Investigators in Union County, North Carolina, have arrested two individuals in connection with the disappearance and murder of teenager Kierstyn Williamson, who went missing from Laurens, South Carolina, on Friday.
The Union County Sheriff’s Office announced yesterday they arrested 25-year-old Joshua Newton and his girlfriend, 22-year-old Victoria Smith, in Monroe, NC.
The body of 18-year-old Williamson was discovered not far from her home on a rural route near Chesterfield, South Carolina, just south of the state line.
She had been reported missing by her family over the weekend, and it’s thought she was last seen in the evening on June 30.
The cops suspect Newton contacted and arranged to meet up with Williamson through an online dating site.
Newton is accused of picking Williamson up at the restaurant where she worked in Laurens and then driving her two hours to his home in Monroe across the state line. The police believe the teenager was at Newton’s home in Bethphage Lane, south of Charlotte, NC.
Police suspect Joshua Newton of killing Kierstyn Williamson
Investigators believe Newton murdered the teenager, and that his live-in girlfriend Smith helped him dispose of the body.
Watch the Latest on our YouTube ChannelNewton has been charged with First Degree Murder and Obstruction of Justice, and Smith is charged with Obstruction of Justice and Accessory after the Fact. They are both in custody in Union County.
Sheriff Eddie Cathey said in a social media post, “My thoughts and prayers go out to the family of the victim in this case as they begin to mourn this unimaginable loss. Over the past several days, the men and women of the Union County Sheriff’s Office have fully dedicated themselves to this case and ensuring the people responsible for this tragic loss were brought to justice.”
Kierstyn Williamson family says she had trusting nature
Williamson’s uncle, Chad Bible, spoke to WSOC-TV lamenting the trusting nature of his niece and said she didn’t see the evil in anyone and wanted to be everyone’s friend.
Bible said, “She was a very, very, trusting… she didn’t see the evil in the world. That didn’t register with her, that wasn’t a thing with her. If people were her friends online, that was her friend. That was the way she was. She would have definitely seen them as somebody she could trust by being nice to her.”
Anyone with any information on this suspected homicide is asked to contact the Union County Sheriff’s Office at (704)283-3789 or Union County Crime Stoppers at (704)283-5600.