PLAINFIELD TOWNSHIP, Mich. (WOOD) — After the body of a missing Plainfield Township woman was found in Wyoming, police are looking for a person of interest in what they are calling a homicide investigation.
Mollie Schmidt, 33, was found Tuesday morning on 44th Street just east of Burlingame Avenue, Wyoming police said at a Wednesday news conference. Police say she was shot dead.
The body was found when Kent County Sheriff’s Department detectives and Wyoming police searched Yenly Garcia’s home. When Schmidt went missing, deputies suggested she may be with Garcia. He is now considered a person of interest in her disappearance and death and police are looking for him.
He was described as a 44-year-old man, 5-foot-10 and about 200 pounds with black hair and distinct tattoos on his face. He was last known to be driving a black 2019 Dodge Ram 1500 pickup truck with the Michigan license plate ELW6780.
He has another active warrant out for his arrest on an unrelated charge. Officers are asking anybody with information on Garcia’s whereabouts to contact the Wyoming Police Department at 616.530.7300 or Silent Observer at 1.866.774.2345.
Garcia previously served prison time for an unlawful imprisonment conviction out of Grand Rapids in 2008. He was initially charged with kidnapping but pleaded down to the lesser charge and assault with a dangerous weapon. The Michigan Department of Corrections said he was paroled in the summer of 2016 and released from parole in October 2017.
Michigan State Police records show Garcia’s criminal history, which dates back to 2004, also includes convictions for drugs, domestic violence, larceny and retail fraud.
Schmidt had last been seen on Aug. 21 at her home near the intersection of the East Beltline and 5 Mile Road NE, according to deputies. The sheriff’s department said Schmidt had left behind her children at her home, which they said was uncharacteristic of her.
Schmidt left behind five children whom she “adored,” her aunt, Lisa McGraw, said. One started kindergarten last week.
“That really was kind of a red flag that she wasn’t there for that. She would never have missed that,” McGraw said.
She said her brother, Schmidt’s father Michael O’Meara, was “at a loss right now. He’s devastated.”
“My brother called me … last week and said, ‘Mollie is missing,'” McGraw told News 8 in a video call. “He was supposed to go visit her. He had talked to her Saturday about going over Sunday. … And when he got there, she wasn’t there. And she doesn’t do that.”
“That was when it all kind of settled in that something wasn’t right,” she said.
McGraw thanked everyone who supported the family in the search and law enforcement for pursuing the case.
“Finding her was the end of one chapter,” McGraw said, “but now we need to find out what happened and let law enforcement do their job, and they are, and find justice for this.”
She called on anyone who knows anything about what happened or about where Garcia may be to call police.
She recalled her niece as a “ray of sunshine.”
“She’s sweet. That word is just what always comes in my mind,” McGraw said. “I just want people to know that she was an amazing human being.”
She said Schmidt’s sister Christie wanted to tell people how much she admired Schmidt’s strength.
“She had some difficulties. She overcame things. And we were always proud of her for that,” McGraw said.
Another of Schmidt’s sisters, Sarah Oaks, released this statement to News 8 Wednesday:
“My family is both heartbroken and horrified at the recent turn of events. I would like to thank all of those involved in helping to locate Mollie and provide us all with a small sense of closure. I would like to personally thank law enforcement, friends and family for sharing photos-and bringing attention to her disappearance, missing persons advocates, the dance community, authors of news articles, local news and radio stations, and anyone else who played an active role in returning Mollie back to her family. I am eager to begin the process of holding the person capable of such cruelty, accountable. I will not rest until little Mollie gets her justice. Until we meet again sweet girl, love your big sis.”
— Sarah Oaks
Jennifer Cogswell, a friend of Schmidt, sent News 8 this statement:
“I met Mollie around 10yrs ago.. She was the sweetest girl I’ve ever known in the dancing industry. Over the years, I’ve seen so many nice young woman get chewed up & spit out. Or swallowed up whole, with new darker personas.. Mollie was able to keep her bright personality, & always had a contagious smile on her face. We shared so many great memories over the years, & she will be truly missed. I wish her kids had more time to know just how amazing their mother was. She was an amazing person, & she didn’t deserve any of this. I’m better at peace knowing she’s reunited with our good friend Laura Miller.”
— Jennifer Cogswell
—News 8’s Byron Tollefson and Rachel Van Gilder contributed to this report.
*Correction: Referencing information obtained from a family member, a previous version of this article misidentified the apartment complex where the body was found. We regret the error, which has been removed.
