Convicted Killer Charged With 1986 Double Homicide Of East Bay Women
FREMONT (CBS SF) -- A 57-year-old state prison inmate has been charged with the 1986 murders of two young Fremont women whose bodies were found along side Mill Creek Road, authorities said.
Fremont police cold case detectives said evidence processed for DNA led them to David Emery Misch, who is currently incarcerated in state prison, serving 18 years to life for a 1989 homicide that occurred in Alameda County.
The Alameda County District Attorney's Office filed additional murder charges against Misch on Friday in the deaths of Michelle Xavier and Jennifer Duey.
The victims families released a joint statement on Monday, thanking detectives for their work and awaiting justice for the slain women.
"The Xavier and Duey families wish to thank the Fremont Police Department and all of the officers and detectives who worked countless hours during the past 32 years on our daughters' case," the statement said. "We have been in constant contact with them, so we know how deeply they care and how hard they work.
"We wish to extend our appreciation to our many friends in the community who supported us, stood by us, and prayed for us during those most difficult years. Numerous unexpected acts of kindness sustained us."
"We now wait for justice and hope you will continue to keep us in your thoughts and prayers."
Investigators said the charges stem from a case dating back to February 2, 1986.
Shortly after midnight on that day, Duey and Xavier, who were best friends, were found deceased along the side of Mill Creek Road, a little more than a mile east of Mission Blvd.
A motorcyclist driving on Mill Creek Rd. discovered the bodies at about 12:30 a.m., and immediately called police.
The women had been shot and stabbed in the hours prior. Xavier was 18 and Duey was 20 at the time. The deaths of the two women were highly publicized and left many in the community shaken and fearful in their own neighborhoods.
Michelle Xavier's Pontiac Sunbird was located parked approximately 6 miles away from the crime scene in the parking lot of the Mission Valley Shopping Center.
Earlier in the evening the women had attended a birthday dinner for a family member and were last seen together around 8:00 p.m. at a convenience store in the area of Farwell Dr. and Mowry Ave.
Their personal belongings, including purses and identification, have never been found.
Immediately after the homicide, leads and phone calls kept detectives busy for several months. A reward of $35,000 was raised by community members, and posters soliciting tips could be found throughout the City of Fremont. The Department dedicated extra resources and manpower, sparing no expense to investigate the case.
While several people of interest were identified and interviewed over the years, Fremont detectives would rule most out. Unfortunately, after an extensive investigation and following up on thousands of leads, the case went cold and was eventually suspended.
The investigation was revived in 2016. Cold Case Detective Jacob Blass began to re-examine case files, as well as several pieces of evidence, including those that had been processed for DNA in recent years.
The results of the evidence identified Misch as the main suspect. At the time of the murders, he lived in the area and was a known commercial burglar and drug user.
Last August, Blass presented the case and evidence to the District Attorney's Office. Over the course of the next several months, detectives continued working on the case and re-interviewed witnesses, family members and Misch.
In early 2018, the findings from the follow up were presented to the District Attorney and Misch was charged with two counts of murder.
Misch will be arraigned later this week.
Anyone with information about this incident that has not already been provided to the Fremont Police Department, is encouraged to please call the Fremont Police Department's Investigative Unit at 510-790-6900 or email coldcasedetective@fremont.gov. We will also accept anonymous tips via text. Text TIP FREMONTPD followed by your message to 888-777, or via the web at https://local.nixle.com/tip/alert/6216337.
