Audreona Barnes, 19, was hoping to join the Army and serve her country one day, family members said.
An Ohio man faces charges in connection with the death of a 19-year-old woman who had been missing since July. The body of the woman, Audreona Barnes, was found under a pile of clothes on the balcony of her former boyfriend's apartment, officials said, according to published news reports.
The suspect, identified as Bennie Washington, 39, has been charged with aggravated murder and gross abuse of a corpse in the fatal shooting of Audreona Barnes, according to cleveland.com.
Barnes was found on March 17 at approximately 6:33 p.m. when officers responded to 4370 Warner Road #1, according to a statement issued to Inside Edition Digital by the City of Cleveland, Police PIO Det. Alexander Sinclair. When officers arrived on the scene, they met a cleaning person who had found the body. The person stated that the previous tenant had been evicted on March 11, 2022.
According to the statement, the cleaning person told police that when moving a pile of clothes on the balcony they found the body. Emergency personnel arrived on the scene, and the victim was pronounced dead.
Police suggested the body had been put outside to facilitate decomposition, Law & Crime reported.
Washington had been found on Friday, but he reportedly fled another person’s home and then jumped out a window, according to reports. Police caught up with them on Saturday and he was arrested, Law & Crime reported
In the weeks leading up to the arrest, people had reportedly called police about Washington’s “erratic behavior in public,” the news outlet reported.
An autopsy held by the Cuyahoga County Medical Examiners Office indicated that someone shot Barnes in the head, court records say, according to WOIO- Cleveland 19 News. Officers found bullet casings near Barnes's body and a bullet hole in the inside wall of Washington’s former residence, The New York Post reported.
The young woman, who was reported missing on July 30 from Warrensville Heights, had visited a U.S. Army recruiting officer earlier in the day, police said, according to multiple news reports.
Barnes’ mother, Akua Avegnon, told police her daughter was last seen being dropped off at her boyfriend's house in Cleveland, WOIO- Cleveland 19 News reported.
Avegnon said she received a text but said it “didn’t seem like it came from her [daughter].” That was the last anyone had heard from Barnes, the news outlet reported.
Family members became very concerned when Barnes’ social media accounts were deactivated and her phone was turned off, WOIO reported.
Relatives said she had left her shoes and clothes at home and that she also had no money, Oxygen.com reported.
In Oct. 2021, Warrensville Heights Det. Gregory Curry said he did not rule out foul play in the young women's disappearance, WOIO reported.
According to the police detective, Army recruiters picked Barnes up at her boyfriend’s apartment and later dropped her off there, WOIO reported.
The detective said it was unclear to the recruiters if Barnes went back into her boyfriend's apartment or if she walked away once she was dropped off, the news outlet reported
She was last seen at a gas station at the intersection near Washington’s home. She spoke to a family member the same day about 2:30 p.m., cleveland.com previously reported.
Cleveland and Warrensville Heights police had searched for her since.
Det. Curry attempted to interview Barnes’ boyfriend but was unsuccessful WOIO reported.
Washington is being held at the Cuyahoga County Jail on a $2 million bond, Law & Crime reported. Records show he has no legal representation at this time, according to the new outlet.
A preliminary hearing is scheduled for April, Fox8 News reported.
On Tuesday afternoon a rally was held where friends, family, and activists gathered to remember Barnes, who had dreams of joining the Army one day and serving her country, according to Fox8 News.
Barnes' distraught mother accused the police of not doing enough when her daughter went missing, the news outlet reported.
In between sobs, she asked: “Where was y’all at when I asked for help?” Fox8 News reported.
Washington had several prior felony convictions, including a 2010 case in which he shot and wounded a woman in the back over a $40 cocaine debt, according to Cleveland.com. He was sentenced to seven years in prison in connection with that 2010 case, Law & Crime reported.
