Found Deceased TN - Eliza "Liza" Fletcher Abducted While Jogging - Memphis #4 *Arrest*

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SunnyBooBoo said:
I don't mean to be disrespectful in my questioning, but what state would the body be in 3.5 days after she was killed and left outside? I did read that an officer smelled an odor. :( Could CA's DNA tracing him to her murder still be intact or does it start to disintegrate after x amount of days? Do you think the family had to ID her body or would DNA tests be enough? I'm hoping the later. Would they be able to have an open casket funeral?

I have read that her shorts were discarded in a trash bag that was found about 100 ft from her body. I don't see any mention about her shoes, socks, sports bra, or watch?

I want to reiterate that LE did a tremendous job but I'm curious how well they were able to trace his phone pinging off cell towers, since this would be where he spent (I would think) a decent amount of time, unless he knew to turn it off (likely not). But I'm curious why they were searching waterways earlier on in the investigation. Has anyone heard?

Also, any news on why they hauled that dumpster away? Maybe that's where he threw the rags he used to clean up his car?
Click to expand...
Dna is pretty stable.
 
acutename said:
articles I read said he was also charged with fraudulent use of a cc so he had a cc or used some app on her phone for purchases?

Eliza Fletcher: Kidnapping suspect facing new theft charges ...​

https://www.independent.co.uk › ... › US Crime News





1 day ago — Cleotha Abston, 38, was charged with identity theft, theft of property under $1,000 and fraudulent use of a credit card by Memphis police on ...
Click to expand...
it was a separate incident...not EF's credit card(s)...
 
kccorona said:
Good point. I’m having a hard time believing he went anywhere other than the house after the abduction but I do wonder if we’ll ever know why there were so many sites of searching throughout the day Saturday and Sunday.
My brain is a bit jumbled at the moment, but it seems like there were at least 3-4 sites (aside from brothers apartment) that LE showed up to in large numbers and conducted searches (aerial, foot, horseback, water, ATV, etc). Maybe those held some significance in terms of the time between 4:30am abduction and arriving at the abandoned home.
Click to expand...
Perhaps there were location pings from cell phone in other LE search locations, and CA either went to those locations for SA and considered leaving EF there but changed mind/ got spooked.

Also, I think if EF had been in water, there would have been more time urgency vs land, in terms of risk of never finding her if waterway went to Mississippi river. So maybe LE prioritized water search first? Also for sake of evidence. Anyone have insight into this speculation?

Cell phone tower pings from CA's brother and Victor street were perhaps same tower since locations are so close to one another, and took EF more time to decipher that CA wasn't simply at his brother's house. Where LE arrested CA. This is all just hypothesizing.

I realized there is actually video footage of CA first driving up to brother's house. So he didn't show up earlier than that ~7:50am time. Which would also suggest to me he was with EF at Victor street for 2 hours :( I hate it
 
According to the affidavit for those newer charges, a woman (not Fletcher) reported her wallet was stolen Thursday, Sept. 1, 2022, while she was at work at the Malco in the 1000 block of Germantown Pkwy. Investigators said video showed an employee of the cleaning service, identified as Cleotha Henderson (aka Abston), taking the wallet. (This is the same video where investigators said he was wearing the sandals left behind at the scene of the abduction.) According to the affidavit, the victim got texts about her cards being used, and police determined they had been used at two gas stations for more than $910.

www.localmemphis.com

Missing Memphis mother found dead: What we know about Eliza Fletcher's murder

Here's a look at the timeline and what we know so far about the abduction and murder of the woman who went missing while jogging near the University of Memphis.
www.localmemphis.com www.localmemphis.com
 
Records indicate officers also smelled the odor of decay. They found the body of a woman, later identified as Fletcher, next to a set of steps near the driveway on the side of the house.

Law enforcement also found her purple Lululemon running shorts in a discarded trash bag about 100 feet north of the scene.

wreg.com

Eliza Fletcher crime scene: New details released

MEMPHIS, Tenn. (WREG) — WREG obtained a copy of another police affidavit with more details about what happened when Eliza Fletcher’s body was found on Monday. Fletcher, a 34-year-old mother a…
wreg.com wreg.com

Surveillance videos also revealed that the suspect’s vehicle was in the area on Friday, Sept. 2 around 5:48 a.m.

Surveillance videos also revealed that the suspect’s vehicle was in the area on Friday, Sept. 2 around 5:48 a.m.

In the video, you can see Cleotha Abston get out of the SUV and go to his trunk. It’s unclear what he’s doing, but shortly after, he goes inside the apartment with what appears to be something in his hand. Abston came out minutes later and immediately walks to the passenger side of the SUV where he spends more than an hour.

Witnesses said he was cleaning out the vehicle.

Law enforcement said the same GMC Terrain was seen exiting I-240 at the South Parkway East exit.

Police said surveillance footage spotted the vehicle turning west onto Person Avenue around 5:52 a.m.
 
CharlestonGal said:
He was not cuffed. When the judge asked him to raise his right hand to affirm the documents he filled out for a public defender he easily raised his right hand and there was no cuff on it. jmo

View attachment 364662

Court video. Timestamp: 1:57.

Click to expand...
It seems that he had just filled out a request for a public defender just before entering the courtroom. His right arm may be free for that and he may sign a notice of appearance after the hearing.
Notice how his left arm remains alongside his body the whole time. I think he probably has a "belly chain" around his waist, used for transport, and his left wrist is cuffed. The jail clothes usually end up hanging over the belly chains which ride more toward the hip.
 
