BARDSTOWN, Ky. — Another major breakthrough has happened in the 2015 disappearance of Crystal Rogers.
Rogers' boyfriend at the time of her disappearance, 41-year-old Brooks Houck, was arrested on Wednesday morning. His arrest warrant was signed on Sept. 20.
According to court documents, he was charged with murder and tampering with physical evidence. His cash-only bond is currently set at $10 million, and he's also been ordered to not have any contact with the family of Rogers.
His arraignment is set for Oct. 5.
Houck has been considered the main suspect in her case since the beginning.
In August 2020, when the FBI took over Rogers' case, agents executed search warrants at the homes of Houck and his brother Nick, who was a police officer in Bardstown at the time. The FBI also searched Rogers' storage unit and conducted their first search of the Houck Family Farm.
In August 2021, after another multi-day search, federal agents found "items of interest" under a driveway in the Woodlawn Springs subdivision in Bardstown. Documents showed Houck Rentals LLC, of which Houck was the registered agent for, owned three homes in Woodlawn, including two on the street blocked off by the FBI.
Three months later, Houck was cited for "failure to wear a seatbelt" and was in jail for a short time before he posted bail.
He also made headlines the following month after when he was arrested for what turned out to be several traffic violations.
Houck was arrested on a bench warrant for failure to pay traffic citation fines, according to court records. The charge listed on the Nelson County Jail website read, "non-payment of court costs, fees or fines."
He was charged with seven traffic violations including improper use of farm plates, no or improper licenses.
The prosecutor later dismissed five of the seven charges, and Houck pleaded guilty to two charges in January 2022. He was ordered to pay a series of fines in April 2022, and granted "installment payments."
According to court records, Houck owed $353 to the courts.
Now, eight years after Roger's disappearance, he is in custody for charges related to her investigation.
Rogers disappeared on July 3, 2015. Her father, Tommy Ballard, later found her car along the Bluegrass Parkway. Inside he found her keys, cell phone and purse.
Rogers' has been presumed dead since October 2015.
Since then Rogers' family, multiple law enforcement agencies, and many within the Nelson County community have worked endlessly to find answers.
In August 2023, authorities made their first arrest in connection to the investigation.
Nelson County man Joseph Lawson was arrested in connection to Rogers' disappearance. He was indicted on charges of conspiracy to commit murder and tampering with evidence.
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