MECOSTA COUNTY — It has been 13 years since the body of Kristin Spires was found in a remote part of Mecosta County. She was last seen in May 2010.
Charges were filed in her death but later dropped after prosecutors say one of the men charged with her death was lying. To this day, her death remains unsolved.
For parents, the memories of raising children are among the most precious. Lyn Arquette has no shortage of those with her daughter Kristin.
“She was funny. I mean, she had a most contagious laugh. She always, always giggly. Everything was funny. That’s my girl. Sometimes she can look serious, but then all of a sudden, you look at her, you laugh and crack up,” said Arquette.
In May 2010, Spires was at a party on Woodward Avenue in Big Rapids. It was the last time anyone said they saw her alive.
Casey Nemeth and Brian Miller were two of the original investigators who worked Kristin’s disappearance. They’re now the sheriff and undersheriff of Mecosta County.
“Once the names came out of the people that she was associated with or who brought her here to Big Rapids and where she was at, those names were familiar with us with our investigations into multiple other things. And that was suspicious right off the bat. And just the fact that everybody we had that we were talking to basically didn’t want to talk like they said, yes, I seen her, but then there with this person, they passed the buck quite a bit,” said Nemeth.
And that didn’t leave Nemeth or Miller with many leads to chase down.
“There was a lot of hearsay, a lot of assumptions. I think this may have happened or I heard that this could have been a factor, but nothing specific in nature or concrete that we could run with and do much with,” explained Miller.
Nearly a year would pass until investigators found Kristin’s body in a remote part of Mecosta County.
“They found her in that state land. It took almost a year to find her, and they couldn’t find anything because they put her in a hole. They dug a hole, and put her in it,” said Arquette.
For Miller and Nemeth, this was now a homicide investigation.
“We had been pushing homicide for quite a while. After the first few months of her being missing and not using her phone, not using or any debit cards or anything like that, making no contact with family, as law enforcement, we insulate, push or lean towards foul play,” said Nemeth.
Charges were eventually filed in Kristin’s death, but later dropped after prosecutors say one of the people charged lied. Still, Nemeth and Miller believe they’re incredibly close to solving this case.
“A large group of people that we were dealing with through this investigation are no longer in the area, have moved on and moved out. But there’s not a day that goes by that we don’t think talk about this case. And if we can keep it out there for people to see and remember so she doesn’t get forgotten and maybe somebody gets that conscience and is willing to come forward, that will give us that little peace,” said Miller.
“We’re at a point where we have somebody that we believe is the key witness and that person will not come forward because of the element that she’s involved in, it’s the same element that did this. And they’re fearful of the streets more than they are crime,” said Nemeth.
Something that’s especially frustrating for Kristin’s family.
I just want to know what happened. Why and who. I want somebody to stand in front of me and say, you know, something like, I mean, it’s not going to do me any good to make them apologize to me. I want to see that person, I want to see what it looks like, or see it or whatever. That kid didn’t have an evil bone in her body,” said Arquette.
If you have any information about what happened to Kristin spires, contact the Mecosta County Sheriff’s Office at 231-592-0150.