Her disappearance sparked a massive search and garnered attention across the Miami Valley and beyond. Kettering police never closed the case, with efforts ongoing to find Erica and bring closure to her family and the community.
Kettering police detective Amy Pedro took over Erica’s case in October 2023, getting familiar with thousands of pages of digitized case records and tips.
Her first priority was to find Christian Gabriel. She was able to quickly found him in Roseburg, Oregon, where he had gotten arrested for an assault there.
Gabriel and his then-girlfriend Jan Franks in July 1999 were identified as possible suspects in Erica’s disappearance. Franks died of a drug overdose in 2001. A few years later, in 2004, Gabriel contacted Kettering detectives and confessed to hitting Erica with his van on Glengarry Drive near the intersection of Powhattan Drive and burying her.
Gabriel served six years in prison for gross abuse of a corpse and tampering with evidence. He was released in 2011. Gabriel said because he and his passenger, Franks, had established criminal records, he put Erica inside the vehicle and took off instead of calling for help.
Even though he is more than 2,400 miles away in Oregon, he is not out of reach of police in Kettering.
“We want him to know that we’re still on his heels and that we’re trying to locate Erica. He knows where she is and he has chosen not to tell us,” Pedro said.
Credit: Staff File Photo
Credit: Staff File Photo
Police know that Gabriel has at least one relative in Texas, and want to get the word out that they are interested in talking to anyone who knows Gabriel now or who knew him or spoke to him around the time of Erica’s disappearance and years after, Pedro said.
“(Erica’s) family, they still don’t have closure,” the detective said. “We just want to bring her home.”
Another big part of investigating Erica’s disappearance involves a partnership with nonprofit search and recovery team Equusearch Midwest, which Pedro said has provided the resources to dig in areas where tips indicated her remains could be. Since Pedro acquired the case, there have been digs in December 2003, several in 2004 and most recently earlier this year, she said.
Anyone with information on Erica’s disappearance, who knows or knew Gabriel or who knew Franks or someone who did is asked to contact Pedro at 937-296-2460. People can remain anonymous by calling Miami Valley Crime Stoppers at 937-222-STOP (7867) or online at MiamiValleyCrimeStoppers.com and be eligible for a cash reward.
Staff writers Kristen Spicker and Holly Souther contributed to this report.
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