Charlottesville PD searching for person of interest in a unsolved homicide case, may have ties to SC

COLUMBIA, S.C. (WOLO) — The Charlottesville Police Department is searching for a missing man connected to an unsolved homicide that may have ties to South Carolina.

Erik McFadden, 28, is a person of interest in  the unsolved homicide of 19-year-old Dashad “Sage” Smith who disappeared on November 20, 2012 around 6:30 pm.

Detectives made contact with McFadden briefly, but he failed to show up for a scheduled interview with police and reportedly left town.

McFadden has not been seen or heard from by Charlottesville Police Department, or even family members since that time.

McFadden was reportedly an acquaintance of Smith, and the two were planning to meet that evening. Police say what happened after they met remains a mystery.

Smith vanished without a trace, and detectives continue to believe McFadden was the last person to see Smith, and believe he has information vital to this case.

Initially, Smith’s case was classified as a missing person’s case, but the department reclassified the case as a homicide in November 2016.

Despite the law enforcement efforts of scouring through evidence, interviews and witness statements, the case still remains unsolved.

McFadden attended Lincoln University in Oxford, Pennsylvania in August 2009 to April 2011.

Detectives believe McFadden may have traveled to and could be living in cities such as Baltimore, MD., Joppa, MD., Lake City., SC., Columbia, SC., Atlanta, GA., New York City, NY., Rochester, NY., and potentially other unknown locations on the West Coast.

Anyone with any information about McFadden’s disappearance or Smith’s homicide case, contact Det. Regine Wright at (434) 977-3381 or CrimeStoppers at (434) 977-4000.

Any information leading to an arrest in Smith’s case, a reward of $10,000 is being offered through CrimeStoppers and an additonal $10,000 being matched by the City of Charlottesville.