MI MI - Eric Franks, 40, Buena Vista Twp, 21 March 2011 - #1

[nursebeeme]

eGF originally told Eric's mom circumstances about a time when he was at her house. She tells police that never happened.

that has to be extremely frustrating for his mother! Has she spoken to police about this?

(I would contact state police and let them know this as well)

 

[searchingfamily]

Hi Searching Family! I think EX meant UI (unidentified) vs IU

Hope all is well with you. Have you heard anything from Namus or the State Police? Is there anything we can help you do?

Nothing new from NAMUS - they said communications with BVPD on issues are slow but ongoing.

We could really use help getting those posters up around the motel - we still don't have get an appointment with the detective working the case and thus don't want to come until we get that locked in.

Yesterday was Eric's birthday.

 

[nursebeeme]

happy belated birthday Eric!!!!!!!!

 

[JaimeSommers]

Just finished reading all of the thread posts (so far) and was wondering, Searching, if you know if/where the exGF and husband worked when Eric disappeared. Would be interesting to find out if either of them missed work on the day of or days following his disappearance.

 

[Kiln Wood]

if Eric had a spotty work history, how much in SS benefits would there be for a child? even so they need a body.

I think it was much more likely that he drove off the road (accidentally or otherwise) and died either in a wooded area or in a body of water.

BBM

Reading this reminds me of Gail Nowacki Palmgren. There is another case of WS where I remember reading a car being discovered at the bottom of a lake after the driver apparently mistakenly took a boat launch pad for a road.....

 

[Kiln Wood]

Nothing new from NAMUS - they said communications with BVPD on issues are slow but ongoing.

We could really use help getting those posters up around the motel - we still don't have get an appointment with the detective working the case and thus don't want to come until we get that locked in.
Yesterday was Eric's birthday.

BBM

In your opinion is the lack of an appointment connected to "human resources being stretched too thin" or a reluctance, for one reason or another, to meet with a member (or members) of Eric's family?

Have you or anyone else in the family thought of making your request for a meeting to the town administrator (if there is one) or to the mayor or city council? Another possibility you may want to consider is approaching the editor of the local newspaper and asking this person if he/she has any suggestions for you on how to gain an interview with the BVPD; if you're lucky, this person may look upon your inquiry as a "story" and make such an approach for you. From everything I've read on this thread, you definitely need some help "breaking the ice" with the BVPD!

GOOD LUCK!!!

 

[Moonflowers111]

Was the woods behind Miller's Motel to the railroad tracks ever searched?

 

[webrocket]

BBM

Reading this reminds me of Gail Nowacki Palmgren. There is another case of WS where I remember reading a car being discovered at the bottom of a lake after the driver apparently mistakenly took a boat launch pad for a road.....

it happens all the time. the boat launch case was Bryce Tarter -

http://www.websleuths.com/forums/showthread.php?t=95954&page=12&highlight=bryce

 

[Cazzie]

Happy Birthday (belated), Eric!!! I hope that you will be found soon, and safe! :heart:

 

[Bubblyone]

it happens all the time. the boat launch case was Bryce Tarter -

http://www.websleuths.com/forums/showthread.php?t=95954&page=12&highlight=bryce

I could beleive this, IF the egf had not gone to the motel and cleaned out someone else's belongings, and then to have such conflicting statements from the motel manager and to LE.

Ahhh, it is mentioned that egf told Eric she was going to leave her husband, and then denies it. I think (in my opinion) this was the catalyst for Eric going to Saginaw. Perhaps egf is one of those who always needs a man, and since she has a child with Eric, a sure way to get another man on the hook right away. Could it be that hubby found out, he and Eric get into it (insert your method here) egf, while cleaning up after hubby's mess, goes to the motel to give reason why Eric will not be coming back, and get rid of his things to make it seem more plausible?

As for the Police...I would show up there, and if I got nowhere, I would find the nearest MSP post, file a complaint and see if I could get them moving on it.

 

[LisaB]

Has Eric's family had him declared dead? (from upthread post)

A person cannot be legally declared dead in Michigan until said individual has been missing and presumed deceased for seven years.

There were two high-profile disappearances in recent years where families were kept in limbo for seven years until their loved ones could be declared deceased. One was the disappearance of former Teamster leader, Jimmy Hoffa, who was presumed to have been murdered and his body disposed of so that it would never be found.

The second notable disappearance was restaurateur, Chuck Muer, his wife, and another couple who were believed to have been lost at sea while sailing during a fierce storm near the Bermuda Triangle. The bodies and the boat were never recovered.

