TX TX- Erica Garcia, 14, Raped & strangled, Body @ abandoned hospital, 7/6/97 * New Initiative*

[dotr]

Erica Garcia cold case update | khou.com
May 3 2022
''On June 7, 1997, the body of Erica Garcia was found in the abandoned Alief General Hospital building.''

''HOUSTON — In an empty field on the west side of Houston, it’s hard to look past one mother’s grief.

Margarita Garcia's daughter, Erica Garcia, was murdered there.

RELATED: Cold case: 14-year-old girl's rape, murder still a mystery

“She was 14. She was a strong-headed girl ... very pretty," Margarita said about her daughter.''

Her friends called her “Tweety" and it's a name she had tattooed. She had just made the cheerleading squad at Sharpstown Middle School.

“I didn’t get to see her get married, I didn’t get to see her have children," Margarita said.

She still doesn’t know who did it or why they killed her daughter.

“She didn’t deserve this, she did not deserve to die like this," Margarita said.

The empty field used to be the site of the old Alief General Hospital. A security guard making the rounds found Erica's body on June 7, 1997.

“I am confident enough to say that there are at least two people out there that know what happened," Houston Police Department Detective Ramon Cervantes said.

He works with HPD's Cold Case Unit.

Investigators said Erica was raped and strangled with her own clothing but they've never been able to pinpoint a motive.

However, police can pinpoint where Erica was before she was killed. The night before her death, her aunt dropped her off at a teen club called New Dimension.

“Her friend met her outside on Beechnut and I watched her go in and that was the last time I saw her," Erica's aunt, Brenda Garcia-Chavez, said.''

 

[dotr]

2009 rbbm.
Cold case: 14-year-old girl's rape, murder still a mystery | khou.com
''Police say 14-year-old Erica Garcia was raped - likely by several people - and then strangled with her own underwear in 1997. But all these years later, Erica's family is still waiting for justice.''

"Whoever did this, I hope you are watching, because you are going to pay, and you are going to pay deeply," Erica's mother, Margarita Garcia, said.

Police said they never arrested anyone in Erica's murder, despite having two of HPD's top homicide detectives on the case.

"They were like the ideal. These are the guys you wanted to be as good as. They talked to everybody, they went everywhere, they did everything. And they had all of the evidence processed," Sgt. Mike Peters said.

What police do know is that Erica was trying to grow up fast.

On a Friday night in June of 1997, police say Erica went to a nightclub on Beechnut called Dimension.

She went there with her boyfriend and several other people.

At the end of the night, police said one of her friends asked Erica how she was getting home.

"One of her friends said she was getting on the bus and said, ' Do you want to ride home with me?' And she said, 'No, I have someone picking me up,'" Peters said.

The next time anyone saw her, she was dead inside the Alief General Hospital Building.''

After the murder, Erica's mother moved out of town and, as you can imagine, has never been the same.

"I go to bed thinking about her. I wake up at night, like tomorrow is my birthday and she is not here," Garcia said through tears.

Peters says he feels like some teenager probably knew what happened back then. After all, word travels fast through the halls of middle and high schools.''

 

[dotr]

May 3 2022
(19) 25 years later, investigators hope DNA will help solve a Houston teen's murder - YouTube

 

[imstilla.grandma]

Missing Pieces: Erica Garcia cold case update

On June 7, 1997, the body of Erica Garcia was found in the abandoned Alief General Hospital building.

www.khou.com

 

[Jacqu777]

Houston PD "Featured Cases" Description:
Cold Cases - Featured Cases

HPD Incident #727939-97

Erica Ann Garcia

Type of crime: Murder

Address: 11101 Bellaire

Date: June 7, 1997 Time: 7:45 AM

On Saturday, June 7, 1997, at approximately 7:45 a.m., a security guard was making his rounds at the shuttered Alief General Hospital when he noticed a boarded up doorway ajar. This doorway led into the closed and abandoned hospital. Upon his investigation into the open doorway, he discovered the body of a female. The police were called and the initial scene investigation was conducted. Later, the female was identified as Erica Ann Garcia. On Friday, June 6, 1997 between 9 and 9:30 pm, Erica Garcia and a female friend were dropped off at a local teen club. Shortly thereafter, both left this club and went to a nearby apartment and met up with individuals that Erica knew. After remaining there for a while, both returned to the teen club only to return to this same apartment from where they came. Soon thereafter, the friend left for home and Erica remained. Erica was last seen at the nearby Bachatu Grill Club located at 11107 Bellaire with some acquaintances. The Houston Police Department Homicide Division Cold Case Squad is requesting anyone with information about this murder to contact the Cold Case Squad at 713-308-3618 or Crime Stoppers at 713-222-TIPS.

