The nude body of a 30-year-old woman who had been beaten to death was found hours after she frantically called her grandmother to say she was being followed, authorities said Tuesday.
Authorities said Beverly Hope Melton of Kershaw was harassed by a man she did not know when she went to a convenience store Monday afternoon. She was abducted from her car in broad daylight, sexually assaulted and beaten to death within hours with a baseball bat, officials said.
Nickolas Jermaine Miller, 23, of Jefferson was arrested a short time later and charged in her killing, said Kershaw County Sheriff Jim Matthews. More charges are expected.
Video from around the world
Matthews gave Chesterfield County Sheriff Sam Parker and his deputies full credit for cracking the case — including getting a confession from the suspect and getting him to lead officials to the body in Kershaw County.
Parker described the victim, whom he and many other deputies knew, as a “fine Christian woman” who went to church every Sunday and had many friends. She had been married for about a year, Matthews said.
That Parker’s deputies were able to solve the case so quickly — it took less than eight hours from the time Melton was abducted to the time when her body was found — was deemed “a Christmas miracle” by Parker.
“I just don’t think he (Miller) could live with it,” said Parker, explaining why Miller might have confessed.
Miller indicated he was upset about two recent events in his life, according to law enforcement officials: being fired from Walmart and a breakup with a former girlfriend. Those details could not be confirmed late Tuesday.
A lucky break in the case came quickly, when a surveillance tape at the store showed Melton and the suspect, Parker said. A deputy quickly recognized Miller and went to talk with him.
He confessed shortly thereafter, said Parker, who heard Miller give his statement.
So far, said Parker, an investigation has turned up no links between Miller and Melton. “Right now, we don’t even think they were acquaintances, but we are continuing to check every possibility,” he said.
Early reports from an autopsy indicate Melton was severely beaten. “That woman suffered big time,” said Matthews. “She was really brutalized.”
Early Monday afternoon, Melton called her grandmother to say she thought a man she had seen in a store at noon was following her and she was afraid, Matthews said.
Soon after, authorities in neighboring Chesterfield County found Melton’s vehicle in a ditch, the engine still running. The car was in reverse, and her purse was still inside, the sheriff said.
After tracking down Miller, the suspect led them to Melton’s body, authorities said. Using infrared sensors Monday night, a state police helicopter spotted the woman in a Kershaw County field behind two abandoned turkey barns, Matthews said.
The kidnapping and one sexual assault are alleged to have happened in Chesterfield County, officials said late Tuesday. The killing, and possibly another sexual assault, are alleged to have happened in Kershaw County, officials added.
Miller was being held Tuesday in the Kershaw County Detention Center on a murder charge, with more charges expected.
State police said Miller had no previous criminal record in South Carolina, Matthews said.
“This was a horribly brutal and senseless crime,” said Matthews.
No bond has been set, and Matthews said Miller has not requested an attorney.
The Associated Press contributed.
E-Mail
Print
Get The State newspaper delivered to your home. 
