Pregnant woman still missing, but her boyfriend is charged with murder, NC cops say
A North Carolina man was charged Wednesday with the murder of a missing woman and her unborn baby.
Although the body of Sasha Lee Naylor has not been found, the Stanly County Sheriff’s Office said her boyfriend, Joseph Rhodes, murdered her and the baby, WCNC reported.
Investigators said Naylor was last seen in August 2018, per WSOC. The 25-year-old was “officially reported missing” in January, and a Silver Alert was issued for her on Feb. 22, according to the TV station.
Naylor was due to give birth in early February, the sheriff’s office said in a Facebook post.
The sheriff’s office said Naylor and Rhodes were in a relationship and already had one child, who is living with her mother in Ohio, WCCB reported. Investigators said the 30-year-old might have been the father of the child Naylor was pregnant with when she disappeared, according to the TV station.
While her remains have not been found, Naylor’s burning car was found last August in Marshville, per WBTV.
The car was discovered four days after Naylor was last seen, and on Jan. 8 it was towed away and its parts were “sold for scraps,” according to WCNC.
Despite not having Naylor’s body, Rhodes was charged with first degree murder and murder of an unborn child, WCCB reported. Investigators said Rhodes killed Naylor and the unborn baby “last year and covered it up,” per WSOC.
He is behind bars in the Stanly County Detention Center after his bond was set at $300,000 for a charge of possession of methamphetamine and drug paraphernalia, jail records show.
Rhodes said “he didn’t do nothing,” according to WBTV.
The investigation is ongoing and anyone with information is asked to call the sheriff’s office at 704-986-3700.
