The Gazette Story from today for those that havent been able to read: Facebook has become a tool for the family of Monica Sanders with the goal of tracking down anyone with information regarding the unsolved murder of the 20-year-old woman in 1988. The Facebook page is called Justice for Monica Sanders and family and friends are sharing the word to find information which may solve the murder. “If you have any information that could help lead to the arrest and conviction of her murderers, please come forward. I know someone that sees this will know something that can help. Please do the right thing. Our family has suffered dearly and needs closure. It’s time these guys pay for what they did to her,” her sister Kristie Sanders wrote on the Facebook page. “I just want to say thank you to everyone who has shared this post for us. Thank you all for all your kind words, prayers and shares. It means the world to us. Words cannot express the pain in our hearts. We pray for justice and closure here in this world, but in the end, I know they will be held accountable, and God’s punishment will be far greater than any here on this Earth,” wrote Kristie Sanders, who is organizing the Facebook page. Kristie Sanders was 7 years old when her sister was murdered. On Aug. 21, 1988, Monica Sander was brutally beaten, raped and shot three times in the chest. She was 20 years old and was last seen alive at the Pines in Texarkana, Ark. Monica had two teeth knocked out, and her inch-long fingernails had been broken. She apparently “fought like crazy,” said her mother, Doris Sanders, in a previously published Gazette article. Law enforcement officers told her mother evidence indicated she fought back. Oddly, her clothing and boots had been folded and placed in a pile beside her body. A Fouke man was arrested Sept. 11, 1989, and charged with first-degree murder. He went to trial in August 1990. A Miller County jury of seven men and five women deliberated about 5 1/2 hours before deciding he was not guilty. A charge was dropped against one of the suspects, and a third man was never charged, according to Gazette news accounts. Doris Sanders, the mother of Monica and Kristie, said she trusts God to help her. “I’ve given it to God, and that’s the only way to survive. I was a basket case for years. I prayed and prayed and finally laid my burden down and gave it to God,” Doris said in a Gazette story. The murder nearly destroyed the family. Her son Phillip was angry over how he couldn’t protect his sister. He shot at the trailer of the suspect and killed his dog. He had to pay a $1,500 fine. A few years after the murder, Sanders heard her husband talking in the kitchen and found he was speaking to a photo of Monica and promising her killers would be brought to justice. The family recently contacted a former FBI agent asking for advice to keep the case before the public and to help possibly discover additional evidence from someone who may have seen something the night Monica died. The family is also considering collecting money for a reward. Published: 08/21/2014
Posted on: Thu, 21 Aug 2014 14:11:46 +0000