ANDERSON COUNTY, S.C. — The Williamston police chief said Monday that a teen who was missing for three days last week and found dead Friday evening was a victim of “murder.”

More

Williamston Chief Richard Inman said that the death of 17-year-old A’sha Rucker is being investigated as a homicide, though A’sha’s autopsy was inconclusive.Inman said, “It’s hard to say whether the victim was abducted or left and then found foul play down the road when she was gone.”A’sha was last seen Wednesday morning at her home on Crescent Drive in Williamston, according to police. Her car was found later that day, after workers at Williamston’s Caroline Community Center.

Deputy Matt Armstrong said A’sha’s body was found by some children playing in a Pelzer neighborhood in Greenville County.Investigators said the body was found face down on the ground with a hood pulled over her head. The body was found 40 yards from the road, near an abandoned house on Long Cane Road.Following an autopsy on Saturday, Deputy Coroner Scott Ramsey said A’sha’s body had evidence of strangulation, but not enough to confirm it as the cause of death.

Investigators said that someone used A’sha’s cell phone on Thursday to check her voicemail. Preliminary autopsy results indicate that A’sha died on that same day.Ramsey said determining the cause of death will have to wait until toxicology tests are completed, which could take several weeks.

LaVette Rucker said she found several pieces of her daughter’s purse, glasses, wallets and keys along the side of Cherokee Road in Williamston Friday morning. She said the disappearance was completely out of character for her daughter.Rucker said, “She was having problems in school. Several of the teenagers had bullied her had tormented her. She was upset about that … On her Facebook page she made a comment about being picked on at school. Friends said she was upset but not to the point she would leave me and not return home at all.”She said, “Regardless of what teenagers may do, I know my teenager and this is not something she would do willingly.”

On Sunday, family members said through a representative they believe A’sha was murdered.”There’s no way A’sha would not have contacted her mother during this time unless she was being held against her will, or she just couldn’t,” said Heather Holcombe, who the family has asked to speak on their behalf. “Of course we found out on Friday night, that was exactly the reason.”

Chief Inman said that an AMBER Alert was not issued for A’sha because there was no “concrete proof” that she had been abducted or was in great danger. He said even after her car was found, investigators found no signs of a struggle or foul play.Police said that they never considered A’sha to be a runaway.Police seized the Rucker family computer in an effort to figure out a motive for the killing. So far, eight people have been questioned in connection with A’sha’s death, but no suspects have been named.”I feel very certain the case will be cleared quickly,” Inman said.

The family said that Rucker will be laid to rest Tuesday at 2 p.m. at the New Hopewell Baptist Church on Dorchester Road in Belton.The Williamston Police Department and Greenville County Sheriff’s Office are both investigating the death. Anyone with information is asked to contact CrimeStoppers at 23-CRIME.

Previous Stories:

WYFF4.com

This work, unless otherwise expressly stated, is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-Noncommercial-No Derivative Works 3.0 United States License. Terms and conditions beyond the scope of this license may be available at dreamcatchersforabusedchildren.com.