General Category > Crime And Punishment
Updated: Felon who was arrested for 'violently snatching' billionaire heiress, 38, off Memphis stree
mystery-ak:
Felon who was arrested for 'violently snatching' billionaire heiress, 38, off Memphis street as she jogged 'cleaned inside of his car and washed his clothes in sink before arrest': He was released from 20-year sentence in 2020 for abducting lawyer
Cleotha Abston, 38, was charged with especially aggravated kidnapping and tampering with evidence following Fletcher's Friday disappearance
On Saturday night, officers were seen looking through a McDonald's dumpster as part of the search
In a video statement, a lawyer representing Fletcher's family said: 'We believe someone knows what happened can help'
Her husband, Richie Fletcher III, appeared alongside his extended family in the video, he grew more emotional as the video went on
Fletcher was abducted while jogging near the University of Memphis early on Friday morning
Investigators were seen towing an SUV from Fletcher's home as they searched for evidence
The mother of two is a teacher and granddaughter of the founder of prosperous hardware company Orgill
Her family has offered a $50,000 reward for information leading to her safe return
By Alex Oliveira and Paul Farrell For Dailymail.Com
Published: 08:40 EDT, 4 September 2022 | Updated: 14:26 EDT, 4 September 2022
The man accused of kidnapping billionaire heiress Eliza Fletcher was recently released from prison after serving a 20-year sentence for a similar crime.
Cleotha Abston, 38, was arrested and convicted in 2000 for the kidnapping of Memphis attorney Kemper Durand.
At around 2am May 25, 2000, Abston approached Durand from behind on Beale Street in Memphis then robbed him and forced him into the trunk of his car, according to the Memphis Flyer.
Abston then drove Durand around for several hours, then forced him into an ATM and demanded he draw out cash. While in the ATM Durand spotted a housing authority officer and yelled for help, causing Abston to flee.
Abston was convicted for that kidnapping and released from prison in July of 2020, according to Tennessee Department of Corrections, The US Sun reported.
On Sunday Abston was charged with especially aggravated kidnapping and tampering with evidence following Fletcher's Friday disappearance.
Missing mother Eliza Fletcher pictured with her husband Richie and their two children
more
https://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-11178481/Suspect-38-charged-kidnapping-missing-heiress-vanished-jogging.html
mountaineer:
Todd Starnes:
--- Quote ---Predator Who Kidnapped Memphis Mom Was SUPPOSED TO BE IN PRISON Serving Time for Another Kidnapping
Todd Starnes
Sep 4, 2022
... Police say the abduction was bloody and violent – and it was all captured on video.
Investigators have arrested Cleotha Abston and he’s been charged with especially aggravated kidnapping as well as tampering with evidence. They said the suspect laid in waiting in the dark of the morning, rushed toward the victim and forced her into an SUV.
He refuses to tell police where they can find Mrs. Fletcher. ...
But what’s especially heart-wrenching is that this crime was completely avoidable.
In 2001 Abston was arrested and charged with kidnapping a local attorney during a violent carjacking. The attorney, who survived, was stuffed in the trunk of the car.
Abston was sentenced to 24 years in prison.
So why didn’t he serve out the full term of his sentence? It was a violent, heinous crime. Why was he allowed to walk out of jail and back onto the streets of Memphis?
The problem is that violent criminals are being treated as victims. That’s why Tennessee House Speaker Cameron Sexton embrace legislation to fix that problem. It’s called “Truth in Sentencing” and it mandates that criminals serve 100 percent of their sentences for 31 differnet violent offenses.
“Real Truth in Sentencing means no early release from prison,” he wrote in 2021. “We need to protect victims, not violent criminals.”
Don’t do the crime, if you can’t handle the time, he said.
Republican Gov. Bill Lee bewildered conservatives when he refused to sign the bill, opting instead for it to become law without his signature. ...
--- End quote ---
Fishrrman:
This woman is dead.
The perp was spotted cleaning his car afterwards, as if he were trying to scrub evidence from it.
Having said that, this gal shouldn't have been out jogging in Memphis (of all places) at around 4 in the morning or so...
mystery-ak:
Family of missing Memphis teacher Eliza Fletcher makes emotional plea for help
By Ben Kesslen
September 4, 2022
The family of missing Memphis teacher Eliza Fletcher made an emotional plea as the search for the mom of two continues.
“We believe someone knows what happened and can help,” her uncle Mike Keeney said Saturday, as her husband Richard Fletcher III stood next to him wiping away tears.
“More than anything we want to see Liza returned home safely,” he continued, also joined by her parents and brother.
The 34-year-old Tennessee mom of two vanished after being abducted during her morning jog Friday. Cleotha Abston was charged Sunday with especially aggravated kidnapping and tampering with evidence, hours after cops found him inside the black SUV wanted in connection with Fletcher’s disappearance. The mom has yet to be located.
A second man was also charged Sunday during the investigation but is currently not believed to be connected to Fletcher’s abduction.
Eliza is the granddaughter of billionaire hardware magnate Joseph Orgill III, who founded the private family business Orgill Inc. Her family has offered a $50,000 reward for information in her disappearance.
more
https://nypost.com/2022/09/04/family-of-missing-memphis-teacher-eliza-fletcher-makes-emotional-plea-for-help/
mystery-ak:
September 4, 2022 4:41pm EDT
Eliza Fletcher abduction: Police search near Memphis home where suspect was seen washing clothes, cleaning car
Witnesses told police that Cleotha Abston was 'behaving oddly' in the area after Eliza Fletcher's abduction, according to an affidavit
By Adam Sabes , Paul Best | Fox News
MEMPHIS, Tenn. – Memphis police set up a mobile command center and were searching an area on Sunday near a home where Cleotha Abston, a 38-year-old man suspected of kidnapping Eliza Fletcher, could be seen washing clothes and cleaning the interior of his vehicle on Friday following the alleged abduction. Police have not confirmed that Sunday's search is connected to the violent abduction of the billionaire heiress.
Surveillance video reviewed by police shows a man forcing Fletcher, a 34-year-old mother of two and kindergarten teacher, into a GMC Terrain as she was out for a morning run on Friday near the University of Memphis campus. The video also shows Fletcher fighting back against her abductor.
Police located that GMC terrain at Abston's residence on Saturday and took him into custody after he attempted to flee.
Two witnesses told police that they saw Abston "acting very strange" and "behaving oddly" as he washed his clothes in a sink and cleaned the interior of the GMC Terrain at his brother's home near the Pine Hill Community Center, according to an affidavit.
Police wrote that it was "probable and apparent" that Fletcher's injuries "left evidence, e.g., blood, in the vehicle that the Defendant cleaned."
more
https://www.foxnews.com/us/eliza-fletcher-abduction-police-search-near-memphis-home-suspect-washing-clothes-cleaning-car
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