While Eric Franks' family has not seen or heard from him for about eighteen months, seven years is a long way off before he could be legally declared dead.

I am sure someone here can answer this...
If the insured disappears, does the policyholder have to continue to pay the premiums until the seven years has elapsed?

 

[Cazzie]

She claims she didn't take his stuff (says he did and she was just there to help), but the motel owner is positive she took it and Eric was not there. He even recalls asking her where he was and she told him he had a job and wouldn't be coming back. This is two days or so after he paid for a week's stay in advance. Motel owner was surprised Eric didn't say goodbye because they had developed a friendship.

She did grow up there and has family there.

This may be an extraneous, irrelevant question, but what happened to the unused portion of Eric's motel room rent? Did the motel owner offer it to the family? Or was it given to the egf, or policy is not to refund?

 

[andalso]

I could beleive this, IF the egf had not gone to the motel and cleaned out someone else's belongings, and then to have such conflicting statements from the motel manager and to LE.

Ahhh, it is mentioned that egf told Eric she was going to leave her husband, and then denies it. I think (in my opinion) this was the catalyst for Eric going to Saginaw. Perhaps egf is one of those who always needs a man, and since she has a child with Eric, a sure way to get another man on the hook right away. Could it be that hubby found out, he and Eric get into it (insert your method here) egf, while cleaning up after hubby's mess, goes to the motel to give reason why Eric will not be coming back, and get rid of his things to make it seem more plausible?

As for the Police...I would show up there, and if I got nowhere, I would find the nearest MSP post, file a complaint and see if I could get them moving on it.

I agree with all of this wholeheartedly! Especially the BBM!

And, the lack of appropriate response from LE is nothing short of apathetic, if not down right criminal itself!

 

[Bubblyone]

I am sure someone here can answer this...
If the insured disappears, does the policyholder have to continue to pay the premiums until the seven years has elapsed?

That is a yes, if they want to try to collect.

 

[searchingfamily]

Just finished reading all of the thread posts (so far) and was wondering, Searching, if you know if/where the exGF and husband worked when Eric disappeared. Would be interesting to find out if either of them missed work on the day of or days following his disappearance.

Good thinking - unfortunately both are self-employed.

 

[searchingfamily]

Was the woods behind Miller's Motel to the railroad tracks ever searched?

Not that we are aware of.

 

[BetteDavisEyes]

I am sure someone here can answer this...
If the insured disappears, does the policyholder have to continue to pay the premiums until the seven years has elapsed?

I don't know about this in Eric's case or if he had life insurance, but this is what happened in the case of missing (now declared deceased) Natalee Holloway. Her dad was forced to continue payments on Natalee's insurance policy (per divorce terms) and went to court to have his daughter declared dead because she had been missing and was presumed dead past the five-year deadline in Alabama.

 

[LisaB]

Pawnshops have been checked - not sure abt. charities, though in our experience they don't keep records on donors unless someone wanted a tax receipt.

SBM

I assumed as much. It seems like an easy way to dispose of a large volume of items taken from his room without risking someone finding a dumpster full of all his worldly posessions and raising questions. These places really DON'T take information from the donor, unless s/he asks for a tax receipt, and even then, 9 times out of ten, they give you a blank one to fill in yourself later.

 

[LisaB]

Not sure if this was what Lisa B may have been referring to.

OR OR - Lane Co. - 35 to 60 yo white male - dentures, Vans shoes - Jan 2012 - Websleuths Crime Sleuthing Community

I don't think it is. I recall that it was a man 35-45, and there were comments about a man so young having full dentures. He MAY have had a mustache in the artist's sketch, but definitely had shorter hair, slicked back. Several posters made connections that could have been him, but I don't believe any panned out, and I honestly don't know what state he was found in, or exactly when... just that full dentures at forty-ish was unusual, and Eric had them as well.

 

[BetteDavisEyes]

I don't think it is. I recall that it was a man 35-45, and there were comments about a man so young having full dentures. He MAY have had a mustache in the artist's sketch, but definitely had shorter hair, slicked back. Several posters made connections that could have been him, but I don't believe any panned out, and I honestly don't know what state he was found in, or exactly when... just that full dentures at forty-ish was unusual, and Eric had them as well.

Both of my sisters (4.5 and 7 years younger than me) have smoked like chimneys since junior high, and neither has had preventative dental care. They don't have full dentures yet, but both have had partials since their early/mid 40s. They also had to have periodontal surgery prior to bridge work. I've never smoked in my life and visit the dentist regularly for cleaning and check-ups. My teeth aren't perfect, but they are all mine. Dental health reflects lifestyle choices and overall physical well-being. :moo: