Holly Suzanne Courtier Conspiracy Theories: Sheriff Says Lost Zion Hiker's Story 'Doesn't Make Sense'
This doesn't really add up...
YouTube Holly Suzanne Courtier, a 38-year-old Woodland Hills, California resident, was found alive in Utah’s Zion National Park nearly two weeks after she was reported missing.
Courtier had recently lost her job as a nanny due to the coronavirus pandemic and was reportedly traveling around to national parks in her converted camper.
However, when she failed to return home, her family suspected the worst.
On Sunday, Oct. 18, search and rescue crews found Courtier — alive and well — and she was reunited with her family.
But now that it's been a few days since her return, her story isn't totally adding up and park officials say "it doesn't make sense."
Holly Suzanne Courtier conspiracy theories:
Read on to see what people are saying about what really happened to Holly Suzanne Courtier.
When did Holly Suzanne Courtier go missing?
Let’s take a look at everything that’s happened so far in this bizarre search-and-rescue case.
Courtier was reported missing by her family on Oct. 6. Twelve days after her disappearance, search and rescue crews were able to locate the former nanny based on tips from fellow parkgoers.
“Based upon a credible tip, Law Enforcement Officers found her in a thickly vegetated area along the Virgin River. She was able to leave of her own capability with minimal assistance,” part of a statement by Zion National Park spokesperson Amanda Rowland read.
However, Courtier’s daughter, Kailey Chambers, told a different story of her mom’s dramatic rescue.
"Early in her trip into Zion, she injured her head on a tree. She was very disoriented as a result and thankfully ended up near a water source — a river bed," Chambers said in a statement. "She thought her best chance of survival was to stay next to a water source."
"She was too weak and disoriented (to seek help)," Chambers continued. "She was unable to take more than a step or two without collapsing. This prevented her from being able to seek out help. She told me she was so dehydrated she couldn't open her mouth."
But a sheriff involved in the matter has his doubts.
Washington County Sheriff’s Search and Rescue Sgt. Darrell Cashin isn’t so quick to believe Chambers’ side of the story, though.
Cashin said that his seasoned search and rescue team had “searched the high elevations, the valley and every trail possible” while looking for Courtier.
They also used drone and GPS tracking to compile and keep track of all the data of where they searched.
Once Cashin heard Chambers’ version of her mom’s rescue, he began to question the validity of what actually happened.
“Was she that bad or was she not?” he said. “This doesn’t make sense. They (the Zion team) apparently talked to her and felt she was okay to be released to the family.”
“Had she been drinking that [river] water, she would be extremely ill or passed on by now. If she did have a good water source, what was it?” he questioned, adding that the Virgin River still has active cyanobacteria bloom, further indicating that it would likely be impossible she would still be alive after drinking that water.
Social media users have consipracy theories about Holly Suzanne Courtier.
While it’s great news that Courtier is safe and has been reunited with her family, some Reddit users are questioning what really happened to the missing hiker.
“Honestly, when I first watched the news video of her daughter being worried, something felt very off about it,” one user wrote.
“Now she is back with zero to little details being provided by anyone other than the family and they've raised $10,000 on a GoFundMe? And she got lost on an extremely busy part of a decently small, busy NP?” they added.
Another Reddit user said, “Based on where she was last seen and where she was found, there is no way she was there for 2 weeks, without anyone seeing her. I have been there 4 times and that area is extremely crowded. Something is fishy with this story.”
One Instagram user suggested that Courtier’s disappearance could have been because of a lover.
“Of course, if she eloped with a lover having a romantic sexy time, that’s least of my concerns but if she got attacked then we deserve to know. I’m with you on this!” they wrote on Courtier’s sister’s Instagram post.
Courtier's family's behavior is just as fishy.
Courtier's sister, whose name on Instagram in Jillian Megan, even tagged her whole family in the above Instagram post — including Holly, whose Instagram profile is on private.
One Reddit user provided a screenshot of an Instagram conversation between Courtier’s sister and someone asking how she survived for so long, which you can see here.
Courtier’s sister ended the Instagram exchange with, “Feel free to check out my Instagram for any updates,” which adds a whole new layer to social media users’ theories that this whole thing may be a scam for publicity or for money.
Courtier's daughter, Kailey Chambers, also flaunted some suspicious behavior on Instagram.
When her mom went missing, she was posting photos with updates to her almost 2000 followers.
However, when her mother was found, she didn't post an update informing people of the good news. Her last post was on Oct.16, which was a photo of her mom and a caption that read in part, "The rangers are still searching for her and have a drone up in the air through the weekend. I put full faith in God that he will bring my mom home."
"Mom - we are going to find you we aren’t giving up. Please go to https://helpfindholly.com for all updates, ways you can help and donate."
Furthermore, Chambers even has a highlight reel of Zion National Park that was added to her profile just four weeks ago, and a picture of her mom that she posted was of the pair in — you guessed it — Zion National Park.
Whatever the circumstances are, one thing is clear: the story of Holly Suzanne Courtier’s disappearance and subsequent rescue is as murky as the Virgin River she was found next to.
Olivia Jakiel is an editor and writer who covers celebrity and entertainment news. Follow her on Instagram and keep up with her zingers on Twitter.