Ashanti Billie's family, friends to hold service for murdered teen found in North Carolina
WASHINGTON - Family and friends will gather on Friday to say goodbye to Ashanti Billie, a young Prince George's County woman whose body was found in North Carolina after she was murdered.
Billie was found behind a church in Charlotte, which was hundreds of miles from her home in the Virginia Beach area. The 19-year-old, who graduated from Dr. Henry A. Wise Jr. High School in Prince George's County, had moved to the area for culinary school.
The teen vanished after heading to work at a sandwich shop on Joint Expeditionary Base Little Creek in Norfolk on Sept. 18. Her car was captured on surveillance video captured coming and going from the base, but details surrounding her murder are still unknown.
A spokesperson for the FBI in Norfolk said officials were planning to do a media push in in the Charlotte area as they try to get more information from the public.
RELATED: Friends gather in Prince George's county to remember Ashanti Billie
Investigators said they wanted to know if anyone in North Carolina recognized Billie or her vehicle. While Billie's Mini-Cooper was found in Norfolk, detectives said they believed it's possible the car may have been driven back to Norfolk from North Carolina.
The FBI said it is also seeking any private or commercial surveillance videos or dash-cam videos that may have captured Billie's Mini Cooper traveling between Hampton Roads and Charlotte from Sept. 18, and Sept. 23.
The cause of Billie's death has not yet been announced, but the FBI said it expects the medical examiner's final report soon.
A $20,000 reward that was being offered to help locate Billie is now being offered for information that leads to an arrest in her death.