The River: A New Witness

BENTON HARBOR, Mich. -- ABC57 anchor Brian Conybeare is back with another exclusive investigation into the 1991 murder of 16 -year-old Benton Harbor High School student Eric McGinnis.

Eric was found dead in the St. Joseph River nearly 33 years ago and until the first new witness came forward to ABC57 News, Eric's death was long considered an accidental drowning.

However, Conybeare's investigative reporting got authorities to reopen the case in 2021 and declare it a homicide one year later. But the main suspect died years ago, and no one was criminally charged.

The new witness tells ABC57 he saw a second white teenager beating Eric McGinnis on the river's edge the night he disappeared, and he says it all happened because Eric was dating a white girl from St. Joe.

Now, the Michigan Attorney General's office is considering reopening the case again to determine if the second suspect can be charged in Eric's death.