UNSOLVED - A True Crime Podcast · Kristy Kramer

Where is Shannon Timmerman

·31 min·2 clips

Rachel Timmerman’s body was found in Oxford Lake wrapped in chains with cinder blocks and duct tape.

Christy Kramer opens with a personal update and notes that it is October 18. She talks through Halloween, Thanksgiving, and Christmas plans, saying her own lights go up before November 1. Her dad once told her son that a baby elf would die if Christmas lights or the tree went up before Thanksgiving. Her basement office feels dreary, so she talks about twinkle lights and a small tree while leaving the upstairs to Bailey and Ozzie. She also looks ahead to her first cruise at the end of January on the Symphony of the Seas through Royal Caribbean and mentions snorkeling. Then she turns to Shannon's case and the accusation against Marvin Gabrian. Kramer questions how charges could move ahead for six months without evidence and without the complaining witness. On June 16, the prosecutor gets a letter from Rachel. It is postmarked from Little Rock, Arkansas and written in Rachel's handwriting. Rachel's father gets a second letter the same day, also from Little Rock and also in her handwriting. The letters say that Rachel and Shannon are fine and that Rachel will call soon, while the prosecutor's letter says Rachel lied about the rape, had pursued Marvin, and wants the charges dropped. Kramer pushes back on that claim and repeats that Rachel was 18 while Marvin was 43. The prosecutor does not believe the letter and thinks something is terribly wrong. He also believes Rachel is in danger. The next turn is July 5, 1997, when a young woman's body is found in Oxford Lake. Kramer pauses on the geography and says that if you are from Oakland County, you know Oxford Lake. Baby Shannon is still missing 27 years later, and Kramer closes by saying Marvin Gabrian remains in prison awaiting his death sentence while listeners can check the Michigan Unsolved Facebook group for the age-progressed photo and the picture from the time of her disappearance.

As heard by us

A Michigan missing-person case told with local detail and real urgency.

Christy Kramer threads Shannon Timmerman, Marvin Gabrian, the June letters in Rachel's handwriting from Little Rock, Arkansas, and the uneasy path to the July 5, 1997 discovery in Oxford Lake into a case that stays grounded in place.

Read the full review in PlayNext →

Why you'd press play

You get a Michigan unsolved case that opens with Christmas lights and ends with a body found in Oxford Lake.

Read the full recommendation in PlayNext →

Listen to the show on

Apple Podcasts Spotify

Play clips from this episode More from UNSOLVED - A True Crime Podcast