Heather Williams, a 25-year-old woman with cognitive impairment, was found dead in a wooded area in Fayetteville, North Carolina, last week after being seen on a doorbell camera getting into a stranger’s car on January 4.
The Fayetteville police department had launched a missing persons investigation and issued an endangered person alert due to Williams’ cognitive impairment. Her body was discovered by the police around 5 pm local time on Friday, about 5 miles from where she was last seen alive, according to a report by New York Post. Her death is being investigated as a homicide.
Williams’ sister, Mary, confirmed the news on Facebook, saying, “It is with a heavy and broken heart that our family confirms the horrific news. I pray whoever is responsible for this is held accountable and there is justice for Heather.”
According to local law enforcement, Williams was last seen on a Ring doorbell leaving her family’s Fayetteville home and entering a “light-colored sedan with a sunroof” around 10 pm local time on January 4.
Mary speculated that Williams, who suffered cognitive impairment and had limited speech and use of her right leg and arm after being struck by a car in 2015, may have met the person driving the vehicle online. “She was just so trusting and naive to what the dangers were out there,” Mary said. She told WRAL that the family was unfamiliar with the person driving the vehicle.
The suspect’s vehicle was located on the same day Williams’ body was found. Investigators have some leads but have not yet identified a person of interest in the case, according to New York Post.
Mary expressed her concern about the perpetrator still being at large, saying, “What happened to Heather is awful and I wouldn’t want it to happen to anybody else, and so with that person still out there, still able to harm other people, it’s horrific to think about.”
The family finds comfort in Williams’ love for God and her unwavering faith. “I thank God for the years we had with her,” Mary said.
