Police charged Cleotha Abston, 38, on Sunday with her kidnapping—but the mom-of-two’s whereabouts remained unknown after the 34-year-old was bundled into a car and driven away in Memphis, Tennessee.
Now officers have revealed they have discovered a body in a wooded area on Monday at around 5 p.m., although the authorities have not yet released the person’s identity or revealed a cause of death.
Newsweek has reached out to Memphis Police Department for further information and comment.
The grim discovery was made not far from the Longview Gardens apartments complex, where witnesses claimed to have seen Abston scrubbing a GMC Terrain. Detectives have alleged this was the same car that was used by Fletcher’s abductor, with court documents stating her blood had been found inside. DNA taken from slider sandals found near the spot where Fletcher was grabbed by her attacker had been matched to Abston, police said.
Fletcher, who has two sons with husband Richard Fletcher, is the granddaughter of the late billionaire Joseph Orgill III, a Memphis businessman who founded a successful hardware supply company. Her family offered a $50,000 reward for information leading to her safe return on Friday night in a desperate bid to find her. Her husband wept and became increasingly distressed as the family gathered to publicly appeal for help.
Abston is being held on $500,000 bond after being charged over the weekend with especially aggravated kidnapping and tampering with evidence. He is due to appear in court today.
It has emerged that he was previously charged with kidnapping and sentenced to 24 years in prison back in 2001. Abston was eligible to have some time shaved from his sentence and was released within the past two years, according to Fox13 Investigates.
Newsweek has reported details about the previous case, in which the male victim said he was lucky to escape with his life. In June 2000, when Abston was just 16 years old, he forced Memphis-based lawyer Kemper Durand into the trunk of his car at gunpoint.
On Monday, new charges were announced against Abston, apparently stemming from an unrelated incident just a day before Fletcher was abducted. Police alleged he stole a woman’s wallet during a shift as a Malco cleaner and used her Wisely card. Abston was charged with identity theft, theft of property worth $1,000 or less, and fraudulent use/illegal possession of credit/debit cards, according to his arrest affidavit, cited by local news channel Fox13.
