Investigators reopen Berit Beck case

FOND DU LAC COUNTY, Wis. - Investigators are taking a new look at a Fond du Lac County cold case dating back nearly 20 years.

18-year-old Berit Beck disappeared while driving to Appleton in July of 1990.

Berit Beck disappeared on July 17, 1990.

The Sturtevant teen was on her way to the Fox Valley for work. She never reached her destination.

"It was a great concern because it was very much out of character and she was you know supposed to be at a certain location and she wasn't," said Lt. Bill Flood with the Fond du Lac County Sheriff's Office.

A few days later, investigators found Beck's van in a Fond du Lac parking lot. Beck was nowhere to be found.

"There were fliers and I believe a semi trailer was set up with a very large picture of Berit and requesting information on if any sightings had been made," Flood explained.

Five and a half weeks later, Beck's body was found in rural Fond du Lac County. An autopsy showed she died of asphyxiation.

"Why did they think they needed to take her life? What did she do them? I mean she was such a gentle soul. She would have given them everything she had," said Diane Beck, Berit's mother.

Beck says she's anxious for some answers. So are state investigators, who believe they're close to getting some.

"Within the last year to year and a half, some light-I guess I would call leads-have been developed that need some following up on," said Tom Fassbender, Special Agent with the state Department of Justice.

Investigators said they're hoping someone with information will come forward to help them solve the case.

Diane Beck says after 20 years--it's time to know what happened.

"I need to hear it explained to me from that individual. I want to know that they're sorry that this happened," said Beck.

Beck said investigators have discovered items that were never tested for DNA. She's hopeful new DNA testing can bring legitimate hope and legitimate leads.

"You know over the years, you hoped and prayed something had been overlooked that's right under our nose, so maybe this will be the case," said Beck.

Investigators tell FOX 11 they haven't ruled out any persons of interest developed throughout the course of the investigation.

That includes 46-year-old Craig Hron, a convicted bank robber who police called a suspect early on in the case.

His attorney says Hron denies any involvement in Beck's murder.

Diane Beck is hopeful her family's quest for closure will end soon.

"Beri would be 37 now. Hard to imagine that she could be so old at this point... I really can't imagine her looking any differently than she does in the pictures we have of her. But I imagine her to be married, and a loving more at this point in her life if she'd been able to stay with us," said Beck.

Authorities ask anyone with information about the Berit Beck case to call the Department of Justice at (920) 832-2750 or the Fond du Lac County Sheriff's Office tip line at (920) 906-4777.

There is a possibility of reward money.