Five people charged with murdering 24-year-old Erica Bader faced a judge in a Central Falls courtroom on Wednesday, October 28, 2026, one year and one day after her body turned up in a wooded area of Pawtucket. Police say Bader died somewhere other than where she was found, and the investigation that followed traced back to a home on Central Street in Central Falls.
Erica Bader was 24 when her body was discovered on October 27, 2025, in the wooded Pawtucket site, according to WPRI.com. Investigators determined she had died somewhere else, and the case eventually led them to the Central Street address in Central Falls. Separately, NBC Boston reports investigators believe her body had been moved from an address in Central Falls.
The station also reported that friends had called police in April with concerns about Bader's well-being, prompting officers to conduct a wellness check, though they were unable to locate her at the time. About a week after her body was found, the Rhode Island Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals seized 50 cats and dogs from the Central Falls home, the same outlet noted.
Charges Escalate From Failure to Report to Murder
What began as a failure-to-report-a-death investigation widened considerably. Six people were originally arrested on that charge, and five of them were later charged with murder, kidnapping and conspiracy, per the station's report. Brittney Terpening, Stephanie Bletzer, Joshua Brunelle Arnold, Andrew Cornell and Elizabeth Durand now face those murder counts, while three additional suspects — Christopher Kordalewski, Joanne Miller and Cheryl Blakely — were charged with kidnapping, conspiracy and failure to report a death, according to NBC Boston.
Reported ages for some of the murder defendants vary between outlets. The Boston Globe listed Cornell as 28 and Terpening's age unspecified in that passage, while Turn to 10 reported Durand at 41, Brunelle at 35, Terpening at 34, Cornell at 29 and Bletzer at 37. The seed report from the same account of Wednesday's proceedings put Terpening at 35, Bletzer at 38, Brunelle Arnold at 35, Cornell at 29 and Durand at 41. Court documents identify Terpening as Bader's roommate, the same account notes.
Grand Jury Indictment and Bail
A Providence grand jury has since indicted the five murder defendants, according to Turn to 10, which reported that the Rhode Island Attorney General's Office confirmed the indictment and that the defendants were scheduled to be arraigned the following month. The five murder defendants were ordered held without bail, while the three defendants facing kidnapping, conspiracy and failure-to-report charges had bail set at $30,000 with surety, the Boston Globe reported.
Wednesday's court proceedings include a bail hearing with witnesses and a pre-trial conference, the station noted. The investigation has drawn on multiple agencies, including Central Falls police, Pawtucket police, the Rhode Island Office of the Attorney General and the Office of the State Medical Examiner, according to the Valley Breeze.
Family Demands Answers as Investigation Continues
Outside court, Crystal Smith said she and Bader's father would not stand for the taking of Bader's life. Smith said Bader was homeless at the time of her death and had no other place to go, according to the same account. Bader's family said they will continue to fight for justice.
Police have not disclosed the circumstances surrounding Bader's death, and the investigation remains ongoing, per the original report. No cause or manner of death has been made public, and authorities have not detailed how each defendant is alleged to have participated in the kidnapping, conspiracy or murder charges against them.
