A Virginia husband who pleaded on social media for the safe return of his missing wife has been charged with murder, authorities said.
The Lynchburg Police Department announced on August 29 that Michael L. Perry III, 21, was arrested on charges of second-degree murder and unlawful disposal of a corpse in connection with the death of Avriel Hooks, 20.
The arrest came after a body was found Aug. 29 amid a search for Hooks, who was last seen by her family Aug. 22 and reported missing the next day, police said. The remains — which police say have yet to be identified as Hooks — were found in a wooded area off US 60 (Lexington Turnpike) in Amherst, Va.
The cause of death was not immediately known.
According to court documents obtained by WSET and interviews with loved ones, Hooks and Perry were married last November but were estranged at the time of Hook’s disappearance. The relatives told the news outlet, along with local station WDBJ, that they also share a five-month-old son.
Perry posted about his missing wife on Facebook less than a week before he was arrested.
“If you knew how much I love my wife and son, you would understand how hurt I am,” he wrote on Facebook. “I am constantly looking and looking everywhere for my wife. I’m not ok. This is the mother of my child. I’m lost.”
Another post reads: “My wife is missing. I’m not good to you. The police questioned me for 5 hours [and] kept me 12. I need any information you can give. I am a husband and a father. She is my wife and the mother of my child. We miss.”
At the start of the missing persons investigation, police said Hooks’ disappearance was “suspicious” because she suddenly stopped communicating with her family, police said.
Avriel Hooks.
GoFundMe
Hooks’ mother, Ashley Pittman, told WSET that she received a text from her daughter around 6 a.m. the day she was reported missing, but she doesn’t think Hooks was actually the person who sent it. Pittman claimed the message said Hooks needed some time to herself at a friend’s house, which she said was not how her daughter would normally communicate.
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After some time, Perry was considered a person of interest and was brought in for questioning. At the time, police also announced that the Amherst County Sheriff’s Office discovered the body while searching for Hooks. Perry was then indicted.
“Our thoughts are with the family of Avriel Hooks at this difficult time,” police said in a statement.
Perry was taken to the Blue Ridge Regional Jail, where he is being held without bond, police said. It is not clear whether he entered a plea or hired a lawyer to speak on his behalf.
A GoFundMe campaign has been started to help Hooks’ family with funeral expenses.
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Source: HIS Education