In the winter of 2006, 19-year-old Kelly Gray Gaskins made the decision to leave her life in Chocowinity, North Carolina, behind. On December 26, she and her boyfriend, Ervin Braxton Williams, departed from her hometown. The last communication her family had with her was a phone call she made to her mother on January 18, 2007. During this call, Kelly stated that she and Williams were in Matamoros, Mexico.
At the time of her disappearance, Kelly was described as a white female, standing at 5'3' and weighing around 100 pounds, with brown hair and brown eyes. A distinctive tattoo of a sun with a peace sign in the center was located on her right shoulder blade.
The circumstances surrounding Kelly's disappearance became more complex in the following months. In March 2007, a friend of Kelly's, Virginia Wood, traveled from North Carolina to Texas for her spring break with the intention of visiting Kelly and Williams. On March 10, Wood made a phone call to a friend, mentioning that she and Kelly were planning a trip to Cancun, Mexico. Tragically, neither Kelly, Virginia, nor Ervin Williams have been seen or heard from since. Virginia Wood's black 2003 Nissan Sentra, with North Carolina license plate number TTZ-6801, also vanished and has never been located. The situation was further complicated by the fact that both Gaskins and Williams were wanted by law enforcement. Gaskins had a warrant for a probation violation, while Williams was wanted for failing to appear in court on multiple felony charges, including arson, burglary, and assault. It was believed that Williams may have intended to go to Mexico to avoid prosecution.
For a significant period, Kelly Gaskins was officially considered a fugitive from the law, which delayed the filing of a missing person's report. It wasn't until 2015 that her family, deeply concerned for her well-being, was able to have her formally recognized as a missing person. The investigation into her disappearance is being handled by the Beaufort County Sheriff's Office. The case is a distressing one, leaving her loved ones without answers for many years. The last trace of her was a phone call from another country, followed by silence. The subsequent disappearance of her friend and boyfriend only adds to the mystery. The overview of this case is one of a young woman who, after leaving her home state with her boyfriend, made one final contact with her family before vanishing, leaving a void of information and a lingering hope for resolution.Last Seen: Jan 18, 2007
