The disappearance of 9-year-old Michaela Garecht has run cold for over 32 years, but new evidence in the case has led to charges against David Misch, 59. Earlier this week, Alameda County’s District Attorney Nancy E. O'Malley announced charges against Misch, which included the kidnapping and murder of Garecht.

According to the FBI missing person report, nine-year-old Michaela Garecht was abducted on November 19th, 1988 from the parking lot of a local grocery store in Hayward, California. Garecht was there with a friend when the abductor moved the nine-year-old’s friend's scooter closer to his car. When Garecht went to retrieve the scooter, she was grabbed by the abductor, pulled into the vehicle, and has not been seen since.

Since her abduction, the case has had very few leads. On the 30th anniversary of her disappearance, investigators took a closer look at the evidence and analyzed it for any new potential leads or witnesses. The fingerprint examiner was given a list of names of potential suspects, and those names were matched up against a partial fingerprint that was left on the child’s scooter.

There was a hit between Misch’s print and the one on the scooter after the two prints were compared manually and were deemed to be a match. The advancement of forensic technology also helped secure the connection between Misch to Garecht’s disappearance, though it's not clear in what capacity. Several agencies, including the Hayward Police Department, local law enforcement agencies, and the FBI, worked together to help identify Garecht's abductor.

Misch’s Murderous Past

Misch is currently incarcerated in Alameda County state prison for the 1989 murder of 16-year-old Margaret Ball. Ball, who was from Hayward, the same location where Garecht disappeared, was found stabbed to death in her home.

Misch has also been connected to the double murder of 18-year-old Michelle Xavier and 20-year-old Jennifer Duey. The pair of best friends were murdered on February 3, 1986. After a night out at a restaurant celebrating a family member's birthday, they stopped by a convenience store before going home and were not seen alive after that. Later that evening, after midnight, a passing motorcyclist found the women naked on the side of the road. Both Xavier and Duey had been stabbed and shot to death.

Misch was connected to the double murder after a new unit was created to investigate cold homicide cases and missing persons cases in 2016. The high public interest in the double homicide made this case a priority, and through advancements in forensic evidence, Misch was connected to their murder as the main suspect. During the time of the murders, Misch lived in the area and was known to be a commercial burglar and local drug user.

Michaela's mother, Shannon Murch, has documented her journey of her daughter's disappearance on her blog. In a statement that was read by the police chief during the news conference announcing the charges, Michaela's mother shared, "In the last year, I had to come to a place of accepting that Michaela was probably no longer alive. ... What I did not envision was my daughter as a dead child."

Murch goes on to add, “Over the years, I have often wondered whether I really wanted to know the truth of what happened to Michaela. I wondered if I would be able to take it. As I told our detective, I am glad that the kidnapper has been identified. I am glad that there are answers. I am glad that this man will never be able to hurt anyone else. I ask that you please don't forget her now. She is no longer a case, but she is what she's always been, and that is a bright and shining light. And in her absence from this earth, it is up to us to find a way to carry her life forward."

In light of the new charges, Misch is set to be arraigned at 8:30 a.m. on December 22.