There’s a big update on the disappearance Brittanee Drexel as Raymond Moody confessed to killing the 17-year-old 13 years ago in South Carolina.
Brittanee Disappears and a Suspect is Named
In April 2009, Brittanee Drexel left her home in Chili, New York following a disagreement with her month over a trip to Myrtle Beach, South Carolina with friends. It was for spring break and when her mother Dawn found out that there would be no parents going along, she said no to the request.
Brittanee would ask if she could stay over at a friend’s house to cool down and Dawn agreed. She would end up leaving for Myrtle Beach with her friends anyway.
Both her mother and boyfriend—John Greico—would last hear from the 17-year-old on April 25, 2009. She had told her mother she was at the beach but didn’t specify where but Dawn assumed it was a local beach and that she was still in the state.
Her boyfriend texted her throughout the day but the texts ceased sometime after 9 PM. After not hearing back from her, Greico would contact her friends to see if they had heard from her. When he got word that they hadn’t, he contacted Brittanee’s mother and a search for her began.
The investigation would eventually get a suspect when Taquan Brown—who was serving 25 years in an SC prison for manslaughter—would point the finger at Timothy Taylor in 2016.
He claimed that shortly after the teen disappeared, he was going to drop some money off to Taylor’s father at a stash house. There he observed Timothy Taylor and several others assaulting the girl.
While delivering the money in the backyard, he claims that Brittanee attempted to flee but was pistol-whipped by Taylor, dragged back into the house, and shot. He said that Taylor was later wrapped up and tossed to the alligators.
Ray Moody Confesses to Killing Missing Teen Brittanee Drexel 13 years Ago
It wouldn’t be until this month that Drexel’s body was found in the woods of Georgetown County, SC on May 11, 2022. She was positively identified via DNA and dental records.
After 13 years, there is a clearer story of what happened on the night of April 25, 2009. Brittanee Drexel left her friend’s hotel room in Myrtle Beach and got a ride with someone. That someone would end up being Ray Moody who confessed that he trapped the 17-year-old, drove her to the Santee River, and assaulted her before strangling her to death.
She would be buried in the woods on April 26, 2009. Surprisingly, Moody was actually stopped for speeding that same day. Initially, investigators took a cautious approach to Moody’s confession after getting burned by Taquan Brown’s story. Moody would lead them to her body on May 11 and is now the case’s only suspect.
Before murdering Drexel, Moody served 21 years behind bars for the kidnap and assault of a 9-year-old California girl and was actually suspected in other assault cases. However, those weren’t pursued.
Ray Moody has been charged with kidnapping, criminal sexual conduct, and murder. Dawn Drexel spoke on the major development in her daughter’s fate to the Associated Press:
“This is truly a mother’s worst nightmare. I am mourning my beautiful daughter, Brittanee, as I have been for 13 years, but today it’s bittersweet. Today marks the beginning of a new chapter. The search for Brittanee is now a pursuit of Brittanee’s justice.”
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