Tragedy in Memphis as Body of Missing Mom Eliza Fletcher Found in Tennessee

Eliza Fletcher Eliza Fletcher Murder Eliza Fletcher Kidnapping Cleotha Abston

By Joel Brussels , Parent Herald Sep 07, 10:40 am

Photo: (Photo : BRENDAN SMIALOWSKI/AFP via Getty Images)

Authorities made a sad announcement on Tuesday, September 6, saying that the body found during their investigation into the disappearance of Eliza Fletcher has been confirmed as that of the missing mom.

On Monday, Memphis, Tennessee, police announced that a body had been discovered one day after charges were filed against Cleotha Abston. The 38-year-old suspect was charged with kidnapping and tampering with evidence on Sunday, according to NBC News.

After Fletcher's body was discovered, additional charges were filed against Abston, including first-degree murder in perpetration of kidnapping and first-degree murder. Cops said that Abston was also charged with unrelated offenses of identity theft, theft of property as well as credit card fraud.

Fletcher's body found in vacant duplex apartment

A judge set his bond for $510,000 during an arraignment on Tuesday. He told the judge that he could not afford a lawyer and was appointed a public defender. Abston is scheduled to appear in court on Wednesday to be arraigned on his murder charges.

Police revealed at a news conference on Tuesday afternoon that Fletcher's body was found just after 5 p.m. on Monday in a vacant duplex apartment on Victor Street. Shelby County District Attorney Steve Mulroy called Fletcher's kidnapping an isolated attack by a stranger, according to BBC News.

Cops have said that someone approached Fletcher, an avid runner, around 4:20 a.m. on Friday. The kindergarten teacher and mom of two was then forced into an SUV. According to an affidavit attached to the criminal complaint, a pair of sandals recovered from the area where Fletcher disappeared contained DNA matching that of Abston.

Security video from the crime scene showed a black GMC Terrain car passing and waiting for the victim to run by. A male then exited the vehicle. He ran toward the victim and forced her into the car's passenger seat.

There appeared to be a struggle during this abduction, and the Champion slides sandals were found in the area where this happened. The car then sat in the parking lot with Fletcher inside for approximately four minutes before driving off.

Abston previously sentenced to prison when he was a teen

The cause and the manner of Fletcher's death have not been released. Cellular records that investigators obtained alleged to have determined that the suspect's cellphone was near the site where Fletcher was forced into the car.

The affidavit said that officers arrested Abston after finding the GMC Terrain with a matching license plate number on Saturday in a parking lot by his residence. He was previously sentenced to 24 years in prison after pleading guilty to kidnapping Kemper Durand on May 26, 2000. He was a teen at the time, according to Fox News.

According to court documents, Abston kidnapped Durand at gunpoint and forced him into the trunk of a vehicle. He then forced the victim to withdraw money from an ATM. Durand was able to escape when he got the attention of a Memphis Housing Authority guard while he was withdrawing the money.