outside with officers around us with guns drawn because they had the home under surveillance and saw our car pull up with Blackfoot plates.” Gabe, of course, had borrowed one of Bill Pope’s pickups and it had Blackfoot, Idaho, plates on it as well. After the cold-blooded murders of Robin Anstey and Bob Kennelly, the police were taking no chances.
The article went on to say that the Morrises might be heading to Seattle, Salem, Portland or San Diego, where they were known to have friends. Readers were cautioned not to try and confront this couple directly, but to call police immediately if the silver Ford Taurus they were known to be driving was spotted. And then it gave out the Oregon license plate number.
The next day’s edition of the Morning News had little in the way of new information, except to state that Jessica had suddenly disappeared from her job at Bandon Bookkeeping. And DA Paul Frasier was quoted as saying, “The Morrises were up to their eyebrows in credit card debt. They had returned to Oregon to declare bankruptcy.”
In a later local edition, Jessica’s parents had given the newspaper a more recent photo of Jessica and Kalea. Rita Pope stated that she wanted people to know that Jessica looked different than the older photos being shown around the country.
Rita stated, “Jessica weighs forty pounds less now and her hair is cut about chin length. She doesn’t wear makeup. She will probably be wearing glasses and she has a two-inch scar in the middle of her neck from a serious sledding accident when she was thirteen years old.”
The photo provided depicted a smiling Jessica, wearing glasses, and Kalea, who beamed for the camera. It was obviously taken in happier days for the family.
Authorities were giving out a little bit more information to the newspapers, and The World noted, SHOOTING FUGITIVES HEAD EAST. The article related that investigators had tracked the missing trio to Mesa, Arizona, via San Diego. DA Frasier added that the pattern of travel indicated that they might be heading for Louisiana or Florida, where Gabe had family.
Because of the nationwide search for Gabe, Jessica and Kalea, America’s Most Wanted television program agreed to run a segment about them. Part of the reason was a fear of what Gabe might do to Jessica and Kalea if he felt backed into a corner. Rita Pope said, “I pray this will help them be found.”
A film crew from America’s Most Wanted went out to Coos County, Oregon, and filmed a segment of the show. During the filming, DA Paul Frasier let it be known, “My biggest concern with the case right now is the safety of Jessica Morris and Kalea. I am very much concerned about what might happen if there is some confrontation at gunpoint, if the police should find them.”
And Frasier told a reporter that America’s Most Wanted gave the case nationwide exposure, which was needed. “We’ll take every little bit of help we can get,” he said. And he added about the Morrises’ unknown journey that if they were trying to cross into Mexico, customs agents and border patrol agents had been given information about them. Then he related, “If they were trying to cross the border, they could have done so in San Diego.”
Based on perhaps a surveillance video from Mesa, Arizona, where Jessica was just sitting in the car, while Gabe went inside a convenience store, Frasier stated, “I do not believe, based on that, she is being held as a hostage.”
A later issue of the Morning News ran the headline FAMILY ASKS WHERE IS FBI? It noted that days had passed since the murders in Oregon and the Morrises had gone on the run. Rita Pope told a reporter, “We have never heard from the FBI, so our family contacted them last week and asked them what they were doing to find Kalea. We were really surprised when they told us they weren’t involved.”
That news was stunning in light of the fact that law enforcement had proof that the Morrises had headed out of state. The FBI had much greater expertise and resources in cases like these that crossed state lines.
The Popes were also disappointed in the tips that had been generated by the recent segment about the case on America’s Most Wanted. They worried that the Winter Olympics had drawn many viewers away from that program. By week two of the ordeal, they were no closer to knowing where Gabe, Jessica and Kalea were than when they’d first been told about the incident.
The Popes’ contacting the FBI worked, however. Within a short period of time, that agency issued a federal arrest warr
ant for Gabriel Morris on charges of unlawful flight to avoid prosecution. This was on top of the Oregon arrest warrant, already in effect.
Bill Pope told a reporter, “Gabe has succeeded in completely isolating Jess from us. We were very concerned about her and Kalea (before the murders). We had just talked to Robin, Gabe’s mom, before all this happened.”
