25 years unsolved: Killer on the loose, family demands justice

WASHINGTON, N.C. (WITN) - An Eastern Carolina family continues to mourn the loss of one of its members as investigators enter the 25th year of searching for her killer.

Rebecca Moses Garcia was shot in Snow Hill and although there has been a suspect since the investigation started, he’s continued to evade arrest.

The year was 1997 when Rebecca Garcia died. Her two-year-old son was at the home at the time of his mother’s death. As her family replays the hardest time of their life, they have grown impatient with the Greene County Sheriff’s Office’s investigation.

“This is the man that murdered my sister 25 years ago,” said Beverly Wilkerson as she held a mugshot.

For years, Wilkerson has been haunted by the image of Ramirez Garcia. Investigators believe he shot and killed his then estranged wife, Rebecca.

A warrant is out for him charging him with first-degree murder.

“Every day we still live with it. No answers, a lot more questions,” said Wilkerson.

The family says Rebecca Garcia was living in Beaufort County but went to the Snow Hill area to pay a ticket. She was staying with a friend in a mobile home on Highway 58.

In the early morning hours, deputies believe Ramirez Garcia attacked.

For years, no new details have been provided to the victim’s family.

“There’s been nothing, absolutely nothing done, except for my daughter making a Facebook page,” said Wilkerson. “She’s done a great job and people have reached out to us, but somebody has got to know where he is.”

The Facebook page is called Justice for Rebecca Moses and it has reached people throughout the East.

Lloyd Tippett says he used to run in the same social circles as Rebecca when they were younger. He found out about her death from the family’s posts.

“I found out who she was and how I know her and it was just so mind-blowing because I’m reading about how she’s supposedly dead and gone and I’m thinking, ‘What happened?’” said Tippett.

Not only did Rebecca’s killer take her away from Beverly, but she can’t find the strength to go near the site of her death.

When asked how she finds the strength to carry on, Wilkerson said, “That’s a good question. We ain’t got no choice. You gotta keep going, you gotta keep looking. You gotta keep remembering.”

Tippett says remembering Rebecca through her Facebook has inspired him to share other families’ stories in need of closure.

“Rebecca being gone now, she don’t have the say so,” said Tippett. “Especially for the family, it’s made it hard.”

As they keep going, they keep advocating for the woman that no longer can.

Greene County Sheriff Matt Sasser says in old cases like this one, updates to the investigation do not come often.

If anyone were to produce a lead on the whereabouts of Ramirez Garcia, he tells WITN his office is ready to pursue them.

Rebecca Garcia’s case remains open so anyone with information on her death is asked to contact deputies.

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