Akia Eggleston with her daughter.
The father of a missing pregnant mother’s unborn child has been arrested and charged with killing them both — nearly five years after the Maryland woman disappeared.
Neither she nor the child have turned up since then.
“For nearly five years the people of Baltimore have searched, hoped and mourned with Akia’s family and friends, but they never gave up, and neither did we,“Thomas J. Sobocinski, the special agent in charge of the FBI’s Baltimore office, said in anews releaseannouncing Robertson’s arrest. “We hope this arrest serves as a reminder that time does not deter law enforcement efforts and our persistence to find truth and justice.”
In the probable cause statement, authorities allege that hours after withdrawing $450 in cash from the bank on May 3, Eggleston — at the time a single mom with a 2-year-old daughter — halted her frequent social media posts and contacts, including contact with her daughter.
Cellphone data, text messages and other evidence tracked the movements of Robertson and Eggleston in what prosecutors allege were her final hours on that day. Robertson also was in contact during that time with the mother of his other two children.
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Eggleston’s family members who joined law enforcement officials at the news conference included her aunt, Sanobia Wilson. “In my mind, he has always been a suspect. The eyes were definitely on him,” she said, reports WBAL. “We do believe that he did it, he made her disappear.”
According to the probable cause statement: “Multiple searches for Eggleston’s remains have been conducted in several areas of Baltimore with negative results. Based on her pattern of life, the time passed, extensive publicity, multiple searches, and monetary reward for information in this case, the fact that Eggleston has not returned to her family or been electronically or physically located overwhelmingly indicates that she is in fact, deceased.”
The statement added: “Investigation revealed the only person with the motive, means, and opportunity to murder Eggleston was the purported father of her unborn child, Michael Robertson.”
Eggleston’s stepfather, Shawn Wilkinson, welcomed news of the arrest.
“We’d like to say, domestic violence is real and when it happens, we need to address it. It is not the answer and there’s always an alternative,” he said at the news conference. “The family seeks justice in Akia’s case. It has affected so many relationships and we will continue to stand united as a family until the final judgment in this case has been rendered.”
An attorney for Robertson, who is awaiting extradition from Michigan and being held on a $200,000 bond, was not immediately identified. He faces a maximum penalty of two life sentences in prison if found guilty on two counts of first-degree murder.
If you are experiencing domestic violence, call the National Domestic Violence Hotline at1-800-799-7233, or go tothehotline.org. All calls are toll-free and confidential. The hotline is available 24/7 in more than 170 languages.
source: people.com
