Edmonton police have announced new charges in a missing persons case that has remained unresolved for 24 years. Investigators say the development marks a significant step in a long-dormant file, and they are now appealing to the public for any additional information that could help piece together what happened to the man at the centre of the case.
Police arrested a man from Two Hills County, Alberta, on Tuesday in connection with two serious assaults that investigators believe took place shortly before the disappearance. They have since charged Kevin Wade Mraz, 57, with assaulting Geek with a weapon, and say Mraz was in the vehicle alongside Geek when it left his home, together with one other person.
The man at the heart of the investigation is Gerald Geek, who was 37 years old at the time he was last seen. According to police, Geek worked in the trades, installing flooring, and was known as a peacemaker with a large circle of friends who enjoyed being around people.
Investigators now believe that Geek is dead and consider the circumstances of his disappearance suspicious. While the new charges laid so far relate to the assaults rather than his death, police have made clear that the broader investigation into what happened to him remains active and ongoing.
The timeline of the case underscores how long it took for alarm to be raised. Geek went missing in 2002, but it was only in the spring of 2003 that his friends realised they had not heard from him in about a year, prompting the questions that would eventually become a decades-long search for the truth.
Police say information that came to light during the investigation indicates that, immediately before he went missing, Geek endured two very serious assaults. Investigators have also pointed to a black 1992 GMC Sierra, which they now describe as key to the case and are highlighting in their renewed appeal for help.
Geek was described as five foot ten and about 160 pounds, with blue eyes and mullet-style dyed blonde hair, and may have appeared injured to anyone who saw him at the time. Police say the family has been notified that charges have been laid and are urging anyone who knows what happened back then, even if they were not ready to speak at the time, to come forward now.