Man Charged In Abduction Of Missing Memphis Teacher

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Police have charged the 38-year-old with abducting Tennessee schoolteacher Elise Fletcher, a granddaughter of billionaires, and they have been looking for her since Friday when she went for a run.

Cleotha Abston was charged Sunday with particularly aggravated abduction and altering evidence, hours after police found him in the black SUV, used in connection with Fletcher’s disappearance.

The 34-year-old wife and mother of two was out for a run Friday morning when he was forced inside a dark GMC Terrain; her smashed cellphone and a water bottle were found nearby. Memphis police are continuing their search for Fletcher.

A second person, believed not to be connected to Fletcher’s abduction, was also charged Sunday in the investigation.

Mario Abston, 36, was charged with possession of a controlled substance with intent to manufacture and sell fentanyl, possession of a controlled substance with intent to manufacture and sell heroin, and one count of convicted felon in possession of a firearm while committing an aggravated felony. Both men were booked into the Shelby County jail early Sunday.

Fletcher’s family has offered a $50,000 reward for information leading to her return. Her father-in-law, Richard Fletcher Jr., said it is simply a matter of waiting, hoping, and praying.

Elise Fletcher’s grandfather is the hardware giant Joseph Orgill III. He founded a privately held family company, Orgill Inc., that employs 5,500 and does $3 billion of sales each year, according to its website.

For more on this story, please consider these sources:

  1. Man charged in abduction of missing Tennessee teacher Eliza Fletcher  New York Post
  2. Abducted Eliza Fletcher: Memphis police say ‘vehicle of interest’ located, male detained, Eliza still missing  Fox News
  3. Eliza Fletcher, a Teacher and the Granddaughter of a Billionaire, Has Been Abducted  Yahoo! Voices
  4. Suspect charged in Eliza Fletcher abduction  WREG NewsChannel 3
  5. A Tennessee teacher and granddaughter of a billionaire was snatched while on an early morning jog. Her family is offering $50000 reward for information to ‘capture’ her abductors.  msnNOW