Rachel Morin – latest: Bel Air mother-of-five’s killer remains at large as Maryland police step up patrols
Harford County Sheriff’s Office said investigators had been made aware of potential witnesses who may have seen Morin on the Ma & Pa trail
The latest headlines from our reporters across the US sent straight to your inbox each weekday
Your briefing on the latest headlines from across the US
Your briefing on the latest headlines from across the US
More than a week after mother-of-five Rachel Morin was found dead on a popular trail in Maryland, authorities have yet to make any arrests in the investigation into her death.
Morin, 37, was last seen heading to the Ma & Pa Trail at around 6pm on 5 August. Her boyfriend reported her missing that night after she failed to return home and her body was found the following day.
On Thursday, Harford County Sheriff’s Office said investigators had been made aware of potential witnesses who may have seen Morin on the Ma & Pa Trail in Bel Air on Saturday. The witnesses – either three men, two women and two dogs or two men, three women and two dogs – were urged to come forward.
Officials said that these individuals had been identified and were contacted by investigators.
A spokesperson for the sheriff’s office told The Independent on Tuesday that the department had increased patrol on the Ma & Pa Trail area to reassure the community in the aftermath of Morin’s tragic death, but noted that there is no perceived threat at this time.
Homicide investigation continues after mother-of-five was found dead
Rachel Morin was last seen alive leaving her home to head to the Ma and Pa Trail in Bel Air, Harford County, at around 6pm on Saturday evening, according to the Harford County Sheriff’s Office.
When the 37-year-old failed to return home that night, her boyfriend called police to report her missing. On Sunday morning, Morin’s vehicle was found at the parking lot close to the entrance of the trail on Williams Street but there was no sign of the missing mother-of-five.
The desperate search turned to tragedy at around 1.07pm on Sunday afternoon when a member of the public discovered the body of a woman off the trail.
In a press conference on Sunday night, Sheriff Jeffrey Gahler announced that the investigation had now changed from a missing persons investigation to a homicide investigation.The cause and manner of death remain unclear and are still under investigation, the sheriff’s office said.
At this time, the sheriff said that police have no suspects.
Sheriff urges the public to keep sending in tips
Harford County Sheriff Jeffery Gahler reiterated that the public should continue sending in tips even if the details may seem insignificant.
“That might be the key piece of evidence of information we are looking for,” the sheriff said.
“Some of your tips have been promising and tremendous in advancing the investigation and bringing us closer to getting the answers that we need, the answers that Rachel’s family needs, and the answers that our community needs.”
WATCH: Rachel Morin's boyfriend speaks out about her death
Report: Rachel Morin’s boyfriend provided DNA sample, cellphone to police
Ms Morin’s boyfriend Richard Tobin reported him missing on Saturday after she failed to return home.
Responding to speculation in the case, Mr Tobin, 27, previously said on a Facebook post that he “would never do anything” to Morin.
A source close to Mr Tobin has since told The Baltimore Banner that he gave his cell phone and a DNA sample to police.
Authorities have not identified any suspects in the investigation.
On Thursday, Harford County Sheriff’s Office said investigators had been made aware of potential witnesses who may have seen Morin on the trail that night. The witnesses – either three men, two women and two dogs or two men, three women and two dogs – were urged to come forward.
Rachel Morin’s mother breaks silence on daughter’s killing
The mother of Rachel Morin has broken her silence with a plea for compassion as the family takes time to grieve the “sudden and tragic” loss of the 37-year-old whose body was found after she vanished while going for a jog on the Ma and Pa Trail in Bel Air.
Maryland police set up tip email in Rachel Morin’s homicide investigation
‘Trail of flowers and light’ planned to honour Rachel Morin’s life
Morin’s family invited members of the community to meet at 11 am on 19 August at the William Street entrance of the Ma and Pa trail.
Attendees will then begin walking to the end of the first half of the trail and back.
“We are hoping to have a “Trail of Flowers and Light” to line both sides of the trail for our walk on the Ma & Pa Trail,” Morin’s sister Rebekah Morin wrote on Facebook. “If you are able to, we ask that you bring flowers and a battery operated candle to lay on either side of the trail somewhere as we walk Rachel’s last steps.”
Who was Rachel Morin?
Ms Morin was originally from Dover, New Hampshire, and was a long-term resident of Bel Air. She was one of five siblings.
Her sister Rebekah, herself a mother of seven children, revealed on a GoFundMe page that the family had been grieving the death of their niece Lily Beth to sudden infant death syndrome just a week earlier.
“It is with devastating sadness and a broken heart that our family has been hit with yet another heartbreak.
“My sister, Rachel Morin went missing on Saturday August 5 2023 around 6pm. In less then 24 hours her body was found by local law enforcement. It has only been a week since my niece Lily Beth passed away from SIDS, and I find that I have to make yet another gofundme to help my mother, Patty Morin with funeral costs.”
Rebekah confirmed that her sister did not have life insurance, and appealed for financial assistance to provide for her five surviving children.
In an update, Rebekah asked for anyone with information to notify law enforcement to “get justice for my sister, her children, her mother and all her siblings”.
On social media, Rachel Morin posted touching photos with her children, selfies at the gym and spending time with friends.
“Rachel was so unabashedly herself: witty and genuine, brilliant, daring, and headstrong. Her spirit would light up the room and her smile was contagious,” her best friend Claudia Brown wrote in a Facebook post after her death.
“Her faith was so strong,”
Rebekah Morin shares heartbreaking poem in memory of slain sister
“Shrouded in grief/Suffocating /In soul crushing/Heartbreak,” Ms Morin wrote in a poem shared on Facebook.. “A pain I know well/And hate/My sister/My friend/Now gone/Alone I am/With my pain/My old friend/The only one/That stays til the end.”
Rachel Morin’s family walks in remembrance of ‘the most beautiful, sweet and loving woman’
Rachel Morin’s family walked the Ma and Pa trail together in silent remembrance of the late mother-of-five, her sister Rebekah Morin wrote on Facebook last week.
“Along the way we placed pictures of her and us her siblings on the trees. I was thinking how beautiful would it be to have flowers along both sides of the trail in remembrance of her!” Ms Morin wrote. “If you would like to place flowers along the way, or take pics of what we put up, we would love to see, please post a picture and use the hashtag #RememberingRachelMorin to honor and remember the most beautiful, sweet and loving woman I have known”
