Body Found Off Nature Trail Where Md. Mom Vanished, as Boyfriend Speaks Out on Social Media

Rachel Morin, a 37-year-old mother of five, was reported missing Saturday

A mother of five is believed to have been found dead along a forest trail in Maryland on Sunday afternoon, and police said the woman died by homicide.

Rachel Morin was reported missing late Saturday night by her boyfriend who said she went out for a run on the Ma & Pa Trail in Bel Air, Md., but never returned. 

Police said that according to Morin's boyfriend, the 37-year-old left her home around 6 p.m. on Saturday, and the boyfriend reported her missing roughly five hours later after finding her car abandoned at the trailhead. 

Rachel Morin. Body Found off Nature Trail Where Md. Mom Vanished, as Boyfriend Speaks Out on Social Media

Harford County Sheriff's Office

“This was not an [accidental] death, and she did not go willingly,” her sister Rebekah Morin wrote in a GoFundMe, where the family is raising money for Morin’s five children.

“Sadly, it’s a homicide case,” Harford County Sheriff Jeff Gahler told reporters Sunday night, noting that investigators at the scene found “indicators” that left “no doubt” Morin’s death was a homicide.

“Right now detectives continue to work the case as aggressively as they possibly can and we will leave no stone unturned,” Sheriff Gahler told reporters. “I hope that changes in the coming hours, but at this point in time, there is not a suspect.”

Morin's boyfriend Richard Tobin pleaded with the community on Facebook to "let the family and I grieve."

"I love Rachel, I would never do anything to her," Tobin wrote. "Let the family and I grieve. Yes I have a past but I also have 15 months clean and have changed as a person. Please."

Rachel Morin. Body Found off Nature Trail Where Md. Mom Vanished, as Boyfriend Speaks Out on Social Media
Rachel Morin.

Harford County Sheriff's Office


Gahler noted that Morin’s death has garnered more attention on social media than any other case in the department's history. He encouraged the public to continue providing tips.

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The sheriff asked anyone living near the trail with security cameras to review their footage from over the weekend or turn it over to police.

Rachel Morin. Body Found off Nature Trail Where Md. Mom Vanished, as Boyfriend Speaks Out on Social Media
Rachel Morin.

Harford County Sheriff's Office

The discovery of Morin’s body on Sunday concluded a two-day search, which ended after a volunteer who'd read about the mother’s disappearance on social media wound up finding the body – believed to be Morin’s – along the trail.

“We firmly believe this is the body of Rachel Morin, but that final determination belongs with the medical examiner and that has not been determined yet,” Sheriff Gahler said.

“I continue to be proud of our Harford County citizens and the way this community comes together in terrible times, and this was one of those,” the sheriff said. “Many people didn't know Rachel but they stopped their day and they conducted their own help.”

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