From left, Lt. Mike Stalnaker listens as Parkersburg Police Chief Matthew Board discusses the indictment made in the case of Gretchen Fleming Friday evening. (Photo by Gwen Sour)

A Wood County grand jury indicted Preston D. Pierce on Friday in connection with the disappearance and death of Gretchen Fleming, whose case has remained under investigation since she was reported missing in December 2022. Law enforcement officials held a briefing Friday evening.

Pierce, 58, was indicted on charges of first-degree murder, felony murder, concealment of a deceased human body and kidnapping, Parkersburg officials said during a Friday news conference. He was arrested Friday afternoon in the Asheville, N.C., area by agents with the U.S. Marshals Service Southern District of West Virginia CUFFED Task Force and the Carolina Regional Fugitive Task Force.

Fleming was last seen early Dec. 4, 2022, and was reported missing to the Parkersburg Police Department on Dec. 12, 2022. Parkersburg Police Chief Matthew Board said investigators determined early in the case that Pierce was the last person Fleming was known to have been seen with.

In a December 2023 story in the Parkersburg News and Sentinel, Board confirmed the person of interest as Pierce, who has also gone by the name Darrell Lott. Pierce was a former police officer across different municipalities in West Virginia.

“Our investigation from the onset quickly determined that Mr. Pierce was the last person Gretchen was known to be seen with,” Board said. “As the investigation proceeded, it revealed that Mr. Pierce was a person of interest in this investigation.”

Detective James Zimmerman discusses the family of Gretchen Fleming and his working relationship with them during a press conference on Friday. (Photo by Gwen Sour)

Board said the case was never considered cold by investigators, who continued working on it for more than three years. He credited Lt. Mike Stalnaker, Det. James Zimmerman, the Wood County Prosecutor’s Office represented by Prosecutor Pat Lefebure, the FBI, West Virginia State Police and other local, state and federal partners with moving the case forward.

A major break came in September, when human remains were found in Wirt County, officials said. At the time the remains were found, West Virginia State Police said a squirrel hunter discovered a human skull off Courtney Ridge Road in Palestine. A crime scene team and coroner responded to the site, where officials said they found “a human skull, teeth and a suspected small forearm bone.”

The remains were collected and submitted for genetic testing, which determined they were Fleming’s. Officials said DNA from the remains was compared with a profile developed from Fleming’s family members and items collected from where she had lived.

Board said at the time that Parkersburg officers were assisting with the investigation in the neighboring county, though there was nothing then to indicate a link to a specific case.

The indictment followed that identification and further consultation with prosecutors, officials said.

Gretchen Fleming. (Photos provided)

“This is obviously not the outcome that we have all prayed for,” Board said. “This is not what we wanted, but it is my hope that through bringing Gretchen home and holding Mr. Pierce accountable for his actions will help them (Fleming’s family) get the peace that they need.”

Lefebure said Pierce remains in custody in the Asheville area pending extradition proceedings. Depending on that process, Pierce could be returned to Wood County as soon as within a week or it could take several months, Lefebure said. Once returned, Pierce will be arraigned and the case will proceed through the court system.

Officials said Pierce was taken into custody during a traffic stop after the indictment was entered into the National Crime Information Center, allowing agencies outside West Virginia to arrest him on the warrant.

Lefebure said evidence in the case will be presented through the court process. Officials declined to discuss a possible motive, additional forensic details or whether anyone else may have been involved. They said a cause of death has not been determined.

Felony murder applies when a death occurs during the commission of certain felonies, Lefebure said. In this case, he said, the underlying felony would be kidnapping. The murder charges could carry life sentences, and the kidnapping charge also could carry a life sentence. Concealment of a deceased human body carries a sentence of one to five years in prison, he said.

Zimmerman said Fleming’s family was notified Friday afternoon and that the case has had a lasting impact on investigators.

“I think the impact this family has had on me is, I think, a lot of times in law enforcement we can be kind of robotic,” said Zimmerman. “I think getting to know this family – and having sympathy and empathy with them, and getting to know them – it’s forever changed my career, and how I approach cases from now on.”

Board said the case has been solemn for investigators and the community, noting that signs for Fleming have remained visible around Parkersburg and that residents continued to submit tips.

“The community rallied around this incident,” Board said. “Police work cannot be personal, it has to be abstract. Facts are facts, but when you take the police hat off and become a human being again, the feelings settle in a little bit.”

According to Zimmerman, the reward offered for information in the case has not been distributed.