Victim's family speaks out, hopes for justice as suspect charged with murder
Just one day after the arrest of their daughter's ex-boyfriend in connection with her disappearance and murder, the family of Monica Moynan is speaking out about what these last 10 months of waiting have been like for them.
As Brian Sluss made his first appearance in a Wake County courtroom, the family of 23-year-old Monica "Moni" Moynan felt for the first time like justice for her was a real possibility.
Samantha Moynan, the victim's sister, said, "We've suffered for months and months not having a clue where she is, and that's the main thing that we've asked for."
After months of pain and more questions than answers, the family finally feels like answers--and justice--might be on the horizon.
"They have in custody the one person who does know the answers and knows exactly where she is and what happened," said Brandon Tucker, Moynan's stepfather.
Now, Moynan's ex-boyfriend, the father of her two children, Brian Sluss, is charged with killing her. Search warrants filed by Holly Springs Police reveal he had been abusive and covered up her disappearance. For ten months family helped push the investigation forward.
Melanie Tucker, Moynan's mother, said, "First and foremost I want to know where my daughter is so she can be brought home to rest."
Investigators also returned new search warrants in the case today for Facebook and Google accounts. One of the Facebook accounts was a fake account Sluss created in order to interact with the victim online, according to investigators.
Sluss' arrest and murder charge
An ex-boyfriend long considered a person of interest in the disappearance of a Holly Springs woman was arrested Tuesday and charged with first-degree murder. Wednesday afternoon, he was processed into the Wake County Detention Center after being held in Tazewell County, Va.
Brian Sluss, 44, was the last person to see his ex-girlfriend, 23-year-old Monica Moynan, alive, according to search warrants released earlier in the case. His actions after her disappearance raised suspicions. On Tuesday he was arrested at his parents' home in Bluefield, Va.
He had nothing to say as officers walked him into the Wake County Detention Center, even as people asked him, "Do you have anything to say to her family?'
An end to a 10 month investigation for a victim who was never found
Holly Springs Police Chief John Herring said his investigators had done an exceptional job, working for 10 months to put a case together for a victim who has never been found.
"While this was a very emotional case, they were able to set those emotions aside and do what they do best," he said. "Yesterday, it paid off for us."
The Grand Jury returned an indictment for murder against Sluss.
District Attorney Lorrin Freeman said she was satisfied that Holly Springs Police have a strong case--and hopes the arrest brings some closure to her family.
She said, "Obviously this is a tragedy for them, a loss. I think this begins the process of finding justice and seeking justice for their daughter."
Hoping to find Moynan's remains
"There's a good amount of circumstantial evidence in this case, but I'll tell you this, there's also a lot of physical evidence in this case," said Herring.
"There are some challenges and hurdles when you don't have a body, but we feel like we've got a really really solid case here," he said.
Investigators searched Moynan's apartment on Timber Springs Court in August, seizing the traps from the kitchen sink and two bathroom sinks, as well as the drain from the washing machine. Police also took a soil sample from the area, swabbed for evidence on the back door and the back porch and seized a set of curtains off the back door, a toy play mat, two silver latches, a journal and other items from the apartment, according to the search warrant.
Sluss, according to those warrants, failed to report Moynan missing, lied about her whereabouts and used her social media accounts and phone, pretending to be her.
He told police that Moynan had become addicted to heroin and had run off in late June after he tried "home rehab" to break her of the addiction. He said he didn't know how to tell her family about it, so he sent texts to them as if everything was fine with her.
But investigators noted in search warrant applications that he had told other people Moynan had been at a drug treatment facility for months and that he told a different story of her whereabouts to police when they questioned him at his parents' Virginia home in September.
Investigators would, of course, like to find Moynan’s body for her family’s sake--but they said there’s only one person they believe who knows where it is. He’s being held without bond and and had his first court appearance Thursday afternoon.
Moynan's stepfather said, "The first steps of real justice have been set in motion."
