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By Steve Huff in missing persons, unsolved
Sunday, Dec. 28 2008 @ 9:56PM
jseitz.jpgMissing Norwegian Pearl passenger Jennifer Ellis Seitz was a freelance writer who had struggled with weight issues in the past and been married twice in the last two years. Jennifer was on the Pearl with her new husband Raymond Seitz and an older woman named Donna Ellis. Ellis is Jennifer's maiden name, so it seems likely that Donna is her mother.

Jennifer Seitz married Michael Rich on June 5, 2005, but the marriage clearly didn't last long. By early 2008, she was married to Raymond Seitz.

Jennifer and Raymond were both members of ObesityHelp.com. There they each kept diaries of the run-up to their respective lap band surgeries. Jennifer actually had two -- diary 1, diary 2. Both were clearly the work of someone accustomed to expressing herself, and were filled with wit and hope. Raymond had his own diary here, and it was more terse and to the point, as well as reflecting his devotion to Nascar, particularly racer Dale Earnhardt Jr. In a note near the bottom of the diary, Raymond wrote about Jennifer:

When I started this journey in august 2002 I would have never dreamed that I would have been this succesfull I did everything I am suppose to and still do I take my vitamins and get my blood work done reguarally It always comes back awesome my doctor said I have deffinatally done well so hurray for me Thanks to all who have helped me along the way and expecially my surgery and lifelong friend Jen Ellis ( who by the way is such a hottie and has done wonderfull for herself)...
The story of Jennifer's disappearance from the Norwegian Pearl on December 26 is still confusing and full of holes. Several people claiming to have been on the cruise have left comments on a previous entry about the disappearance. Some of the comments are quoted  (or partially quoted) below:

Kiran: My husband and I just disembarked from the "Norwegian Pearl" today; the same cruise that this woman was on.

While watching the evening news in our state room a couple of nights ago, we were shocked to learn of the possibility that a woman had fallen overboard.

It is odd that no announcement of the incident was made by the cruise staff. It seems as though they would have made it public, posted a photo of the woman, and asked guests for any infomration they may have had regarding the passenger on the evening and early morning of her disaapearance.

The whole ship just went about its activities oblivious to the tradegy. Word spread among some guests during our last day. Everyone we spoke with shared the same suprise that no announcement was made and at the lack of any attempt on the part of NCL to gather information regarding the incident.

My heart goes out to the her family. I hope they find her.

Adam Bercovici: I also just got off the Norwiegan Pearl early this morning. The way the ship handled the situation was absolutely dispicable. We were not notified of the situation to see if we could have helped. After asking around to a number of people, I found a family from Louisiana who said that they were directly one floor under the alleged room and heard loud screaming around 8:00pm on Christmas Day, the day we left Cozumel on track to the private cruise island in the Bahamas. The family told us that they called security because they distinctly heard the words "stop hitting me" but that security did nothing in response to their inquiry. Why would it take the husband 6 hours to report his wife missing??? The cruise also should have sent some security personnel over to the room immediately after they were notified. There were many other problems with the Norweigan Pearl that would make me never want to go back but I think this one clinches it...

rachelle: i was on the ship and there was NO COMPREHENSIVE SEARCH!. we weren't even told she was missing. we found out through cnn. when i asked security about it they said "no comment". wft? cover up....
Another comment was interesting more for who appeared to leave it:

kerry sanders: If you were on the "Pearl" and happened to buy the video "the not-quite-newlywed show" or if you taped it yourself, I'd love to chat with you. Obviously, that tape has some elements which are now highly interesting. Cheers
Kerry Sanders is the name of a well-known correspondent for NBC and the poster left an NBC e-mail address -- in an address format typically known only to NBC staffers and those of us who have reason to write to them. Sanders typically works stories out of Florida -- so it doesn't seem a big stretch to think this was the reporter himself.

Someone calling themselves "Dr. Tara Kent" left the most interesting, but perhaps most questionable comment:

Dr. Tara Kent: My husband and I were among the last eight passengers off the ship today; what can I say, he was lazy? Anyhow in the hallway oblivious to the fact that he was being overheard an FBI Agent was giving report to his superiors and it was startlingly lacking in any as previously mentioned by another "poster" real intensive investigative drive. The Agent stated that they were debriefing the two cabins beside the incident and the one above and below. He also stated that he was debriefing the mother...and a "person of interest" - no mention of the male party present. The only reason I am repeating this is because I work for the DOD in a high security related field and I too am appalled by the way the entire incident was handled to include the last part - giving report in an unsecure area - how sloppy... It'd be real easy to commit suicide aboard - you'd be caught on camera as mentioned...homicide, well that's just a bit harder, but not impossible. Oh, yeah I agree about the comprehensive search - there was NONE!!! Deregulation of the cruise industry...hmmmmm, what a phenomenal idea...

The commenter gave specific, verifiable information and was clearly educated, based on writing style. However, it's easy to doubt anyone who claims to "work for the DOD in a high security field" because it seems like the sort of thing you wouldn't say in a blog comment, especially with a real-sounding name attached. I copied "Dr. Tara Kent's" comment into this post simply because it will either be proven b.s. shortly or become the most interesting post left on the previous blog entry about this case.

Police reportedly have video from the ship of a woman in white clothing -- perhaps a robe -- going overboard on the 26th. This has been reported in a manner that leads one to conclude Jennifer Seitz intended to go overboard. And that possibility should not be dismissed. She struggled a great deal with her weight, and a freelance writer never has it easy, career-wise -- it's often feast or famine. Also, two marriages over the space of 3 years seems odd, and potentially indicative of some instability in Jennifer's life -- the sort of instability that could eventually lead to self-destruction.

But why would Kerry Sanders be interested in a tape such as the one he described above, if that was indeed Mr. Sanders? Typically, he'd be interested because he's all over the story and knows some news is on the way.

Whatever happened the other night in the western Caribbean, it added up to tragedy for those who know and love Jennifer Seitz. The question now is this -- was it a personal tragedy, only dragged into the news because of the exotic locale, or a domestic tragedy and a crime?  We'll probably know very soon. If we don't, you'll be hearing about Jennifer Seitz in the news for many days to come.

**ADDED LATER** Bitten and Bound clarifies information about the video mentioned in a comment by Kerry Sanders:

Ray and Jennifer were participants on a cruise ship game show called "The Not So Newlyweds" where it was learned they have been married for about a year, and had their first date in Orlando, FL.

Thanks to Andrea for the heads-up.

[MSNBC/WESH also: hat-tip to long-time reader Diane for the research and input.]