CharlestonGal said:
Yes, I understand that. I'm also referring to the odor. LE smelled it so I can't imagine why the neighbors in those two houses next to the location didn't notice it. Or are those houses abandoned as well? jmo
Click to expand...

I don’t think most people can identify the smell of actual human remains. Once you smell it and it’s identified for you- it’s a smell you don’t forget IMO. Most people would smell a super foul odor and think a decaying animal/road kill, as an example.

The brain, imo, doesn’t automatically think the odor is human.
 
sds71 said:
The video shows Abston arriving at the Longview Garden apartments where his brother lives around 7:57 a.m. Friday morning, more than three hours after Fletcher was forced into an SUV while she was jogging near the University of Memphis.
wreg.com

VIDEO: Suspect in Eliza Fletcher’s murder cleaning car hours after abduction

MEMPHIS, Tenn. (WREG)– WREG has obtained surveillance video that shows murder suspect Cleotha Abston cleaning out his car hours after the abduction of Memphis jogger Eliza Fletcher. The video…
wreg.com wreg.com
Click to expand...
Is it just me? That doesn't look like an SUV to me. It looks like a car.
 
acutename said:
articles I read said he was also charged with fraudulent use of a cc so he had a cc or used some app on her phone for purchases?

Eliza Fletcher: Kidnapping suspect facing new theft charges ...​

https://www.independent.co.uk › ... › US Crime News





1 day ago — Cleotha Abston, 38, was charged with identity theft, theft of property under $1,000 and fraudulent use of a credit card by Memphis police on ...
Click to expand...
This is an unrelated charge.
He worked for a cleaning business that was hired to clean a theater.

Snipped from article:
"Cleotha Abston is also facing additional charges of identity theft, theft of property $1000 or less, and fraudulent use of a debit card $1000 or less in relation to an incident that happened the day before Fletcher’s abduction.

READ: Eliza Fletcher abduction: new details emerge
According to the affidavit, a woman reported her debit cards were stolen to make several purchases after she left her wallet at work.


Investigators said surveillance video showed Abston, who was later identified by his manager, taking her wallet while he was working for the cleaning service. He spent a total of $901.80."
 
asyousay said:
That’s the difference in systems I think. I am from the U.K. so our system is very much based on rehabilitation and the U.S seems to be more about punishment. I apologise if I’m wrong about that but looking around that’s the vibe I’m picking up on.

So I have a different perspective because the systems are completely different.
Click to expand...
I think your observations are generally correct about US prisons but it varies by state and even among prisons within a state. Some offer a great deal of oppportunities and services for rehabilitating inmates while others just serve to warehouse and punish prisoners.
 
heavy.com

Cleotha Abston Social Media & Criminal Record Revealed

Learn about the criminal history and social media of Cleotha Abston. He posted pictures of guns on Facebook.
heavy.com heavy.com

Surprised that they even bothered to charge him with the "Identity Theft". I guess that is a different victim. So it goes with the credit card theft.

First degree, felony murder charge. Aggravated kidnapping. Wonder if he will take a plea, or if they want death penalty.
 
Elley Mae said:
According to the affidavit for those newer charges, a woman (not Fletcher) reported her wallet was stolen Thursday, Sept. 1, 2022, while she was at work at the Malco in the 1000 block of Germantown Pkwy. Investigators said video showed an employee of the cleaning service, identified as Cleotha Henderson (aka Abston), taking the wallet. (This is the same video where investigators said he was wearing the sandals left behind at the scene of the abduction.) According to the affidavit, the victim got texts about her cards being used, and police determined they had been used at two gas stations for more than $910.

www.localmemphis.com

Missing Memphis mother found dead: What we know about Eliza Fletcher's murder

Here's a look at the timeline and what we know so far about the abduction and murder of the woman who went missing while jogging near the University of Memphis.
www.localmemphis.com www.localmemphis.com
Click to expand...
How do you spend that much money at a gas station?
 
SunnyBooBoo said:
I don't mean to be disrespectful in my questioning, but what state would the body be in 3.5 days after she was killed and left outside? I did read that an officer smelled an odor. :( Could CA's DNA tracing him to her murder still be intact or does it start to disintegrate after x amount of days? Do you think the family had to ID her body or would DNA tests be enough? I'm hoping the later. Would they be able to have an open casket funeral?

I have read that her shorts were discarded in a trash bag that was found about 100 ft from her body. I don't see any mention about her shoes, socks, sports bra, or watch?

I want to reiterate that LE did a tremendous job but I'm curious how well they were able to trace his phone pinging off cell towers, since this would be where he spent (I would think) a decent amount of time, unless he knew to turn it off (likely not). But I'm curious why they were searching waterways earlier on in the investigation. Has anyone heard?

Also, any news on why they hauled that dumpster away? Maybe that's where he threw the rags he used to clean up his car?
Click to expand...
I don't think the ME will have any problems determining exactly what happened to Liza. A three day old body shouldn't be a problem where DNA is concerned, but someone else might know more about that. Usually after 3-5 days the body reaches the bloat stage. That would explain the odor LE smelled.

The family may have been able to identify her, but we don't know what type of injuries she had that may have sped up decomp, such as stab wounds, gunshot wounds, or any injuries that caused a lot of bleeding. The ME will still identify her officially, maybe through DNA or dental records. Imo

As far as searching waterways, LE must have known her body had to be in the area. They probably were able to get the GPS data quickly. Or maybe they were acting on a tip, or just covering all bases.

We should know all the answers to these questions, eventually.
 
I too want to know … where did he go and what was he doing between 4:30ish and 5:40ish? Was he just driving around aimlessly for an hour+ looking for a place to leave her body?
 
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