EVERETT, Wash. - Snohomish County officials say a burned out car found near Gold Bar with human remains inside belongs to a missing south Everett Woman, but it's too early to say if the body is that of Sherry Harlan.
Sheriff's spokeswoman Rebecca Hover says the 1989 Nissan Sentra was found Thursday in the Reiter Pit area.
"The vehicle had been torched. Portions of human remains were found in that vehicle," said Snohomish Co. Senior Deputy Prosecutor Craig Matheson. He says DNA testing is needed to confirm the identity of the body.
Detectives believe Harlan was killed and, on Thursday, arrested her former boyfriend. Eric James Christensen faces a charge of second-degree murder which could be raised to first-degree. He appeared in court for a hearing Friday.
Harlan's co-workers called 911 on Tuesday night after she missed several shifts.
Inside Harlan's apartment, detectives found evidence of a violence struggle, including a Futon bed with bloody stab marks.
Friends of Harlan's say they feared Christensen would do exactly what police say he did.
"Sherry wanted to leave him and get a life without him because she knew he was violent," said a friend of Harlan's who does not wish to be identified. "I tried to talk her into getting away from Eric and her telling me she was afraid of him and volunteering to go get a restraining order on him."
In 1990, Christensen pleaded guilty to sex abuse in Oregon. A few years later, he was convicted of aggravated assault for shooting an ex-girlfriend. Then, in 2008, another ex, who is the mother of Christensen's daughter, got an order of protection saying, " … he repeatedly told me he wants me to hurt. I was afraid to get in a car with him or even see him alone."
Last month, a judge terminated Christensen's parental rights.
"And that was his final snap, that the courts were not even going to allow him to see his daughter," said Harlan's friend.
Jeri Schaible used to date Christensen. She describes him as a 10-year-old brat trapped in the body of a 220-pound man.
"He's angry. He's violent. He doesn't have any control over his temper. He doesn't have any control over his actions or his words," said Schaible.
If the felony in Oregon counts under Washington state law, this could be Christensen's third strike, meaning life in prison without parole.
