Inmate charged in case of girl missing for six years

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By Associated Press

Published: 02/07/2005

An Ohio grand jury has indicted a prison inmate on charges of abuse of a corpse and tampering with evidence in the case of a girl missing since she took her dog for a walk six years ago.
The charges were the first in the investigation into the disappearance of Erica Baker, 9.
The inmate, Christian John Gabriel, 33, of Springfield, was not charged with a homicide, said Montgomery County Prosecutor Mathias Heck Jr., who announced the indictment Friday.
Nearly 400 volunteers searched and passed out fliers door to door after Erica disappeared Feb. 7, 1999, after leaving her home in suburban Kettering. Police set up traffic checkpoints, and a pond was drained and creeks were dragged. No trace of the girl was found.
"The grand jury has come to the conclusion that she is deceased," said Leon Daidone, assistant Montgomery County prosecutor.
He said investigators do not know where the girl's body is and hope to locate it as the investigation continues.
Carley Ingram, assistant Montgomery County prosecutor, said Gabriel is accused of disposing of the body. She said the evidence suggests that Gabriel was the driver or passenger in a van that struck Erica.
Police have investigated thousands of leads, and Erica's family set up a recovery center to field tips and coordinate searches.
"We have all been working so hard, and we're all so drained," said Greg Baker, Erica's father.
He said he needs to know where his daughter's body is.
"This is the next step in getting her home," he said. "That's the next question. What did they do with her?"
Gabriel is an inmate at Southeastern Correctional Institution, near Lancaster, and is serving a nine-month sentence for receiving stolen property. He was brought to Dayton in December to be questioned about the Baker case.
Heck said the grand jury heard testimony from 10 witnesses over five days.

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