 

[Jacqu777]

Erica Ann Garcia​

BIRTH6 May 1983DEATH7 Jun 1997 (aged 14)BURIAL
San Gabriel Cemetery
Richmond, Fort Bend County, Texas,USAMEMORIAL ID188701357 · View Source

Erica Ann Garcia (1983-1997) - Find a Grave...

Born on 6 May 1983. Died on 7 Jun 1997. Buried in Richmond, Texas, USA.

www.findagrave.com

 

[dotr]

Oct 12, 2025

She was brutally beaten and raped in 1997, but family members have never stopped their quest for justice

Erica Garcia was 14 when she was beaten and raped before being killed with her own clothes. That was in 1997. Now, 28 years later, the search for justice continues.

www.khou.com

'The security guard found the body of 14-year-old Erica Garcia at the site of what used to be the old Alief General Hospital. Erica had been brutally beaten and raped. Investigators said they think her own clothing was used to kill her.'

'Margarita said her daughter's friends called her “Tweety," and she had just made the cheerleading squad at Sharpstown Middle School.
Three years ago, detectives said they believed that at least two people knew what happened.
They said Erica was raped and strangled with her own clothing, but they haven't figured out a motive. Police were able to pinpoint where Erica was before she was killed -- the night before her death, her aunt dropped her off at a teen club called New Dimension.''

"Back early 90s, there were some gangs of choice around here," Spier said. "She was tired of the life she was living, and she wanted to change it. She wanted to start new."

 

[flowershop]

From the Houston Police Department "Featured Cases" posted upthread. Link below to the original post.

Erica was last seen at the nearby Bachatu Grill Club located at 11107 Bellaire with some acquaintances

https://websleuths.com/threads/tx-erica-garcia-14-raped-strangled-body-abandoned-hospital-7-6-97-new-initiative.622074/post-18577958

 

[flowershop]

From the Houston Police Department "Featured Cases" posted upthread. Link below to the original post.

Erica was last seen at the nearby Bachatu Grill Club located at 11107 Bellaire with some acquaintances

https://websleuths.com/threads/tx-erica-garcia-14-raped-strangled-body-abandoned-hospital-7-6-97-new-initiative.622074/post-18577958

From what I understand she was dropped off at a teen club called New Dimension by her aunt. But then the last place she was seen alive was at Bachatu Grill. It would be great to get a more solid timeline of events from that night.

 

[flowershop]

This is a FOX News report from years ago and shows the abandoned hospital building where EG's body was found. EG's mom thinks that the friends that were with EG know more than they are saying about that night.

 

[dotr]

Oct 13, 2025
Erica Garcia was 14 when she was found brutally beaten and raped. Now, more than 28 years later, family members and investigators continue to search for justice.

October 13, 2025

Three decades after 14-year-old girl’s murder, Houston police still seek leads and her family wants closure | Houston Public Media

Erica Garcia was raped and murdered in 1997. Houston Police Department detectives remain hopeful for leads in the cold case.

www.houstonpublicmedia.org

''Twenty-eight years ago, 14-year-old Erica Garcia was lured away from a teen night club in Bellaire to the abandoned Alief General Hospital. There, she was raped and murdered.''

"There are people out there that are now anywhere between 40 and 50 years old. And it’s high time for those that knew Erica to come forward and provide us with the piece of the puzzle to help us solve this murder," HPD detective Ramon Cervantes said during a Monday news conference. "Now, you may have moved on with your life, but Erica did not have that opportunity to do so."

Oct 13, 2025
Investigators and family members are speaking out, in hopes of bringing renewed attention to a 28-year-old case where a 14-year-old girl was brutally murdered in southwest Houston.