Human Remains Found In Minivan Belonging To Missing Kinston Woman

While searching for a missing fisherman Sunday near Fort Barnwell in western Craven County, investigators found the 1998 Dodge Caravan belonging to Gail Haddock-Dail, 59, of Kinston, who disappeared 10 months ago.

Police said Haddock-Dail and her 16-year-old granddaughter, Heather Lynn Roberts, were traveling to Roanoke, Va., last December to see members of their family.

McFadyen said that the license plate on the minivan, which was 16 feet below the surface of the river, matched that registered to Haddock-Dail's vehicle. Dive teams had searched the same area three times last December, but investigators said the van was difficult to find because it had settled and sand had covered it.

A broken window on the vehicle's right side allowed it to fill with mud, making it impossible to initially tell if Haddock-Dail and her granddaughter were inside.

According to investigators, Haddock-Dail called her estranged husband, Glenn Dail, at 3 a.m. Dec. 7, saying her vehicle was in the water and that she and her granddaughter were drowning, but then her cellular phone cut off.

Two weeks before the two disappeared, the family's home in Kinston burned down. Investigators with the State Bureau of Investigation still cannot say if the fire was accidental or intentional.

Investigators interviewed Haddock-Dail's estranged husband after the disappearance, but would not say if he was considered to be a suspect.

"We want to see if we've got the remains," McFadyen said. "Then, we need to determine the cause of death. And then, that will lead us further into the investigation."

The remains have been sent for an autopsy to determine the cause of death and the victims' identities.