48 Hours: NCIS - A Marine Wife Gone Missing

Episode Date: October 14, 2024

Erin Corwin, a pregnant 19-year-old Marine wife, was found dead in an abandoned mine shaft in Joshua Tree National Park after weeks of searching. “48 Hours” correspondent Natalie Morales offers unique insights into Corwin’s case, including the NCIS agents’ tireless efforts to uncover her body. Hear a complex story of infidelity and obsession that tore more than one Marine family apart and led to Corwin's tragic death.Get early, ad-free access to episodes of 48: NCIS by subscribing to 48 Hours+ on Apple Podcasts.Subscribe to 48 Hours+: https://apple.co/4aEgENoSee Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

It's hard to imagine how desolate it is here. It's very desolate, very vast. Pictures don't do it justice. I believe the spot was chosen because of the remoteness of it, the spot that nobody would ever be able to find. On a summer morning in 2014, Laura Heavlin was in her home in Tennessee when she received a call from California. Her daughter Erin Corwin was missing. She was 19 years old. We really had no clue what happened. It was almost like we were walking in a different

world, kind of numb. The young wife of a Marine had moved to the California desert, to a remote base near Joshua Tree National Park, called 29 Palms. You know, the next thing I hear, the weekend goes by and Monday morning, you know, the sheriffs are there looking for this girl because she ain't home yet. They have to alert the military. And when they do, the NCIS gets involved. NCIS, the Naval Criminal Investigative Service. Most of us may recognize this name from television.

I'm Special Agent Clifton Randolph, Jr., with Naval Criminal Investigative Service. I'm Ashley DeChelpin. I'm an intelligence specialist with NCIS. My name is Sean Nash. I'm a special agent with NCIS. The tight community on base was shocked, and a newfound spotlight on 29 Palms

and the Marines residing there would make headlines all over the nation, full of secrets, lies, and a dangerous romance. Everybody was talking about it. Everybody was commenting on it on social media. People were looking for her. There was buzz on base. Everyone in that complex was sort of like a military Melrose place. It just goes back and makes you wonder if she knew who she was getting involved with.

She did not see the warning signs that I'm sure were there. From CBS Studios and CBS News, this is 48 Hours NCIS. From CBS Studios and CBS News, this is 48 Hours NCIS. I'm Natalie Morales. Growing up in a military family, I feel very connected to the stories of those who serve our country along with their families. This season, I will explore the mysterious disappearance of Marine wife Erin Corwin, a case NCIS agents will never forget. It's that proximity of tragedy that, wow, I cannot believe this happened so close to me. Get early, add free access to episodes of 48 Hours NCIS by subscribing to 48 Hours Plus on Apple Podcasts starting October 22nd. The series will be widely available everywhere else you get your podcasts starting October 29th.