Rita Pope was sure that the murders had something to do with all of Gabe’s financial problems. And she surmised he had talked Jessica into fleeing with him, and taking Kalea along, because he’d convinced Jessica that bad people would “get them” concerning those financial problems. Rita said, “I know that Jessica would do anything to protect her daughter. Kalea is just like Jessica. She is vivacious and fun. She was almost raised here with us. We have to get her back safely. We know that if we can find Kalea, we will find Jessica.”
Rita also let it be known that Jessica had an asthma problem and might be without an inhaler. For that reason, Rita thought that law enforcement agencies should keep tabs on hospitals and medical clinics, where Jessica might show up.
Because of the fear that Gabe might still be heading out to Idaho to harm various members of Jessica’s family, all of those individuals were now under police protection. Bingham County sheriff Dave Johnson told a reporter, “At this point, we are going to continue checking the different residences. We will make sure that everything is sound. Our concern is still the same today as it was the first day. The situation hasn’t changed.”
Since Jessica was going to be taken in for questioning as a material witness when the trio was found, Bill Pope let it be known that he and his wife would take custody of Kalea as soon as that occurred. In the meantime, all he and Rita could do was pray, hope and wait. He said, “It’s out of our hands now.”
Rita Pope’s information was not only being disseminated in the Idaho media, but in Oregon media as well. She said about Jessica, “She loves her husband. I know she does or she wouldn’t be with him. But I don’t think she knows what he did. And our baby granddaughter is in the middle of it, and I’m afraid we won’t see her again.”
In a different interview, Fred Pope said, “I spoke with Jessica one week before the shooting. I asked her if she was all right and she said that she was, but I could tell in her voice that things weren’t right.”
Rita added, “If Gabe did this to his mother, I’m sure that he didn’t tell Jessica that he did it. I’m sure that he told her, ‘Somebody else did it to my mom, and they’re coming after us, and we’ve got to get out of here.’” Rita was right on target with this remark.
And around this time, the people in the Bandon area had a new revelation through the media. It was the first time they heard about the Morrises’ connection to the Eschlers. The World ran a story with the headline COQUILLE MAN GAVE FUGITIVE GUN. The article related that Gabe had once dated the Eschlers’ daughter and had gone to their church. Gabe and family had shown up on the evening of February 8 with a story of terrorists, murders and working for the government. The article went on to relate about Gabe’s request for .40-caliber ammunition, Fred giving him a 9mm Beretta handgun and loaning him his car. Also in the article were references to the Morrises’ financial woes.
A reporter wanted to know if DA Frasier was going to file charges against Fred Eschler. Frasier responded, “I don’t see how I can. He didn’t know about the murders.” And as far as Jessica Morris went, Frasier explained his reason for a material witness warrant. “Just because you are at the scene of a crime doesn’t mean you’re guilty of a crime. I don’t know what she knows. I can’t charge her with anything until I know what she knows.”
By now, the Coos County Sheriff’s Office had the story up on their website. They also let the Popes know that if Gabe, Jessica and Kalea weren’t tracked down before Saturday, February 20, another segment would air on America’s Most Wanted. Justin Pope, Jessica’s brother, reacted to this by saying, “This is such great news for our family. If we can start to get some national attention, hopefully, we will be able to find my sister and Kalea.”
Unfortunately, much of the nation was still glued to their television screens watching the Winter Olympics. And despite law enforcement’s concerns that Gabe might be heading to Idaho to harm members of Jessica’s family, he was, in fact, more than a thousand miles away, heading in another direction.
CHAPTER 20
One of the constants in Gabe’s life was that he was addicted to online video games. That was particularly true of the game Perfect World. And this addiction actually helped him in keeping one step ahead of the law. Most investigators believed he might be heading to some relative’s home in either Louisiana or Florida. In fact, Gabe was using a network of people he played online video games with to make his cross-country journey.
