By Daily Mail (U.S.) | Created at 2024-10-19 14:26:11 | Updated at 2024-10-19 16:22:01
2 hours ago
Haunting new video have revealed the final moments of a missing mother from Montana before she mysteriously vanished without a trace over six years ago.
Jermain Charlo, 23, who has two young sons, was last seen near a bar called The Badlander in downtown Missoula on June 15, 2018, where she appeared to be socializing with a small group of people.
The camera loses sight of her at around midnight when she walks away with a man, who was identified as her ex-boyfriend and the father of her children, Michael DeFrance.
He said she got into his Dodge pick-up and that he dropped her off near a friend's house at around 1am. No one has heard from her since.
Police said they released the new footage to CBS 48 Hours in the hope it will lead to a break in the case.
Speaking to DailyMail.com Detective Guy Baker explained: 'Our hope is that people will see the way they were dressed that evening and maybe saw something involving the two of them after they left the alley. Maybe at the time didn’t realize it was important to this investigation. Hopefully this will jog their memory'.
Jermain Charlo, 23, was last seen near a bar called The Badlander in downtown Missoula on June 15, 2018, where she appeared to be socializing with a small group of people
Surveillance shows Jermain walking ahead of DeFrance after leaving the bar on the night of June 15, 2018 - the last time she was seen alive
Detective Baker has worked on the case for the past six years and is continuing to follow up every lead as they come in.
He believes she is the victim of a crime as her pattern of life - including her social media presence and communication with friends and family - ceased after that night. But there have not yet been any arrests.
He said the ex-boyfriend admitted he was with Jermain in the downtown area and was interviewed by more than once by the police department.
'I feel like I have this puzzle in front of me but I don’t quite have all pieces to put it together. That is what I am looking for - I need more of those pieces that the public can provide,' he told DailyMail.com.
He added: 'This is a unique case but I am just as committed to solving this thing six years and four months later, finding justice for the family and holding accountable those responsible for what happened to Jermain as the first day I got this case.
'It’s been frustrating but we are appealing to the public who has not come forward: you may have valuable information and I would like to talk to you.'
Jermain's aunt Valenda Morigeau- Underwood tearfully told DailyMail.com that she does not believe her niece is alive.
She and another aunt, Dani Matt, were alerted to Jermain's disappearance by the young woman's grandmother, who had raised her.
The women said Jermain never went anywhere without her phone and that it was unusual for her not to check in with her family.
Jermain lived with her two young sons, Thomas and Joseph, on the Flathead Reservation, approximately 40 miles from Missoula
The Missoula Police Department provided DailyMail.com with video footage. Jermain is seen speaking to someone in the alleyway of the bar as her ex stands behind her
Morgieau-Underwood added that she was always on social media and had a video blog where she documented everything from food and makeup to what she was doing and where she was going.
She had made a TikTok video on the same day she vanished where she seemed in good spirits as she lip-synched to a song. She also appeared to be wearing the same clothes as in the surveillance video - jeans, hoodie and a hat.
'For her not to be active on social media I knew something was not right,' she explained.
Jemain's family searched everywhere for her, calling hospitals and shelters.
When she did not return home a few days later to her two young sons, Thomas and Joseph, who lived on the Flathead Reservation, approximately 40 miles from Missoula, they filed a missing person's report with the Missoula Police Department. They also contacted the Flathead Reservation Police.
The reservation is 1.319 million-acres, mountainous and with numerous rivers, which made search efforts difficult.
Investigators also looked into whether Jermain could have been a victim of human trafficking but Brittany Williams, the Deputy County Attorney for Missoula County said this was later ruled out.
Jermain is pictured with her ex-boyfriend and children's father, Michael DeFrance
The bar Badlander located in downtown Missoula is one of the places Charlo was last seen
Jermain's aunts said that her niece's relationship with her ex, Michael DeFrance was strained. At the time she went missing she was seeing a different man named Jacob, who was never considered a suspect.
Speaking to police without a lawyer, DeFrance said he was the last person to see Jermain that night and dropped her off at the Orange Street Food Farm because her friend Cassidy lived nearby.
But police discovered that Jermain was dating a man named Jacob who lived in the neighborhood and that she was texting him before she vanished.
Morigeau-Underwood told CBS 48 Hours that based on her texts Jacob was away but she was planning to spend the night at Jacob's home.
Speaking of her new boyfriend who she met on a dating app, the aunt added: 'They had a strong connection. He was infatuated with her.'
Williams said Jacob told police that the day before she disappeared DeFrance 'had been yelling at her, asking if she was dating anyone and wanted to get back together with her.'
DeFrance had previously assaulted Jermain in 2013. Court documents showed he admitted he hit her three times, pleaded guilty but did not serve jail time.
Morigeau- Underwood told DailyMail.com: 'Jermain met DeFrance when she was 14 and he was 16 and fell for the boy next door. They started dating shortly after and had a lot of common interests. But at some point during their relationship he became very possessive.
'She was gorgeous, creative, outgoing and smart. She had dreams of going to art school in Santa Fe New Mexico,' she added tearfully.
Police said it is crucial they find Jermain's cellphone. Data showed it was last active at around 10am on June 16 north of Missoula in an area of Evaro Hill on the Flathead reservation - near where DeFrance lives.
DeFrance told police she had left her cellphone with him and that he threw it away near a highway in Idaho. But it was never found.
Jermain's aunts Valenda Morigeau- Underwood and Dani Matt do not believe their niece is alive
Jermain's aunt told DailyMail.com: 'She was gorgeous, creative, outgoing and smart. She had dreams of going to art school in Santa Fe New Mexico
Jermain's aunts said that her niece's relationship with her ex and the father of her children, Michael DeFrance, was strained
A billboard shows a photo of missing Jermain Austin Charlo offering a $15,000 reward
Jermain smiling in an exclusive photo with her aunt
Jermain's aunt Valenda Morigeau- Underwood participated in a Spartan race to keep her niece's story alive for the #Missing And Murdered Indigenous Women. The red handprint painted across her mouth symbolizes 'solidarity'
Detectives also seized firearms from DeFrance's property, which was a violation of his sentencing for the assault on Jermain. In 2023, he was sentenced to serve 21 months in prison but remains free as he appeals his conviction. DailyMail.com has contacted DeFrance for comment.
Williams told DailyMail.com some people had reached out since the surveillance footage first aired. She added: 'I don’t think anyone is at liberty to name a suspect in this case. There are persons of interest, certainly.'
Anyone with any information about the disappearance of Jermain Charlo is urged to contact the Missoula Police Department on 406-552-6284. Calls will be anonymous.
