KRISTI KREBS - 22 yo (1993) - Fort Bragg NC

Kristi Krebs of Fort Bragg before she disappeared in 1993.

It’s the worst mystery imaginable for a parent –- a missing child. The parents of Kristi Krebs of Fort Bragg have endured this mystery for 18 years, hanging onto scraps of information hinting she may still be alive, but now they have a powerful new aid in their hunt.

The Fort Bragg Police Department has just issued an age-enhanced picture of what Krebs should look like today.

The picture is posted at the department’s website and is being distributed to search and law enforcement agencies nationwide. Her family and investigators hope this, combined with new leads, will help them solve one of just four missing-person cases the North Coast city has endured over the past 30 years.

“I recently got some tips, one from North Carolina and one from South Carolina, that were promising,” said Fort Bragg Police Officer Jeanine Gregory. “The hard part was that the only photo people could work with was an old one from 1993.

Age-enhanced photo shows Kristi Krebs as she might appear today.


“Now we can do better than that.”

The new photo was worked up by a forensics photographer with the National Center for Missing and Exploited Children. Krebs was 22 when she disappeared, and she would be 40 today.

Krebs was last seen Aug. 9, 1993, leaving her chef’s job at a pizza parlor, seemingly happy, witnesses said. Her car was found the next day seven miles out of town, stuck in the mud, with the radio ripped out and flecks of blood on the dashboard.

Her parents, Bob and Suzanne Krebs, feared the worst, but also held onto hope that she may have wandered off. Krebs had been hospitalized a few years earlier after having a mental breakdown.

Investigators also believe there is a strong possibility Krebs had another mental episode and left the area on her own, Gregory said. Over the years, sightings of women closely resembling Krebs have come in from Central California and Utah.

“This case is something that is very near and dear to our community and to our police department,” Gregory said. “Her father is a schoolteacher, her family is beloved in town, and we really want to keep hope.”

Anyone with information in Krebs’ disappearance can call the Fort Bragg Police Department at (707) 961-2800, or (707) 961-3049 to give anonymous tips.

http://blog.sfgate.com/crime/2012/02/09/new-image-of-long-missing-fort-bragg-woman/