A suspect arrested over the weekend, Cleotha Abston, 38, has now been charged with first-degree murder in perpetration of kidnapping, in addition to kidnapping and other charges previously filed, Shelby County Court records show. The cause of Fletcher’s death was not immediately announced.
Who is Fletcher murder suspect Cleotha Abston?
Fletcher, a 34-year-old junior kindergarten teacher at St. Mary’s Episcopal School in Memphis, was jogging at around 4 a.m. local time (5 a.m. ET) Friday in a neighborhood near the University of Memphis when a man chased her and forced her into a black SUV, authorities said.
Her husband reported her missing that morning, sparking an intense weekend hunt that led to the arrest of a suspect, Cleotha Abston age 38, near his Memphis home Saturday after investigators unearthed clues including surveillance video of the abduction, authorities said in court documents.
Fletcher’s husband told police Friday morning that she’d not returned from her early morning jog, authorities said in an affidavit filed Sunday. Someone found her phone in the street on Central Avenue that morning, and it was given to one of Fletcher’s relatives, who gave it to investigators, the affidavit reads.
Police then found surveillance video of the area, which shows a black GMC Terrain pass by her, according to the affidavit. A man is seen in the footage getting out of the SUV and “aggressively” running toward her before forcing her into the vehicle’s passenger seat, according to the affidavit.
Researching Abston’s residence, police found that he lived at a home whose utilities were registered in the name of a woman who owned a GMC Terrain, the court document reads.