The route from St. Louis took them on I-70, across the Mississippi River, through Illinois, and to Indianapolis, Indiana. They headed from there onto I-69 to Fort Wayne, Indiana, and into Michigan. Jessica recalled, “I tried to make it so when we arrived in Michigan, it would be morning, and we wouldn’t need a place to stay.”
Jessica recalled, “We were looking for a library, where he could get on a computer, but I think it was a Sunday and we couldn’t find one that was open. We were driving though Detroit and asking for directions. Gabe had me stop at a comic book store and he asked a guy there where he could get online. And the guy said that a library was open down the street. So Kalea and I dropped Gabe off there and we went to get some gas, and then we went back and picked him up. He said he had sent an e-mail to someone named Judy, who lived in Virginia. And she responded right back to him with her phone number. And he said that he would give her a call, and then he and I and Kalea went and ate dinner. Afterward, we went and found a telephone and he got the number for the lady in Michigan and she didn’t want to help us.” In fact, this “lady” was only in her midteens, but Jessica probably didn’t know that. In essence, they had driven all the way to Michigan for nothing.
Jessica continued, “So Gabe called Judy back and asked if we could come down there to Virginia and meet her and her husband. And she said yes. So we got on the road to Virginia. I started begging at places for gas money.”
The route took them across Ohio. Jessica recounted their experience there: “We were in a residential neighborhood. We pulled off on an exit, and I didn’t know what he was going to do. He stopped and pulled out the gun, and there was an embankment and a house, and he shot at the embankment. He shot three times. Then we got back on the interstate and he was driving. And a police car went by really fast with its lights on. And Gabe said, ‘See, that policeman is now going to where we just were.’ He said it was so the police wouldn’t be where we were going.”
This was just one more example of Gabe’s irrational behavior. All it did was alert police to the fact that someone had discharged a gun illegally in a residential neighborhood.
From Ohio, the route took them to Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, and on the Pennsylvania Turnpike to 1-70, through Maryland and finally Washington, D.C. Judy’s house was right across the Potomac River, in Dumfries, Virginia.
Judy recalled, “Gabe called to arrange a meeting and he was calling from a 703 area code. He said that he was in Arlington, Virginia, and we arranged to meet at an Uno’s restaurant in Woodbridge, Virginia. We went there and waited there forever, and he called back a couple of hours after we got there. He asked where we were, and we said we were waiting for him at Uno’s.”
Jessica said about all of this, “We called them in D.C. and they gave us directions, and we didn’t know where it was. We took a wrong road. So we drove down into a neighborhood and there was a guy who was standing there waiting for a bus. And Gabe asked him if he needed a ride, and so we gave him a ride. And we dropped him off at a roundabout near a hotel or something.
“We pulled off at an exit too soon, and we were lost and ended up driving around for three hours while Judy waited with her husband at the place they told us about. And we finally found
it. And we went to a wrong one and Gabe called Judy. So Kalea and I went and used a restroom, and when we came back, Gabe said they were at a place about forty-five minutes away. And we finally found it.”
Gabe had gone to Uno in Manassas, Virginia, by mistake. They had been waiting for Judy Ward and Doug Miller (pseudonym) to show up there. Finally realizing his mistake, he drove Jessica and Kalea to the restaurant in Woodbridge.
Jessica recalled of the first meeting, “Judy and Doug were sitting at the bar when we walked in. And so we sat down and Gabe started talking to them. And Kalea kept saying, ‘Mommy, I’m hungry.’ And I went looking for and found some peanuts, so we started eating peanuts.”
When Gabe and his family first met Judy and Doug, Judy recalled, “They had nothing. They just barely had the clothes on their backs. And at the restaurant, we talked a lot about God and helping people. And he said there was another girl in the game that he had talked to, and she was just sixteen years old. And Gabe said he wanted to protect her because her parents were in the process of a divorce, and he got the impression that they didn’t care about her. He drew out my compassion about this. And Gabe and his family needed a place to stay for a week.”
Despite barely knowing Gabe, except on the Internet, Judy and Doug agreed. The Morrises came over to Judy and Doug’s nice suburban home in Dumfries. It was a house that Doug’s mom was letting them live in.