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Erin Marie Gilbert (May 4, 1971 – disappeared July 1, 1995) is an American woman who vanished while attending the Girdwood Forest Fair in Girdwood, Alaska.[2] Gilbert, who had previously resided in California, had moved to Anchorage, Alaska, where she lived with her sister and worked as a nanny. At the time she disappeared, Gilbert was on a first date with a man, David Combs, whom she had met at a bar in Anchorage several days prior. She was last seen at the fairground's beer garden at approximately 6:00 p.m. on Saturday, July 1, 1995.
Erin Marie Gilbert | |
|---|---|
 | |
| Born | May 4, 1971 San Francisco, California, U.S. |
| Disappeared | July 1, 1995 (aged 24) Girdwood, Alaska, U.S. |
| Status | Missing for 29 years, 4 months and 29 days |
| Height | 5 ft 11 in (1.80 m)[1] |
Despite search efforts of family and Alaska State Troopers, no traces of Gilbert have ever been found. Her disappearance received renewed interest in 2017.[3]
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Prior to moving to Alaska, Gilbert had lived in San Francisco.[1] In 1994, Gilbert relocated to Alaska, where she resided with her elder sister, Stephanie, and her husband at the Elmendorf Air Force Base.[1] There, Gilbert took a job working as a nanny for a family who were acquaintances of her sister.[2]
On July 1, 1995,[4] Gilbert accompanied David Combs—a man whom she had met several days prior at a bar called Chilkoot Charlie's in Anchorage[3]—to the Girdwood Forest Fair in Girdwood, Alaska, a village south of Anchorage.[2] The two left Anchorage at approximately 4:00 p.m.[5] Gilbert was last seen at the fair's beer garden with Combs before they left at approximately 6:00 p.m.[2] At the time, she was wearing a black leather jacket, a black and white shirt, mountain boots, and black jeans.[6]
By Combs' account, he and Gilbert returned to his car, but found the battery dead as he had left the headlights on.[2] He claimed he told Gilbert he was going to a nearby friends' home to get help, and walked for around two hours, but was unable to locate his friend's residence.[2] When he returned, Gilbert was no longer at the car.[2][7] According to Combs, he assumed Gilbert had returned to the fair, and found that he was able to start the car engine.[2] He then returned to the fairgrounds and searched for Gilbert unsuccessfully until approximately 1:00 a.m.[2]
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Stephanie and her family searched the Girdwood Forest Fairgrounds the following morning, July 2, as well as the surrounding woods, after receiving a phone call from Combs inquiring about whether or not Gilbert had made it home the night before.[2][3] Alaska State Troopers organized a large search utilizing helicopters and search dogs, but were unsuccessful in recovering any sign of Gilbert in the vicinity of the fair.[2]
In 2017, police lieutenant Randy McPherron commented publicly on the case: "We don't know for sure what happened, if this was foul play or not -- we just don't know. We don't have any witnesses, we don't have any human remains, we don't have a crime scene, we don't have much of anything, so it's gonna be very hard, but like I said, somebody knows something."[3] At this time, a $35,000 reward was offered by Gilbert's family for information regarding her disappearance.[3] Combs refused to speak to press when contacted at the time.[3]
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In 2019, the podcast Alaska Unsolved created a 7-episode series on her case.[8] In 2020, her case was profiled on the podcast The Vanished.[9]
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