Eliza Fletcher: Latest News

MEMPHIS, Tenn. (AP) - A Tennessee kindergarten teacher who police said was kidnapped during a pre-dawn run and then killed earlier this month died from a gunshot wound to the head, an autopsy report released Thursday showed.Eliza Fletcher, 34, had a gunshot wound in the back of the head and also had blunt-force injuries to her right leg and jaw fractures, according to the autopsy completed by the West Tennessee Regional Forensic Center in Memphis."There are two semicircular defects to the skull consistent with a single gunshot to the head with the bullet travelling in a posterior to anterior (back to front) and right to left direction," the report said.Fletcher was running on the University of Memphis campus when she was forced into a vehicle after a struggle about 4 a.m.

Composite photo of murder suspect Cleotha Abston, left, and victim Eliza Fletcher, center and right. (Courtesy: Tennessee Department of Corrections and Memphis Police Department) MEMPHIS, Tenn. - Thousands of people in cities across the U.S.

PHILADELPHIA - A group of local runners went out on an early morning run in honor of Eliza Fletcher, the woman who was kidnaped in Memphis while out on a morning jog and later found dead. RELATED: Eliza Fletcher abduction: Body found near area of crime scene investigationThe runners gathered at the Philadelphia Museum of Art, a popular end location for runs and races, at 4:30 a.m., the same time Fletcher went out for her run one week ago. Authorities say the 34-year-old school teacher was jogging when a man approached her and forced her into an SUV. Her body was found and identified days later and Cleotha Abston, 38, was arrested. According to officials, he was released from prison in 2020 after serving 20 years for a previous kidnapping. The local runners hosted the run in an effort to support Fletcher and the run organizer Bennet Brookstein, who was attacked while out on a jog in Philadelphia on Christmas Day in 2021. FOX 29's Eddie Kadhim has the latest details on the assault of a runner on MLK Drive."It just hit me hard.

Composite photo of murder suspect Cleotha Abston, left, and victim Eliza Fletcher, center and right. (Courtesy: Tennessee Department of Corrections and Memphis Police Department) MEMPHIS, Tenn. - A Tennessee judge revoked bond Wednesday for a man charged with killing a Memphis woman who was abducted during a pre-dawn run near a university campus.Cleotha Abston, who told a Shelby County judge he prefers to be referred to as Cleotha Henderson, will be held without bond on charges including first-degree murder in the kidnapping and slaying of Eliza Fletcher, 34.General Sessions Judge Louis Montesi had ordered him held on $510,000 bond Tuesday on charges of especially aggravated kidnapping, tampering with evidence, theft and fraud.RELATED: Eliza Fletcher abduction: Suspect charged in jogger's murder spent 20 years in prison for kidnapping attorneyHenderson had faced only those charges before police on Tuesday identified a body found a day earlier behind a vacant duplex as Fletcher.

Eliza Fletcher (Memphis Police Department) RELATED: Eliza Fletcher abduction: Timeline of the Memphis teacher's disappearanceA man charged with especially aggravated kidnapping and tampering with evidence in the nationally-publicized case was scheduled to have an arraignment on Tuesday. U.S.

MEMPHIS, Tenn. - Eliza Fletcher, a Memphis kindergarten teacher and 34-year-old mother known as Liza to her loved ones, was abducted Friday while she was out for an early morning run.The Memphis Police Department (MPD) is still searching for Fletcher and a $50,000 reward is being offered for information leading to her whereabouts.Here's a timeline of events surrounding her disappearance:Fletcher, an avid runner who has qualified for the Boston Marathon, goes for a run around 4 a.m.

Liza Fletcher kidnapping suspect Cleotha Abston (Memphis PD/TBI/Shelby County Jail) MEMPHIS, Tenn. - A Memphis judge has set the bond for the 38-year-old man who is charged in relation to the abduction of Eliza Fletcher, a mother of two who was pulled into a car during an early morning run.Cleotha Abston had his bond set at $500,000 on Sunday, meaning he'd need to post $50,000 in order to be released from jail. He is being charged with especially aggravated kidnapping and tampering.He was taken into custody by law enforcement officers on Saturday after he was spotted by U.S.

MEMPHIS - Authorities say they have found a "deceased party" near where Eliza Fletcher was abducted while jogging in Memphis last week.The Memphis Police Department said officers in the  1600 block of Victor located a "deceased party" just after 5 p.m.The identity of the body and the cause of death has not been confirmed at this point. The investigation is ongoing at this time.Fox News observed between 15 and 20 police cars, including a mobile command center, at East Person Avenue and Victor Street.

Authorities are offering a $50K reward to help find mother kidnapped while jogging. (Memphos Police Department/ TBI) The man who was charged in relation to the abduction of the Memphis mother of two was allegedly seen "cleaning the interior" of a GMC Terrain, which police said is a "vehicle of interest" in the case.An affidavit for Cleotha Abston's arrest released by the Memphis Police Department on Sunday also stated that two witnesses saw the suspect "washing his clothes in the sink of the house."Eliza Fletcher was reported missing at around 7:45 a.m.

MEMPHIS, Tenn. - The Memphis Police Department has arrested a man in connection with the kidnapping of missing teacher Eliza Fletcher.Cleotha Abston, 38, was arrested and charged with Especially Aggravated Kidnapping and Tampering with Evidence following Fletcher’s mysterious disappearance on Friday, Memphis police said early Sunday. "The investigation into the abduction of Eliza Fletcher is still active and ongoing. Investigators are continuing the search and following all leads," the police department said.A photo of Cleotha Abston.

Photos provided by Memphis Police Department show Eliza Fletcher running early Friday morning (Memphis Police Department) Eliza Fletcher, a 34-year-old Memphis mother of two who went by Liza, was snatched during an early morning jog Friday.Investigators say that as the junior kindergarten teacher ran down a stretch of Central Avenue near the University of Memphis, she was "abducted and forced into a mid-sized, dark-colored SUV" at around 4:30 a.m.Memphis Police tell Fox News Digital they received two calls around 7:45 a.m., one from Fletcher's husband Richard Fletcher III and one of the University. They found some of her belongings at the scene and were told that a male approached Fletcher and forced her into a dark SUV after a struggle.