top of page
Murder Creek Media Logo

Human Statue on Display: The Death of Christopher Erick and a Family's Search for Truth

Christopher Erick plastinated body comparison

We recently released a two-part Dead Diary story that examines the life and death of 23-year-old Christopher Erick of Midlothian, Texas. The case has resurfaced due to renewed public interest and ongoing advocacy from Christopher's mother, Kim Erick Smith, who has spent years searching for answers. Her claims span questions about Christopher's death, the circumstances surrounding his remains, and the unsettling possibility that his body may have been used as a plastinated display at the Real Bodies Exhibition in Las Vegas.


The two episodes explore the case from two directions. The first focuses on what happened after Christopher died. The second looks at the troubling events that took place in the months leading up to his death. Together they create a complicated and deeply emotional picture of a family in crisis and a young man whose story still does not feel fully understood.


Part One. The Aftermath and the Disappearance of Christopher Erick's Body

According to public records, Christopher died on November 10, 2012, from cyanide poisoning. His body was later marked as unclaimed due to a paperwork error. Because of this mistake, his mother says she was never able to provide her son with a proper burial.


Several years passed before Kim came across news coverage of the Real Bodies Exhibition, a scientific attraction and immersive experience that explores the human body using real human specimens. When she saw photographs of a plastinated figure posed as "The Thinker," she believed she recognized her son's face and physical features. This moment marked the beginning of a new investigation that focused on tracking the origins of that specific display.


The exhibit is supplied by Dalian Hoffen Bio-Technique Co. Ltd., a company that has stated its specimens come from unclaimed bodies donated to medical universities in China. If the process is accurate, Christopher's body should not have been part of the exhibit. Despite this, Kim discovered similarities in bone structure, posture, and facial features that she found compelling. She also assembled a paper trail of business addresses, licensing details, and archived images that she believes support her conclusion.


By 2016, the plastinated body was on display in Las Vegas, but by April 2025 it had reportedly been removed. Its current location is unknown, although Kim has speculated that the removal may be connected to media attention surrounding her claims.


Kim later found news about more than three hundred piles of cremated remains discovered in Searchlight, Nevada. The ashes were collected by Palm Mortuaries and are stored in individual urns. Kim contacted multiple agencies and attempted to submit a tip, expressing concern that one of the unidentified sets of remains could belong to Christopher. She has not received confirmation.


Part Two. The Questions Surrounding Christopher's Death

The second Dead Diary episodes rewinds to March 2012, about eight months before Christopher died. At the time he was living with his paternal grandmother, Pat Erick, in Midlothian. Kim believed Pat intended to harm Christopher and attempted to alert his father, Steve Erick, who did not respond. Christopher had been struggling with addiction and had recently faced a court hearing involving the sale of prescription medication. According to Kim, the charges were dropped, and he was ordered to receive treatment.


Two days after that hearing, Christopher was found dead in his bed. Kim recalls being told by both Steve and Pat that Christopher had died "naturally and peacefully." Those words stood out to her and became an early point of concern when the same phrasing was used multiple times before toxicology results confirmed cyanide poisoning.


Kim learned that on the day Christopher died, Steve contacted his fire chief to request time off and referred to the death as a suicide. She questioned how he could have known this before toxicology confirmed the presence of cyanide. She also noted that the scene was never treated as a potential crime scene. Steve, who was an EMT, did not attend his son's visitation or funeral. The funeral home director told Kim that Steve declined to view Christopher's body when he signed cremation paperwork.


Kim continued looking into the details herself. She reviewed scene photographs and focused on a Gatorade bottle near the bed that she believes could have been used to administer cyanide. Christopher had experienced painful mouth sores in the weeks before his death, and Kim believed this could be related to ingesting small amounts of cyanide over time. She has since archived social media posts, emails, reports, photos, and more on a website cataloging her suspicions of foul play, including claims that Pat Erick may have been involved. These accusations remain unproven and rooted entirely in Kim's independent research and archived online material.


Accessing the Archived Material

Many of the websites and documents referenced in these episodes can only be accessed through the Wayback Machine. These archived pages reflect information Kim published during her investigation. Some external documents she originally linked are no longer available. Listeners can review the archived material directly through the links below:



Listen to the Full Episodes

Both episodes of this story are available on Dead Diary. They provide a full walkthrough of Kim's claims, the timeline of Christopher's final months, and the troubling events that followed his death. This case continues to evolve as more archived material surfaces and Kim pushes for answers.




Find more ways to listen here.

Comments

bottom of page