Woman found in shallow grave after romantic dinner with boyfriend – Everything Law and Order Blog

In this episode of Crime Watch Daily Updates: Twenty-two-year-old Zuzu Verk went to her boyfriend’s house for what should have been a romantic dinner. Instead, she ended up dead.

Zuzu was a college student at Sul Ross State University in Alpine, Texas, and started dating a man named Robert Fabian. Some of Zuzu’s friends were wary of her new beau, saying he appeared needy and manipulative. The two had an on and off relationship, and Zuzu apparently wanted things to go in the “off” direction as she planned on transferring to Texas A&M University — without him.

On October 11, 2016, Zuzu went to Robert’s apartment for dinner. He even set up candles and bought her some champagne. But that would be the last time anyone saw Zuzu.

Her friends and family grew concerned because she wasn’t responding to text messages and calls, and Robert claimed Zuzu left his home in the early hours of October 12. She was reported missing October 14.

Even though he called in her disappearance, Robert seemed suspicious. While speaking with police, he reportedly talked about Zuzu in the past tense. He also didn’t attend searches or a vigil for his girlfriend.

Robert soon became a person of interest in Zuzu’s disappearance.

In February 2017, investigators found Zuzu’s body in a shallow grave, which led to Robert’s arrest. He was taken into custody for tampering with evidence by concealing a human corpse. His friend, Chris Estrada, was also arrested for tampering with evidence because he allegedly helped Robert move Zuzu’s body.

Chris pleaded no contest and was sentenced to 42 months in prison and 12 months for evading arrest, which stemmed from another case.

He testified at Robert’s trial and said Robert confessed to strangling Zuzu to death. Robert was convicted in May 2019 of murder and tampering with evidence. He was sentenced to life in prison.

Robert appealed the conviction, but in 2021, the higher court affirmed the ruling.

Let’s look back at the case of a young woman whose romantic evening turned into a night of terror and tragedy.

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33 thoughts on “Woman found in shallow grave after romantic dinner with boyfriend”
  1. I lived in Alpine Texas when this happened her body was found near where I lived in a place called Sunny Glen just outside of Alpine and I remember seeing it all over the news and seeing all the missing person Flyers it was a sad few months for Alpine

  2. This case was awful. I lived on the road where they found Zuzu and my roommate and I had to listen to the excavation for a week. Knowing we were that close to her and driving by her for four months broke our hearts. Just to clarify, her family reported her missing, NOT her boyfriend. Those boys did horrible things and deserve every second of their sentence. The community was devastated. There is a beautiful memorial for her now at the school. I was in a (very) bad relationship at the time which could’ve ended up similar to this case, but having this experience prompted my leaving that situation. Thank you Zuzu, may your light always shine on ❤

  3. Chris makes my skin crawl. You have to be some kind of sick freak to lie about helping your friend hide the body of his girlfriend and continue to allow her family and friends to suffer. I hope he gets his ass thrown in prison for being an accessory after the fact. Dear ladies or gentlemen don’t ever date this sick man.

  4. he went out there and help move the body , as soon as he asked him what happened all of a sudden his eyes floated to the right. He’s acting like that guy down in Florida that killed his wife.. no one‘s gonna call you in the middle of the night to ask you to paint a table.

  5. It always amazes me how brazenly and casually people can lie. No tells, no guilt, no hesitation. Basically if someone says they are innocent of a crime, it means absolutely nothing unless evidence supports it.

  6. Why ? Unless she pulls a gun on you , there is no reason to kill the woman. As much as she annoys you, taking her life and losing yours to prison is never worth it. I never understood why a man would have to kill a woman like this. It seems so cowardly.

  7. Chris Estrada: "You can read a lot about a person by just their eyes"

    Also Chris Estrada: * Barely looks into the interviewer's eyes at all during the interview. Especially when answering incriminating questions. *

    It doesn't take "The Lie Guy" to detect any lies in this one.

  8. That is so heartbreaking. Reminds me of my high school love.

    My high school sweetheart and I decided that we would (she decided) take a break from our engagement while she attended college at Eastern Washington and I travelled the world in the U.S. Navy.

    Her name “Mindy” enjoyed being single again after 3 years of teenage steady with me. Long story short, she graduated and became a wonderful loving Registered Nurse living in Tacoma Washington. She met a man who she moved in with and the relationship turned ugly. His temper put her in the hospital she worked at on several occasions until around New Years 1986 when he found out she had called her Mom, in Spokane that she couldn’t take anymore. She decided to leave him.

    That night, he confronted her, then beat her, broke her back and strangled her to death and then tossed her bloodied lifeless body in a muddy ditch. I don’t know his name, her Mom wouldn’t share it with me and I’m not sure it ever made the news. Her name was Melinda Marie Hawker, borne August 1958. She had one brother, Derek Hawker, Seattle, who died ~1990, by his own choice.

    I know Melinda “Mindy” had many friends but I married in 1978 and didn’t find out she had been murdered until 2 years after her death, accidentally when my wife and I bumped into her Mom at the “International House of Pancakes”.

    I just felt like sharing this. Mindy was a straight “A” student during ‘74, 75, 76 Shadle Park High School, leading her way to become a registered nurse. Multitalented throughout her life, Mindy was well loved by her friends and family that I know of. Great sense of humor. She’ll not be forgotten, I just wish I would have heard or read about some dedication in her memory and her brothers.

    Bless you both Melinda Marie and Derek Hawker; enjoy the universe. 🥹

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