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Rachel Morin’s chilling Facebook post before mother-of-five found dead on Maryland hiking trail

‘Risk can be dangerous, but routine can be deadly’

Alisha Rahaman Sarkar
Thursday 10 August 2023 06:16 EDT
Rachel Morin was last seen on Sunday
Rachel Morin was last seen on Sunday (Harford County Sheriff’s Office)

Rachel Morin shared a post on Facebook that hinted at her possible affinity for thrill months before she was found dead along a forest trail in Maryland.

The mother-of-five was last seen around 6pm on Saturday when she allegedly went out for a run on the Ma and Pa Trail in Bel Air. The 37-year-old failed to return home that night and her boyfriend reported her missing, according to Harford County sheriff Jeffrey Gahler.

Morin’s vehicle was found in the parking lot at the entrance to the popular walking route on Sunday morning and hours later, at around 1pm, a member of the public discovered a woman’s body close to the trail.

Morin shared a post in February that read: "Risk can be dangerous, but routine can be deadly. Comfort has killed more dreams than daring ever did."

Authorities on Sunday night said they have opened a homicide investigation as they awaited formal identification and cause of death from the medical examiner’s office.

Rebekah Morin, the victim’s devastated sister, claimed on a GoFundme page that her sister's death was "not accidental" and she did not go "willingly".

Morin's 27-year-old boyfriend, Richard Tobin, broke his silence on Sunday night, saying he would “never do anything to her”.

“Yes I have a past but I also have 15 months clean and have changed as a person. Please,” Mr Tobin wrote on Facebook.

Court records showed Mr Tobin has two arrests for second-degree assault, and separate arrests for violating restraining orders, malicious destruction of property and drug possession dating back to 2014.

Mr Tobin has also faced charges of being a fugitive from justice, resisting arrest and disorderly intoxication, according to Maryland judiciary case search records.

He is, however, not been named as a suspect, or accused of any wrongdoing in connection with the homicide inquiry.

“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.”

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