Current Events > Remains of 17-year-old girl who went missing in 2009 found; suspect arrested

(+) Yeah! (+)

https://www.cnn.com/2022/05/16/us/brittanee-drexel-case-remains-found/index.html

The remains of a 17-year-old girl have been found in Georgetown County, South Carolina 13 years after she went missing while visiting Myrtle Beach and a suspect in her death is in custody, officials said Monday.

Brittanee Drexel, from the Rochester, New York, area was last seen on April 25, 2009, on Ocean Boulevard in Myrtle Beach. She reportedly was on the way to meet friends at another hotel when she disappeared.

Her mother, Dawn Drexel, told CNN at the time she had forbidden her daughter to go to Myrtle Beach, a popular destination for high school and college spring break. The teen went anyway, and after she disappeared Dawn Drexel drove to Myrtle Beach to help authorities in the search.

More than a decade later, the teens remains were discovered last Wednesday, Georgetown County Sheriff Carter Weaver told reporters. The county, just south of Myrtle Beach, also is on the Atlantic coast.

This is truly a mothers nightmare, Dawn Drexel said at the news conference. I am mourning my beautiful daughter Brittanee as I have been for 13 years. But today its bittersweet. We are much closer to the closure and the peace that we have been desperately hoping for.

The investigation led authorities to a site where they believe a 62-year-old man buried her body a day after she went missing, the sheriff said.

Raymond Douglas Moody of Georgetown is charged with murder, obstructing justice, kidnapping and criminal sexual conduct in the first degree, his arrest warrants show.

Authorities said Moody kidnapped and strangled the teen the same day she disappeared.

Today marks the beginning of a new chapter. The search for Brittanee is now a pursuit of Brittanees justice, Dawn Drexel said.

Moody remains in custody. It is unknown whether he has an attorney and CNN was unable to contact family members.

There are probably hundreds of cases like this around the country why? How can we prevent anything like this from ever happening?

Glad they have a suspect in custody.

Weird as hell that I was living in that state in that year and dating a girl named Brittany at the time.

Noumas posted...

There are probably hundreds of cases like this around the country why? How can we prevent anything like this from ever happening?

By being tougher on the violent criminals

I remember this case back when it happened, and reading the occasional updates over the years. For the longest time all the leads pointed towards her body being disposed of in an alligator pond... I'm glad that her family has closure now, at least.

I think it's crazy how modern technology can get so much detail in a 13-year old case, including the suspect, how she was killed, and when she was buried.

What do they have on the suspect and how did they get that info? Did he confess?

Noumas posted...

There are probably hundreds of cases like this around the country why? How can we prevent anything like this from ever happening?

Are you asking a genuine question? The phrasing seems a little sarcastic...

Seems like we're missing some details between "found the body" and "arrested a suspect".

Noumas posted...

There are probably hundreds of cases like this around the country why? How can we prevent anything like this from ever happening?

Among other things, don't let minors travel without an adult to other states

Questionmarktarius posted...

Seems like we're missing some details between "found the body" and "arrested a suspect".

That's what I'd like to know

Dat_Cracka_Jax posted...

That's what I'd like to know

Odds are they got a tip that helped them get an idea where to search and that while investigating the events there more details popped up that pointed to the suspect

https://news.sky.com/story/amp/brittanee-drexel-remains-of-teenage-girl-found-13-years-after-she-disappeared-on-holiday-12615090

More details.