AKRON — The family of an Akron woman whose body was found in a shallow grave is preparing a proper goodbye.
On Sunday, a vigil was held for Robin Freitag, who had been missing for more than a month.
Freitag was found by her cousin in a shallow grave behind her house on Crouse St. on Friday. Freitag had been reported missing by her daughter Kim back on Sept. 5, who claimed she hadn't heard from her mother since July 31.
Freitag's brother, Marcus Fruth, tells WKYC's Chris Tye that he had a secret code with his sister. When he sent it to her and she didn't reply, he knew something was wrong.
"We always had a little code between the two of us," Fruth says. "If one would be in trouble, send out the code, and answer it back. That means you're okay, everything's fine. She never sent back anything."
Freitag's boyfriend, 52-year-old David A. Callaghan, has been charged with her murder, along with abuse of a corpse and tampering with evidence. He was arraigned Saturday morning in Akron Municipal Court, and had already been in the Summit County Jail on unrelated charges.
Court records show a rap sheet for Callaghan that dates back to 1989 in Akron alone. He had previously pleaded guilty to charges including drug abuse, theft, and criminal trespass, and even spent some time in jail. So far, he has not been offered bail on the murder charge.
Freitag's exact cause of death has not yet been determined. Loved ones set up a GoFundMe to pay for funeral expenses.