In the quiet anticipation of motherhood, 20-year-old Lauren Barnes of Oklahoma City, five months pregnant with a daughter she planned to name Avery, looked forward to the life she was creating. Her excitement, however, was tinged with apprehension as she prepared to meet with the baby's father, Eric Phan, on November 23, 2007. Lauren had recently informed Phan's girlfriend of the pregnancy and was nervous about his reaction, a fear that would tragically be realized.
Lauren was last seen
on that November day, heading to Eldon Lyon Park in Bethany to meet Phan. When she failed to return home and didn't answer her phone, her family grew deeply concerned and reported her missing. The following day, her locked car was discovered abandoned at the park, but there was no sign of Lauren. As days turned into a week, the search for the expectant mother intensified, casting a somber shadow over the community.
The break in the case came when a friend of Phan, David Huynh, came forward with a horrifying confession. Huynh informed investigators that Phan had admitted to killing Lauren by choking her and dumping her body. Based on this information, police arrested Eric Phan. An anonymous tip later led authorities to the Stinchcomb Wildlife Refuge, where they found Lauren's body buried in a shallow grave on November 30, 2007. The cause of death was determined to be asphyxiation.
In the face of overwhelming evidence, Eric Phan pleaded guilty to two counts of first-degree murder for the deaths of Lauren and her unborn child, Avery. He admitted to strangling Lauren, stating that he was afraid the pregnancy would bring shame to his family. In 2008, he was sentenced to two consecutive life sentences without the possibility of parole.
